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The Moser Messenger: Exam Preparation Tips (brought to you by Mrs. Bonnyman)
Nov 30, 2012 11:09 AM
By Abraham Johnson '15 - '15
With exams a little more than a week away, it seems almost required that we have an academic mental breakdown. Mrs, Bonnyman from the Teaching and Learning Center has some tips for keeping your head while studying your brains out:
1. Plan ahead so you can get enough sleep. People process information when they sleep, so sleep helps you know information!
1. Plan ahead so you can get enough sleep. People process information when they sleep, so sleep helps you know information!
2. Students should be going to a coach class every day now, if for no other reason to ask the teacher to give them an exam-like question to answer on the board. This is especially helpful for math and science. If students don't know the format of the exam yet, ask! Studying for short answers and essays is different than studying for multiple choice.
So with our study schedule looking like a boot camp to prepare for a scene out of "Rambo," Moser House is ready for the last stand before a relaxing Christmas break.
3. Everyone should know how they work best, timing their studying. Some people have to work in short chunks of time with short breaks (like 20/5 minutes), while others do better immersing themselves for long periods of time. Either way, for the next two weekends, students should be studying most of the time, and doing shorter chunks during the week as they can work it in. They should make a basic plan of what they will study at what time. By now, everyone should have all the correct answers to quizzes and tests and all notes organized. They should know what they have to study or practice. If they don't, they better get on it fast!
4. For memorizing, lots of people are helped by movement, so a slow walk where you don't have to pay attention where you walk (like up and down the hall, or around a track) really helps engage the brain. Or a rocking chair can be good, too. Diagramming a chapter for visual learners helps them a lot -- use colors to help remember chunks of information. Remember, we remember information in chunks (like phone numbers). Order your information by topic, then the bullets of the topic. This is the only way to remember history.
5. Study buddies are only good if true studying is going on -- comparing notes, getting concepts clarified, and quizzing each other. Ask a student who had the teacher last year what the exam was like. Stay away from distracting people. Self-motivate by saying things like "I can rest and have fun on the long Christmas break" or "Grades translate directly to money for scholarships" or "It will be worth studying now so my parents will not be annoying all the break."
6. Before studying, stay away from a lot of carbs without protein; a meal of carbs can make a person sleepy. Sugar is like a drug -- you get a spike then a crash. This said, bring a bag of plain M&M's to the exam (works especially well for the SAT) if you fear losing focus and mental energy. Caffeine is like a mild stimulant. The sugar coating on the M&M's drive the caffeine into the bloodstream quickly, but this has to be a well-planned attack because of the crash in two hours. Remember protein levels blood sugar, so it prevents crashes. Here is another fun fact, it is now proven by research fish oil pills helps your brain work better.
So with our study schedule looking like a boot camp to prepare for a scene out of "Rambo," Moser House is ready for the last stand before a relaxing Christmas break.
