Ok so its still pretty early in the year and we all haven't screwed up our grades yet! Over the years in highschool, I've set some rules for myself to follow and ever since that time I've been a consistent A student. Here I'll show you how to adapt to more effective study habits and mindsets which will ensure that you will get all the A's you want this year!

1) No methodology- No success
Getting an A is a function of having the right study process. Those students who consistently get A's have figured out a study process that works for them and they usually follow it pretty carefully.If you do not have the methodology or process you will not be successful.

2) Practice before or practice on the test?
You can either practice before or practice on the test. Which would you rather do? Enough said.

3) Tests will show you exactly what you do not know
Sometimes tests will surprise you with something you don't know at all! When that happens just make sure you learn it after the test, so it will stick in your mind from now on. Though it is more recommended to know all about the test before you actually do it. Its all about understanding what you have to learn and know about it before you get into the test.

4) Never study for a test on the day of the test
Never expect to learn anything new on the day of the test. You are only messing yourself up. If you study on the day of the test, you run the risk of confusing and jumbling the information you already know and end up not knowing it.

5) Learn everything before you sleep
Everything you want to learn must be learned before you go to sleep the night before the test. Theres something about learning all of this new found knowledge and then sleeping which just helps you effectively remember things more efficiently. Its a psychological process that causes you to absorb that information. You need to take advantage of it.

6) Always transcribe everything
Never study from class notes or textbook directly. Always transcribe everything into an outline. Include in the outline everything that must be learned- concepts, difficult problems, etc. No typing is allowed. Rewriting with your hands causes you to simulate the information.

7) Studying starts when bounding ends
To not be surprised when your on the test, is to make sure you know ahead of time everything you have to learn. Or another way to say this is make sure you know what you have know. Now you may not know it, but the first step to learning it is to know what to learn. No useful studying can occur until you have bounded what has to be learned.

8) Doing hard problems= Can do easy problems
If you can do the hard problems, you can do the easy problems, so why spend a lot of time on easy problems?

9) Study in a place where you can focus
Do not study in an environment in which you are too comfortable. It just leads to lots of procrastination and your mind will wander off. The library is best. No Tv, no computer, no music, no internet, no cell phone...

10) Always start preparing for a test at least two days before the test
At least two days before, you have to start making your outline and bound your information together. First of all it gives you a good feeling because you know that there is always more time left to study. It also gives you the time to figure out what you don't know and with that you can learn from the teacher/professor on a 1v1 basis. Remember you have to take advantage of the resources that are available to you, so don't be afraid of your teach.

11) Hot Guy/Girl= 4.0!
Never underestimate the power of human desire. If you can find a hot girl/guy to whom you are attracted and who already has a habit of studying in the library, you will get a 4.0. I lived that particular event when I was a freshman in high school and it does work. You will get alot of studying done, since it actually gives you a good reason to stay in the library for long periods of time.


This is the methodology in improving your study habits overall. Its guaranteed to work if you actually use all 11 together. (well #11 optional)

wow.. i basically do all the opposites of everything you just listed.
with the 11th one i get distracted so i cant even concentrate xD

o.o make sure you get rid of your bone before the study date.

As a 4.0 student my entire life (seriously... I've never gotten anything less), I agree with most every one of these, EXCEPT for this one. While this one is good for most things, there are a few subjects where I've found it most helpful. Mainly; Geography. A good 10 minute study frenzy before a Geography test meant the difference between a 100% and a 20% for me. Actually, this works for anything where you have to label a picture with outlines.

Nice outline though, especially the first one. Most of my friends who get really low grades generally don't know how they should study, or what works for them. I think that if you want to get high grades as a student, spend a couple hours at least a day trying to find out how you learn best (until you figure it out) and then after you do that, just study in that way for the rest of your life. Like for me, I read my information while tapping my fingers against something, then quiz myself, re-read while tapping, and then if I still don't know some of them, I write the questions/answers out. Works perfectly every time.

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Well when you study like that, won't you just forget everything you learned after the test? And then when the finals come you'll be in deep shet. Its better to actually learn it rather then trying to memorize it.

my bone?

if your a dude, the yes

That's true for most subjects, but Geography is all memorization anyway. (At least, my geography class was. The final was just all the map tests we had taken so far put together, along with a couple vocab words.) So after you complete the map, and get a good grade on it, just test yourself periodically to make sure you retain that information, and you're good.

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if you mean bonner, im a girl xD

Last edited by Mei-Mei at 7:24 pm, Sep 11 2010

@Dragonfiremule yea thats a good suggestion too. Eventually you'll know the geography by heart

@Mei-Mei errrr... Just do whatever it is that girls do to relieve their horny-ness xD

You've got to be careful with this one. Studying when you're tired is mostly a waste of time, as you can't concentrate well. Adrenaline helps form memories, so the only time this would be effective would be the night before a huge test, when you're really stressed out. However, thats not the best study method if you actually want to learn the material.

The best studying method is to study the material repeatedly for long-term recall. Have several study sessions, and in each one review the material you went over in the last ones. Also think over what you've studied- don't just memorize it. Make sure you understand what you're learning personally. It'll make you're future study sessions easier.

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Doing nothing is very hard to do. You never know when you're done.

Boner, damn it, boner. Get it right.

@Rockstar72 haha yes of coarse xD
@Sagaris sorry my bad

I currently have a 4.2 (sophomore), and I pretty much follow everything you say. ;D Also, always place school BEFORE going out with friends. I know that sounds bad. xD That way, you'll get things done earlier (so not procrastination occurs, and you can go out with your buddies later) and your friends will (hopefully) take after your example and have nothing to do so they'll become more academically focused as well.

The most important thing: Attend school at all costs, and pay attention in class! Otherwise, why even go if you aren't learning anything? Anyways, if you do miss school, make sure to catch up immediately.

Get academic friends to back you up, as well, and be friendly with teachers. Having a teacher like you helps a LOT. Just smiling while saying hello each day pays off a lot, especially if you make sure to turn in all your work. Ask questions, as well, if you're confused. Don't be self-conscious about it. Teachers (in almost all cases) like it when students show interest in the subject.

One more thing: Don't read manga untul 2:30 AM anymore! xDDD




DItto. This really helped out when I took Speech, as well. Without my bus-ride mumbling, I wouldn't have rocked my 6.5 minute speech on Cleopatra.

haha i like the intro school barley started and i already messed up on all my classes cause i missed to much school i actully got dropped the first week of school cause i missed the first three days but i will definitlly try this guide