Top 9 Study Tips
I've decided to share some of my top 9 study tips! Studying for exams can be hard, but can be made easy if you follow these tips. Keep on reading to learn some tips and tricks.
1 Organise your work/study space Do you have enough space to lay all your books out? Is everything out of the way? Is your phone out of the way? If not, you might need to organise your work/study space. In order to get a great deal of work done, having a clear table is a start. If you have games, glasses and more junk on the table you won’t be able to focus and get anything done. Move your games and everything that is not related to studying/work off the table. By doing this you are removing the distraction. Make sure you feel comfortable sitting at your table. If you are uncomfortable, you won’t be able to study. Invest in a comfy chair. It will be worth it in the long run. Have all your work material out on the table. This is so you know what you need to study and what not to. Make sure you have enough room on your table to have all your books spread out!
2 Take regular breaks Now that your table is clear and you are studying like there is no tomorrow! Make sure you take breaks. Otherwise, you will burn yourself out! This is not a good thing. You cannot sit there and study for 4 hours without having at least a 5-minute break! If you have a break, you are taking the time to get yourself together again. Grab yourself a drink and a snack and watch a funny YouTube video. Also, learn to take a day off. You have a weekend for a reason. Spend at least 1 day of the weekend relaxing and doing something you love. You can hang out with friends or your family! No one says that you have to study 24/7. This is not good for your body and honestly, you are stressing yourself out.
3 Learn when you study best. If you study better in the morning, then study then. You are a night owl like me, then study during the night. However, do NOT stay up past 11 when studying during the night. You won’t really take anything in and you have to make sure you get a good sleep for the next day! If you are an early bird, then wake up early and get your head in the books! Make sure you have breakfast and something to drink first. You will want to get your work done as fast as you can but take your time. If you are a night owl than spend the afternoon preparing for your late night study session. I do recommend reading some things over in the afternoon and then the hard-core study session can happen later tonight. Always have something to eat and drink before you start. Take a bottle of water with you! Again, never study past 11, because you will just be tired!
4 Give yourself time. You MUST give yourself time to study and prepare for an exam or a long essay. You cannot cram everything into one night! Do not expect to come out like Einstein when you spend 12 hours before the exam studying. It may work or some people, but for the majority, it doesn’t. You need to give yourself at least a week or so to start studying. If it is for your final, you need to give yourself a few months! Do not rush perfection. Take your time and study hard.
5 Setting yourself some goals. These can range anything from completing the homework or getting a certain chapter memorised. However, they have to be realistic goals! They cannot be something like “I’m going to complete this 600-page book and write 50 pages of notes” If you can do that, then go ahead! But I don’t recommend it! You will burn yourself out before you even start! Set a goal like “Complete reading chapter 5 and start notes” Don’t start anything else, until this is done. Then set another goal “Start reading chapter 6 and start notes” Then do this until it is completed. If your goals are realistic then you will be able to do them!
6 Having a study plan This is much like setting goals. If you have a plan, you can stick to it! If you stick to it, you will be able to complete all your goals for the day. If you are walking into a test not knowing what the heck to do, your study plan may not have been effective. Make sure it is simple and easy to follow!
7 Using practice tests. If a subject requires you to take a theory test, then test yourself. You can use the questions in the textbook or you can look up past papers. Past papers can be found anywhere on the internet, but you can also ask your teacher for some of this! If you are testing yourself, you know exactly what the test if asking you and what they aren’t. You will also go into the exam knowing the type of questions asked and you will be more prepared. The more you test yourself, the more prepared you will be!
8 Having a routine. This is almost like having a study plan. However, you incorporate your study plan into your routine. If you study physics on a Sunday but on Tuesday it is s study free day, this is your study routine. Your routine also involved being in a specific study area. This is because your brain will automatically know that if you sit in your study area, it means work!
9 Studying with friends If you can’t really study by yourself, then form a study group. The downside to this is finding people who won’t mess about. Make sure that the people you are in the group with want to study just as much as you do. If being in a study group does not work for you, then do not go into one. It is just one more distraction to add to the list.
You can share notes with each other and help each other with questions if you are struggling. If you friend doesn’t understand then you can explain to them in a term
