STUDY FOR SUCCESS

“Developing work habits that will help you now and in the future.”

ST. JEAN DE BREBEUF LIBRARY INFORMATION CENTRE

Why Study?• Any habit becomes stronger and more readily

accessible the sooner it is established. Experts say it takes 21 days of reinforcement for most habits to stick. Learning the most effective study habits now will set you up to successfully face the many challenges of school work in the future.

• Whether you’re a student who learns quickly or one who takes a little longer, you will achieve more with good study habits especially as you advance to the higher grades where work becomes more challenging.

• The need to learn doesn’t end when you leave school. In the adult world you need to be able to study in order to:

• Acquire any type of license (driving, boating, sporting)

• Keep up to date with changes in technology• Pass exams required to maintain a job• Complete almost all types of repairs • Make good financial decisions• Assist your own children with their schooling

• One of the most important reasons for learning to study is that it helps to build self-confidence. When you “know that you know” it makes it easier to achieve the goals that you set for yourself!

Hard Work should be Rewarded!

Short RangeMotivation

Study science for 2 hours

Watch music videosfor 30 minutes

Pass midterm in English

Go snowboarding for the day

You will need supplies!Here are the basics:

• For holding your notes you will need a sturdy three-ring, loose-leaf binder (many teachers insist that you have a single binder for each course). Alternatively, you will need folders in different colours, one for each class, plus some extras. Folders should have two inside pockets (for handouts, assignments, etc…) and fasteners for three-hole paper.

• Lots of lined, three-holed, loose-leaf paper

• A box of hole reinforcements (tears happen)

• A pad of scratch paper

• Ballpoint pens, #2 pencils, erasers

• Highlighters to color directly over notes or handouts but never to be used in text books or library books.

• Fine-point coloured markers to draw attention to important review material

• Tape, glue stick, paper clips, stapler, ruler

Specific classes may require additional items:

• Math: compass, protractor, graph paper, calculator

• English: dictionary, thesaurus, style manual

• Art: portfolio, paint set, brushes, scissors, etc..

Finding a Great Work Space• Ideally, your work space should be able to

accommodate a comfortable chair, a desk or table, bookshelves and drawers for storage. A hanging bulletin board for notes and a calendar outlining due dates are very helpful. A wastebasket and clock important items.

• A good reading lamp is essential.

• Your work space should be the same from day to day. This will save you time since your things will be set up and ready to go. Familiarity will also help you to develop the mind set needed to focus and get down to work especially on days when it isn’t easy.

• If you’re easily distracted the noise of televisions, telephones and stereos should be minimized.

At School

• Get to class on time. When you’re late you miss valuable focus time, information and questions.

• Eat right during the day. Eating too little can make it hard for you to focus. Eating too much can make you feel sleepy.

• Make sure you’ve had enough sleep the night before – it gives you the stamina you require throughout the day

Two Systems for Note KeepingThree-Ring Binder System• One binder per course• Large supply of paper• Label clearly with name,

grade, course and teacher• Separate contents into Units of

Study using dividers• Keep a section for extra loose

leaf paper and returned assignments

• Repair torn holes right away• Once a week look for papers

that can be thrown out or removed and stored in a course-specific folder at home for exam review later.

Coloured-Folder system• Different coloured folder for

each class• Durable material with inside

pockets on both covers• Metal fasteners that hold

three-ring, lined, loose-leaf paper.

• Clearly labeled with name, grade, course and teacher.

• Place a supply of loose-leaf paper in each folder using the fasteners.

• Use one pocket for graded and returned papers. Use the other pocket for assignments in progress or to be turned in.

• One additional folder for notes, permission forms, to do lists, daily schedule, etc..

Note Taking

• Have in class: binder, pen (an extra just in case), textbook

• If time permits open your binder to last day’s notes to quickly review where you left off.

• At the beginning of each new class write your name, course name and date at the top of your notes

• Use ink since it remains legible longer• Sit where you can see and hear without distraction• Use point form only so that you do not fall behind in the

lesson

Two Important Goals of Note Taking:

1) Make a well-organized record of the most important information

2) Understand what it means and how it connects to other things you have learned in the unit or course.

“Good note takers write 20% of the time and listen the other 80%”

The Role of Verbal Cues in Note Taking

Teachers can sometimes give hints about information that is vital for you to know. Listen and make sure to record information that is introduced by phrases like:

• “pay particular attention to,”• “the basic idea is,”• “don’t forget that,”• “most of all remember that,”

Teachers use body language too!• Most people, including your teachers, use body

language to emphasize their spoken words:• A teacher may have the habit of removing her eyeglasses

before making an important point.• Some people have a way of pausing and looking around the

room before saying something especially important• Some teachers slow down or speak more loudly when

emphasizing a point• Sometimes teachers will repeat information in order to

convey that it is important to know

This is your cue to get it down in your notes!

Studying for Different Purposes

Think about your daily work load as a whole. Look at each assignment and decide what your goal is ahead of time. Are you:• studying for a test,• reviewing for a class discussion/debate, • trying to reinforce newly acquired information, • reading to locate important quotes for an essay

Keep your goal for each task in mind and it will help you to focus and decide how much time you will require for each of your assigned tasks.

Reading Strategies

• Scanning: Is done quickly to get a general sense of the structure of the reading material. A book may be scanned to find a quick fact or definition

• Skimming: Is done to discover main ideas and topics. You should read titles and subtitles, check paragraphs for names or dates and look at illustrations, charts and graphs. Skimming is usually a pre-reading activity done to get a sense of the material before reading for more detail.

• Reading for Detail: This is done more slowly since your goal is to absorb a lot of information. Stop from time to time to sum up what you have read and connect it together.

STUDYING FOR TESTS, EXAMS

• Many students prepare for tests by re-reading the section of the textbook or the notes on which the test is based. While reviewing information is important, this approach rarely helps students understand and retain the information until the actual test takes place.

• A system that actively engages you in the process required for learning the material will bring you much better results on that test/exam!

FIVE STEPS TO BETTER MARKS The SQ3R System (tried and true!)• A system that helps students to retain

information and that works especially well when reviewing information from textbooks and other materials involves fives steps: Survey, Question, Read, Recite and Review

• At each stage, the student is focused and engaged in understanding the material.

1.Survey (or The Big Picture)

• As you begin studying, look over the entire section of reading/notes that you must know.

• Read all the titles and subtitles• Skim the material, paying attention to any details that

seem to be emphasized (by bold type perhaps).• Look at illustrations and graphs• Get a broad sense of the content and the main ideas • Pay special attention to the final paragraph and any

questions that are left at the end of the section

2. Question

• Identify each of the main topics in your selection. • Use each of the topics to create a question that

starts with one of these words: who, where, when, why, what. Write these questions down on note taking paper.

• In the next stage, as you read you will check off each of your questions and make notes on the answers and other important facts

3. Read

• Read the material paying special attention to details and examples that support the main ideas. Make note of facts and examples that help to answer the questions you developed in stage 2. Now you are actively engaged in learning the material.

• If the text describes a sequence of events and the order is important, be sure to write the events down in their exact order.

4. Recite

• It is a fact that people remember stuff better when they say it out loud.

• When you have finished reading and note taking for each section of your assignment, stop and read the answers to your written questions out loud. Don’t you sound knowledgeable? You are! You may have to do this a couple of times until you feel confident. Make sure you clarify any words that are getting in the way of your understanding.

• In your notes, underline the key words in each of your answers. This will help you to remember.

5. Review

• When you find that you are having difficulty remembering certain details of the assigned text, review or reread those sections. Think about how they are tied in to the rest of the information (Are they linked by cause and effect? Are they part of a common theme?) Add these important discoveries to your notes.

• THIS PART IS CRITICAL: Review everything again the next day, then two days later, and then again as your test or exam draws near.

• Congratulate yourself when you feel confident that you know the material because you have really worked hard!

Memorization Strategies: Graphic Organizers

(You can improve your memory!)

• Graphic Organizers – these are tools that help you to organize information in a visual way that’s easy to remember. They work in two ways: 1) the process of creating them helps you to learn; 2) their format helps you visually remember facts and ideas when you review them later.

• Graphic organizers have several forms: charts, concept maps, time lines, tables, outlines,

Timelines

Timelines help you to see how events are linked to one another, how they evolve, or how they change over time.

(from the PBS series and companion website “Mysteries of Deep Space.” )

Concept Maps Concept maps allow you to see how sub-

topics or ideas are linked to main ideas. They help to show how information ranges from general to more specific

Tables

Waste Disposal in Canada 2000 and 2002

  2000 2002

  tonnes

Canada    

Total waste disposed23,168,870 23,835,731

Residential sources9,069,170 9,455,204

Industrial, commercial and institutional sources

11,203,613 11,563,999

Construction and demolition sources2,896,087 2,816,528

Taken from Statistics Canada website www.statscan.ca

Tables help you to organize information and make observations

Taking an ExamSome final tips

• Exam preparation should begin long before the exam date. The earlier you start to review the better your chances for remembering.

• Get sleep, record times and locations of exams carefully, and give yourself lots of time to get to your exam on the scheduled day.

• Read over the entire exam and create a plan to help you organize how much time to spend on each section. Look at how many marks are allotted to each question and divide your time accordingly.

• Stay calm, use deep breaths to relax. If you feel nervous begin with the question that looks the most manageable. Once you are able to focus you will feel more confident.

• Read each question carefully. Use a pencil or highlighter to identify the parts of the question (there’s often more than one). Underline verbs that explain what you have to do (e.g., compare, outline, list, defend, evaluate, etc…). This will help you focus your thoughts.

• Jot down any important details you’ve memorized that you might be afraid of forgetting.

• Reread your answers at the end of the exam (if there’s time). No matter how tired you are or how badly you want to leave the exam room, you will thank yourself later if you catch an error or two that would have cost you some valuable marks.