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1) Attendance- Be Here! Enough said!
2) Pay attention- ask to move your seat if you are sitting in a noisy section. Do not sit near a friend.
3) Vocabulary Quizzes - write out the ten words and meanings each night starting on Sunday- not only will this get you full credit on the quiz on Friday but you are more likely to remember them which could prove helpful on tests.
4) Labs- you must READ the instructions. There are lots of answers to lab questions in them. You must follow the instructions- make sure all diagrams are done and labeled as requested. Do not hand the lab in right away. Take it home and look it over. Put it in your "TO DO" folder (see below) Have Mom or Dad look it over. Do it right. Your lab / homework grade should be at least 90- If it is less, you are not trying.
5) Homework questions- Do them as assigned. Do not wait until the last minute Read over the previous nights answers before doing the next questions.
6) Use your Biology folder. Label one side "TO DO." Label the other side "DONE". Each night look in the "To Do" side and do what needs to be done. When it is done completely and done well, move it over to the Done side and make sure you hand it in. Bring this folder home every night and to school every day.
7) Notebooks- If you cannot immediately find your notes for each class because they are scattered in one book or scattered over several books, then you must change your style. I recommend one sturdy notebook for Biology. Make it an obvious color. Make sure you always have it with you- at home and in school. I do not require that you bring your text book to school so Biology does not contribute much weight to your book bag.
8) Study each night-You should at the very least read over your Biology notes EACH NIGHT. If there is any part you do not understand, ask the next day in class (before class is actually better)
The best technique I know of to study your notes is the split page method or the opposite page method.
Each page is divided by a vertical line- 1/3 of the page on the left, 2/3 on the right. Take your class notes in the larger 2/3 section. At night, as you look them over. Write down the important parts in summary form in the 1/3 section.
This forces you to a)read your notes and b) think about them. It also gives you a summarized section to study from. You can do the same thing using the left hand page and right hand page instead of dividing one page. If your handwriting is poor, you might consider copying over your notes each night (a computer would be good). This forces you to go over them and gives you a easily read copy for studying.
9) Taking Notes- When you take notes, leave room between sections and ideas. Do not try to crowd a lot into a small space. Often you confuse two separate ideas when studying because they are written too close together. This can be taken care of when you summarize your notes each night but it's better to avoid the problem in the first place. Kill a few extra trees if it means passing Biology.
10) When you study- do it OUT LOUD- So what if it makes your parents think you're crazy? They probably are wondering about that already. Explain your notes to yourself as if you were the teacher and your invisible student were next to you. Again, if something does not make sense- ask the next day.
11) Hints-I try to give you hints in class as to how to remember things- Pay attention to them! Repeat them to yourself at night. Every little trick helps. Often during the review day, I give away some of the test questions.
12) Friends- Do not be influenced by friends who seem to not try and yet still do well. You are not them!!
13) Attitude- Lastly, attitude is important. You are the only one who can make sure you are ready to go when class begins. You are the only one who can make sure you pay attention and don't talk. You are the only one who can tell your friends to shut up because you are trying to listen. You are the only one who can make you sit down each night and study.
There are a lot of things you cannot control but you can control your attitude. If you are not willing to really make the effort, then there is nothing that I or your parents can do to help you.
You are not stupid!! But you occasionally (or perhaps, often) do stupid things. From now on- DON'T!!!
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