Education and Study Guides Tips about education, how to study and improve study skills

Study Skills Tips - Improve Your Study Habits in Five Steps

Posted on 05 Aug 2021 by admin | Filled under: uncategorized

If you find settling down to study a problem; if you spend more time planning to study than actually studying, then you probably need a few procrastination- avoiding tips. The five tips outlined in this article, will help you get to a point where you are able to settle into a study routine which becomes a habit that will stand you in good stead for the years of schooling and beyond.

Firstly, you must identify where you will study. A low traffic area in the home, with adequate lighting and a large enough surface upon which to spread out your books would be a good start. Keep this space as organized as you would any work space in an office, for example. Paper, stationery, staples and the like should be within easy reach. The idea is not to have to get up to look for items once you have settled at your workspace.

If you are an organized person, you could apply this trait to your study tools and area. Many people find that color coding works to keep resources identifiable at a glance. You would, for example, have all your History resources covered in orange, while your math books would be covered in green paper. This color coding could be carried over to your timetable, homework diary and study program planner.

If you are a disorganized person, use your new approach to studying to help you become more organized, at least in this area of your life. Practice using your homework diary as a daily to-do list. The keeping of a to-do list will be a valuable tool for the college and adult years in the workplace which lie ahead. Use your list to identify urgent or high priority tasks, for example, work that is due the following day. Assignments for which you have been given a longer time to complete, should be carried over to the following day for further attention. When you have completed a task, tick it off or cross it out, so you can see at a glance what you have left to do.

Secondly, you must learn to focus in the classroom or lecture hall. One learns through doing; and note-taking in classes when the teacher or lecturer is talking; enhances your concentration. Learners whose learning style is auditory (based on what they hear) will even find themselves able to recall exactly what the teacher said in class. The notes taken in class will be untidy and employ a shorthand which only you will understand. When you get home, you need to rewrite these notes neatly onto a study or revision sheet.

Rewriting the notes will enable you to review and revise what was covered in class and will be a help to you for future tests and examinations on this section of work. Auditory learners can talk out loud to themselves while writing out the notes. Visual learners are stimulated by shapes, color and so on and they would do well to organize the notes into mind maps, using color to identify and separate headings and sub-headings from content. If you have not used mind maps as a learning tool before, now would be a very good time to start.

A study technique similar to using a mind map would be to use the Cornell method. This technique entails your drawing a margin down the left-hand side of your sheet of paper. Key words and headings are placed on the left and content and explanations on the right hand side of the page.

Regardless of your major learning style, it is probably best to use visual, auditory and tactile (hands-on learning, for example, writing) in combination. When re - writing your notes or studying, talk to yourself, create visual cues and write as much and as often as possible.

Thirdly, to become a successful student, you must find a way to memorize and retain the work covered. The most common of the techniques employed is the SQ3R method. This stands for Survey, Question, Read, Recite and Review. If you are settling down to learn a chapter for a geography test the following day; this is how you would use this method. First you would scan or skim read the chapter, or part thereof. Then you would formulate questions that need answering, then you would read the work more carefully, underlining key words and key concepts and write these down (on your mind map or Cornell page). You would then, out loud, go over the main points to memorize them.

You could at this point take a break, go for a brisk walk around the garden and then come back to review your work. The review stage requires that you recap what you have memorized and then test yourself. If you are using the Cornell sheet, you could cover the content on the right hand side of the page and make sure you can, for example, provide definitions or sub points under each key word which appears in the left hand side margin.

In the fourth study habit improvement strategy you need to draw up and stick to a study routine. Once you have learned how to study, you must now look at the when. As daunting as it may seem, most study skills experts agree that high school students and college students should spend an average of 40 hours a week on their studies, over and above classroom and lecture times. Again, you need to organize yourself. Look carefully at your weekly program and block out the time spent on extra mural activities such as sport. At a glance then you can see how many hours you have available to study each day.

When drawing up your study times, do not discount weekend days; it will not harm you to work on a Saturday or Sunday; these "free" days can afford great uninterrupted chunks of time during which you can study, especially during examination and high workload periods of the year.

In the fifth instance, you need to remember to take care of yourself and feed your brain to optimize your ability to study. Here the basics hold true. Eat well - include vegetables and fresh fruit in your diet. Sleep well; your brain will not retain anything if your are physically tired. Exercise is vital as it provides the brain with oxygen, thus maximizing your ability to study.

Study for fairly short periods of up to twenty minutes. Take a break, walk around the house or outdoors, do a few sit-ups or push-ups or any quick and easy aerobic exercise and then go back to your books, refreshed and ready to learn a little more. During exam times, you could use your easier subjects, for example, English poetry, and study a poem in between your allocated times for a heavier learning subject such as Physical Science, to use as a mental break.

In summary, a good student has a place and a time to study, is organized, has a method to employ to memorize the work; and determination to stick to a daily routine. As the Nike slogan so aptly says - "Just do it!"

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Adopting? How to Prepare For Your Home Study

Posted on 03 Aug 2021 by admin | Filled under: uncategorized

Next to bringing home your new child, the home study should be the most exciting part of the adoption process. While it can be time consuming and a lengthy process, it is the stepping stone of having you recommended for the match and/or placement of a child. Different states have varying requirements, but all home studies are similar in nature. It is a representation of you and your family life to assess your suitability of providing a stable environment to a child. There is no need to fear this process. Armed with accurate information, prospective parents can face the home study experience with the confidence and excitement that should accompany the prospect of welcoming a child into their family.

In most states, a home study can only be completed by a licensed adoption agency. It is very important to make sure that while the social worker completing the study may be licensed, if he/she is not working directly with a licensed agency, your home study may have to be redone, starting the process over at step 1. If given an option, you should carefully select the social worker. If your placing agency requires that they complete the home study, you are limited to their availability of social workers. If you are tasked with locating an independent home study provider yourself, there is more flexibility in whom you choose and you can shop around for one, just like you would a real estate agency, a bank, a car, hair dresser, etc.

There are many things to consider when choosing a home study provider. It's important to feel comfortable with your decision and the best way to do that is to do your homework. When choosing an agency, one of the first things to consider is cost. Home studies can vary in price just like anything else. There are many factors that go into determining your home study cost, such as the time frame it is needed, your location, and the agency you have chosen. Generally speaking, the cost can range from $1000 on up. When time is an issue, ask if they can provide an expedited home study, and know that it will probably cost more.

Another important question to ask is how long it will take to complete the study. Because part of the home study involves background clearances, you have to take into account the amount of time it will take for those government agencies to process your request. You will probably need local, state, and federal entities to report on any criminal activity. If you have lived in your current state less than six years, you may need multiple states to report back to the home study provider. The home study can take anywhere from 4 weeks to 6 months. Oftentimes, choosing a provider that is limited to home studies can speed up the process. Since their focus is narrowed, they are often able to devote more time to completing your study.

Another important consideration is how many visits are included in the process? The number of visits required will vary by state and if you are adopting internationally, you will have to follow the country guidelines as well. If multiple visits are required, usually one is completed in the home, and the others can be done at the social worker's office or an agreed upon location. It is important to know if the home study price includes mileage or travel time for the worker. If not, you may be billed separately for that cost. You may also be interviewed apart from your spouse, and if you already have children, they will be interviewed as well.

Preparing for the home study visit(s): It can be absolutely overwhelming to think of a stranger coming into your home to "analyze" you and determine your worthiness of having a child. After all, people have babies all the time that are much less qualified to raise them. Early on, most families will become consumed with cleaning their home from top to bottom. While there is nothing wrong with having a super clean home, the social worker isn't coming in with white gloves and looking under the beds for dust bunnies.

The home study is to assess you and your lifestyle in the areas of stability and financial solidity to ensure that a child placed in your home will be well cared for. You don't have to be considerably wealthy in order to adopt a child, but you do have to show a pattern of being financially responsible with your income and your monthly debts. Families that have a large amount of debt may be encouraged to work towards reducing their debt in order to adopt. (This clinician has never denied a family due to debt, or known of families being denied due to large amounts of debt). It is not a freeze frame snapshot of your current situation of any area that is being reviewed; but rather a panoramic examination of many areas. Tax returns for the previous 3-5 years are provided to the home study provider, as well, to demonstrate a pattern of income.

It's important to already have an idea of the age child you are interested in adopting. Babies or young children will have different needs than an older child. You may have to consider having additional locks on your exterior doors, especially if you have a pool or lake outside the back door. Steps may need a safety gate to prevent falls and to keep young toddlers out of dangerous areas. Outlets will need to be covered with protectors. It's also good practice to have smoke detectors in each bedroom and in the main areas of y our home. A fire extinguisher is essential, kept in the kitchen or garage. Guns have to be locked away, and the ammunition kept in a separate location, also locked.
It is not necessary to have all of these things in place, especially if you are months away from being matched or placed with a child. It is necessary to have a good understanding of the development of the child you are interested in, in order to know what safety devices are crucial for you to have in place.

In 2006, The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act was passed in order to establish a national registry of substantiated cases of child abuse and neglect. In all states, there is a process established to have this registry consulted in order to determine if you have been involved with that state's Department of Children and Family Services. The registry will have case-specific identifying information that is limited to the name of the perpetrator and the nature of the substantiated case(s) of child abuse and neglect.

In addition, you will need to consider who you would name as guardian of your minor child in the event of your death. You will need to provide the guardian's name, contact information, and an explanation of why you chose that individual or couple. It is recommended that you go ahead and name these people in your will, if you have one. I was recently asked by a birth mother if she would get the child back if something were to happen to the adoptive parents. The answer is no. The adoptive parents will make this decision.

Most states require criminal background clearances on three levels, local, state, and federal. Arrests may show up on one, two or all three of these clearances. This doesn't mean that if you've ever been arrested, you can't be considered as a parent. The cause of the arrest is considered, as well as the length of time since the arrest. There is a considerable difference in writing bad checks ten years ago and assaulting your significant other just last year. While some states offer specific guidelines about what offenses will prevent you from adopting, a lot of states leave that decision up to the individual social worker. It is best to mention any questionable arrests in advance and try to get a sense of how the social worker will respond.

Other sections of the home study will include accessing the stability of the marriage, discipline plan, and how to nurture and celebrate the child's culture if different from yours. Some agencies and/or countries require adoptive parents to take continuing education courses. If adopting from the foster care system, you may have to take a 20 hours class in advance of adopting. There are obviously many variables, depending on the state you live in, the country in which you want to adopt, and whether you are adopting from a private agency or foster care system.

Though the home study may seem overwhelming, if you can do your homework and be prepared, the process will go smoothly. The social worker or home study provider should be viewed as an ally. His/her job is to help prepare you for parenthood, which is the ultimate goal.

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Should You Enjoy Studying?

Posted on 02 Aug 2021 by admin | Filled under: uncategorized

This is a great question, the fact that it is always a good thing to enjoy all things that you are doing. For example when a person is enjoying the work that they are doing, the time can seem to go very quickly. So also I feel the same about studying. If a person is enjoying the studying that the are doing, they could tend to be more successful.

Source of Joy

The more joy you that you get from an activity the best you could tend to do. If the subject that you are studying is filled with enjoyment, then it may not seem as though it was hard going. So it could be good to study subjects that you enjoy studying. An interesting fact is that life is what we make it, so it is important to choose the things that we really want from life.

Why do people study?

So what subjects do you find interesting what would you want to study? People study for a variety of different reasons, some people study because it is a part of their job, others because they are seeking to get employment. Some people study for recreation and this could be hobbies and pastimes. So we see that there is a wide variety of reasons why a person would take a course of study.

Your study environment

The environment can have a very huge impact on a persons success in studying. A well-lit uncluttered place could be good for one person, while other types of environment could suit another person. But it is very important to find the type of environment that suits you best. If you are studying in a very pleasant environment that could help your studying to be more effective. So think carefully about the type of environment that you feel most comfortable while studying..

Have enough time

It is useful to ensure that you have adequate time to do your studying. If you do not have enough time to do your studying, you may feel under pressure. If you are feeling too much pressure it could cause anxiety and stress, which may make studying difficult. So it is important to organize your time so that you have enough time to do your studying.

Getting Enough Rest

It is important to have sufficient amount of rest when you are studying. If you are tired you could find that it is difficult to concentrate on the subject that you are studying.

Studying with a Group

Studying with a group can be very advantageous, this is due to the fact that every person could have useful ideas to contribute. One person may know things that you do not and like wise you will know things that the other people do not. So every one can greatly benefit when studying as a part of a group. It could be useful to study with people who you can get along with.

Life long Study

It is a good idea to study right through life, the fact is as you continue to study, you will continue to grow. If you look at the lives of successful people you will find that they continue to study right through life. So you can see that life long studying could be of great benefit. Even reading books can be useful in learning new things.

So it may be a good idea to enjoy your studying and look at ways to make it fun and interesting.

MGA Brown (c) July 2021

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How To Improve Your Study Habits and Remember Better

Posted on 01 Aug 2021 by admin | Filled under: uncategorized

If you're a student attending classes, you have probably experienced many moments when it was hard to make yourself settle down and study, even when an important exam was coming up.

If you're like most students, you put off studying until the very last minute. The night before the exam, you'll stay up all night cramming, getting little or no sleep. In the morning, you'll drag yourself out of bed, psych yourself up with lots of coffee and some cigarettes, and go into the exam feeling exhausted, drained and jittery all at the same time. You'll find it hard to focus or think, and you'll be cursing yourself for not starting to study sooner.

And not surprisingly, unless you're blessed with natural brilliance, or you happen to know the subject matter extremely well, you'll probably do terribly on the test.

If this is your typical method of studying, you already know it doesn't work. Every time you go through this ritual, you tell yourself that you're going to smarten up the next time you face a big exam. Next time you'll start to study weeks in advance, you say. But instead, you keep repeating this crazy pattern. Why does this keep happening? And what should you be doing instead if you want to get better marks?

A big problem for most people, especially those who are young students, is that life gets in the way. If you're a student, you probably have a part time job, and like most young people, you also want to have a social life.

Studying can seem very boring compared to all the exciting temptations just outside your door. Or the games on your computer. Even watching old reruns of Sesame Street can seem more interesting than the biology text your teacher is expecting you to master!

One reason we often don't start studying until the last possible minute is that we have misjudged how long it will actually take us to absorb and understand the material. If your mid-term is still six weeks away, that might seem like plenty of time left before you need to get around to studying. You might find however, that the subject matter is a lot harder to understand than you thought it would be, and all of a sudden there's no time left to ask someone to explain it to you.

Another reason we often put off starting to study is that we are too overwhelmed with how big the project actually seems to be. Somehow we convince ourselves that putting off a tough study project can be the best way to avoid feeling overwhelmed by it.

When we are faced with a study project that seems exceptionally difficult and overwhelming, it can be to maintain a high level of interest and motivation for the duration of the learning process.

If you have been guilty of all these bad study habits, it's not too late to learn some other habits that will work better for you.

First, remind yourself why you want to do better in your studies. Maybe you need a good mark to get into a good college. Maybe you want a chance at a career that will pay you well. Always keep your end goal in mind.

You can put little cards up around your room with inspirational messages, and attractive photographs that will remind you why you want to do well in school.

If you feel very overwhelmed, you can improve your motivation and your performance by breaking up the project into smaller sections, or "chunks". Each time you accomplish one little bit successfully, give yourself a meaningful reward.

If you have a deadline looming, decide how much of the project you need to tackle at one time.

Let's say you have six weeks to master the content of a difficult biology text. Looking through the book you realize that if you study one chapter each night, you can get through the book in 28 days, leaving two weeks in which you can again review the material.

With this knowledge you can pace yourself. You know what your assignment is. You know how much you need to read every night. Concentrate on the immediate task at hand. You don't need to feel overwhelmed by the entire book at one time. Next, work out a system of rewards for yourself. Give yourself a series of small rewards each time you master one chapter, and a larger reward for completing the entire book.

For rewards to work they must be immediate, and personally meaningful to you. There is no point in rewarding yourself with a new fishing rod if you hate fishing.

Rewards don't need to be material objects if there is something else that would really motivate and inspire you. How about attending a special concert, or taking a special trip? You decide. Get creative and think of something that will spur you to take action.

It's very important that the reward take place soon after the work has been accomplished. This creates a sense of positive reinforcement. Give yourself a small reward every time you finish a small part of the job, and a bigger reward when the project is completed. If there is too long a gap between the activity and the reward, it will not have the effect of reinforcing the desired activity.

Besides motivating yourself with a series of external rewards, learn to motivate yourself internally. Tell yourself you're a good learner. Tell yourself you enjoy learning. Tell yourself you enjoy giving your brain a good work out. Congratulate yourself for your efforts. Tell yourself you love acquiring new knowledge, and let yourself feel a joy in learning. Be proud of yourself for the work you do to gain more knowledge.

For information to sink into your brain and be accessible to you, you need to review it several times, and your brain needs to sleep properly for the memories to be encoded in your neurons. It is important to reduce your mental stress. Your brain needs good nutrition and it needs to be in a peaceful, confident state. Some people depend on drugs and alcohol to deal with the stress of studying. Drugs and alcohol don't help the process of learning.

Write out what you are learning in your own words, and find a learning buddy. Practice explaining to someone else what you have learned. This will increase the likelihood that your brain will remember it.

If you start to cram the night before, you are putting your brain at a big disadvantage.

You're increasing your physical and mental stress, and you're not giving yourself time to review the material several times. By cutting back on your sleep, you're not giving your brain a chance to put the information you've been studying into the hard drive storage of your brain.

By starting your studies early, and reviewing what you've learned, you have a much better chance of remembering and understanding what you need to know when you face a big exam.

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