The Final
Countdown: Preparing for Finals
By Scott
McDonough, ENGL 490
It's the final countdown to the end of your first
semester at FSU. Just a week and some change until we all get a much needed
break. Then, you can come back as a freshman and a half with one semester under
your belt. Unfortunately, the final countdown to the end of the semester is
going to seem like a drag, and that's because the final countdown to the end of
the semester means preparing for finals.
Some students prepare for finals in one big
overnight(s) bender--not very efficient. Other students prepare for finals by
trading sleep and food in exchange for mountain dew, red bull, and Adderall to
help them get through a mean study session--not very healthy. Some students put
everything off until the last minute, then end up having to improvise with
little to no preparation, and hope they're lucky wings will be strong enough to
carry them through--not very smart.
If you've been a wise FSU freshmen who heeds the
advice of the Frostburg Freshmen Feature of the week, however, then you will
have already learned effective study habits as covered in "Effective Study Habits, Tried & True From Us To You." Well, those same
study habits still apply here, but these few specific tips have been
specifically tailored just for final exam preparation, and will make your first
final countdown as an FSU student as smooth as possible:
Early birds get the worm.
The better prepared you are for all of your finals, the better off you'll be . It's not possible to cram an entire unit of information into an all-night study session no matter how many red bulls you drink, and it's just not very smart or healthy for that matter. And it's good to be healthy FSU freshmen. So, get started at least a week before the exam, more if you can. It's much easier to break down your final exam preparation into manageable units that are easier to tackle one by one than it is to take the whole load at once. You won't be so overwhelmed with stress, and you'll have time to catch a good night's sleep and a healthy breakfast before acing your exam...a good day's work from a week(s) preparation.
The better prepared you are for all of your finals, the better off you'll be . It's not possible to cram an entire unit of information into an all-night study session no matter how many red bulls you drink, and it's just not very smart or healthy for that matter. And it's good to be healthy FSU freshmen. So, get started at least a week before the exam, more if you can. It's much easier to break down your final exam preparation into manageable units that are easier to tackle one by one than it is to take the whole load at once. You won't be so overwhelmed with stress, and you'll have time to catch a good night's sleep and a healthy breakfast before acing your exam...a good day's work from a week(s) preparation.
Organize, organize, and organize.
You have a nice head start with plenty of time before finals to get good and prepared. To break down your final exam preparation into manageable units, start by making yourself a calendar that organizes a daily schedule covering certain topics for review. With a schedule, you'll have a plan of action in which you can cover small amount of material each day. Additionally, you can focus on what you have to study each day without having to worry about what you'll be studying tomorrow until tomorrow.
You have a nice head start with plenty of time before finals to get good and prepared. To break down your final exam preparation into manageable units, start by making yourself a calendar that organizes a daily schedule covering certain topics for review. With a schedule, you'll have a plan of action in which you can cover small amount of material each day. Additionally, you can focus on what you have to study each day without having to worry about what you'll be studying tomorrow until tomorrow.
Outline.
You have a nice head start with plenty of time before finals to get good and prepared, and you're organized with a study schedule. Next, it is time to actually start studying. As you go along each day in your schedule, make outlines as to what you have studied by writing a brief summary for each topic in your schedule. Take notes on what you know by heart and what you need to study a bit more. This way, you will have an outline to go along with your schedule which you can go back to for review any time you want. Flashcards can be a very effective tool in creating an outline as you can review important information rapidly, repeatedly, and you can take them with you on the go to get some studying done while waiting in line for food at Lane.
You have a nice head start with plenty of time before finals to get good and prepared, and you're organized with a study schedule. Next, it is time to actually start studying. As you go along each day in your schedule, make outlines as to what you have studied by writing a brief summary for each topic in your schedule. Take notes on what you know by heart and what you need to study a bit more. This way, you will have an outline to go along with your schedule which you can go back to for review any time you want. Flashcards can be a very effective tool in creating an outline as you can review important information rapidly, repeatedly, and you can take them with you on the go to get some studying done while waiting in line for food at Lane.
Catch up on your zzzz's.
You have a nice head start with plenty of time before finals to get good and prepared, you're organized with a study schedule, and you have an outline to review. You wouldn't want all this preparation to go to waste, and you want to use your brain at its full power during your final exam, so you'll need to catch up on your zzzz's and get an adequate amount of sleep. Try catching close to eight hours for a good night's sleep. At the very least, you'll need at least seven hours of sleep a night to function at full capacity. If you are sleep-deprived, your cognitive processes will be slow, you won't remember anything you studied, and all your hard work and preparation will have been for naught, so catch up on your zzzz's you worked so hard to cram into your brain.
You have a nice head start with plenty of time before finals to get good and prepared, you're organized with a study schedule, and you have an outline to review. You wouldn't want all this preparation to go to waste, and you want to use your brain at its full power during your final exam, so you'll need to catch up on your zzzz's and get an adequate amount of sleep. Try catching close to eight hours for a good night's sleep. At the very least, you'll need at least seven hours of sleep a night to function at full capacity. If you are sleep-deprived, your cognitive processes will be slow, you won't remember anything you studied, and all your hard work and preparation will have been for naught, so catch up on your zzzz's you worked so hard to cram into your brain.
Keep calm and carry on.
You have a nice head start with plenty of time before finals to get good and prepared, you're organized with a study schedule, an outline to review, and you're well rested. Unfortunately, you may still be stressing out about your final exams, especially if your study schedule and outlines might as well be full-on textbooks. Don't panic! Keep calm and carry on. Relax and breathe, it goes a long way. Don't let yourself become overwhelmed by a hard question or two, just move on to answer the questions you do know and come back later. Final exams are hard, but you'll be well prepared, so don't fret.
You have a nice head start with plenty of time before finals to get good and prepared, you're organized with a study schedule, an outline to review, and you're well rested. Unfortunately, you may still be stressing out about your final exams, especially if your study schedule and outlines might as well be full-on textbooks. Don't panic! Keep calm and carry on. Relax and breathe, it goes a long way. Don't let yourself become overwhelmed by a hard question or two, just move on to answer the questions you do know and come back later. Final exams are hard, but you'll be well prepared, so don't fret.
Take it easy after the exam.
You have a nice head start with plenty of time before finals to get good and prepared, you're organized with a study schedule, an outline to review, and you're well rested and relaxed. You'll do just fine, but even after it's all over it's quite common to worry about how you did on your exam. Did you answer that question correctly? Did you get the topics mixed up? Is your answer thorough enough? It's easy to worry after the exam, but remember, it's all over and turned in. No amount of worrying will change anything, so quit worrying about whether or not you failed miserably on the exam. Odds are that you did much better than you think. You prepared as well as you could, gave it your all, and have been through a long enough semester. Clear your mind for your next exams, and take it easy. Once the final countdown is over, it’s over, and it's time to enjoy your break.
You have a nice head start with plenty of time before finals to get good and prepared, you're organized with a study schedule, an outline to review, and you're well rested and relaxed. You'll do just fine, but even after it's all over it's quite common to worry about how you did on your exam. Did you answer that question correctly? Did you get the topics mixed up? Is your answer thorough enough? It's easy to worry after the exam, but remember, it's all over and turned in. No amount of worrying will change anything, so quit worrying about whether or not you failed miserably on the exam. Odds are that you did much better than you think. You prepared as well as you could, gave it your all, and have been through a long enough semester. Clear your mind for your next exams, and take it easy. Once the final countdown is over, it’s over, and it's time to enjoy your break.
Want more
information on Frostburg State University's Class of 2016?
No comments:
Post a Comment