By Xander Lundblad
Are you feeling the normal stress of a typical high schooler now that the semester is coming to a close? Is your stomach aching? Are your palms sweating? If you answered, “yes, that’s me!” then sit back and relax…for now. Finals are coming, but we’ve got you covered. Here are a few “how-to’s” that will hopefully make you more prepared to study for those dreaded final exams.
Sandra Lazzara, former high school teacher and current eighth-grade teacher at Mannheim Middle School offers some advice on how to best prepare for an exam. To start, she says to “turn off the technology.”
“Consider spending about 20 minutes a night reviewing notes, making flashcards or quizzing yourself,” she said. “Everyone is different. As a student, you need to know what type of learner you are.”
Lazzara suggests to not wait until the last minute to study. She recommends the following website, http://www.educationcorner.com/learning-styles.html for suggestions and tips on how to approach studying depending on your learning style.
Still, have those sweaty palms? You’re not alone. There are other freshmen who find themselves in the same exact position as you.
When asked what makes you most nervous about finals, Joshua Newburn, freshman, says he’s worried about “not being prepared enough and bombing the test.” He says to prevent this, “I’ll study the aspects I am weaker in and make sure I can be tested on those aspects.”
But if you want some advice from one of your upperclassmen, Bradley Balicki has you covered.
“The most important thing is to put schoolwork before anything else,” Balicki said. “I usually put my phone in another room for the least amount of distractions. I tend to study one subject per night. Also don’t take it like middle school, but don’t stress it too much. Know that anything can be on that test, so be aware of your class surroundings. Have high self esteem and avoid negative thoughts.”
Want more advice? According to http://www.fastweb.com/student-life/articles/the-20-study-tips-for-finals, some study strategies that students may benefit from include:
- Creating your own study guide. Making your own might help you understand the material better.
- Create a schedule and stick with it. Split the material up into groups, or “chunks” so you are not studying everything at one time.
- Study for the style of exam. Know definitions and concepts for multiple choice exams and the understanding of concepts, with examples, for essay-type tests.
Now that you have some study suggestions, how do you ward away stress? Believe in yourself. If you know the material and studied hard, then you will be fine! Plan to make time to study, eat well and get plenty of rest. You can get through this!