Preparing for Departmental Exams “Don’t Panic, Be Prepared!” Bev Ptolemy Sun West School Division

What Would You Do If This Happens To You? Flip over the exam or on blank paper, list information /topics you remember taking in the class. Soon your brain will function again and most of it will come back! Be prepared so this freeze up doesn’t happen to you, but, if it does...

Format of Final Exams - Math and Sciences: * 50 multiple choice Chemistry is “open book” - ELA: Combination of: * 25 Multiple choice for essay structure/ sentence errors/ literary terms/ reading comprehension * Short answer * Personal response * Literary essay writing A30 has one less essay than B 30

General Study Tips Listen to your mother’s advice: you need to study ahead so that you’ve done the bulk of it and have only to review the night before, in case a crisis occurs!! Get lots of rest, get fresh air & exercise just before exam Eat a nutritious breakfast & lunch to kick start the brain If you have a stress headache, drink a Coke or coffee a half hour prior to the exam, opens the blood vessels to brain

General Tips Continued Use Active study not passive: Don’t just reread, every operation your brain does stores the information 2 X longer than just reading! Make your own study notes, don’t just use someone’s. Make them concise. Then, compare yours to theirs. Create acronyms or other memory tricks, use diagrams Describe or explain to yourself aloud Do in class reviews, ask questions

Continued Turn questions into notes Redo questions and then compare your answers Make up practice quizzes and do them at a later time Study with a friend but not until you’ve done the individual work. Try to explain/demo/ teach each other. Visualize what you want to remember Work at it; if you’ve forgotten how to do it, look back at text, notes, examples, find out what stumps you and ask for help from there;don’t give up!

ELA Study Tips: Make study notes /webs. Practise fixing grammar/spelling etc Create acronyms. Frame answers to essay questions. Identify selections and genres that could be used for each theme essay. Do a prototype exam. Review answers to prototype/review rubric to see “the bar” Choose pieces enjoyed and understood to use on exam. Avoid plot summary or theme discussion only, there must be analysis in relation to theme.

Study Tips for Math/Science (Yes you can and should study for math!!”) Make study notes/webs of terms, formulas, examples of questions & solutions Redo unit tests/reviews, actually doing the calculations to remember procedure. Then do the related questions on the prototype and check the answer key. Do more than one so you can see different ways questions may be asked. Study using the formula sheet from prototype, id the ones which were from optional units to prevent freaking out over unfamiliar formulas

Continued Review how to use your graphing calculator Bring calculator to math Bring dictionary, text &/or notebook to chemistry as its open book (exams/prototypes not allowed) Study for open book as you don’t have time to look up everything and won’t finish!! Flag important note/text sections, formulas, examples to refer to quickly on the open book Math/science questions usually in order of units, number of questions correlates to time given in course

Test-Taking Strategies General Tips for Test Taking: Take 2: take 2 min to unload memory bank of nb stuff onto back of paper (names, dates, formulas, memory tricks etc.) Read directions (circle key directions) Skim entire test before starting Answer questions Star the ones you don’t know, and continue on, coming back later Double check answers If you aren’t certain of an answer, go with your “first instinct” Budget time wisely, do ones you know & worth a lot first (ex. essays)

Multiple Choice Strategies: Read the whole question Try to answer the question before looking at the answer choices, compare yours to the one that is similar Use the process of elimination; look for distractors, eliminate the choices that are wrong Work backwards from each answer choice to see if it is possible. Eliminate choices that seem to general, or too vague

MC continued Eliminate choices that don’t fit grammatically If there are two opposite answers, one of them is often the right answer Correct choices are sometimes longer Use information in the other questions as clues to help Don’t just guess, do the questions on paper to find answer Double check answers to math questions by substituting in answer into the equations

Essay question strategies: Know the key words Develop a quick outline first (planning box on ELA) For short answers, start by rephrasing the question as answer Stick to formal style Analyze and give examples, don’t just retell plot or comment on theme Follow structure for paragraphs & essays being sure to have thesis/topic statements that you prove with evidence Reread, revise and edit to be sure your answer is clear