Study Skills and Tips

From TeenHealthCentre.com

Information Centre
Study Skills and Tips
By Teen Health Centre
Jan 26, 2005, 18:45

Although nobody likes to do it, studying is the one of the most important components of your success in school. Learning how to study effectively is one of the most important things you’ll take away from your school experience and if you’re in high school it will make the transition to college or university MUCH easier. Good study skills make learning easier for you and provide you with good habits for your future endeavors whatever they may be.

WHAT’S YOUR LEARNING STYLE?

In order to learn how to study effectively, it’s important for you to know what kind of learning style you have. This will help you find a way to study that best fits your needs. There are three learning styles.

VISUAL- Visual learners do best with graphics, charts etc. They visualize in order to obtain the most knowledge. A visual learner should always look at the teacher when he or she is lecturing. It’s also important to participate in class discussions. Visual learners study best alone, copying information learned onto paper.
AUDITORY- Auditory learners work best if they can hear the material. So it’s very important to listen carefully in class in order to take in all the information. When you’re studying you should go over your notes and talk to yourself about the most important points. After reading, summarize aloud what you have just read. Speak to yourself and explain things as if you were having a conversation with someone. It might sound a little weird, but it works!
HAPTIC- Haptic learners are people who have a hard time sitting still while studying. They sometimes pace around, or may need to have the TV or radio on in order to concentrate. They are always finding themselves distracted. It may not sound like it, but this type of learning is just as effective as the other two, you just have to adapt to it and find a way of studying that suits you. Fighting against your nature will only make it worse! Haptic learners need to make studying a physical activity. You can try standing or pacing, chewing gum or exercising. Studying is more effective for a haptic learner if colour is used. Highlight all the most important passages in your textbook and notes. You need to vary your activities. If you feel your brain getting “clogged”, find something else to do for a few minutes to keep your mind from wandering. Try skimming over your notes or a chapter in your textbook to pick out the most important points.

Ok, now that you know your learning style here are some general tips to help you get your study environment ready for a session.

Make sure your environment is comfortable and relatively quiet (some people need a little noise to study).
Consider letting your family and friends know you’re studying so that disturbances are minimized and you won’t be tempted to stop studying.
Make sure it’s cool. A study space that’s too warm can make you sleepy and that’s not good for concentration.
Make sure you have plenty of room to work; don’t be cramped.
A desk with a straight-backed chair works best for studying. No matter how tempting it may be, don’t curl up on your bed to study.
Have everything you need close at hand (books, pens, pencils, highlighters, and calculators).

Here are some suggestions to make studying for that big test easier on yourself even before you actually start.

Be in class. It’s much easier to recall information you’ve already learned in class than having to learn all new material right before a test or exam.
Understand your teacher. Be aware of his/her testing format, marking scheme and expectations.
Set goals to accomplish in each subject area. If you set a goal of a specific time period for each subject you’re much more likely to accomplish more of it and faster.
Start homework, projects and readings as soon as they’re assigned. It’s just easier and less stressful than waiting till the last minute. Piles of homework take away from study time and make it much more difficult to catch up when its time for that big test.
Take good notes in class and review them. This is the key to understanding a subject well.
Set specific study times. Set a time when you review you notes daily. After awhile when that time of the day rolls around your body will know it’s study time! This will make studying much easier in the long run.
Study in the same place. When you study in the same place all the time your mind will automatically kick into study mode when you’re in that area.
Make sure you’re awake while you study! It’s better to study during daylight hours. If you must study at night and you begin to feel drowsy, give in. It’s better to let your mind get the rest it needs and to finish studying in the morning.

Now that you’ve discovered your learning style, how to make your space “study friendly” and how to get ahead before studying, here are some methods and tips on how to study in general.

Use your class notes and highlighted textbook to study. Most likely, the information that came up most often will be the information you’ll be tested on.
Study your most difficult subjects first. You’re most conscious when you first sit down to study, so it’s easier to understand the hard stuff then. With the “worst” subjects out of the way, it’ll make studying seem much easier.
Make flash cards with the most important points. Even the act of writing the facts on the flash cards will help you to remember the info.
Use MNEMONIC DEVICES (we’ll explain this later) to help you remember lists and parts of something.
Study with a friend. Compare notes for missed points, quiz each other and discuss themes and good essay questions.
Make studying visual. Make charts, diagrams, and drawings, to help you remember everything.
Study past quizzes-lots of times the same questions will pop up on a final. Also, you get to see the teacher’s testing style.
Try to “overlearn” material. Study the answers so that they come easily to you.
Repetition is the key to remembering. Go over the material lots whether it’s verbally or as you’re writing it down.

MNEMONIC DEVICES

These are memory tricks that help you to remember lists or parts of something. Here are some examples:

For items that don’t have to be remembered in any particular order, take their first letters and see if you can arrange a word to help you remember. For example, the names of the Great Lakes can be remembered by using the word HOMES.
For items that must be learned in order, make up a sentence using their first letters in order. For example, the first letters in the words of the sentence, “My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas” will tell you the planets in order from the sun outward.
If you like music, try setting information to a tune or rhythm.

10 Study Time Savers

Here are ten tips to make study time quicker and easier for you.

Prioritize. Do what’s most important first. Don’t spend 2 hours on something that should take you 15 minutes just to avoid doing other work.
Don’t procrastinate. Getting something done ASAP is much easier.
Divide large, though tasks into smaller chunks. Study in short but frequent sessions. Try fifty minutes sessions followed by ten minute breaks.
Find a hideaway.
Learn to say “No” to invitations from family and friends when you’ve got something important to do.
Accumulate similar tasks and do them all at once.
Avoid perfectionism. Don’t waste time worrying about something you can’t affect, just do your best.
Avoid over-commitment. Be realistic about what you can do.
Concentrate!!!
Finish up as you go and get it right the first time. Don’t leave a task hanging in the middle just because you don’t feel like finishing it. You’re just making it harder on yourself.