Study Skills

THE COMMUNICATION STATION

Shelley D. Allen, Reading Specialist

TEST TAKING STRATEGIES

Before the Test Study Tips:

1. Begin to review/study the material a few days before the test, and take study breaks every 20-30 minutes.

2. Take time to do some type of physical exercise to help you to relieve stress and tension.

3. Eat a complete breakfast that morning, and get plenty of sleep the night before.

4. Skim the material and decide which parts are still difficult and which ones you understand best.

5. Read a sentence or two. Stop and close your eyes, trying to visualize what the sentence(s) is/are talking about. If you can't/don't understand what you've read, go back over it again.

6. Pick out main ideas or key terms. Think up possible test questions and quiz yourself.

7. Read aloud and study with a parent or partner. Listen to yourself as you read.

8. Think about the important points that the teacher spoke about in class.

9. Try mnemonics. For examples, "ROY G. BIV" is the mnemonic for colors of the spectrum (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet). A mnemonic for the scientific classification levels of living things could be "King Phillip Came Over For Great Spaghetti," (kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species).

10. Remain motivated and positive always. If you are motivated about learning the material, you are likely to remember the information. It is hard to remember material that doesn't interest you. Your brain believes what you tell it, so always keep a positive attitude by telling yourself you will do well and that you know a great deal of the information. Do not give up before you begin! "Of course I can be a successful test taker!" Challenge yourself to be the best that you can!

11. Use SQ3R (survey the reading - look over, turn headings into questions - answer them as you read, read the material, recite with notes or by re-telling in own words, review all reading and answer review questions also).

12. Use flash cards to learn the material. Write a question on the front and answer on back, or write vocabulary term on front with definition on the back. Quiz yourself with a yes/no pile or work with a parent or partner.

13. Study a little each day rather than the last moment.

14. Always write test dates on a calendar and in an assignment notebook to help you remember study dates.

Test Taking Tips:

1. Think positively about doing your best!

2. Take a few deep breaths to relax. Breathe in slowly and concentrate on your breathing. Clear your mind of anxious thoughts and worries.

3. Push your feet down on floor to the count of five. Push them harder and harder. Relax. Repeat.

4. Visualize by closing your eyes and picturing yourself in a place where you're happy and peaceful.

5. Bring all necessary materials for the test.

6. Listen carefully to all directions, and ask if you don't understand the directions completely.

7. Write name and date the very first thing.

8. Reread all directions carefully.

9. Look over whole test to see what you must do before beginning.

10. Figure out how much time you'll have to spend on each question, and allow more time for answering essay questions or those worth most points.

11. Read each question carefully before answering.

12. Work on easiest problems first to get as many points as possible.

13. Skip difficult questions, as you may find information later in the test that will help you answer these.

14. Go back and answers questions you skipped.

15. Double check your answers by rereading the questions to make sure that you haven't made any mistakes.

16. Check to make sure that your paper is easy to read and neat.

17. Try to answer multiple choice questions before reading the answer choices. Rule out two of the four answers immediately and you have at least a 50-50 chance. Often when they say all of the above" or "none of the above," these are not the correct answer.

18. In true-false tests words such as everyone, all, none, nobody, no one, only, never, and always indicate the statement is false; words such as often, maybe, some, most, seldom generally, frequently, sometimes, probably, and usually, often indicate statement is true.