＊ nellie ＊

If you’re a procrastinator like I am, this is just for you.

My AP Psychology exam was on May 7th. Of course, I didn't start studying or reviewing until the 5th. I had 14 chapters to go over in two days. Here’s how I did it.

Step 1: Find and print out a break down for the exam you’re taking. For example, search “AP Psychology exam breakdown” on Google, and it’ll show you the percentage of questions the exam has on each chapter.

This list will show you what you need to study first, in case you run out of time.

Step 2: Rank the chapters in order by importance. Check off the boxes as you finish reviewing the chapters.

Step 3: Find or create a list of key terms and people for each chapter; make sure the list does not have definitions. You can find what to put on this list by looking at past notes, Quizlets, or assignments. You could also find a list online.

Step 4: Go through every term on the list and define it. This is what I used the whiteboard for! If you do not know a term/person or had difficulty remembering it, leave it blank and underline/highlight it in a different color.

Step 5: Go through your textbook or google the terms that you underlined/highlighted. I personally find it more helpful to find it it in the textbook since the definitions were more accurate and the struggle of finding the term made it more memorable.

Step 6: Write down the definitions to the underlined/highlighted terms. Make sure to write and not type it! Handwritten notes are proven to help someone learn more effectively than typing.

Step 7: Make a Quizlet of ONLY the terms that you underlined/highlighted and defined. If you make a Quizlet with every term, you’ll end up with a 400 question Quizlet that you will never finish in time for the test.

Step 8: Repeat steps 1-7 on every chapter. I was lucky enough to find a paper that had every single chapter broken down into key terms and people as well as the AP exam percentages, so I cleared steps 1-3 in one move.

Step 9: Test on your Quizlet once all of the underlined/highlighted terms are done.

With these steps, I was able to review 12/14 chapters for the AP Psychology exam in a total of eight hours spread across two days (around four hours per day). I felt confident on the test, and I knew most of the terms.

Here are some additional Do’s & Don’t’s!

DO:

+ Study where there will be no distractions. I studied at Starbucks from around 4pm to 8pm both nights. I have trouble focusing at home, so it was a really nice change of atmosphere.

+ Delete terms from your Quizlet as you become familiar with them. At the end of this process, I still had a pretty lengthy Quizlet (around 130 terms). As I went through the questions, I deleted the terms that I had learned and no longer had difficulty remembering. This way I had more time to focus on terms I didn’t know.

+ Caffeinate! Throughout this process, I had three grande dirty chai’s and a total of 5 shots of espresso. It really kept my mind running smoothy instead of sleepily.

+ Take breaks and move around. I probably looked crazy, but whenever my body got tired of sitting, I would stand up and walk around Starbucks until I felt reenergized.

+ Study with a friend. I invited my friend to study with me, and she made the process a lot easier for the first couple chapters. Instead of writing on my whiteboard, I spoke to her and explained the term. It’s a lot easier to study with someone that you can bounce facts off of. After she left, I wrote on my whiteboard.

DON’T:

+ Study with a friend that distracts you. You’re both here to learn. Don’t sabotage that by talking about other things like summer plans or sports. Keep focused on one task: your AP exam.

+ Check your phone. There have been countless times when I was drawn out of studying by my text tone. For the best results, leave your phone on Do Not Disturb, and wear a watch if you want to check the time.

Yes, even in honors classes! My grades are below, so you know I’m not pulling your tail.

First, let’s get it straight--perfection is not possible. There are advantages that Honors students have that basic and proficient students do not. In my school, Honors students get three points tacked onto their grade just for the difficulty of the class. AP students get five! So the 94 I got in semester 1 of geometry? I really earned a 91, which is a B.

DO:

+ Make good use of your time. Don’t waste free time in class by going on your phone or socializing; you can do this at home. Do your homework while you’re in school and in a learning environment. This yields the most accuracy in your work, and you can relax when you get home instead of worrying about homework.

+ Turn your homework in on time. There is no limit to the amount of times I can stress this point. HOMEWORK GRADES ARE IMPORTANT GRADES. Yes, homework grades are mainly filler grades, but guess what? Ten homework grades that are ten points each equal one 100 point test grade. Do I need to say it louder for the people in the back? If you get an 8/10 for ten late homework assignments, you are essentially getting an 80/100, which is a C, on a test. So for the love of your GPA, please turn in your homework.

+ Go to tutoring, if possible and necessary. No one will make fun of you. My geometry teacher had class tutoring sessions every morning where she helped students with questions. In the first semester, I never went, but I did in the second semester. I went before any quiz or test that I wasn’t really confident in. My grade raised 4 points in the second semester. There’s no harm in accepting help.

+ Study reasonably. There’s no point in studying for hours. When studying, find out the content you need to know. Briefly go over it all, then focus on what you don’t know. Don’t study information you already know well, it takes time away from topics that you need to familiarize yourself with. Let me know if you want a post on how I study for quizzes, tests, and final exams.

+ Take care of yourself mentally. If you need to miss a day of school to play catch up with an assignment or to relax and not feel any pressure, do it. I missed four days of school each semester, 8 in the entire school year. Every one of these days I dedicated to de-stressing and treating myself to make sure my mental health was where it needed to be. That being said, make sure you are wise when you miss school. Before I missed school, I would map out the entire day and make sure I wasn’t missing tests or important notes. Then I asked my friends to send me notes or assignments that I missed so that I would not be behind.

DON’T:

+ Do your homework the day it’s due. I watched my friends at breakfast and lunch rushing to finish or copy their homework everyday then listened to them rant about how stressed they were. Cramming work in isn’t productive at all. You don’t learn anything from copying or rushing. Homework is practice for the test. If you can’t do the content, you fail the test. It’s that simple. Take the time out of the day before your assignment is due and complete your work, whether at home or at school. Don’t cause yourself stress and lower grades just because you didn’t want to do your homework when you should have.

+ Believe that grades define you. You do not have to have straight A’s to be successful in life. Your talents may be far beyond the scope of English, Math, Social Studies, or Science. Find what you’re good at, and act on it.

+ Take classes that are too hard for you. Yes, the three/five points for Honors/AP classes are appealing, but they’re not going to help you if you have a 67 in the class. I have seen one student receive a 45 on an AP Psychology test while another scored a 98. I take Honors and AP courses because I have the mental capacity, and I enjoy an academic challenge. Not everyone is cut out for this sort of academic rigor, and that is perfectly fine. Don’t join classes for points or because they make you seem smarter; it’ll only hurt you in the end.

TIPS:

+ If you have questions on an assignment, text a friend or email a teacher

+ Never turn down extra credit opportunities, especially if they’re easy!

+ If an assignment is too much for you to bear (ex. 45 vocabulary words and 22 short answers due in 24 hours), split up the work with a friend or two. Don’t do this often! At most, do it once or twice a year.

Almost. Tomorrow’s my last day of school, so you know what that means.

I’m finally in the mood to study!