You have been studying since you got home at 3pm , you just now look at your phone and it's 7pm... With little to no food in your belly, your notes sprawled all across your bedroom floor and your new favourite tv show playing on your computer just for some “background noise” you then question yourself to why you can't remember anything you've studied for the past 4 hours. Many teens have suffered with poor study habits- including myself and it is very hard to pick up brand new studying methods later on into your schooling. I personally was pulling a pretty low average in my earlier years of high school, not caring and scanning over a text book the night before a unit test- it wasn't that i was “dumb” or wasn't necssecaily trying.. I just had the wrong habits. According to https://psychcentral.com/lib/top-10-most-effective-study-habits/ most of the reason we dread doing homework or studying is mostly our own approach to the material. There are a few key important factors that come into play while studying, one even before you open your book- our mindset. For me it was always a drag for me to open that math textbook to the same black and white page where all the problems just keep getting harder and harder. I attempt the first question, flip the page to the answer key.. It's wrong so I try another harder question without seeking help. That one is wrong ; from there I close my book and give up. What is a successful study session then? Well everybody learns at different pace and fashion so there is no correct answer for everyone but there are some ways to make more worth your wild. First before a big midterm where do you choose to study, a quiet corner of your house or the student lounge at your school with all your friends. The human brain cannot pick up information successfully with immense amounts of background noise and distractions going on. Secondly come with a full belly- not one to make you feel sick but enough where you aren't distracted as hunger affects our mood, thoughts and our ability to remember information. Lastly have your notes on a surface like a table not on your bed or bedroom floor.. This does not work for everyone but in my own personal experience i worked the best with colour coded notes - yellow for example as terms and blue for important names of people. With that it helps me remember things, using mnemonics and fun websites to study like a quizlet are also all so helpful. This was all me talking from my own experience and some ways I have been able to change my grades and the ways I study. If you want to learn more about healthy student habits visit https://www.cmich.edu/ess/studentaffairs/SDS/Pages/10-Habits-10-Traps.aspx Emily M
19 Comments
Caiti Scales
10/13/2020 10:23:38 pm
Yes! I can absolutely relate, in the past I’ve definitely found it very hard to continue with my studies after not being able to pick up the material at the same rate as my peers. Similarly to your struggle with math in your younger years, I found reading and writing very challenging until around grade six. A consequence of this being that I never thought of myself as smart as so I didn’t put time or effort into my work, however this all changed when I learned that’s it’s okay to take your time with things and ask for help if you need it, which luckily developed into successful study habits. Thank you for sharing your journey with studying and giving us all helpful tips on how to better succeed.
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Kaysey
10/14/2020 12:16:02 am
Wow, what a coincidence I am currently doing this instead of my online Ap Psych test ..anything to avoid hard work lol. Uhm I guess there is a reason they call it a habit, because it's very hard to break. I think studying is dreadful for everyone and that's just the truth, unless you like the material then lucky you. A trick that I use that actually helps is the 25 min work/ 5 min break approach. Its actually pretty effective if you follow it. Also a more psychological tip is to tell yourself you're just gonna study or read over the textbook for like 10 minutes. Doing this you kind of trick your brain into thinking you're not exerting so much time and energy and you'll be more willing to do the work. Also once you get started, most the time you'll notice that you're in front of the books for longer then the intended period. Like you said, its all about the mindset. I didn't know hunger affects study habits, very interesting... thank you!
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avery
10/14/2020 12:37:40 pm
I find the information you put in this blog to be very informative and helpful. I relate to this in the way that I personally have terrible study habits as I find it hard to concentrate on a subject I don't particularly understand or want to study. Even though i'm not great at it, I still agree that having a good study routine is important so next time I need to study I'll use your methods!
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nevada
10/14/2020 12:50:31 pm
I really liked this blog topic. It’s original and I’ve never heard anyone talk about studying and study habits like that. I think it was super helpful that you put a link and takes about your own experiences and how it helped you. I also liked all the tips and tricks you included at the end!
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Tyler Lenton
10/14/2020 03:01:04 pm
I really enjoyed reading this blog because it was something that basically everyone can relate too. I tend to forget to eat before I study then I get up and lose focus when I come back and do the work. I forget what I was doing before because I wasn't really paying attention and understanding what I was writing down. Another thing for me earlier in high school was how I would study a lot and then the test day I would get there and only remember a few things. I mostly have a quiet working area but having a snack before studying is something I have to do because then potentially I'll even get more work done than I would've with waiting to eat after. Most of the time I don't have a great mind set it's normally just get this done by this time or you won't do good in school. That is for the most part true but I rush my work which is something I shouldn't be doing, it's only because my mindset needs to be better. I really like having a quiet work place because then all my focus is on my work instead of what's happening on my phone and what my family is talking about. I think most student will be able to learn from this blog because were human and we do pick up bad habits when it comes to sitting down and opening a book up that we really aren't looking forward to seeing. A good mindset helps you get things done.
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Kiana Birk
10/14/2020 09:44:39 pm
Healthy habits are a must! Everyday our minds are filled with distractions; our phones and social media, family members, and peers. Emily, I found your blog post very relatable and helpful. I agree that colour coding your notes helps the brain absorb the information when studying. In my personal experience I also used to do my homework with other distractions such as Netflix. I realized that by turning off Netflix I was able to concentrate and focus on my homework.
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Brianna
10/15/2020 12:56:49 am
This is a very timely blog because especially with our class schedules right now I find that my courses are very fast paced with a lot of information being taught to us in a short amount of time. Having good studying habits and being disciplined is extremely necessary for me to retain information from all my classes. I usually sit on my couch and watch tv while I do my homework because I found it easier to get my homework done without getting bored, but after reading this blog it might be a good idea for me to find a new spot to study without any distractions.
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Ross Bramwell
10/15/2020 10:04:26 am
I really enjoyed reading this. I personally have some pretty bad study habits, and I think I can apply some of what was mentioned in this blog to my acedemic career for the future. Especially the background noise, I love listening to podcasts while I study, but ill try just listening to some music instrad. Great blog overall!
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Kaya
10/15/2020 10:08:42 am
This is a very well written blog and I completely agree with the overall statement of the blog. Many of us have bad study habits, myself included. So it is very important to remember that if studying one way isn't helping you remember something or receive a strong mark in the end, it is very important to change for the better. If one study habit isn't working for your own benefit, try to find a new way to study and see if that fits your own study style better. In one of my subjects I used to study on my own, not really receiving any help and only getting a decent grade. Then I decided that I can do so much better than this. So I started to apply myself better, studied a lot, wrote better notes and even got a tutor to help me with the course. It helped me a lot, and she helped me develop better study habits. Even though studying is very boring and many people might not really care about school, it is very important to know good study habits for the future. Like for university or for a future job. So it is very important to develop good study habits now so in the future, you won't struggle.
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Callista Lunn
10/15/2020 10:19:34 am
I totally agree that studying can be super hard for everyone. I have always struggled with studying because I would put it off (like you said) and pretend it wasn’t there. But on the other hand I agree and think it’s extremely important to have a good work space, I think this blog could help a lot of people struggling with studying. You normalized the feeling of not wanting to do it, but then explored the positives and ways to make it easier! I think school has put a damper on mental health with kids around our age because they don’t know how to properly go about it. Procrastinating is a real and quite annoying thing but if you can learn to study and get your work done in a more fun or healthier way it’s going to be easier for everyone.
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Devon Matson
10/15/2020 11:38:37 am
Thank you for sharing Emily! In the past, I have found myself to develop bad study habits. This leads to me working for hours into the night for a test the next day, then I attempt to take the test with no sleep and a horrible headache. Slowly, I have tried to try to add in healthier habits to improve my understanding of the material we learn in school. I have found that by making small changes, I have improved so much. I really agree with what you wrote about. I plan to use some of the study suggestions you have here. Thank you for the good reminder to continue to on this path.
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Brianna S
10/15/2020 12:01:37 pm
I can absolutely relate to the struggle of having good study habits. It’s so easy to have bad habits in these regards. I always struggled with math in school and I never understood the work handed to me so I can definitely relate to the checking the answers and getting them wrong.
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Madison Sproule
10/15/2020 12:57:18 pm
This website that you linked will really help change the way I go about school work. You’re right, creating healthy study habits are really difficult, especially for a hard subject. Turing on background noises and other distractions is a old habit that can be really hard to break. Recently I’ve been shutting down and putting away my phone out of sight and reach to help curve the temptation of it. This really help my work be more efficient and well done. Especially because all of my work is online, the temptation is stronger to go off task, being completely focused is the key factor to getting work done.
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Callie
10/15/2020 01:55:45 pm
This was super helpful! As someone who struggles with ADHD and terrible procrastination habits, I completely sympathize with these sentiments. I'll try to be mindful to keep these tips in mind, thanks for the help!
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Cole Hammerer
10/15/2020 01:57:24 pm
I have totally experienced the feeling of not being able to focus and having my phone be a total distraction. I definitely think that the mindset has to be there to fully immerse in your homework and successfully complete it, but sometimes that's hard to do. I like all the methods, resources and tips to studying and I will definitely be using those to try and study will my full attention and to try and get less distracted.
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Taylor
10/15/2020 02:52:44 pm
I had never thought of studying in this way. I didn't know your mindset had any effect on it. Personally I struggle with bad study habits. I have done homework laying down in my bed or while on my phone. Part of the reason is because I have never had to try very hard in school. I haven't studied for a test in over a year. I definitely will find a better way to study for something important.
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Nyah Gentry
10/19/2020 09:54:42 am
This was a beautifully written blog. Healthy habit are so important for your mental health. When i start to feel behind I get a huge gust of anxiety and it really effects me in a negative way. This blog was very helpful to read as i can now add some extra management skills to my tool belt that will certainly help me later. Thank you
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Hector
9/16/2022 02:19:22 pm
Whenever I went to study I was always find a way to procrastinate and push to the next day until the night before the exam. One thing that has helped me was that I would listen to music with my phone on do not disturb. I would always go and do some homework whenever I felt that I needed something to do. After doing all of these things I have improved my way of studying for tests and exams. So yes, everyone has their ways of studying. You just have to find what environment or things that you do.
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Olivia H
9/28/2023 01:55:00 pm
This is very well written and has a story based intro which hooks in the reader! I can relate to not having the greatest study habits, i have never thought of my mindset but thats so smart. everything starts with mindset ! I use a tv show too as a noise filler so i can "study better" ill definitely stop that after this blog. Thank you for the tips!
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