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Home Poetry Nook Articles Reviews Shero of The Month How To... Cookbook 'Zine Challenge Shero Links Submit Mailing List Guestbook Tell A Friend Forum Staff FAQ	How to do well in school - Venatrix School is here, and there is no denying it. 'Tis time to get back into the same old routine. Going to school, doing your extra-curriculars, homework, sleep, school, extra-curriculars, etc, etc. We're going to be balancing our busy schedules with some hard classes, and sometime our grades take a hit. There are ways to combat that, however, and they really aren't all that torturous. 1) Actually do your work. OK, so this one is torturous, but frankly, unless you do what you are assigned, then you won't learn it. Readings give you more in-depth explanations; practice problems are there to give you, what else, practice; worksheets give examples. Unless your teachers are simply evil, then they are giving these things to you to help you learn. Now, sometimes an activity will be given with the best intentions, but it's just not helping you. You are a master at you math problems but you are assigned 30, time consuming examples, along with work from other classes that does actually help you learn. It's OK to choose to do only what will help you, within reason. Don't do something that is wasting your time if you could be using it more productively. Do the last five of your math problems, presuming that the last ones are the hardest, and if you get them ALL correct, skip the others and work on something productive. Coloring maps doesn't help you learn the different regions, study in a way that does help you learn them. However, only do this on things that will not be graded. Don't skip the problems if your teacher will deduct points. It's horrible to get a lower grade than your knowledge deserves just because you didn't do the work. Granted, this is risky business, it's taking your learning into your own hands and if it doesn't work, then you have no one to blame but yourself. Make sure that you do end up learning the material, and try what you teacher recommends, it might surprise you how well the techniques do help, even if it didn't seem like they would in the beginning. Still, give yourself the power to say "no" to things that waist your time. 2) Review the material as you go along. Do you have a study hall? A homeroom? A section in your day when you usually just sit around not doing anything? During these periods, review your work. You'll be amazed by how much you can get out of a 10 minute study session. Do that every day, and you'll be prepared for pop quizzes; when it comes to a real test, you'll know just which study methods work the best for you. Not to mention that you won't have to study (or cram) nearly as much. 3) Ask for help when needed. Teachers like it when students take an active role in their education and don't just sit there on the ride. Teachers like to help students learn. You like to learn. You will learn a ton more with your teacher helping then if you simply keep trying it on your own. Squicked out by working one-on-one with a teacher? See if any of your friends and classmates are having similar difficulties and ask for help together. Again, study halls or homerooms are ideal times for help beyond whatever you ask for during your class. You could also arrange to meet after school, or even before school. Teachers are often there a while before most of the students get there. 4) Stay organized. Keep track of your assignments and their due dates. I like to use a planner with 2 pages per week and with calendar pages for each month. One of my friends just uses a notebook. It doesn't matter what it is, as long as it works. Also keep all your things for each class organized. My favorite way is a binder with loose leaf paper. I'll hole punch any handouts and stick them in with any notes in chronological order. It normally doesn't stay so neat, but before each test I'll go back and organize before studying, then I'll know that all the material on each subject is right there. One year, I used an expandable file and had a slot for each subject, so I had all of my papers with me at all times. Other people like to use spiral bound notebooks, though I never liked them as much because I couldn't rearrange the notes as I could with binders. However, the point still remains that it doesn't matter what you use, as long as it work.
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How to do well in school

School is here, and there is no denying it. 'Tis time to get back into the same old routine.   Going to school, doing your extra-curriculars, homework, sleep, school, extra-curriculars, etc, etc.  We're going to be balancing our busy schedules with some hard classes, and sometime our grades take a hit.  There are ways to combat that, however, and they really aren't all that torturous.

1) Actually do your work.  OK, so this one is torturous, but frankly, unless you do what you are assigned, then you won't learn it.  Readings give you more in-depth explanations; practice problems are there to give you, what else, practice; worksheets give examples.  Unless your teachers are simply evil, then they are giving these things to you to help you learn.  Now, sometimes an activity will be given with the best intentions, but it's just not helping you.  You are a master at you math problems but you are assigned 30, time consuming examples, along with work from other classes that does actually help you learn.  It's OK to choose to do only what will help you, within reason.  Don't do something that is wasting your time if you could be using it more productively.  Do the last five of your math problems, presuming that the last ones are the hardest, and if you get them ALL correct, skip the others and work on something productive.  Coloring maps doesn't help you learn the different regions, study in a way that does  help you learn them.  However, only do this on things that will not be graded.  Don't skip the problems if your teacher will deduct points.  It's horrible to get a lower grade than your knowledge deserves just because you didn't do the work.
Granted, this is risky business, it's taking your learning into your own hands and if it doesn't work, then you have no one to blame but yourself.  Make sure that you do end up learning the material, and try what you teacher recommends, it might surprise you how well the techniques do help, even if it didn't seem like they would in the beginning.  Still, give yourself the power to say "no" to things that waist your time.

2) Review the material as you go along. Do you have a study hall?  A homeroom?  A section in your day when you usually just sit around not doing anything? During these periods, review your work.  You'll be amazed by how much you can get out of a 10 minute study session.  Do that every day, and you'll be prepared for pop quizzes; when it comes to a real test, you'll know just which study methods work the best for you. Not to mention that you won't have to study (or cram) nearly as much.

3) Ask for help when needed.  Teachers like it when students take an active role in their education and don't just sit there on the ride.  Teachers like to help students learn.  You like to learn.  You will learn a ton more with your teacher helping then if you simply keep trying it on your own.  Squicked out by working one-on-one with a teacher?  See if any of your friends and classmates are having similar difficulties and ask for help together.  Again, study halls or homerooms are ideal times for help beyond whatever you ask for during your class.  You could also arrange to meet after school, or even before school.  Teachers are often there a while before most of the students get there.

4) Stay organized.  Keep track of your assignments and their due dates.  I like to use a planner with 2 pages per week and with calendar pages for each month.  One of my friends just uses a notebook.  It doesn't matter what it is, as long as it works.  Also keep all your things for each class organized.  My favorite way is a binder with loose leaf paper.  I'll hole punch any handouts and stick them in with any notes in chronological order.  It normally doesn't stay so neat, but before each test I'll go back and organize before studying, then I'll know that all the material on each subject is right there.   One year, I used an expandable file and had a slot for each subject, so I had all of my papers with me at all times.  Other people like to use spiral bound notebooks, though I never liked them as much because I couldn't rearrange the notes as I could with binders.  However, the point still remains that it doesn't matter what you use, as long as it work.