Most high school students dread the thought of studying. Between jobs, practices, and endless scrolling, studying is the last thing students want to do after a long day.  However, it doesn’t necessarily need to be a long process. The secret isn’t time. It’s smart habits they build over time. As someone who struggles a lot with sitting down and studying, here are good habits that I’ve picked up over the past two years. 

Starting off with a simple one. Don’t cram everything into one night. For me, reading and reviewing everything in one night actually makes me forget it all by the morning. Instead, I split it into sections, and read slowly, making sure I actually understand what I’m reading. I try to focus for 20 to 30 minutes then I give myself a five minute break. students remember better when they’re relaxed.

Flashcards are another simple and useful tool. If students by themselves or have someone there to read them the flashcards, it’s one of the top things I recommend. It helps with the repetitive part of saying it many times and the active recall. There is one thing that I recommend more though. Using features on Quizlet. This app has many styles to help you learn better and quicker. Using the flashcard and quiz feature really helps with studying for an exam or quiz.

In summary, study smart, not hard. Take breaks, use good resources, spread out the work and lean on your friends to help. You’ll save time, lower stress and you’ll be fully prepared for the test day.