Study methods

How do you guys study? Do you just sit at a desk, take out a textbook and cram it all in for 5 hours straight?

No.

For starters, it’s unlikely you will have “5 hours straight” based upon the time when dinner/clubs end and when lights out occurs. It’s more effective to take short breaks at regular intervals, e.g. after you finish math and before you start English.

How you use your time (and time management skills are critical) will depend upon the school and its daily schedule. Personally, I’ve used my free time during the day to knock out some assignments.

Also, it’s a good idea to figure out if you are an auditory or visual learner. I am a visual learner - when my kids ask me homework questions while I’m cooking I have to walk over and LOOK at the question to be able to answer it. When I was actually in school (and before I got so old) it wasn’t quite so bad but I knew that I was better at learning in certain ways. Knowing things like this about yourself can help you study more effectively. For instance, I would copy info I wanted to learn, as I copied I was reading and then writing it down. While I don’t have a photographic memory, during a test I could kind of visualize the info and that helped my recall.

@YoungThriver - here are some study and classroom tips that hope may help you out :-B

Schools differ in how they structure study hours and study locations. At Groton, for example, they have the old “school room” where the younger classes do their homework. Some schools do not want you in your dorm room alone to study and have study spaces. Other schools have only library study for “uppers”. Some schools have you study in your dorm room with the door open. Generally, schools will have set study hours - but it is a good idea to ask about this during your visits to determine what may work best for you. Some schools have a strict lights out policy and no internet after a certain hour. FWIW we hear that the library is a bit of a social scene at many schools - this works for some students, but may fuel distractions for others. In any event, you will need more study time than you can imagine…so keep this in mind in the fall when you are eager to sign up for all those fun clubs. You have to leave time to shower, as well as brush & flush.

Here are some basic study tips for BS:

  • Determine the scoring or grading rubric your teacher uses. Some teachers will tell you this at the start of the year, or even the start of an assignment.
  • Keep the printed course syllabus that most teachers hand out at the start of the year or semester. These tend to get pushed to the bottom of the backpack, but it will help you know the “course” of the course. There usually is a method to the madness when it comes to why teachers are giving you types of assignments and in which order. Know and plan for what is coming ahead.
  • Ask yourself “why is the teacher giving me this assignment?”, “What is the purpose of this exercise or set of problems, or essay”. This “tees you up” for successfully giving the teacher what teacher wants. Determine if you are to prove that you know a concept, a specific skill or procedure (like in math or science), or a collection of facts.
  • Ask yourself “what does this assignment or homework have to do with what we did in class or lab today?”
  • Be prepared to APPLY WHAT YOU KNOW on tests. Often, students will complain that the test items were nothing like what was covered in class or in the book. In this type of test situation, teachers may demand that you can actually apply a concept or balancing act (this happens often in math, Physics, Chem). BTW, in middle school, Kiddo had tests that commanded rote learning and memorizing.....but at BS it’s a whole other story! Just memorizing is not enough.
  • Know the context of the material you are reading in English and History. Many schools are now coordinating curricula, or making an overall Humanities program. For example, in 20th Century US History you may be learning about the Cold War and McCarthyism. In English, your teacher may assign The Crucible.
  • Use your free periods wisely - do not waste those precious hours during the day.
  • Try to use low-tech methods for studying because it actually helps the information sink in better (this includes taking notes, making flash cards, annotating). Don’t simply rely on making quizlets - but they do help for memorizing.
  • Be prepared to annotate in English - teachers like to have you do this.
  • Geometry is going higher tech - last year, Geometry homework and assignments were all on the computer or iPad device. For at least one student we know, drawing on the device, problem solving this way, was hard to get used to and a bit uncomfortable at first.
  • Take advantage of your teachers’ office hours!! Some teachers actually count this for your participation grade. In BS, teachers may actually do some the “explaining” and contextual work during office hours - more like office audiences for some classes. It’s not like middle school when you only went to the teacher if there was an issue.
  • Check your email frequently during the day for pop up homework assignments and/or changes - do not just rely on what the teacher said in class @ homework.
  • Read the directions on tests and assignments. They are there for a reason. Do not do what you want, do what the teacher wants and what the teacher told you to do!

PM for more information, if needed. Bon Chance, mes amis!

And know what time of day is best for you. My kid studies in the morning before classes begin and later after dinner. Also using free periods to get work out of the way may be one of the ways to do your best.

@Golfgr8 ‘s tips are (of course!) great. I may show it to my son, in fact. I think HS is when you really figure out how to study and how YOU learn most effectively (alone/in a group, when/where, visual/auditory, etc). Your advisor, teachers, and if needed tutors can help with study skills, and hopefully your school will give you some flexibility as to finding the right place. DS got permission from his advisor to spend study hall in the English office when neither his dorm room nor the library was working out great.

@Golfgr8 Thank you for providing an explanation for the use of the old “school room” at Groton. We assumed it was mostly used as a museum set-piece.

Something important I had to learn was when I was more productive studying with others and when I should just go back to my dorm and study by myself. At Andover, we have a lot of public spaces open during study hours, but we also have Silent Study in our library. Picking a good study spot for yourself is key!