ibonmymind

Welcome to our blog! We are two Swedish IB1 students who are here to try to inform and motivate you to continue and (eventually) ace the IB. We all know that every once in a while, we need inspiration.

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Studying Economics

It’s been quite some time since I updated this blog, so I thought it was time for a new post. I am having an economics test tomorrow and have been studying for some time now and though I share a few tips for the economics students out there.

First of all take advantage of the syllabus, you have it for a reason. It does not matter which subject you study, the syllabus is a great asset when you are studying and revising since it contains everything you have to learn. Personally I have the syllabus printed so I can mark the parts I haven’t quite understood or learned yet. It can help you keep track of your own knowledge!

Learn all the diagrams by heart. It might sound stupid to some of you, but train on drawing the diagrams at home. They might seem easy when you are in class and have the book near you, but during the exams you will have no aid and have learned tons of different diagrams. If you have trained on drawing them and learned them by heart, you will not miss any marks. Just drawing and label a diagram perfectly will give you lots of marks!

Lastly, the internet is full of educational videos, use them! I am a person who gets easily bored or distracted when studying so I try to watch videos to keep myself intrigued. It can be easier at times to learn though listen to a new voice instead of staring at your notes and hoping to understand. Every teacher will explain stuff differently and sometimes a new voice and new mind is exactly what you need to understand. My personal favourite economics channel can you find HERE.

To summarize

1.       The syllabus is your best friend

2.       Learn diagrams by heart and really train on drawing them

3.       Videos, a new voice can be exactly what you need! --> EconplusDal’s channel can be found here

Rebecca

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Extended Essay Subject

Hi everyone!

I know it’s been a while but now we are back!!

A few weeks before the Christmas break we had our first introduction to the Extended Essay. As most of you probably know, it’s an essay you write in a subject containing 4,000 words. We were told to think about what subject we wanted to do and talk to our teachers. I was personally very stressed out about  what subject to choose so I made a list, helping you making a good decision. So, what should you consider when choosing? 

What topic I had liked the most. I started out thinking about what I had enjoyed the most of everything we had done since the start and what I had found somewhat easy considering the circumstances. 

What subject I had gotten the best grades in. This is probably pretty obvious but of course, the subjects you get the best grades in are probably the ones that you have an easier time with. And since they are recommending you to write your EE in a subject you like and “care” about,this is a point worth mentioning and considering.

If you want to write an essay containing an experiment. In the Group 4 EEs you have to perform an experiment or use primary data. Therefore, those EEs will be like lab reports. This is a good thing to consider. Do  you want to come up with your own experiment or would you rather write your text like a “traditional” essay? I’m not saying that one is easier than another but it is very much up to oneself.  

Your supervisor is also very important, but I decided not to make this a point. At least at our school, it is not completely certain that you get the supervisor you want and therefore the subject itself is more important. 

My final decision stood between English and Biology but I decided to go with Biology because I thought that it would be more interesting. Now I need to come up with a good topic.

I know this is a hard decision to make, but you can do it!

[ibonmymind-blog]

Merry Christmas everyone! Forget studying for a while and just focus on yourself, your family and your friends. You need this to come back strong.

ibonmymind

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Fear of Presenting

Hi there!

Last week, I did my FOA in English and something I came to think about is that  a lot of people feel very uncomfortable and fear presenting in from of the class or a bigger group in general. I personally don’t have a huge problem with presenting, I can think that it is quite fun. But I started to reflect upon what makes me feel somewhat comfortable when standing in fromt of other people and I came up with a list of tips that you can do if you feel like presenting is hard.

1. Make sure you know your subject- This is really important. If you know what you are talking about then you will feel more comfortable especially if you are asked questions. Also, when you present in front of others and you know the subject much better than the audience, you will most likely feel like you are a step above them and a little bit superior. Because just in this subject, you know much more than they do.

2. Make sure you know how to pronounce all words- This is something that I find very important. If I don’t know how to pronounce all the words that I am going to say, I easily get nervous. If you are doing for example a history or psychology presentation where you have to pronounce a lot of names, this problem can easily arise. Make sure that you look up, ask a friend or ask a teacher about the pronunciation to make your presentation as pleasant, for you and your audience, as possible.

3. Wear clothes that make you feel comfortable- This is something that most people may not think a lot about, but for me it can be really important. If I stand in front of a lot of people, speaking, then I don’t want to have to think about how my clothes look or how I look. It may seem like a small problem, but you do want to eliminate all factors that may make you feel uncomfortable, so I always wear something that I feel won’t distract me and something I feel good wearing.

4. Stand tall- Body posture is always important. Standing up with your back up straight can make you feel more comfortable and make you feel like this is Your moment. In TOK, we watched a video about how our body posture makes people interpret us in certain ways. We can get more authority by using ”power positions” such as standing up tall and talking with our hands.That same video also talked about how you could do a “superman pose” for two minutes in the bathroom before presenting to gain confidence. So when presenting, use your body language to your advantage. Stand up, use your hands and speak loudly, this will make you seem more confident and like you know what you are talking about.

I hope you appreciated these tips!

Have a nice Christmas!

Linn

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FOA

If you choose your A language(s) as Language and Literature then you are going to have to do something called a FOA short for Further Oral Activity. This is basically an oral presentation that you do two times during the course, one for part 1 and another for part 2. Although you only send in one of them to the iBO, the one which you and your teacher think is the better one. 

We are doing our FOAs now on the first part: Language in a cultural context. What our teacher does is that he records us and then he listens to it again with his colleague and then they grade us. So basically, we are graded by our teacher but moderated by an examiner of the IBO. 

We have a few learning outcomes that we have to connect our presentation to. What I am doing is that I am analyzing a speech and I am trying to question how well the speaker uses language to convey power. To do this I have decided to give a speech where I analyze and appreciate the language used in the original speech. The form of a FOA is quite free so you can do almost whatever you want to as long as you fulfill the requirements. Therefore, you are recommended to do something you like and feel comfortable doing. 

Your FOA has to be around 15 minutes (this is pretty vague I know) but they recommend us to do about 14-15 min just making sure we fill those information with appropriate and important information related to what you are talking about. This time is actually needed to analyze an entire text so don’t freak out when you hear “15 minutes”. You also have some specific things that you need to comment on such as structure and context in your FOA.

The FOA counts for 15% of your final grade in the Language and Literature course so it is important to do your best. 

Good luck!

[ibonmymind-blog]

Mindset Is Everything

When things doesn’t go my way I tend to become negative, especially when it comes to school work. I believe what I do is not good enough, wonder why I do not understand something when it seem like everyone else does or simply just wish to quit doing a certain project and just leave it behind me. I am basically just getting frustrated and pulling myself down, instead of trying to boost my self-esteem. This is something I have been working on for as long as I can remember, because trying to do homework or studying for a test when you believe everything you do is crap is incredibly difficult and it is hard to prove to yourself that you are not that bad. The mindset you have when studying will most likely be reflected on your finished piece of homework. Having a more positive mind-set can boost your self-esteem and performance as well.

Developing and changing your mindset takes time and a lot of effort. I for example am a work in progress. You cannot just snap your fingers and it’s done, you have to find something or someone who can help you. Either it could be your mother or a family member who helps you or it could be ‘pick-me-up’ music, quotes, pictures or whatever. These things can actually help.

This might seem cheesy, but text like this one below can really help you. It can give you ideas on how to meet your own negative comments with a more positive one. I know or a fact that it have helped me at times, when I have met my negative comments with positive ones the outcome of my school work have become better and my grades have increased.

Your mindset can either hold you back or push you to do better. It is important to choose to have the right one.

Rebecca

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Weekend studying

Studying during the weekend, yes or no? Well, I personally think that it helps to study during the weekend because then I don’t have to study AS much during the weekdays. But it could also be a disadvantage, sometimes I feel like I set out a full day for studying but I just slack. I don’t study but I don’t really do anything else. This might not make sense but basically, when I set out a full weekend for studying then I work less efficiently because I know that I have 24-48 hours to do it. 

I don’t think that weekend studying is a must but it can certainly be beneficial. It can reduce stress. I usually don’t study on Saturdays unless I have a lot of work to do because I like to have one free day during the week where I can relax and do other things I enjoy. During Saturdays I can also get some CAS in because I don’t find CAS very exhausting unless I have to write reflections. If I for example go for a powerwalk or volunteer somewhere then I do it because I want to and at the same time get CAS hours. 

If I really have to then I might set aside some time for studying even during the Saturday and I try to do it as early as possible. I think that between 11/12-15/16 o’clock is the best time because then I don’t have to stress about it during the evening especially if I’m doing something. It feels good to get it off my mind. 

So what do you think, do you study during the weekends? And in that case, how many days?

Linn

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EngA vs EngB

I take English B HL which is in group 2 – Language Acquisition, which is basically English as a second language. I have lived my whole life in Sweden and never studied anything in English (Except for the subject English) before I  started the IB program, so choosing EngB felt just right for me since it is English as a second language and I didn’t feel confident enough in the language to choose EngA.

The main focus in the EngB course is on achieving an increased knowledge about the language and how to use it in a range of different contexts and purposes, but also create an understanding of another culture through study of its language. I feel like the course is very centered around the exams since everything we do might pop up there, but it might also be because my teacher have structured it that way. I really enjoy it because it helps the students get a hum about how the exams will be at the same time as we expand our knowledge in the subject.

Many IB students look down on EngB. They believe that since you study everything else in the IB program in English it is a clear choice to study English at a native language level, however I disagree with that. Since English is my second language I personally felt like I did not have enough foundation to take the English course on a native level and instead wanted to take it as a second language. In the EngB course I get the opportunity to focus on developing my language of course, but most of all my vocabulary and how to use different words in different contexts. Just like Linn I have only been taking my course since August, but I can already see an improvement in my confidence when it comes to English. Since English is not my mother tongue and I have gone to Swedish schools my whole life, starting the IB felt like a bold move and EngB have been reassuring and helping though vocabulary and grammar exercises, but also through the discussions on various topics.

Besides the exams which will be on reading comprehension, grammar, vocabulary and written work there will also be an individual and interactive oral where you will be able to show off your English through communicating with either fellow students or the teacher who will ask questions after a short presentation.

I hope this gives you a clearer view of the English B course and my opinion on it.

Rebecca

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EngA v EngB

Rebecca and I were thinking about making a comparison between English A and English B, because I know that for me personally, it was very hard to decide and I couldn’t really see the differences between them at first. So now we are here at your service!

I take English A Language and Literature SL which is in group 1 - Studies in Language and Literature. In other words, your native language. Although, English is not my native language but I take it anyways. A lot of people in my class (I would say about 80%) take English A even though it’s not their mother tongue. A reason for this might be that you have to take at least one A language (native language) and therefore people take that instead of having to take a self taught language. But regardless, you can take English A even though it’s not your first language.  

I am very glad I chose English A LangLit because I think it is interesting. I also take Swedish A LangLit which goes very well together since they are basically the same course but in different languages. Although that doesn’t make it boring it just gives us different perspectives from different teachers.

I don’t want to go too much in depth into the course because it’s easier to just research that yourself so I’ll just discuss my own opinions about the course. 

Since I’ve only taken the course since August of this year we haven’t done extremely much. 

We have, however, just sent in our first draft of our Written task. The Written task is a text that you write about what you have studied. This text is very “imaginative” and you are very free to write. Our first topic was language in a cultural context where we discussed: language change, language and identity and language and sexism. I chose to write my WT on language and sexism as a column which was a lot of fun because the structure wasn’t necessarily strict  and the language didn’t have to be too formal. 

Another thing that you have to do in the course is a FOA (Further Oral Activity) which is similar to the WT in some ways except that it is performed orally. Also here you get to evaluate the different things you’ve learned in a specific topic and then discuss that in your FOA.

I think that you should choose your level of English depending on how much you like it and if you think that it is a fun thing to study. For example, if you like to analyze speeches, writing columns and articles and at the same time develop your English, then you should choose it. English A may sometimes look better on your transcript but if you don’t take it seriously and actually study it’s not gonna matter because in the end, your grades do. Whether you want it or not, that is the way it is.

I hope you have gotten a clearer view of EngA and my opinions.

Have a good one!

Linn

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4 Tips When Studying Sciences

1.       The Syllabus is your friend

Have you ever studied really hard for a test, feeling like you are going to ace it. Then when it is time to actually take the test, you receive it and instantly realize that you have studied on the completely wrong thing? I have. Since I made that mistake I have learned that the syllabus is your friend. Everything you have to learn, you will find in it.You can use the syllabus to identify and confirm what information you have to know and save the trouble of memorizing everything in the text books,

Another little tip: if you highlight or mark the points you have learned, you can get a clearer view of what you need to put down more time on trying to learn.

2.       Your teacher is your primary source

The teacher is there to help you! Take the opportunity to ask questions if you do not understand something. Their primary concern is for the students to understand and pass their exams, so do not let the opportunity go to waste. They are only there to help you succeed.

Remember there are no stupid questions!

3.       Old tests + mark schemes

A good way to practice putting your knowledge to use is to revise with old papers and mark schemes. You will get an impression of how the exam questions will be like and more prepared for the actual exams. The mark schemes might not give you the full definitions and contain as much information as you wish, but they help you learn how to formulate an answer the IB will approve when taking the exams.

4.       Videos

If you need to have a little quick reminder or explanation when you are at home watching videos can be great. I am personally taking chemistry SL, so my two video recommendations will be for chemistry. If you  wish to watch videos for biology or physics, I believe you can find It at Crash Course. My recommendations are:

Crash course – Not specifically directed at IB, but John Green is excellent at explaining and worth mentioning. You can find it here. 

Richard Thornley – Follows the IB syllabus. Can find videos for both the old syllabus and the new one. You can find it here 

Both of these are for free!

Rebecca

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Terms that Command and Conquer your IB life

Another thing that I didn’t really understand before I started the IB was Command Terms. They are the first word in your question. Command terms are essential because they give you specific clues about how to formulate your answer. Since the IB is very strict and want you to answer questions in a certain way, these words are of great importance. 

A first glance at the command terms you might think that you know them. Examples would be: Discuss, Deduce and Define. Most people know what all these words mean, but in the IB there are, as usually, “rules”. For example, if you get an SAQ question in psychology saying “Discuss one factor of conformity” then you have to look at the command term. I have linked a link below and I have also copied this definition from there. 

Discuss - Offer a considered and balanced review that includes a range of arguments, factors or hypotheses. Opinions or conclusions should be presented clearly and supported by appropriate evidence.

So then you know exactly what to include. You need to include several arguments and everything you claim has to be supported by evidence. 

By learning the different command terms, it makes it easier for you to write better answers and get higher grades.

Here is a link which gives you all the command terms. As you probably notice, there are a lot of them. But if you look at them, then you will realize that all the terms are not present in all your subjects. Label or Measure are two terms that you might see a lot in your sciences but probably not at all in English. So you can all breath out and relax, it’s not as much as it seems. 

I would recommend you to look at the command terms every once in a while and if you ever get a homework,essay to write or a quiz etc, then look up the command terms and you will learn them eventually. These will, together with your great brain, be your best friends during exams and are therefore extremely important. 

Have a nice evening, morning or day!

Linn

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Exercise - Meditation in motion

When it comes to CAS, which is a part of the core of IB, we all have to do a few physical activities. It is a perfect opportunity if you wish to try a new form of exercise, but also a perfect way to learn how to balance physical activity and schoolwork. Whether it is for the exams or just general school or other studies, it is important to make time for exercise and not just homework and revision. 

“Exercise release stress” or “exercise helps you study” are two sentences you probably have heard a few times in your life, but most of us never really embraced the information the sentences provide. When the workload is heavy it can feel wrong to leave the books behind and take a break performing any kind of exercise, but it is good for both your body and mind to do something completely different. Exercise can help you cope with stress and pressure. Two direct stress-related benefit are:

Happy hormones are released

Endorphins are released in the brain at any form of physical activity and they are often referred to as happy hormones which can create a feeling of euphoria. These hormones combats with the negative side effect stress have on your brain and also make you feel overall happier.

Form of meditation in motion

Exercise allows us to forget our problems as we focus on something completely different. It is a form of meditation which cleanses your mind while performing an activity. The mind will get calmer and clearer as the stress which fogged it becomes pushed aside by the happy hormones.

Many think of exercise as sports only, but exercise is simply moving your body which can be almost anything that gets you active. It could be a sport, but also walking or even vacuuming your room.  Taking a few minutes off getting your body active can basically help you store all the information you have to learn in your head and making both your body and mind calmer in the process.

Rebecca

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Rewriting notes

Some people like rewriting their notes after taking them, and others don’t. I personally don’t really know if I like it or not. I do however have an extra notebook for chemistry and math because the notes I take in those classes, are always the messiest. Therefore, when I come home everyday, I always sit down and read through the notes I took in class. Then, in a more structured way, I write down everything and complement with the textbook. This way, I have everything collected and I know exactly where to look for notes then I need them. 

I read an article published by John’s Hopkins here, about being a premedical student and study technique. They said that study technique is something very "personal” but rewriting notes could be a first step towards efficient studying. Firstly, it forces you to go through your material again and reflect upon the information. Second, it is also a good way to get organized. Especially if your teacher is not very structured and jumps from one topic to another, then making the notes clear for yourself can be beneficial.

On the other hand, do not focus too much on rewriting your notes. Spend only a couple minutes, maybe half an hour on rewriting because it is not the most efficient way of studying. I think that when I rewrite my notes I don’t really think at all. I read what I have written, write it down and then forget it right away again. You don’t have to use your memory as much as you do when you for example quiz yourself and that makes it harder for you to remember the information. 

I read another article also discussing notes and note taking. The writer quoted a Geology professor called David Hirsch who said, “The goal should be to produce a set of notes that are sufficient to re-teach you the material in ten years after you’ve forgotten most of it.”

I think this is a very good tip. Make your notes clear and structured and make sure that you understand them. To achieve this, you might have to spend some time rewriting, but as long as you understand your information, that is okay.

Linn

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CAS

Most of you considering doing the IB have probably heard of CAS. CAS is a big and mandatory part of the IB and without it, you cant get your diploma. It was made to make students engage in extra curricular activities, to get a more balanced lifestyle which is very important.

CAS stands for Creativity, Activity & Service. In order to get your diploma, you have to complete approximately 50 hours of each. 

Paragraphing ibo.org, 

Creativity involves activities that enforces creative thinking.

Activity involves physical training and activities.

Service is a voluntary activity that provides learning.

When performing the different experiences (which is what they call the activities) there are certain learning outcomes that have to be met. There are about seven learning outcomes and they will only have to be met once. 

Our school helps us a lot with CAS. There are a bunch of different clubs and activities you can join to get your CAS hours. Examples of things you can do are...

Creativity: Play an instrument, sing in a choir, draw and write. You could for example join a drawing or writing club to stay motivated as well.

Activity: Jogging/Running, going to the gym, biking, horseback riding or playing soccer. 

Service: Volunteer at e.g. a hospital, tutor someone and help out at a charity organization. 

CAS is actually not as bad as it sounds. 150 hours sounds like a lot but if you plan it well and try to get a lot done in DP1, it will most definitely work out. 

Good luck!

Linn

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Combining the IB with other things you like

A lot of people I know want a job. We want it to get more experienced, have something to write on the CV and of course get some extra money. But when you are in a very rigorous program like the IBDP, then it can be hard. The stress is already there from all the classes that you take, and then in combination with CAS and the Extended Essay and everything else, it can seem pretty impossible to fit a job in.

Since I am only in DP1, I probably haven’t experienced that real stress that you emprise in the program, but I have two jobs. They are not extremely time consuming which makes it easier to balance life and school. I work 2 hours every week and then every two weeks I work 5-10 hours on top of that. At least for now, I think that it works out good to have a job on the side. Believe it or not, but it actually makes me relaxed. For a few hours, I don’t have to think about school because I’ve got my hands full with my work. It’s also very nice to feel like you are making some money yourself. Not having to depend on your parents is very satisfying. 

If you feel like a job would be too much responsibility, then CAS is a good option. You can sign up to volunteer at fairs, galas or just different projects that you are interested in and then participate ones and therefore complete them ones and not feel committed and stressed having to do things every week. 

To summarize, if you would like the extra money and experience then go for a job. But if you feel like it would be overwhelming then please don’t. Everyone is different and therefore we work the best differently. I personally feel like I work the most efficiently when I am under pressure so having a job works for me but it may not work for others. 

Do whatever makes you happy and don’t put too much pressure on yourself.

Linn

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Study Essentials 101

When studying, there are a few things that i find very important to have with me, or at least close to me since it makes me more motivated to study. It also keeps me focused because I won’t have to run to another room to get something and interrupt my studying. 

First of all, my assignment

This may seem very obvious but just make sure that you have your notes and textbook ready to use. This will make it so much easier to find information that you might need fast, and it will keep you going.

Pens, pencils and highlighters 

Depending on what you are studying or what you are doing you may or may not need, for example, highlighters. But it is always good to have close by in case they would be needed. Some kind of pen is usually needed, and having different colored ones just makes it more fun!

(Computer)

I put this in parentheses because I think that most of us know that this is something that can be a HUGE distraction. If you know that you won’t need the computer, then don’t bring it because it will probably do more harm than good. But if you are writing for example an essay, then you wiill probably need it but try to use it only for what you are supposed to. 

A tip is that if there are certain topics that you are unsure of, make a note of them and look them up on the computer later and you won’t be distracted during your studying!

Water

I think it’s really nice to have water or something to drink. When sitting at the desk for hours (with breaks, don’t forget!) then it is easy to get dehydrated, especially if you are looking at a computer screen. Water will both hydrate you and make you wake up. 

Lip balm

I don’t know why, but I always like having a lip balm at my desk because my lips tend to be dry. I don’t know, maybe it’s because I’m s girl and I’m obsessed with lip balm or maybe some other reason, but I think that it is a good idea to have.

Last, but not least...

GOOD LIGHTNING

This is extremely important. Sitting in a dark room make you extremely tired and I personally lose all my inspiration. So turn up the lights, open up the curtains and let the sunshine in. 

Have a good one!

Linn

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Change Study Environment!

Disturbances are all around us and it makes studying harder than necessary. There are simple solutions to remove the temptation of watching just one more episode of that really good TV-series. Making sure you will not have to deal with family disrupting your studies, and get you more motivated to actually stock information in your head. Personally I prefer to switch location. Get out of the house and go to a local library, to the school library or any other similar location.

Switching environment can increase your motivation to study because you actually took your time and effort to leave the house. You have already decided that you want to get something done and took the initiative to do it. Just showing a little perseverance can help to increase your study motivation a lot.

The people around you in the library will either be doing their jobs or studying themselves. This can also inspire you and boost your motivation, but also the efficiency. There will be less disturbances at the local library compared to your house. The location will most likely have a more comfortable silence and if you need more material to any subject you will most likely it find right there.

Whenever I wish to get things done, I grab all my books and go to the library. It might take some time to get off my butt and go out, but in the end it is always worth it.

Rebecca