How to survive the IB

A blog offering tips and stories about how to manage the International Baccalaureate

[ibsurvivalism]

For all you Travelers...

So today I wanted to address something a little different from what I usually write about...

The famous Make it or Break it GAP YEAR!!

A lot of people say that a gap year will distract you from what is actually important like... your career? However, I, as a senior, highly disagree with the THEORY (note, I said theory) that traveling will discourage one from going back to studying in the next few years. I personally feel it is encouraging and if not encouraging, it is an experience of a lifetime that can give you good connections around the world for the future.

Traveling the world gives you cultural and international experiences that you can only be a part of if you actually DO the traveling! My dream is to travel the world (eventually) or to have visited all the countries in the world at least once, if not many more times. But how is it possible with paying for uni, paying for traveling costs to and from uni, rent and maybe eventually a car?

My biggest ambition in the world is to travel; I want to just travel everywhere and I don't care about the money it takes, its all I want- I feel as though traveling is the piece of me that is missing in the puzzle.. As though, it would take traveling to find who I really am and who I want to be and I'm sure there are more of you out there who feel the exact same way. I don't want a vacation, I want it to be a lifestyle....

Today I found this amazing blog that I wanted to share with all of those who have ambition to travel but are lacking the costs:

http://travelwithk8.wordpress.com/2014/12/05/how-i-afford-to-travel-and-you-make-not-like-what-im-going-to-say/

I hope you guys can learn from her, I certainly have!

[ibsurvivalism]

To be continued....

Now that you all know why sleep is such an important factor in our development and for our brains to actually function like they are supposed to I would like to move on to something that students tend to FORGET to do while they are panicking over the next 5 assignments all due this week....

Please keep in mind the fact that there is something called EXERCISE!

In fact, it eases your stress levels and increases concentration and gets your blood pumping - (stating the obvious here but when you have been sitting at your desk all day it is healthy to get off that poor chair that has been bearing the weight of your troubles and go outside - you don't even have to go outside, you can go to a gym if you don't like the outdoors much)!

Exercise not only helps keep you physically fit but it also helps you keep mentally stable. When I don't do any exercise I tend to get depressed and quite down about myself as well as the amount of work I have on my plate. I understand that when you are in the middle of a hectic week, exercise for most IB students is the last thing on their mind but quite honestly if you don't do something with yourself, even 20 minutes of yoga or stretching or sprinting or going to play a friendly 5 a side with your mates as a break from studying you will get nowhere.

[ibsurvivalism]

Don't panic, they say.....

Good Afternoon everyone :)

Today's post will be about how NOT to panic during the IB and how to avoid it.....

Well there's the simple answer to this, which would be... just stay home and study and do ALL of your work and you'll be fine. However, sometimes as all IB students will understand, you get stuck between a rock and a very hard place. In translation this means, I want to have a social life and do well in school but still manage to fit in some sleep somewhere here AND manage all of this without stressing.

In all honesty, achieving this goal is like a distant dream as an IB student. Its something that we just deal with because we know that in two years were going to be done and we will... eventually have our social life back. There is a way of juggling everything all at once however many find this difficult, I am one of those many.

I did well in my first year of IB, it was tough but manageable and I still had a social life and sleep. However, the second year I returned to school I was slacking a lot as I had very negative energy and a pessimistic outlook on everything. I was lacking sleep and got sick a lot due to the lack of sleep, I missed many classes and couldn't catch up. I started to lack in concentration, couldn't seem to stay awake as I was sleeping in two phases and was drinking 6 cups of tea and coffee a day.

I am telling you all this so that this does not happen to you. I regret being so negative about coming back to school as it really caused me to fall behind in my studies. I have wanted to share this story with you so that you can avoid any of this happening to you. There are a number of important things that will help you through tough weeks where your colour-coordinated calendar has 3 major deadlines scheduled in one week.

So what can you do to make sure that you don't fall behind even if the week has been unbearable and you just want to collapse on your bed?

 THE most important thing to keep in mind is:

SLEEP - Yes, I said the word! The thing most IB students lack! Let me explain firstly - My average amount of sleep in the first month of school this year was 4 and a half hours a night and sometimes even less. I would come home and take a 2 hour nap and stay up most of the night to do work as I could not concentrate during the day. Please, do NOT do this. It will eventually cause your whole body to be physically and mentally exhausted leading to a total burn-out (which is what happened to me). I can tell you from experience, you need your sleep, it is the most important part of your day.

When my headmaster explained the reason why we should get at least 7 hours of sleep a night I was quite shocked to hear why.

Through this diagram it will show you why sleep is important:

REM is the kind of sleep that the body needs in order to re-vitalize itself and if this sleep is not obtained our bodies cannot function at their full potential. We need to go through all 5 stages of sleep multiple times in order to function to our full potential.

I have downloaded an app which allows me to see how well I am sleeping  called 'Sleep Time' which is free and monitors my sleeping patterns and can then tell me the quality of my sleep. I now keep track of all of my sleeping habits which has really helped me concentrate on actually sleeping and making sure that I get enough hours a night. The looks something like this (definitely worth downloading):

To be continued....

[ibsurvivalism]

Good morning :)Think we can all relate to this one! This trend has carried through to today's maths, science, English and every other class I have!

Have a great day everyone!

[internationalbaccalaureatehelp]

[ibsurvivalism]

Good Evening Everyone :)

Found this great link to a blog for help on writing the extended essay! Great breakdown of the Extended Essay Requirements, definitely check it out if you need help understanding the structure of the essay!

Will be uploading some more information about the extended essay shortly!

[ibsurvivalism]

Be proud IB people! - Some motivation!

Take a look at this and have take a moment... These below are the comparisons of the IB points to the A level scores:

A-level Offer             IB Comparison AAA             38 points AAB             36 points ABB             34 points BBB             32 points

Hope this is motivating to everyone, it was to me!

Have a good week people!

[ibsurvivalism]

This goes out to all of you HL Maths Students!

[whatshouldibkidscallme-blog]

when you suddenly realize your calculator was in degree mode instead of rads

[ibsurvivalism]

Good morning guys! If you've ever sat in a maths class at A-level or IB then I am pretty sure you have all heard of the 'degree' or the 'radians' mode on the calculator - And I'm also pretty sure that your maths teacher has drilled it through your head to make sure you change the setting depending on what topic you are doing.

During my IGCSE Maths exam paper I had my calculator on the wrong setting and most of the exam was trigonometry, however I showed all my working and still passed with a good grade, so if there's something to be learned - Either make sure not to make the stupid mistake of leaving your calculator on the wrong setting in the first place and/or if you insist on just making the same mistake I made, at least show your working so you can get marks for that.

I know this sounds obvious but honestly, some of us need to have their minds refreshed on what you should be focusing on during your exam, so please guys, charge your calculator, know your calculator, be your calculator - its like speaking Spanish to an English person who doesn't understand the Spanish, the same goes for maths, even maths has its own languages!

[ibsurvivalism]

So what's the Deal with Citations?

Good morning IB students :)

The famous MLA format! - Ah yes! The most annoying part of any Extended Essay or Research Paper!

We all know the struggles of trying to understand this format of citation because it looks scary and way to professional and last but not least it can either make or break your essay. Citations are one of the most important components in your essay due to the fact that you must show where you got the information from otherwise we would guess what word comes next? Yes, plagiarizing! - And no one wants that to happen, which is probably worse than not handing in anything at all! And because of this, it is extremely important to learn to cite your information correctly and to the standards which meet the MLA format.

Take your Extended Essay for example: Having the correct citations can win you easy marks on your paper and could even make a difference between an A and a B or a B and a C. Personally, I was taught how to use the citation tool in Microsoft Word however my citations were completely wrong and this is because I didn't really understand what I was doing. After I realised that they weren't done correctly and the in-text citations (the stuff in brackets after you take information from a website and have to show where you got it from within the body of the text) were not done to the MLA standard, I changed the program I used for citation and made sure I knew the order in which the citation goes, which is important information to know when writing a paper and referencing your sources.

If you are panicking, not to worry, here are two reliable websites to use for citing your sources and they even offer different citation formats (and its all done for free):

This one actually will also put them into alphabetical order for you and have them all in one place:

https://www.citethisforme.com/

http://easybib.com/

[ibsurvivalism]

Beat the Procrastination - 5 Ways to Avoid it!

I think every IB student is more than familiar with this word! Ah yes, the beauty of procrastination. - When it gets to the point where you are searching ways to avoid procrastination on google, that's when you know you've hit rock bottom. So welcome, to rock bottom :) ! I know, all too well the feeling of just NOT wanting to do an assignment or not wanting to open that horrible looking maths book but you know what will happen eventually by not opening it and having the willpower to sit down and force yourself through the homework? - Well, stating the obvious, but it will still be there to haunt you in five days time when you've been letting the assignments that 'aren't due till next week' pile up on your desk and that maths book will be sitting right on top! Maybe you can still get away with number three on the stages of procrastination but once it gets to denial, that's it, there's no going back! I've been there too many times and I'm telling you now, the crisis mode is not a place you want to be, trust me. - So what can we do to avoid this?

Here's 5 tips to make you feel more concentrated and avoid procrastination:

Number 1:

Weigh your options. Honestly, think about what could happen if you don't do this assignment or that lab report. Really think about what you would have to miss out on if you were forced to stay home in two days time to finish it. Think about the fact that if you have NOTHING to do right now, you should definitely apply the time that you do have - I know this is the most difficult step, acknowledging it's existence in your life but you won't get rid of it without doing it.

Number 2:

Before I start any work I get myself completely organised. I know that this is strange to say but I tend to get distracted very easily by anything even remotely interesting as anything is probably more interesting than that text book so I make sure that my room is tidy, that my bag is organised, that all the things I need for this assignment are laid out and ready so I won't have search for them and waste another half an hour, I make myself something small to eat before I start working so I have some snacks to help me concentrate, I also make myself a cup of tea which really revives me in the afternoon after a long school day. Chewing gum or mints are also helpful as chewing stimulates the brain and helps you to focus more (this however is just my opinion but if you are having trouble concentrating this might help). I make sure that I am 150% comfortable in my work space so I don't feel the need to fidget and get frustrated and lose my concentration. These are all important things to make sure that your working mind is not interrupted by your surroundings.

Number 3: I have this tendency to check my phone every 5-20 minutes if I see it next to me on the table, this tends to distract me as I will probably get some random unimportant notification from Facebook inviting me to play 'Candy Crush Soda Saga' which I am everything but interested in doing but its just so easy to slide across to unlock your screen and endlessessly scroll through Facebook a hundred times over until you've seen the same post about 4 times. How do I avoid this? Well, I usually put my phone on charge in the other room and because I am very lazy I tend to not want to make the effort to walk to the other room so it no longer distracts me. I've also learned to make sure that I do not have a Facebook tab open in my browser - When I can't see it, it does not tempt me!

Number 4:

When I start to get frustrated I take a 5 or 10 minute break and allow myself to go on my phone and check my notifications or make myself another cup of tea or read an article or watch a YouTube clip. Sometimes, while you are writing your assignment it is important to give yourself that short time to relax so you don't feel frantic about checking your phone or whatever it is that you do that you find more interesting than your assignment.

Number 5:

What really helps me to zone out and concentrate on my work is music. This may not work for everyone but it helps me to stay focused because I can block out all external noises and just focus on my paper. I tend to play relaxing music with a slow beat and a constant rhythm the rhythm of the music tends to help me keep at a consistent working pace. I personally, work very well with music because it makes me feel separated from the world, you just have to find the right kind of music that suits your working pace and thought process.

I hope these tips are useful! Good luck fighting the procrastination!

[ibkidproblems-blog]

[ibsurvivalism]

We just updated to this new fancy system! If you are already an IB student or know people that are doing the IB you will most likely (not necessarily)  have heard of this website. Its useful to have this as it keeps track of all of the deadlines for CAS, the EE and IA's for you. Even though, yes, it is one of those systems that chases you for your work, I think we as IB students can all thank this brilliant system for organising our deadlines and making us stay on track with all of the IB requirements! It should help you, don't see ManageBac as an enemy! The deadline exists whether you like it or not! So for those that are starting IB, this will most likely be your life-saver when you forgot you had a deadline!

[ibsurvivalism]

"Can I get CAS hours for that?"

Oh, the famous CAS hours. Every IB student knows you can't pass IB without CreativityActionService! Lets be honest, sometimes these CAS hours can be pretty time consuming and difficult to manage when there's a pile of homework waiting at home for you.  The purpose of CAS hours is simple. They are there to give the IB some kind of dimension... They help students become 'well-rounded' people. I would say that makes a lot of sense because CAS motivates students to move outside of their comfort zone and try a new sport, take part in a different activity, learn new skills and develop as an individual. 

Many students ask: 'Can I get CAS hours for that?' - You can answer that question yourself.

- Think about it - 1) Would it be a new experience for you? 2) Is this activity/responsibility helping you learn something new or are you helping someone else by taking part? 3) Is this activity something you're personally interested in? - (Because there is no point in doing an activity or taking part in something you have absolutely no interest in or wouldn't enjoy doing. If you are doing it for the sake of getting the hours done - It is neither an effective experience for you, neither for the people that you are doing it for/with because if you have no interest in that particular activity you won't be very motivated to give it your best effort. However if it is something that interests you or you would like the experience it is more likely that you will enjoy it and you will see it less as a 'task', a 'chore' or a 'must' but rather as a breather before homework and something you can feel good about doing.

[ibsurvivalism]

An Introduction to My Blog!

Hi, my name is Lily, I'm currently half way through the IB program in Malta, an Island located in the Mediterranean Ocean, not too far from Sicily. For those of you who are reading or will in future read my blog should know that this blog is my CAS project for the summer. However, I will try and keep the blog up to date once I begin my senior year! 

I came up with the idea to write a blog in order to help other IB students or soon-to-be IB students survive this vigorous program for my summer CAS project since I will be very busy and will be travelling around a lot which doesn't give me much opportunity to take part in any workshops or projects that would count for CAS hours. 

On my blog you will be able to find links to websites that could possibly help you with your TOK essay/presentation as well as your Extended Essay and internal assessments that need to be completed including other tips and tricks on how to manage your time better and a couple of humorous pictures that will hopefully help you through the day and let you know that you're not the only one suffering through the program! 

I hope that my blog will help whoever chooses to read it or use the links that I will be posting! I think everyone below who knows/will be doing/is doing the IB can relate to this: