Tips for Success & Staying on Track Ms. Bielefeld Fall 2011

Attendance—come to school on time, everyday Get make-up work ASAP when returning from absence Use course website to get homework assignments or contact your teacher Be organized & prepared! Have ALL materials ALL the time! Get help early & often!

Manage your education. Check grades regularly. Pay attention & stay focused in class. Do your homework every night. DO NOT GET BEHIND! Create a homework plan & find a quiet place to study Time management—plan ahead, stay on track Work hard to maintain a good grade, rather than catching up at the last minute.

Study Skills & Note-Taking

Make flashcards to quiz yourself Keep EVERYTHING! Handouts, notes, tests, assignments…you will be responsible for these! Make flashcards to quiz yourself Study your notes every night, not just before a test. Create an outline when you read chapters Create a study group for big tests Take effective & organized notes: Outline method Cornell method

Why take notes? Note-taking helps students remember what is said in class Help students work on assignments & prepare for tests outside of the classroom Help organize & process data information

Skills for note-taking To be successful at note-taking, you need to: Improve your listening skills Develop your note-taking skills Be able to use your notes to study

Successful Note-Taking Use spaces; move your hands! Keep your notes organized! 3 keys to green environ 1- educate public 2- improve tech. 3-help incr. demand for recy.ing Three keys to green environment – educate public, improve techno., and help increase demand for recycling.

Create A Mind Map Main Idea Supporting Idea

Use Symbols & Abbreviations w/ = with w/o = without pop. = population gov’t= government ex. = example b/c = because & = and # = number % = percent Arrows Example: Population Columbian Exchange new species of plants & animals

Use Headings CAPITAL LETTERS Boxes Underline Highlight -- indent below the heading

Important Stuff Only! Main ideas Key words New vocabulary Important concepts

Look/Listen for Cues Changes in voice Writing on board Repeating Emphasized in any way!

Questions If you have questions, write them down to ask later Most helpful place is in the margins

Review Notes are worthless unless you review them Review within 24 hours to move from short-term to long-term memory After class take a minute to review Underline/highlight/start important ideas Recopying or typing notes works great for reviewing