How Do You Study?

I always needed peace and quiet, whereas my sis always liked to have background noise like the tv or music. I'd often study (withOUT my laptop) at the library so I wouldn't have so many distractions. And I always used lots of note cards when possible. Just writing them out is a way of studying too.

I'm not sure if I really know how to study. I can't keep attention to some things, no matter how much I enjoy or love the subject. Usually, I can withstand an hour or quiet time of reading, high-lighting and making flash cards of definitions and terms...
Others wise, I easily get bored.

Whenever I went to study at the library (which was pretty seldom) I think I have gotten the most out of it. Hardly any distractions and silence. Sucks though, 'cause I don't have my license yet and getting there is kinda difficult.

Hmmm, I like to study with music that I can place in the background, it helps me focus and keeps me from being overly distracted by so many other things around me. If the instructor gave a review, i would write out each piece from the review in my notebook and put the answers under that and just take that with me to class to study before the test starts. I also take a lot of breaks while studying, if I don't I probably wouldn't really remember anything LOL.

So music, notebook, breaks that's how I study, and I guess it works pretty well for me(considering I got an A on my last exam YAY!!! ).

I'm about to graduate with my law degree (three weeks and it's all over but the silly wig-and-gown parade! yay!). I guess it's something of a unique subject - I certainly never would have done this on my first courses (classics and archaeology).

I make flow-charts of each area of the law. So at the top I have the key case, and then all the cases that qualify and define the key case. I write idea from journal articles into the chart where they're relevant in a different colour. I look like the nutter (that I am ) taking them to class but it's how my brain seems to best learn!
And the big sheets of A3 artist's paper certainly work the best!

As regards environment, well I'm revising in my bedroom because my particular university's library is a cesspool of screeching 19-year-olds. I need peace and complete quiet. If my voices bother me too much, I put some choral (sung) masses on the radio - because they're so relaxing, not because I feel the need for churchy things! I don't eat or drink anything but water and I don't take breaks, except to stop and stretch out body parts that seize up.

I study by eating chocolate and listening to music..and just make notes and try to remember the important notes

My method of studying is to take notes by hand in a notebook, and then, a few days or a few weeks before the test, I'll look them over and type them out. The act of typing them helps me remember them better. Sometimes I make timelines or tables so I get some practice reorganizing the information.

I'm a good test taker and a good student, but I really have trouble buckling down and studying. I can't study in a library and I really can't study in my room, so I usually end up going to a coffee shop or somewhere where I can use my laptop and get something to drink.

Does it work? Well, we'll see. I have a test in a week, and I confess I'm really worried. It's on a subject I've only been learning since January but which most of the students in the class have been learning their whole lives...

I have different methods for different classes.

I'm deaf and when I went to college the first time before the ADA I had to read lips and could not take normal notes as I was looking at the professors (lots of migraines!) so I developed a way of drawing the main points and just writing the vocabulary. I found this really helped me and continue to do this although I now have a note taker.

Sketching the main point of the lecture helps me as I'm a very visual person. When I'm taking the tests I can think back to my drawings visualize the picture and that helps me remember the answers. Since the vocabulary is mingled w/ the drawings I remember the specific words and that is always a plus with professors when you use the precise words.

Because of a car accident I have mild TBI and short term memory problems so I always try to take classes that come in parts in succession with no breaks. Say Gov I, Gov II, I'll take it fall and spring so I don't need to worry about forgetting things over the summer. Because of my memory and the need for longer study I do not take intensive classes over the summer.

I use the color coding one color for vocabulary, one for main ideas, one for peoples names, one for place name--if needed one for formulas.

I rewrite the note's that are taken for me, so that they are in my head and I have a physical memory from writing them. I can also rearrange them more to my liking.

I read most of the books, even chapters that are not assigned and I make sure to read ALL of the chapters that are assigned-the footnotes-box notes-highlights----some teachers test on those to see if students have read the assignments but they do not always cover those things in class. In one of my government classes only 9 of us passed the first test. 3/4 of the test was on the book although he did not talk about anything in the book, and 1/4 of those questions were from the footnotes and boxes. That professor even warned the class that most of them would not pass the first test. He did not say why, he just said that historically 50% or more of his classes failed to pass his first test so he had an essay for them if that happened. I read/skim though the preface, the glossary, appendix, bibliography, index, and charts the books might have, they can be really helpful especially if you have essay type questions on the tests.

For classes with a lot of information I write outlines and organizational charts. If it is historical I do a time-line.

Two weeks(if I'm being good-sometimes this gets down to the wire) before a test I make flash cards so I can start testing myself. Just the act of making these help me prepare for the test.

Since I am now taking the major I always wanted to-Art, not all my homework or tests are traditional. I spend hours finishing a project on my own. I spend extra time in the studio or I often bring things home and spend extra time on it because I'm not happy with it. I've gone without a lot of things to pay for equipment/supplies to do this, but it pays off. I would probably get the A even if I did not do that but it's not the A that I want. My teachers are also artists who exhibit and my commitment{the good kind of commitment-} pays off with invites to shows, meeting other artists and getting my stuff placed in student shows.

Environmentally, I find I study best at home, on the floor in front of the TV, sound off, music on, supplies in a circle around me so I can reach everything I need. I like to lay everything out that I need and go non-stop although your supposed to take breaks- I hate to stop once I've started. I get better grades now that I'm older than I did before because I have more tolerance for classes I don't like but have to take. In the past I got A's in "interesting classes and C's or B's in classes I found less interesting or did not like the teachers. I got an F in one class because it was in an auditorium and no matter where I sat I could not read lips, and the two professors teaching it were not amendable to standing in one place. It was required for my major and so boring, at 19 I was too arrogant to realize the folly of thinking I was smarter than those old biddies.

If it's an in person class I use to tape record it so I could concentrate on listening to the professor. If not I skip that.

I also always take the class with a person I know. I turn the lectures into outlines. I read the book front to back before the first day of class to give me an idea what the class will be like. I then try to teach it to my son. If I can effectively teach it then I know it.

My eyes are too fast on reading so I always take notes for my reviewers and I highlight any important words that might be relevant to the test. Lastly, memorize. XD

Not the ideal method I guess, but works for me

In class: I take notes. I sometimes make little doodles (arrows, asterisks, stars, etc.) in my notebook. I may use colored pens (2 or 3 different colors) as visual aid too.

My books: highlighting, summarizing, making notes, underlining, doodling unrelated stuff such as happy faces and cats. LOL.

Tests: The day before a test, my sister helps me out by asking questions based on the test material. I try to answer with my own words whenever possible (i.e. when memorizing specific data is not required). We don't sit down and study. I wander around the living room and the kitchen and so does my sister. I go over the material a few times while listening to music (not loud. After all, I'm trying to read). Music can be anything from upbeat to relaxing. Songs that make me wanna dance are perfect for this. I don't let myself listen to depressing lyrics when I'm studying because I know I'll end up emotionally and mentally drained. If not at home, I find a (relatively) quiet spot at school. This quiet spot must be near a tree and I also need fresh air and the sound of birds chirping. I like to sit on the grass all by myself. It helps me focus. I may take food breaks (simple things: fruits and veggies and maybe some water).