My Studyblr :)

Hi there! Welcome to my studyblr. All my details are pinned below!

[astrugglinggurly]

Howdy! Welcome to my studyblr! I’m a bit new to studyblr so please bear with me as I learn along the way :)

Info about me as of 2024

Name: Abby

Age: 17

Year Level: 12 VCE student

Country: 🇦🇺Australia 🇦🇺

Subjects:

-3/4 Legal

-3/4 General Maths

-3/4Food Studies

-3/4 English

I am currently a year 12 VCE student in Victoria, Australia. I have already completed History Revolutions in Russia and China! I am looking at becoming an archaeologist, so I want to apply to both Victorian Unis and interstate Unis.

My main preferences are;

-Melb Uni (BA of Arts)

-La Trobe Uni (BA of Arts or BA of Archaeology)

-Flinders Uni (BA of Archaeology)

-Monash Uni (BA of Arts)

I’m also planning on attending a Residential College at UniMelb!

I am a recipient of a vce scholarship for financial hardship called the Skyline Education Foundation. Let me know if you want any details on scholarships or financial support :)

I was diagnosed with epilepsy when I was 8 and continue to have seizures. If anyone wants to talk about managing disabilities with VCE or specifically epilepsy, hmu!

I’ll basically be posting on here my journey in VCE and what i do and stuff like that :)

If you have any tips please let me know!!

[astrugglinggurly]

It’s time everyone!!! So here’s the summary:

I got dux of year 12, I got an 84.70 and my raw study scores were as such:

English- 32

Legal- 30

Maths- 35

Food- 47

Revs (2023)- 34

Also feel free to comment your ATAR or private message if you’d like to chat 😊

[astrugglinggurly]

Ok so I know it’s been a while but with almost 15 days left until ATAR comes out (*crying, sobbing on the floor, dying*) i thought I’d revive an old tradition!

Any other Australian highschool students on the verge of mental collapse waiting for ATAR day feel free to join in and make me feel less alone please 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

The photo I post on the day of atar release corresponds with the following:

^ 60 or below

^ 70-75

^ 75-80

^ 80-85

^ 85-90

^ 90+

[astrugglinggurly]

Doing some food work, approaching SAC season 😭

On that note, I would like to take the time to highlight what I truly believe is the key to success- mental health and breaks.

Year 12, and VCE in general, is an extremely stressful time, filled with lots of stress and pressure and anxiety. I myself have already had about 2 breakdowns and it’s only the end of Week 5. So I wanted to take this opportunity to remind everyone who might see this that it is 100% ok to take breaks. Take a day off! It’s not healthy to constantly be thinking of school and applications and results.

Do something fun! Go to the beach, go to a party, have a pyjama day! Live life. Look after yourselves my loves xx

[astrugglinggurly]

So! First week of Year 12 done! It’s been a bit of a shock, but I feel confident.

I have a year 12 camp next week (Mon- Wed) followed by an Archaeological Field School (Wed-Sat).

If anyone wants to talk, has any questions or advice, let me know :)

[astrugglinggurly]

TIP NO. 7-Don’t be afraid to have an end goal!!

For most of us, we are expecting this year to be a lot of long, hard work. And we’re right. VCE (both year 11 and year 12) is a challenge, filled with high expectations, pressure and change.

For those doing year 12, there is so much change happening all at once and so much to do, that it can be so easy to say “fuck it” and give in.

I’m here to say NO!!! YOU ARE STRONGER THAN THAT!!

Over the past few days, I made myself a vision board which I’ll be putting in either my school locker, folders for my subjects, above my desk, or all of them!

Having a visual representation of what your working for, why your doing what your doing can help motivate you when you feel so done with school, so I highly recommend making one!

Here’s mine for a reference :)

[astrugglinggurly]

Hey guys!! I’d just like to quickly mention an amazing scholarship! It’s called the Skyline Foundation Scholarship! If anyone is in Year 10 this year and has financial hardship please check it out! They are such an amazing opportunity and provide so much support.

I’ve also attached the Skyline Class of 2024 (I’m in it btw 🤭, so like kinda? Face reveal)! But if anyone would like to know more or has any questions let me know!!

Enabling and investing in high-potential Victoria students navigating adversity, to finish their VCE and continue onto tertiary studies or d

[astrugglinggurly]

Finishing up the last of my homework!!

To everyone starting year 11 this year I wish you all the best of luck! Take this year as an opportunity to prepare for year 12, but don’t take it too seriously!

To the class of 24, I hope that we can do this 😭 times about to absolutely fly 💀

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Completing some homework for English on the train home from a camp for a scholarship program I’m in!

If anyone has any questions about scholarships or financial disadvantages let me know and I’ll try my best to provide some insight :)

[astrugglinggurly]

TIP NO. 6- Goals and self motivation!

One of the biggest problems i find myself struggling with is procrastination. It sucks. We all get it. But I find that by having a clear end goal to work towards, I am able to battle some of that.

For me, my dream of becoming an archaeologist is what pushes me through 5 chapters of maths. I utilise that dream and that goal to help drive me because I know that I have it in me to get there, I can reach it if I put in the effort.

Remember as well, that taking breaks doesn’t mean that you are a failure or that your grades just dropped. Taking breaks and staggering homework is good! As long as you don’t let those breaks fester into procrastination and monitor yourself :)

[astrugglinggurly]

TIP NO. 5- Organisation. Is. Key.

I’m fairly certain that I owe basically any of my so called ‘successes’ to my organisation. So you may be asking, what is that I do?

-All of my subjects have a designated folder

-I track SACs, homework and assignments on OneNote organised both by subject and by study schedule

-I plan when to study and when to take a break

-You get the picture

Now! I’m not at all saying that you should or even need to go to the level that I do, but I find that my organisation provides a really good base level that helps me to study to and keep on top of homework. So, I 100% recommend that you find a level of organisation that fits with you and the lifestyle that you lead.

(PS- If anyone wants to see photos or a further explanation of what I do to stay organised, let me know!!)

[astrugglinggurly]

TIP NO. 4- Cornell Notes!

Again, I know some of you have been SO traumatised by your teachers forcing you to do it, however, I swear by Cornell notes!

Cornell notes are a template for note taking which help to break down key points and then summarise them.

I use them all the time for the Study Design dot points for VCAA and find them extremely useful as they help to both zoom in and analyse whatever it is your looking at, as well as providing a summary.

I keep mine in plastic binders and to me, THEY ARR MY BIBLE FOR THAT SUBJECT. They help so much and often times are what I base my revision on.

If anyone is after a template, simply google “Cornell notes template” and find one that’s good for you!

(They look a little bit like this!)

[astrugglinggurly]

TIP NO. 3- The Pomodoro method and taking breaks!

Now, for those of you who have already heard of the Pomodoro Method and absolutely HATE it, feel free to skip to the end of this post :)

For those of you who don’t know what the pomodoro method is; it is a study technique in which you study for a certain amount of time and then take a short break and repeat that instead of doing long study with long breaks!

The classic Pomodoro technique is 30mins study, 15 minute break, repeat that 4 times, and then do one big one (AKA 1 hour study, 30min break). However, you can switch this up however you feel, I personally enjoy 45mins study to 15mins break.

There are many apps you can use to time yourself that have built in pomodoro timers and act as a bit of an incentive (eg. earn more points to spend on your cat). I personally love the app Flora! (LINKED HERE)

It’s got an adjustable Pomodoro timer and you get this adorable little plant for each study session you do! You can also customise which apps you want to be ‘locked away’ from you while in study mode (the app does also contain a feature where you can pause your study which ‘unlocks’ these apps). But my favourite part of the app is that it tracks your weekly, monthly and annual study habits (in hours and minutes). This really helps when you feel like your not getting enough done and should be studying more as it actually shows you how much your completing per week!

As for taking breaks… I’m sure everyone is aware how important taking breaks are. It’s like sleep. By a certain point, your brain will stop taking in and retaining information. It is actually MORE productive to take breaks then to not, as that information will actually be retained. Plus, your mental and physical health as well as your well-being will suffer for it if you do not take breaks.

REMEMBER: You are more than your scores! And even if you want to score well, there is always time for a break xx

[astrugglinggurly]

TIP NO. 2- Don’t ever sacrifice your sleep for study!

I cannot tell you how important it is to sleep! As tempting as it is to want to stay up till 3 am or pull an all nighter to study for a bit longer, you WILL suffer for it the day after.

You will not be able to focus, or retain anything that you studied the night before. When studying for an exam, SAC or big test, always get a good nights sleep before, and, where possible, to help retain information, begin to study regularly as early as possible!

In conclusion, SLEEP. GO TO BED. YOU WILL THANK ME LATER!

Thankyou for coming to my TEDTalk ☺️

[astrugglinggurly]

TIP NO. 1- Don’t be afraid to switch up your study styles!

So many of my friends think that you need to study one way (eg. “My teacher says that I need to use cue cards.” Or “I heard that pomodoro was the best method.”)

This isn’t the case!

My entire VCE journey has been filled with me trying to figure out what different styles and methods of studying worked for me. Eventually, I found my fit, but this changes depending on how my body is feeling and what goals I have in mind and am trying to achieve.

Don’t be scared to revisit methods that you tried once that you didn’t really like! And especially, don’t be scared to make up your own methods!

Ultimately, we all learn, and retain information differently and what works really well for others might not work for you, and that’s ok! Take your time to discover what works for you!

[astrugglinggurly]

Hey guys! Thought I’d share my top tips and tricks for getting through vce and studying that have helped me thus far!

Over the next few days I’ll be releasing a series of posts ranging from organisation to health and well-being to hopefully help you with your studying!

[astrugglinggurly]

Study Score and ATAR goals :)

Hey everyone!

I can’t believe how quickly my (and for some of you guys, our) final year as come!

Here are my goals for my different subjects and ATAR!

-(Completed in 2023) History (Revs): 34

-Food Studies: 40

-Legal Studies: 32

-English: anything above 25

-Maths: 34

ATAR GOAL:

At least 74, but (hopefully!) 80+