Academic Contracts August 25, 2013

After having such a rough summer thanks to ulcers last year, I decided to write up a list of “statutes” I’d follow during the school year to prevent future stress related health problems. Placed on the back of my bedroom door along with two posters from Wise Like Us, skimming over the list was one of the first things I did every morning to remind myself of my personal work ethic. I still got sick due to stress, but nothing bad enough I missed school over and I was as dedicated to achieving extreme perseverance as I had hoped. With this in mind, I rewrote my Academic Contract for Senior Year and have included both contracts in case anyone wanted to follow a similar suit.

Most of the ones from Junior Year are from things I read on various places online in terms of study tips while Senior Year I cleaned it up; removing the things from Junior Year that didn’t work out too great(study groups, caffeine intake, etc), while adding easier to follow and more reasonable statues.. The main trick however is to make it look as formal and as serious as possible while placing it in an extremely visible place. This maximizes viewing and reminds yourself how important your new academic guidelines are.

Hope this helps and good luck to all embarking on their upcoming school year 🙂

Back to School Apps and Supplies August 24, 2013

Tis the season for going back to school and back to school shopping!

With 3 years of high school and 12 years total of public school education under my belt, you could assume I’m a bit of a pro when it comes to figuring out what I need to stock up on during the school year and methods to combat the year. Last year I actually wrote a post on some tips to help you stay organized and ahead in your academic endeavors. Although the post contains tips I still use, I’ve advanced and neglected to mention ways I attempt to stay prepared and sane.

How to Read Literature Like A Professor Condensed Notes (For AP Lit) & Summer Vocab August 14, 2013

How To Read Literature Like A Professor Condensed

Chapter-by-Chapter TLDR

AP Lit Summer Vocab

Tested and True Back to School “Pro” Tips August 26, 2012

• Clean your room between terms so you’re not struggling to find stuff while already stressed out about school. And if you’re like me, someone who throws shit all over the floor when stressed, this will be even more beneficial.
• Have two sets of pens/pencils/etc; one to keep in your backpack and the other to keep where you do your homework(preferably desk) so you’re not pissing your peers off by asking for a pen(cil) every other day/when you leave them at home.
• Buy a wall calendar and place it somewhere that you’ll see it first thing in the morning. I can’t tell you how many times I woke up thinking “Oh shit. What quiz/test/project is due today?” then rolled out of bed and saw my calendar. If you have a system for your calendar, it makes it even easier to stay organized. Like this is what mine looked like for April. P for project, Q for quiz, and T for test and each color was a different class(French was pink, Chem was orange, etc). The lines represented what class was having a study session during lunch and during what half. So say I had a Chem quiz one day and thought “Oh shit. I still don’t understand this.”, I’d realize it was Friday so I could go for extra help.
• Lay your clothes out the night before so you don’t freak out for 20 minutes over what to wear instead of sleeping for an extra 20 minutes. If I’m feeling perplexed over something I have that day, I’ll even throw my flashcards/notes on/near the clothes to remind myself to cram.
• Keep motivation near your study area so you stay focused. Like I have this on the back of my bedroom door and this hanging on my desk. Keeping a To-Do list is also beneficial as you feel accomplished for crossing something off.
• Download a program that temporarily blocks select websites so you don’t tell yourself “Oh…I’m going to spend five minutes on Reddit then resume.” and end up spending an hour on there. I love using Cold Turkey
• Purchase a USB and have it with you at all times. You never know when you have a spare moment at a computer to be productive and work on a project or essay.

28 AP English Vocabulary Words July 26, 2012