Studying

This week puts us A.P. students at about a month out from the big test. Its hard to believe that the test is approaching so quickly and it's even harder to comprehend all of the knowledge we, as students, have gained in the past few months. For students such as myself, the idea of taking this test is both a point of pride and anxiety. Pride because I've made it so far. Anxiety because it's not quite over yet. In preparation for the big day I've been researching effective ways to study. After learning about studying I decided to write my blog on it in order to share some of these study ideas with other A.P. students.


First I learned that studying is much simpler if you know your learning style. There are three different learning styles; auditory, visual, and kinesthetic. They're are many ways to figure out your learning style, the simplest being to look back on classes where you found the information easy to 'absorb', although, the most accurate could be taking an online test. Once you figure out your learning style, tailor your study sessions to that style. It will make the studying easier and quicker.


Another essential aspect to studying successfully is to create a strong study plan. No matter if you're studying for an A.P. test or a weekly vocabulary test, time management could very well be the most important part of your study plan. It is suggested that students keep a calendar or agenda of each of their test dates (amongst other parts of their academic life) and plan out specific times to study for each test.


Motivation is the third part to being a successful studier. Pessimism towards a test, or a subject in general, will not make you a successful student and can negatively effect your test grades.


Figure out the best way for you to concentrate. For me, I concentrate best in a dim and quite room. Other people like to study outdoors, with music playing, or with white-water noise. Try different methods of concentration to see which one helps you best.


I hope that some of these study ideas will help you study for your upcoming A.P. exams, finals, or other test. Good luck!