Study Habits
Studying can be a pain, especially if you don’t know the right way to do it! Likewise, maintaining your grades throughout high school can be difficult if your study habits aren’t effective. And without good grades, it can be hard to maximize your chances of going to your chosen college. Instead, let’s review how you can improve your study habits for good.
Successful students know how to make the most of their time, and use study strategies that are most helpful to them. They know the best ways to study that help them learn best. Here are some tips to improve your study habits to improve your test scores and get you into your dream colleges.
Make studying a daily habit.
Successful students know how to manage their time wisely. They know how to make time for school, family, friends, and extracurriculars. Including studying your daily routine is a great way to improve your study habits. Studying regularly everyday will teach you to be a better student and teach you consistency. It will also eliminate a lot of stress from your life and will be a useful skill when you get to college. Look at your schedule and make note of all your daily commitments. After doing this, schedule a study session each day. Learn to be flexible because sometimes things will not always go your way and your schedule will change!
Remove distractions.
Wonder why you can’t focus? Maybe it’s because your phone is on the desk in front of you, ringing with notifications and tempting you to pick it up. Or, it’s because your friend is in the room, trying to talk to you and constantly interrupting your train of thought. Perhaps it’s the loud rock music your brother is blasting in his room. Be smart when you study!
Eliminate all distractions. You know yourself best and what will be distracting to you, so study somewhere that has no distractions. Turn off your phone and put it in a room. If someone is distracting you, kindly ask them to leave. If your sibling is playing loud music in their room, ask them to turn it down or go to the library. Be sure to study in an environment that motivates you to study and won’t divert your attention. Distractions can be annoying and can interrupt a good study session, making it an unproductive one.
Ask for help.
This is something that most students fail to do and is could be the difference between a failing and successful student. Ask your teachers for help! Let down your pride and shyness and just ask. Teachers love when students ask questions, so make the most of your class time and ask questions, even if it’s just to clarify.
Don’t be afraid to stay after class for a little while if you need a little extra help either. Doing this will also teach you to be proactive in life and will be beneficial when you go to college. It will teach you to take an active approach in everything you do! Asking questions and showing that you’re a hard worker will also win your teachers over for sure and is much better than having no relationship at all. Your teacher might even grade your papers a little easier, and you might even be able to get a letter of recommendation for college!
Don’t procrastinate.
Procrastination will forever be the number one enemy of high school students everywhere. It may be hard, but learn to stop being a procrastinator.
If you have a test coming up, study one chapter of your textbook every day of the week! This way you won’t be cramming all the information in your head the night before, losing sleep, and stressing yourself out for no reason.
If you are assigned a major project, break the project, down into small tasks so you are not overwhelmed. Tackle one task at a time. This will allow you to feel a small sense of accomplishment every time you finish a task and make the project seem more doable.
Another tip to prevent procrastination is to provide a reward or punishment for whatever you do. If you finish your homework on time, you can go watch that new movie with your friends! If you procrastinate and don’t do it, don’t allow yourself to go out.
Take a break.
Be sure to remember to take a break and not kill yourself in the process of studying! School is important but so is your health. Don’t study to the point where you are fatigued and losing sleep. Don’t stress yourself out too much that your mental health is suffering! If you’ve been studying for hours and starting to feel tired, take a ten or fifteen minute break. Don’t feel bad for taking a break; your brain is tired and needs rest in order to function properly. You can push yourself to study for long amounts of time, but retain little information. It is more productive for you to break up the studying into thirty minute sessions with a small break in between. Trust me, your brain will thank you!
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