Middle School Study Skills

Middle School Study Skills November 2018 Sarah Johnson

Sarah Riggs Johnson Academic Support Counselor for 6th through 12th Office on the 3rd floor, by the library Extension #4099 I meet with students, families, teachers by appointment...

Office Hours for Middle School students - Any day after school by appointment Right now - Middle School Exam Prep Sessions in December - stay tuned for details

Developmentally‌ your kids brains are growing...

Why it’s so hard for them to “study” effectively…

Task initiation Goal Directed Persistence

Also psychological and social factors…

Time Management

Motivation

Planning and Prioritization

Growth vs. Fixed Mindset

Organization

Anxiety/ Lack of confidence

Working Memory and skills to organize information

Peer pressure/comparison

Metacognition

5 tips for parents…

1. Calendarize! “Make time visible” with your student.

2. Help them designate the “time chunks” they are going to spend studying

Poster size academic year family calendar from Staples.

WHAT DOES YOUR TIME LOOK LIKE … (high school student who makes A’s and B’s)

5 tips for parents...

3. Help them get organized… “Sacred Study Space” 4. Talk about what they are “doing” when they are “studying” by using other verbs.

● ● ● ●

Class Syllabus Old Tests Old Quizzes Old Study Packets or Important Notes ● Quizlet Sets and Lists of Key Terms ● And of course, the Review Packets they will get the week before exams…

Teachers will give them lots of direction.

WRITE, Rehearse, Practice, Create, Make, Draw, ReWrite, Explain, Sketch, Recite, Paraphrase, Outline, Summarize, Teach…

5 Tips for parents...

5. Help them find healthy balance… and manage digital distraction. ● ● ● ●

Adolescents need 9 to 10 hours of sleep.

Brain breaks are important Studying with a reliable friend can actually be very productive… (if they are productive) Phones should be away. Notifications off. Games and Social Media cannot be an option/temptation during study times. Set “Do Not Disturb.” Some students can self-monitor, other students need you to be the external monitor. “You can earn your independence by…”

I’m trying to help my kid but I need his/her buy in/ take ownership…

Why students not “buying in”: 1.

2.

3.

4.

Don’t have good “future thinking” No reward School feels bad Overwhelmed

By Seth Perler, an executive functioning specialist Check out his video blog at SethPerler.com https://sethperler.com/ask-child-sund ay/

First you have to reframe how you see your child…

Unrealistic Lying / Dishonest Delusional Lazy / Apathetic Manipulative Disappointing

“Oh yeah, well the teacher said that I can’t turn that in anymore and I just need to finish this little extra credit thing, it’ll only take 5 minutes and then … don’t worry. I talked to the teacher.

Everything’s fine. I’m going to probably have a B…” (and their grade is currently an F!)

Does not self-monitor well Struggles to estimate time Not great at “future thinking” Struggles to inhibit distraction/ prioritize

How to gradually increase buy in…

What to do to up “buy in”/ taking ownership: 1. Discuss the future together positively. Discuss the real meaning of education (i.e., NOT grades) 2. Be honest and empathize (You’re right you probably won’t ever need to know this again…)

3. Listen and Hold Space (resist the urge to fix, throw advice at them, or get angry, or even say anything) - STAY EMOTIONALLY REGULATED and let them process/ give them emotional safety 4. Reward them with authentic recognition/make them feel good for successes 5. Reduce overwhelm with better systems, schedules, routines, limiting distractions, etc.

Building Habits Daily questions to ask yourself if you want to do better in school‌

This and many other useful templates are available at https://sethperler.com/

2 Strategies to Try to up Motivation‌ Use Pomodoro technique (timer): Do Set Up Routine: 1. Go to sacred study space 2. Get out planner, make list/game plan 3. Get out materials you need and supplies 4. Take a break before you begin

1. Decide what to work on 2. Get out timer, set for 15 - 25 minutes and work 3. Take a break for 5 minutes 4. REPEAT

TRY to MAKE IT FUN‌

The Study Cycle Okay, let’s watch the video.

1. How are you: Encoding?

2. Practicing Retrieval?

3. Encoding in NEW WAYS? The Study Cycle comes from the work of Gretchen Wegner, author of the Anti-Boring Approach to Powerful Studying https://gretchenwegner.com/

STUDY SENSES …

Four main ways the brain processes information when studying…

1.

2.

3.

4.

Seeing Listening Speaking Moving/Manipulating Information

Wegner, Gretchen. The Art of Inspiring Students: How to “Trick” Struggling Learners Into Studying Harder, Learning More, and Raising Grades. 2016. PDF eBook. Retrieved from: https://gretchenwegner.com/

Creating a Game Plan...

Find the VERBs‌

How many study senses does this student use?

What Study Senses are you using?

“I make real flashcards and then say definitions or explain concepts out loud to my cat. She knows all about mitosis and meiosis now.”

“I make these really “visual” study guides. I rewrite my notes but in a different order and with a lot of colors.

I list important people, events and ideas and then explain their significance to my mom.”

“I draw like little diagrams and stuff like to memorize chemical reactions or a bunch of events that caused WWII on chart paper in my room - so it’s like building a mural of information for the exam.”

“I read the vocab words out loud and the definitions and a sentence with the word in it and use Voice Memos to record it and then I listen to them in the car the morning before the test because it takes me an hour to get to school. So...this is how I study.”

“I organize all my Quizlet sets for Spanish in folders and then use “Test” and “Learn” to quiz myself, but I also talk to myself, especially on the terms I’ve forgotten over the semester.”

Spend Time Studying… Active vs. Passive Do Quizlet Learn or make a “fan trifold” of English Vocabulary Quiz a friend with Science Test called ___________ Solving Practice Problems for Math Chapter ___ Re-do A Map for Geography (Print blank map or use App) Practicing Writing on an Exam Topic in Spanish/French for as long as you can...

6th grade - Quiz each other using Old Prima Quiz called ____________

Passive vs. Active

Tips for completing REVIEW PACKETS I completed my Review Packet/Study Guide: ❏ In parts, focusing on quality and building my understanding, NOT speeding to get it done ❏ With supporting details and bullet points ❏ Re-solved problems or Caught Ya Sentences /writing out steps and reminders to myself ❏ Used color, pictograms and sketches ❏ Checked it over with my notes from class/ textbook /or my teacher’s feedback

Writing an Essay You need to be an surgeon first…. Cut that essay prompt up!

Then, brain

dump --- for a few minutes write down everything you remember

about the topic.

8th Grade EXAMPLE: What caused the second the American Revolution? In your essay describe some of the economic and political factors that contributed to the United States becoming it’s own country. Be sure to mention both immediate and “bigger picture” causes. Include some key terms you learned this semester.

Example: Dissect the question. Brain dump.

What caused the American Revolution? In your essay describe some of the economic and political factors that contributed to the United States becoming it’s own country. Be sure to mention both immediate and “bigger picture” causes.

Include some key terms you learned this semester.

British troops Tea Tax Stamp Act England was taxing colonies unfairly

Intolerable Acts

Colonists started to rebel - Boston Tea Party King punished colonists by passing new tariffs, but this just made them react stronger Ideas spread Common Sense by Thomas Paine

Shots fired at Lexington and Concord

Taxation without representation Spread of ideas about liberty and freedom

To study for an essay, create an outline…

Use the prompt to craft your thesis: The American Revolution was caused by several economic and political factors, such as the colonists’ growing sense of injustice that they were being taxed by the British King and the spread of ideas such as democratic government by the people.

Main Idea one: Economic Causes ● ● ●

New tarriffs and taxes - Tax on Tea Stamp Act, Intolerable Acts Taxation without Representation

My first body Paragraph

INTRO paragraph

Main Idea two: Political Causes ● ● ●

Ideas spread: Common Sense by Thomas Paine Rebellion by the colonists and the King reacts, escalation leads to British soldiers arriving Shots fired at Lexington and Concord; war begins

Second body Paragraph

● GO BACK TO YOUR NOTES TO ADD MORE DETAIL!

DO NOT WRITE IN COMPLETE SENTENCES!

PRACTICE RE-WRITING YOUR OUTLINE FROM MEMORY!

Resources Carol Dweck’s video library on growth mindset. https://sethperler.com/ (2e/ADHD/EF Specialist/Coach) and Gretchen Wegner https://gretchenwegner.com/ 13 Brain-Based Study Strategies and Famous Failures and Single Tasking vs. Multi Tasking (You Tube Videos) The Blessing of a B- by Dr. Wendy Mogul Smart, but Scattered by Peg Dawson and Richard Guare Time Timers (visual timer) - a good stocking stuffer Revibe watches or Notifications on iPad (teach them how to set “Reminders”)