Study Skills Guide

Consult Library Staff for Templates and any Further Queries

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Welcome to the Study Skills Guide Learning is an active process that builds on our existing understandings to create new knowledge. It requires motivation, effort, engagement and persistence.

That sounds straightforward, but it isn’t simple. Learning is challenging. It is a process we need to continually invest time and effort in to see success. That is why Study Skills are important, we can consider research, develop skills and apply strategies to help us face academic challenges, and focus on how we can improve to achieve our personal best.

This guide contains information that will help you develop the skills and habits that give you the opportunity to use time and study in an effective and efficient way. By developing your goal setting skills and an open mindset, you can track the changes in your attitude that can remove mental blockages to making improvements in your studies.

Following the advice on how to take care of yourself and prepare for work at school and home will lay the groundwork for success in your academic life.

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Contents Welcome to the Study Skills Guide ................................................................................................................ 2 Goal Setting ................................................................................................................................................... 4 When setting goals .................................................................................................................................... 4 Resilience- What happens when you don’t achieve your goal? ................................................................. 5 Having a Growth Mindset .............................................................................................................................. 5 Learning @ School......................................................................................................................................... 7 Learning @ Home .......................................................................................................................................... 7 Home Learning Environment ...................................................................................................................... 7 Time Management ..................................................................................................................................... 8 Procrastination .......................................................................................................................................... 8 Focus on Self-Health and Welfare ............................................................................................................... 10 Stress ....................................................................................................................................................... 10 Exercise ................................................................................................................................................... 10 Sleep ........................................................................................................................................................ 10 Food ......................................................................................................................................................... 11 Reading ........................................................................................................................................................ 12 Note Taking, Note Making and the Cornell Format ...................................................................................... 15 Study Strategies and Learning Techniques ................................................................................................. 16 Primacy and Recency (First and Last) ...................................................................................................... 16 Note Making Stand Outs .......................................................................................................................... 16 Dual Coding .............................................................................................................................................. 16 Flashcards ............................................................................................................................................... 16 Interleaving .............................................................................................................................................. 17 Mind Mapping / Concept Maps................................................................................................................ 17 Out Loud Question and Answer................................................................................................................ 17 ClickView and YouTube ........................................................................................................................... 17 Spaced Repetition .................................................................................................................................... 18 Study groups ............................................................................................................................................ 18 Timing your work ..................................................................................................................................... 18 Practice Tests and Exams ........................................................................................................................ 18 Top Three ................................................................................................................................................. 18 How to organise a personalised timetable ............................................................................................... 19

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Goal Setting A goal is something we want to achieve. Goals help us establish a target to aim for, purposely focus time and effort, set priorities and motivate us. In terms of studying, goals will help us determine what direction or focus we want and why. Goals can be short term, such as finishing homework for a subject or long term, raising your grade for a subject over a semester or year.

Long term goals could even be focused on what you want to achieve later in life.

When setting goals, the SMART acronym is often used.

S- Specific; make your goal a clear, specific, positive statement of what you want to achieve.

I want to be good at English.

x

I want to achieve better results with my spelling assessments.

M- Measurable; your progress needs to be measurable. Work out how you will measure success.

I will be better at swimming.

x

I will shave 2 seconds off my personal best time.

A-Achievable; your goal needs to be something you can control and achieve through your actions.

I want to be two metres tall.

x

I want to exercise to be in good health.

R-Realistic; Be realistic about what you can achieve, your goal could be a smaller step to a larger goal.

I want to be Dux of the school.

x

I want to improve my grades.

T-Timely; know when the end point of your goal is, it will make you determined to focus.

I will start reviewing and studying if I have a test coming up.

x

I will review my class work and take notes before I go to bed every day.

A well-defined goal includes will, what and when: I will finish taking notes for my inquiry assignment by the end of class on Friday.

When setting goals Take time to work out what you want to achieve. You may need to break your goal into a plan, timeline, or process with smaller parts to help you track or measure your progress.

Be flexible. You might need to adjust your goal if something stops you from being able to achieve what you wanted.

Let others know what your goal is so they can help you achieve it. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.

Display your goal in a prominent place to remind you of your desire and focus.

Start soon and small, be realistic and work your way to the target.

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Reward yourself when you achieve your goal.

Resilience- What happens when you don’t achieve your goal?

Consider why you didn’t achieve the goal in terms of the SMART acronym - was the time frame too short, or the goal not specific enough? Was it a realistic and attainable goal? Were you committed to your goal? Thinking it through will help you understand why your goal was not met, enable you to set new goals, and be more informed about the process. Remember, each learning experience is about growth.

Video: How to write a SMART goal. https://www.khanacademy.org/partner-content/learnstorm-growth-mindsetactivities-us/elementary-and-middle-school-activities/settinggoals/v/learnstorm-growth-mindset-how-to-write-a-smart-goal Article: How to get better at achieving your goals. https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_to_get_better_at_achieving _your_goals?fbclid=IwAR24TqVczNhI6Zfos6J1wMoxK_1qqNbT4oYCi_TlDrzCbGNsuy4o49I8bI

Having a Growth Mindset Stanford University Professor and Psychologist Carol Dwerk coined the phrases ‘fixed mindset’ and ‘growth mindset’. In a conducted study, students with a fixed mindset believed in their own abilities, believed they were intelligent. More successful students were those who believed they could improve on their abilities- they had what is called a growth mindset.

With a growth mindset, students look at grades, comments and marks and what people call failures as an opportunity to learn. They understand through using feedback and by investing time and effort into their learning, they will reach a higher level of achievement.

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How to achieve a growth mindset for improvement: • • • • • • • • • •

Accept you have weaknesses and will face challenges.

Look at challenges as opportunities to learn and grow.

Practice saying, ‘I’m still learning’, ‘I haven’t mastered this yet,’ not ‘I failed’.

Try to impress yourself, not others.

Be prepared to ask questions.

Try different learning strategies.

Use criticism to drive future improvements and growth.

Take responsibility for your learning - it is not someone else’s fault.

Be prepared to invest time and effort to see progress.

Persevere and be resilient.

Video: 4 Steps to developing a growth mindset. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNHas97iE78 Video: How to Stay Motivated – The Locus Rule. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZhoeSaPF-k

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Learning @ School Part of your responsibility is to make sure you work smart at school. This means coming to school with everything you need for the day- including homework or preparatory tasks completed. When getting ready to go to class before school and at the end of breaks, think about what lessons you have and take all resources you might need with you. A timetable on the inside of your locker will help you keep track. When you return to your locker, if you are putting away an item you need at home, put it straight into your school bag, so you don’t forget it later.

When you arrive in class, be prepared to be an active learner. That means: • When the teacher or your peers are talking about the learning, listen.

• If you are given an instruction, follow it straight away- without whinging.

• When asked to perform a task or work on an activity, start immediately. If you encounter any difficulties, you can talk to the teacher before you move forward.

• Record any tasks given as homework, or interesting topics you may wish to investigate in a diary. Record how long the teacher thinks the task will take.

• If you are unsure about anything covered in class, let the teacher know immediately, organise a time when you can discuss the concept.

When you need to work with other students on group tasks or require assistance you are welcome at the Library after school most afternoons.

Learning @ Home Home Learning Environment To make learning as effective and efficient as possible, you must plan and maintain a good place to study. The physical environment you work in will make a huge difference to your learning.

Start by looking at where you work. You will need a place that is always available to you when you need it. If the space is a shared space, work out a timetable to ensure you know when it is available to you. Make sure the area is free from interruptions and distractions. Have a desk or table large enough to accommodate your laptop, books, notes and stationery. You may need storage such as draws or shelves to ensure everything you need is close at hand and neatly stored so you can locate it quickly and easily. Your chair needs to be comfortable and the correct height for you to sit and work at the desk or table.

Light and temperature are important to your ability to be comfortable and focus. Make sure there is enough light so you do not strain your eyes, and not so much that it causes stress to your eyes.

An ideal temperature for learning is said to be 19 degrees Celsius. If you are too warm, it is likely you will become drowsy, too cold and your thinking may slow down reducing your learning ability.

Have a plant in the area as an oxygen enhancer, and a flow of fresh air. Have water on hand to ensure you stay hydrated.

Eliminating distractions is best practise for learning, but some people prefer to play music as it distracts from environmental noises. What you listen to is important. Studies state music without lyrics is best, as it allows your brain to focus on the language of the content you are learning.

Baroque music is the best type of music to listen to. Typically, it has sixty beats per minute, which is the same as your heart rate at rest, it slows the brain waves to a state where the brain and body are calm enabling your long-term memory to be activated. Vivaldi, Bach, Handel, Pachelbel, 7

Correlli, Purcell and Telemann are popular Baroque composers. If you wish to listen to other music, search using terms such as ‘study music’, ‘background music’, ‘ambient music’ ‘movie soundtracks- no lyrics’, ‘meditation music’. Create a playlist that works for you. If you are working on memorisation or recall tasks no music at all is best, instead speak out loud what you are learning.

Finally, consider what is said to be the biggest distraction for Generation Z, the mobile phone.

Whilst our phones connect us to others, and we think we can multitask while we learn, studies prove we can’t. When thinking is interrupted by the ‘ping’ of a notification, or we stop to scroll through socials, we lose the information for up to twenty minutes worth of prior learning. Schedule study time and phone time separately or ask a parent to ‘babysit’ your phone while you work.

Use the following as a checklist for the set-up of the space, if you can check every item, you have set up an environment for success: • • • • • •

Desk or table- large enough for laptop, books, stationery Comfortable chair Storage space Appropriate lighting Temperature is controlled Remove distractions

Time Management Good time management is important for success in school. With deadlines to meet with assessments, we need to use class and study time in a way that is effective and efficient, otherwise we fall behind and put ourselves in a stressful situation. Planning ahead in long and short-term periods will help you manage your time. Use a Term planner to see where special days fall that will affect your time, and record upcoming events, such as concerts, camps, excursions and public holidays. Record assessment due dates, so you are able to see where they fall in relation to other tasks you have responsibilities for. Next, create a weekly planner so you can see the specific items you need to focus on. This can include training or out of school commitments, as well as homework or review tasks.

See the page at the end of the guide- How to organise a personalised timetable.

Procrastination Everyone procrastinates from time to time. Procrastination is putting off a task that needs to be done to achieve your goal.

Most people procrastinate, it becomes a problem when the time between meaning to do something and actually doing it is so large that creates stress or doesn’t allow you to reach your personal best. Putting a task off is only a temporary fix, we must perform the task but will probably have to do it under more pressure than before. To avoid procrastination problems, manage your time effectively by setting goals, structure your time with a timetable, timeline or to-do list, ‘chunk’ larger tasks into manageable parts, estimating how long a task will take and discuss your procrastinating with a person who will help you get on track. Remember to reward yourself for completing each step of your goal- perhaps with a food or drink treat, a walk in the sunshine or phone time with a friend.

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App: Focus phone babysitting app: forrestapp.cc Website: Information about you and the importance of sleep. https://www.sleepfoundation.org/ https://www.sleephealthfoundation.org.au/factsheets.html?view=article&id=1000&catid=98 Video: How I stopped procrastinating: Tips for productivity. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_LFGQc5ZYs Video: Study less study smart – A six minute summary of Marty Lobdell’s lectureCollege info geek. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23Xqu0jXlfs

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Focus on Self-Health and Welfare Stress Stress is unfortunately a part of modern living. A situation or demand one person may find stressful may not affect another person at all. The bigger the problem that causes stress, the harder it is to cope with. Stress can produce mental, emotional and physical symptoms, such as anxiety, anger, fatigue, headaches, muscle tension and indigestion, forgetfulness and poor concentration.

Different triggers for stress create problems that may be short term, such as fear over giving a speech in front of a class, or longer term such as preparing for upcoming exams. Often when a person is feeling stressed, they will focus on what is beyond their control, not their own ability to cope. It is important to take charge of your stress and implement your own stress management techniques. This could include: • • • •

Recognising the cause of the stress Figure out why the situation is stressful Create a step-by-step action plan to help you deal with the issue Talk to someone who can help you.

Other activities that can help you cope with stress are: • • • • • • • •

Eat healthy foods Exercise Get plenty of sleep Practise mindfulness, relaxation or breathing techniques Create a routine Play with a pet Spend some time with people you like Use positive self-talk.

Exercise To help you find balance in your life, ensure you have time for exercise. Exercise improves your memory and concentration, improves your mood, emotions and sleep and has a positive effect on our academic ability. Researchers suggest we exercise for 20-30 minutes a day. This time can be training and playing sport, going for a walk, jog or bike ride, doing yoga or dancing.

Sleep Sleep plays a critical role in keeping us happy, healthy and helping us maintain good academic marks, but studies say up to 90% of teenagers do not get enough sleep. This can produce low motivation, focus and concentration levels, poor problem-solving abilities, irritability and confusion and reduce memory. None of this will help you learn and achieve.

It is important to establish a good environment and routine for sleep. Don’t use electronic devices for at least 30 minutes before your bedtime, as the emitted blue light can interfere with sleep. Make your sleep environment a positive place to be- clean and temperature appropriate, free from clutter. Wear comfortable sleep wear and clean your teeth well. Put your electronic devices in another area of the house. Use the ‘down’ time before turning off the light to read a book for leisure purposes.

To ensure you have enough sleep you may need to consider when you go to bed and when you wake up. Based on brain activity and sleep cycles, if you wake up at the wrong part of your cycle,

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you may feel groggy and tired. Considering it takes the average person about 14 minutes to fall asleep, use the following table to determine the best time to begin your sleep routine.

Wake up time 5.30am 6.00am 6.30am 7.00am

Prepare for bed 8.00pm or 9.30pm 8.30pm or 10.00pm 9.00pm or 10.30pm 8.00pm or 9.30pm

Reading time 20 minutes 20 minutes 20 minutes 20 minutes

Sleep time 8.30am or 10.00pm 9.00pm or 10.30pm 9.30pm 8.30pm or 10.00pm

It is important to have a positive morning routine as well. Before school, drink water, listen to motivational talks or upbeat music, try to see the sun and do a little exercise. Remember to eat a healthy breakfast. If you rush and feel time pressure in the morning, pack your water bottle and snacks, organise your uniform and school bag and charge your laptop before you go to bed.

Food As you would have heard from a multitude of sources, we need to eat a balanced diet. Eating a balanced diet not only allows our bodies to function well, but affects the way we learn and remember.

Eating the right foods can boost your brain power. The types of foods you eat will determine the amount of glucose released into your blood stream and when. This glucose acts as an energy source that will fuel your body and brain. To ensure this happens at a slow and steady rate, we eat foods with a low glycaemic index (GI).

Foods with a low GI rating include nuts, seeds, berries, legumes, fresh fruit and vegetables, all of which are great snacks and inclusions in your meals for when you are studying. If you have a sweet tooth, the good news is researchers have linked eating of chocolate with memory, so a little when memorising information may help. That doesn’t mean all sugars will be good for us, so reduce the amount of sugars and fats to an acceptable level.

Video: Brain gym exercises https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5ChXC-rHLE Website: Healthy study foods https://au.reachout.com/articles/foods-that-help-ourbrain-study Website and Videos: Yoga for beginners and onwards https://yogawithadriene.com/free-yoga-videos/

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Reading An important part of your learning is reading materials (usually non-fiction) associated with a topic.

Before you read the text, ask yourself the question “What am I trying to achieve- is my goal to find information, create an overview, understand a complex problem, or to read critically?” Once you know the answer, you will know what to do whilst you are reading. A recommended method to use to help you read for understanding is the SQW3R Method.

S = Survey Before you start to read, survey the material to gain an overview of the contents. Look through the whole reading/ chapter to preview it. Approach it by scanning: • • • • • • •

title(s) and subheadings summaries or abstracts the introduction and conclusion visual materials (pictures, charts, graphs or tables) and their captions the first and last sentences in paragraphs the conclusion any focus questions

Note how the reading has been structured and look for the author’s plan. This will give you an idea of the main thesis.

Q = Question Your reading will be more memorable if you question the material. As you are surveying, note down your questions. Writing down questions keeps you alert and focused on your work.

1. Ask yourself: • • •

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What is this chapter/ article about?

What did my lecturer/ tutor say about this chapter or subject?

What do I already know about this subject?

•

How does this reading relate to what I already know/ have read?

2. Devise questions that will guide your reading: • • •

Think about specific questions for which you need to, or would like to, find answers.

Read any focus questions at the end of the reading.

Turn the title, headings and subheadings into questions. For example, if the heading is Qualitative and Quantitative Research, your question might be: ‘What is the difference between these two types of research?’

3. Make a list of your questions for consideration. You will use them during review to help you remember what you have read.

R1 = Read Be prepared to READ material twice. First, read without making notes: 1. Decrease your pace and read actively. Active reading requires concentration, so take your time and find a quiet place where you can read and focus.

2. As you read, look for answers to the questions you noted down earlier.

3. Question the author’s reasoning. Is each point justified? Is there enough evidence? What is the evidence?

4. Compare diagrams and illustrations with the written text. Often you will understand more from them.

5. Make sure you understand what you are reading. Reduce your reading speed for difficult passages. Stop and reread parts which are not clear.

6. If you have difficulty understanding a text, look up difficult words in the dictionary or glossary of terms and reread. If the meaning of a word or passage still evades you, leave it and read on. Perhaps after more reading you will find it more accessible and the meaning will become clear. Speak to your tutor if your difficulty continues.

7. Use reflection to increase your understanding of what you read. When the author makes a claim, reflect on your prior knowledge to support or disprove it. If this raises more questions, note them down. This will help you remember and understand. But keep in mind that you are using personal reflection only as a learning tool—it is not enough to prove or refute a research finding.

W • (Read) + Write On your second reading, begin to take notes: 1.

2.

3.

4.

Take notes from the text, but write information in your own words.

Read one section at a time (a section might be divided up by headings or subheadings).

After you read a section, try to sum up the main point in one sentence.

Note down the main idea(s) of each paragraph in a section. They are often found in the first or last sentence.

5. Examples and illustrations can further your understanding and be good cues for memory. Look for important details (supporting evidence, written illustrations of points, provisions or alternatives).

6. In your notes, underline or highlight the important points. This will be useful for later review.

7. Refer to the list of questions you made earlier and try to answer them.

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R2 = Recall RECALL straight after you finish taking notes. You should have an outline of the reading in note form. You should now try to recall and write your thinking about what you have read.

1.

2.

3.

4.

Close the book and cover your notes.

Make notes of what you remember about the main thesis and points of the reading.

Check their accuracy against the notes you made during your reading.

Return to the reading. Read one section at a time and try to recall what you have read. If you were unable to recall one of the major points, then reread that section of the reading to clarify it further.

5. It can also be helpful to RECITE ideas aloud to help you remember. Sum up the main points verbally—reciting can help you put ideas into your own words.

R3 = Review Now REVIEW what you have read. At the end of your study period: Check the accuracy of your notes against the original material (if you have underlined the main points, this should be simple). This is an important part of the process because it can really help you clarify and remember what you have read. The next day: 1. Read through your notes to reacquaint yourself with the main thesis and key points.

2. Now read through the questions you noted down and try to answer them from memory.

3. Try doing the same thing after a few days.If you are reading for a course, periodically reviewing notes will help you at exam time. The more you review throughout semester, the less you will need to cram during exam study periods.

University of New South Wales 2019, ‘Reading for Understanding: The SQW3R Method’, Current Students, University of New South Wales, <https://student.unsw.edu.au/reading-understanding>.

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Note Taking, Note Making and the Cornell Format What is the difference? With note taking, we are receiving the information from a source and recording the information for the first time. This may be information from a teacher, a text, audiovisual or digital source. Note making is what we do when we use the notes taken from different sources to create a ‘master’ or complete topic guide.

Note taking is an important skill to develop as it will help you organise your ideas, help keep you focused when reading or listening, record and keep a record of what you read and think, help you engage with the information and allow you to draw links and conclusions in your learning and avoid plagiarism.

To note take effectively, write in phrases and keywords, never in full sentences unless writing a definition or direct quote. You may find diagrams or examples or further information after your original note taking session to include. Once finished, you should be able to explain the topic in detail to another person using only the words and phrases. Essentially, we receive the information, understand it, condense it and when needed, be able to reform the information in our words.

We use Cornell note taking sheets at our school that allow users to be creative and record information in their own style. Once you have grasped how to create notes using the Cornell sheets, you can use them for revision or study for upcoming tests or to create new information for assignments.

Refer to the Library for a guide of how to format and use Cornell Notes.

Sheko, T 2020, ‘Cornell Notes’, Study Skills, Melbourne High School, viewed 1 September 2020, <https://libguides.mhs.vic.edu.au/c.php?g=174546&p=1150058>.

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Study Strategies and Learning Techniques Primacy and Recency (First and Last) Study the most important parts of a topic at the beginning and end of a study session. Our brain is wired to remember these parts as they are deemed more important to your memory.

Pro tip: If you study for twenty minute sessions with a five minute break rather than fifty minute sessions with a ten minute break, you create more first and last opportunities for your brain.

Note Making Stand Outs When making notes utilise tools and tricks to make different information points stand out. For example: • • • • •

Highlight important terms Use different colours Box important points Create mnemonics eg ROYGBIV for the colours of the rainbow Sing, rap and make up rhymes to help you remember information eg The Periodic Table Song.

Pro-tip: Use the same style for all your notes and your brain will visually recognise what information parts are which, so write all definitions in one colour within a coloured box, and questions in another colour.

Dual Coding Our brain stores visuals such as pictures in the same area of the brain as our long term memory.

This is why we often recall information with images. Record information as pictures you have drawn and make them colourful. If you have a date or similar fact that can’t be drawn write it in a colourful font to make your brain remember it as an image as well.

Pro tip: Drawing your pictures as slightly unusual or ‘fun’ will help your brain recall the information, as unusual sticks out in our memory as something different or odd.

Pro tip: Even if information isn’t easily represented in visual form, create a flow chart to make it look more like an image.

Flashcards Flashcards are great tools for helping us commit information such as definitions, facts and formulas to memory. Use them often to stimulate recall. Use both sides of the flashcards for questions and answers, or if studying language, words in both languages on either side.

Pro tip: Get someone else to test you on your flashcards to help build up speed and make the interaction more memorable.

Pro tip: When you are sure of some of the cards, put them aside for half of the sessions and focus on the cards that are more difficult to recall.

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Interleaving Interleaving is the practise of combining different topics and learning them at the same time. For example, in learning Indonesian you may have to learn the vocabulary for greetings and animals.

Instead of learning them as separate topics, mix them so you learn the topic as ‘How to greet animals’ studies have shown this will help you learn faster and retain the information for longer.

Mind Mapping / Concept Maps A Mind Map is a great way to bring your information for a topic together and is a creative and visual way of linking information. You can use written text, images, and colour to direct your thinking.

Pro tip: Use coloured post-it notes on a large piece of paper to help organise your mind map into different areas or sections.

Out Loud Question and Answer Provide a study buddy or person at home with a list of questions and answers to ask you. Respond verbally and explain your answers. If they don’t think you have been thorough enough in your explanation, provide more detail. Answering questions verbally gives our brain the opportunity to organise information into sentences, verbalise it and to hear our own explanations, creating better memory pathways.

Pro tip: Develop a Q & A session program with another person studying the same topic. Pose questions for each other to answer.

ClickView and YouTube There is a wealth of great educational channels and documentaries on ClickView and YouTube.

Find a video directly related to your topic and watch it as part of your revision.

Pro tip: when you find a channel, presenter or topic that helps you, try to find associated clips instead of starting new searches every time.

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Spaced Repetition Timetable sessions of recalling information and reading your notes. By spacing out the revision of a topic in chunks, your brain will remember it more as it stores the information over a longer period of time.

Pro tip: Review information in a series of sessions after lessons and again before your next lesson begins.

Your brain will build on the knowledge you already have.

Study groups Create a study group of people in the same unit as you. Organise a regular time and space to meet, develop a plan of what will be happening during each session and be prepared to work in a focused way. Don’t waste your- and other people’s time by ensuring you are prepared and have all you need. Include people in your group who will take it seriously.

Pro tip: As part of the session, ask the group to come prepared with a challenging question for an extended answer task at the end of each session.

Pro tip: Have a ‘presentation’ from a group member each session. This person can prepare a four minute talk of a topic or area based on research (and an activity) that will help others in the group.

Timing your work Develop a system of timing your study. To begin, ‘chunk’ study sessions into twenty minute time slots with a five minute break in between each session. If you find your attention is lessened when restarting, or you want to keep going after the twenty minutes is up to finish a session or topic, extend both the working time and the break time at the end.

Pro tip: Be selective with what you do doing your break- a walk or a stretch, getting something to eat or discussing what you have revised with another person may have a positive effect, but accessing electronics for entertainment or social reasons will not. Save that for another time.

Practice Tests and Exams Use practice tests and exams given to you by your teacher or available from the year before. This will help you focus on the types of questions and wording you may be asked to answer. When you have finished, use your notes and sample responses to mark what you wrote. Write any omissions and corrections on the page in a different colour so you can see improvements you could make.

Pro tip: Practice under exam conditions so you time your responses. This will train your body for the real thing.

Top Three When you have a larger amount of study of homework to do, write a list of everything you need to attend to. Circle to three most important tasks, and number them (1-3) in order of priority. Work through the number 1 item, and when finished work through number two, then number three.

Return to your list and cross those tasks off, then choose the next three important tasks and number them. Repeat this method until you have finished the list.

Pro tip: If you have a timetable, write the tasks into the timeslots available to work through them.

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How to organise a personalised timetable Make a copy of the timetable below.

If you wish, change the time periods in the first column to suit you. Remember to factor in break times.

Block out commitments you have every week, such as cocurricular, music lessons, church, work shifts, sports and such. You may wish to check with your family for events you will be attending.

Write in any due dates for assignments or tests, incursions and excursions for the week.

Now you can see the time available for schoolwork. Look at the tasks you need to complete and table then into available spaces. Table harder subjects earlier in your day when your brain is fresher.

Leave room for homework commitments you may be given during the day, and table review/revision sessions for each of your subjects. Make sure you factor in time to relax, exercise and complete other tasks unrelated to school. You can extend the timetable yourself to suit your own schedule.

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