12 Steps to High School Success

  1.  SET UP A STUDY PLACE.

• Those students you see “studying” in the lounge probably aren’t learning much. Why?

• You can’t learn when you are being distracted by people and noise.

• When might the library even be a bad choice to study?

• It takes guts to sit, alone, in a quiet place to study, but you have to do it.

• Find a room at home or a “boring” spot in the library, where there’s nothing much to do except study.

 2.   GET INTO A “STUDY FRAME OF MIND”

• Study with the attitude of, “I’m really going to get this done.”

• Don’t doodle on your notebook or fantasize about Brittany Spears or Nelly.

• Determine to hit the books earlier, so that you move on to other things later, which leads to stress reduction.

 3.   GIVE YOURSELF REWARDS

• If you sweat out a block of study time successfully, TREAT YOURSELF!

• Psyche yourself up beforehand with the idea that you’ll reward yourself afterwards

• Name some rewards that might encourage you for studying…

 4.   “SKIM” THE TEXTBOOK FIRST

• Look at the title, the subtitles, the chapter headings or anything set in bold print, the pictures and the first and last paragraphs of the sections you are to read.

• Ask : what do the main topics or main points in each chapter appear to be? (jot down)

• Discover the value and the benefit of “skimming” your assignments and reading material first, BEFORE you step in!

 5.    TAKE NOTES AFTER CLASS

• Go back over notes you took in class, fill in abbreviations/incomplete areas

• Jot down key words and phrases into your notebook from your text

• Emphasize definitions, examples, lists, and main ideas from notes and texts

• In other words, get a grip on BIG IDEAS/IMPORTANT CONCEPTS

 6.    REVIEW AFTER READING AND TAKING NOTES

• Talking out loud to yourself may work!

• Tell yourself about the important parts of the chapter.

OR

• Talk to yourself in your head, without saying a word

OR

• Go find your Mom or Dad or Spot and hold a conversation with them about what you’ve just learned

A TIP: If you can’t talk about what you’ve just read, that’s a sure sign you don’t really know it.

 7.   GIVE UP!

• Know when you’ve had enough

• Try to study in block times of at least one hour

• Ten minutes here and there are basically useless

• If your head starts to pound or your eyes turn red, quit.

• Rest for a bit with a short nap, listen to some music, watch a ½ hour sitcom, go back to the books a reasonable amount of time later

 8.  GET HELP IF YOU NEED IT

• What’s the “easy way out” when you don’t understand something?

• What’s the “smart way out” when you don’t understand something?

• Find a study buddy, form a study group, talk to your teacher, or take advantage of the Resource Lab/Learning Center or the library!

9.   PREPARE A WEEKLY CALENDAR

• Use your U-High Agenda book

• Give yourself an overview of the unit by marking down the due dates for papers/projects as your teacher gives them to you.

• Circle or put a sticker on test days or “project due” days.

• NEVER let something sneak up on you unexpectedly!

 10.   MAKE UP A STUDY SCHEDULE

• Make up a sheet listing the days and hours you have something going on during the week.

•   Fill in your class and extracurricular activities first, then try to block out some study hours

• Schedule study hours for your hardest classes for the times you feel the most energetic

• Estimate approximately one hour of study time per classes with homework assignments

•  Schedule in block of free time, too

11.   USE “TO DO” LISTS

• For each new day, write out a list of everything you need to accomplish.

• “Everything” could mean from “work on English paper” to “buy pizza for lunch!” It’s up to you.

• After you finish something, cross it off your list.

• Remember: Don’t take on more than you can handle (prioritize)

• Get the most important things done first, secondary things can be moved to the next list. (important V. urgent)

12.  DON’T ACT LIKE A ZOMBIE

• Show up for your classes, but more importantly…

• Do something while you’re there!

• Really listen (open ears/close mouth) take notes, ask questions and participate in discussions (open mouth when appropriate)

• Act maturely, take your high school career seriously

• Class clowns only end up entertaining themselves. (Are we laughing with you or just laughing AT you?)

•  If Math or English bores you, determine to make the best of it and

• realize that you must make it through a less-than-favorite class in order to graduate and achieve what you want

• Determine in yourself to fulfill the requirements and be done with it once and for all, rather than fail and have to sit through it all over again.

• Finally, look upon this time in your life as an exciting time

• Enjoy learning new things, and see for yourself that the world is truly a unique and interesting place!