With most Westmont students taking six classes, the workload can prove overwhelming. Tests every week, essays, and endless homework assignments dominate any possible free time. As someone who has taken seven AP classes in my time at Westmont, I’ve developed studying habits that allow me to get enough sleep (sometimes). In order to maximize your studying time, below are the study tips I recommend for each required class, along with teacher recommendations.
Math:
While each math class differs in what the teacher requires, my best tip is simply to practice. Although taking notes is helpful and necessary, the bulk of tests are questions that assess your skills. Use the review questions at the end of each chapter as a practice test, going over your answers afterwards. Redo any homework questions that you didn’t understand, and go to your teacher for help if you still can’t figure it out. Personally, math was always my least favorite subject, as I couldn’t seem to understand it as fast as everyone else, but these study tips have saved my grades on multiple occasions.
Science:
The studying method used for each type of science differs as well. In my experience, I recommend using flashcards to memorize all the information and terms. In addition, practice problems for chemistry and physics will prove necessary to completely understand the processes before the test. In addition, reading over your notes multiple times before the test to make sure you don’t forget a key point needed in the problems will help.
History:
Combining the memorization needed for science and the writing skills needed for English, studying for History requires more time than any other subject. It is important to make flashcards with all terms from the unit, read over notes multiple times, and practice essays. Some textbooks will have practice essays at the end of each unit to practice, which I recommend to test yourself. I also highly recommend making a study guide with the key themes of the unit and each important person or event related to that theme.
English:
English is by far the hardest subject to “study” for, but these study tips have helped me to do well in all my English classes for the past four years. For tests on a certain book, the majority of the studying is reading over Sparknotes and making flashcards on the most important plot points, characters, and other details. However, studying for essays when the prompt isn’t known until the day of seems impossible. I recommend going over every possible prompt, if the teacher provides a list, and writing a possible thesis that outlines your body paragraphs and rebuttal. If you know the essay will be about a book, going over your notes and the major themes of the book with specific examples will help you on the day of.