Take Control of Homework

Take Control of Homework

So It Doesn’t Control You

Part 3

Take Advantage of Any Free Time

 If you have a study period or a long bus ride, use the time to review notes, prepare for an upcoming class or start your homework. Flash cards are a great learning tool. They are easy to make. Easy to handle, and are a marvelous tool to help you learn and remember anything.

Punch a hole in the upper left corner of each index card and connect the stack of your flash cards with a ring. Then the cards are bound and not flopping around. Flash cards bound like this act like a small book with pages. You can even have separate ringed stacks for each subject. WHAT EVER YOU WANT TO REMEMBER, PUT IT ON A CARD.

Study with a Friend

Get together with friends and classmates to quiz each other, compare notes and predict test questions. Consider joining a study group.  

Communicate

If you have concerns about the amount or types of homework you have, you may want to talk to your family, teachers or counselors. They can help you understand how much time you need to allot for your homework and how to manage your tasks.

Celebrate Your Achievements

Reward yourself for hitting milestones or doing something well.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

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Note-Taking Strategies

Note-Taking Strategies

Part 3

http://www.collegeboard.com/student/plan/college-success/955html

After Class      

As soon as class ends, review your notes and fill in any blanks. Underline, highlight and use symbols to sort through information. If you don’t understand something, get help from your teacher or classmates.

After you’ve reviewed all your notes from class, in the left hand area of the page write down key words and questions your teacher might ask on a test.

At the bottom of each page, write summary of the notes. This helps you digest what you’ve learned. It also improves your memory of the material for the long term and for the test down the road.

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Distance Education: Is a Virtual Classroom for you?

Distance Education: Is a Virtual Classroom for you?

Part 3

Challenging Aspects of Distance Education

                  Lack of in-person interaction: Some educators argue that both teacher-student and student- student contact are essential to learning. In a distance-learning classroom, you may be able to participate in class discussions online in chat rooms, message boards or Web conferences -  but it’s not the same as being with other students in a classroom.

                  Different levels of quality: Many distances- education programs supply an excellent learning experience, but others may not.

Research any program before signing on to make sure it’s rigorous enough. If you are choosing your own program, look into its accreditation before enrolling.

                  The need to self-start: Distance education lets you make your own schedules. If you have a hard time getting motivated, this might not be ideal educational setting for you.

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Balancing High School and Part-Time Work Part 3

Balancing High School and Part-Time Work

Part 3

Brad MacGowan, of the Career Center at Newton North High School in Massachusetts, thinks that working can be a valuable part of a student’s life, if taken on responsibility. “You can derive a great deal from working, considerably more than just money,” he says.  “In most cases, you can require a nice dose of discipline and a whole new set of skills and experiences. “In addition, your supervisor may be willing to write a strong college recommendation for you.

School Comes First.  

Schoolwork, including homework and studying for test, should always be your top priority. MacGowan cautions students who do decide to work, “If you are rushing through assignment’s… or not studying enough for test because of work, it’s time to cut back or quit and find a less time-consuming job.

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Selecting Your Courses Part 3

Selecting Your Courses
Part 3

The Arts

Research indicates that students who participate in the arts often do better in school and on standardized test. The arts help you recognize patterns, discern differences and similarities, and exercise your mind in unique ways, often outside a traditional classroom setting.

Many colleges require or recommend one or two semesters in the arts. Good choices include studio art, dance, music and drama. Many students have talents and extraordinary abilities in the arts. Students should look within their own repertoire of talents and identify their artistic abilities and take college classes to develop their talents.

Advanced Placement Program (AP)

To be sure you are ready to take on college-level work, enroll in the most challenging courses you can in high school, such as honors or AP courses. Research consistently shows that students who score a 3.0 or higher on an AP Exam typically experience greater academic success and college graduation rates than students who don’t take AP.

Work hard in your righteous pursuits, and you will reap the benefits of self-fulfillment and job satisfaction. Don’t take shortcuts just to “get by,” instead, take challenging, and difficult roads (courses) and reach higher mountain peaks of achievement.

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Selecting your Courses Part 3

Selecting your Courses

Part 3

Science

Science teaches you to think analytically and apply theories to reality. Colleges want to see that you’ve taken at least three years of laboratory science classes. A good combination includes two semesters of each of the following sciences:

      Biology

      Chemistry or physics

      Earth/space science

More competitive schools expect you to take four years of lab science courses. You can add two semesters in one of the following subjects:

      Chemistry or physics (the science you didn’t already study)

      Advanced biology

      Advanced chemistry

      Advanced physics

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The Power of Study Groups Part 3

The Power of Study Groups

http://www.collegeboard.com/student/plan/high-school/50-432.html

Part 3

Guidelines for Getting Group Together

Here are some guidelines for creating and running a study group: How many? Create a group of four to six people. In a larger group, it’s easy for someone to get left out and smaller groups can too easily get off track.

Who? Pick classmates who seem to share your interest in doing well academically. Look for people who stay alert in class, take notes, ask questions and respond to the teacher’s questions. Include someone who understands the material belter than you and can explain the concepts and someone who doesn’t understand it as well, to whom you can explain the material.

Where? Hold a study group sessions in a place that is free of distractions and that has room to spread out books and notes.

How long? Meet for no more than two to three hours at a time. Having a time limit helps the group focus. If you know you only have an hour, you’re more likely to stay on task.

When? Try to meet regularly, on the same day and time each week.

Treating the study session as you would other activities helps you to keep to a schedule and reassures that everyone attends.

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How to Take on College Studying Part 3

How to Take on College Studying

Part 3

Do the Reading

You need to do more than just read the chapters you are assigned – you’re expected to understand them thoroughly. Here are some tips:

      Don’t skim. Read all the material carefully.

      Break up difficult assignments into sections you can digest- chapters, subsections or even paragraphs.

      Look up any words that you don’t understand.

      Pause to think about whether you understand the material; ask questions in class about anything that in unclear.

      Take notes instead of highlighting- this makes you think through and rephrase the key points.

      Create a summary sheet of what you learned from each assignment you read.

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