jani's studyblr

ib year two🚀princeton’23

[jani-studies]

can’t believe i forgot to tell u guys for this long but i’ll be going to princeton university to study public policy and polisci next year!

extremely excited to be a tiger🧡🖤

[scienceshenanigans]

Good afternoon, the academic culture of “if you’re not overworking, you don’t deserve success” is unhealthy.

[jani-studies]

a cheese fries + argentine gov’t sort of afternoon

[emmastudies]

daiso vs zebra highlighters!!☺️

[jani-studies]

quick reading on the way to williams! when will i finish this book!

[enqlishrain]

boredom got a new best frand

[jani-studies]

hi guys!! i’ll be starting my second yr of ib in approx. 3 days, so here’s a long overdue list of quick tips for those of you who are entering the program!

1. Find an organization method that works for you. This is a given, and I’m not gonna push a traditional planner (which is what I use), but be sure to stay organized. Clearly mark every deadline, event, and assignment. It’ll make things much smoother and slightly easier.

2. Understand that things are hard. This was the biggest wake up call for me, as I had gotten almost straight 7s in my classes freshman and sophomore year without studying or putting much effort, so starting IB was really difficult for me. While my school had done a good job at prepping us, this was the first time I realized that the rigor is supposed to be amped up, and it took a toll on my mental health. It’s okay if you’re not getting hundreds on everything or not grasping the material on the first try. That’s NORMAL.

3. Keep your notes organized and easy to access. If your school is like mine, you’re taking your IB exams at the end of two years. TWO YEARS. Make sure your notes are easy to access and understand. End of senior year you will thank you.

4. Get out of your mind set. Especially with History and TOK, you’ll be forced to look at things from several perspectives and have to understand (and perhaps even make arguments for) perspectives that you may not have considered before. It’s really beneficial to look at things from a holistic point of view, which is one of the best things IB has taught me.

5. Do your EE research over the course of the year. My school requires us to write and submit the first draft of the EE by the end of May, so that helped because we didn’t have to worry about writing it over the summer, BUT I made the mistake of not really doing any substantial research. I started the EE the weekend it was due (it was due on Tuesday afternoon, and I started it Sunday afternoon), and as I was writing it, I was having fun researching it because I love my topic, but it would have been easier and more enjoyable if I already had my research done.

6. Choose topics you’re interested in. Especially because we’re given so much choice for IAs, it’s really important to choose things that you’re genuinely interested. I love American politics, government, and law, so I chose a Supreme Court case for my HI and the Eugenics Movement (+ its connection to the justice system) for my EE, and doing research and writing were so much fun. I also did a creative IO because I love theatre and chose a topic that I was passionate about for my TOK presentation, so those were easy to do as well. You probably catch my drift already.

7. SLEEP. I asked a lot of my friends what tips they wanted me to put, and my friend said to prioritize sleep (as in: if your work isn’t done by 10PM, just go to sleep and do it tomorrow). While I personally work well regardless of whether or not I slept 8 hours the night, try to sleep as much as you can.

8. Partner with someone for your TOK presentation. Even if you work better alone, each person gives you 10 minutes for the presentation, and a 20-30 minute presentation will be able to be much more thorough than a 10 minute. All of my friends who did presentations alone felt rushed unless they practiced really well, so partnering up may be really beneficial here.

9. Read more. I take English Lit HL, so maybe it matters less for English Lit and Lang (or English B??), but I read more for leisure this year as a New Years Resolution and it helped greatly for doing work (especially in english class) because I felt like my brain was constantly in analysis mode and used to being in that mode. I also really like reading.

10. Prioritize yourself and your health (mental and physical). Stay hydrated! Eat! Have a good support system! I had way too many breakdowns in the bathroom stall this year because life was hard, and I did not see myself making it through the school year, but here I am to tell the story! I could not have made it without a support system who talked me through things and made sure I was eating and drinking and fine. Sometimes it’s good to cry it out, but don’t use “treat yo self” as an excuse to not get work done, especially if you’re aware that you’re doing it.

Those are my quick tips! Let me know if you want me to go into anything specifically, or you can message me with any questions or if you just wanna chat about IB! 

Good luck!

[archidemia]

23.03.2017 // 23/100 days of productivity // studying history and drinking tea - pretty much all I do at the moment

[jani-studies]

i thought writing the extended essay was the hard part but alas editing it is the WORST

[jani-studies]

still waiting on a few lights to come in, but a new school year calls for a new organized bookshelf!

[jani-studies]

starting my extended essay summer work 5 days before school starts, so I guess I played myself :/

[jani-studies]

Tag Game - Playlist

Thanks to @meggostudies for tagging me!!

Rules: We’re snooping on your playlist! Put your entire music library on shuffle and list the first 10 songs, then choose 10 victims

1. Spirits - The Strumbellas

2. Carolina - Harry Styles

3. In My Blood (Acoustic) - Shawn Mendes

4. Sweatpants - Childish Gambino

5. Lost Stars - Keira Knightley

6. Pretend - Goody Grace

7. Missing You - John Waite

8. Stop - Spice Girls

9. FFYL - Quinn XCII

10. Everybody Wants To Rule The World - Tears For Fears

Decided against using my broadway/musical theatre playlist so here we are hehe

Tagging: @anxiousenglishstudent @studyquill @studyy @pinetreestudies @graystudie @haleyibstudies @rhubarbstudies @pocketstudy @thirstycoffeemaker @vin-studies

[jani-studies]

studying is a bore but alas that’s how today will be spent

[jani-studies]

Hi guys! Seeing that the August SAT is right around the corner, I thought I’d give my two cents for which studying tips helped me do fairly well on the SAT (if you want to know my score, shoot me a message! otherwise, I don’t think I really need to tell everyone publicly).

I did an SAT course with a CBO for five weeks in July last year and did not improve At All from the first to last week, but I went up 80 points when practicing by myself in the weeks before the August SAT, so here’s what I did!

Take full practice tests. So much of the SAT is just measuring your ability to take the test itself – your skills and intelligence can only take you so far. Knowing this, it’s so important to take as many full practice tests as you can in order to get the gist of the types of questions they ask and to be more familiar and comfortable with them.

Study in a testing environment. Go to a library where you can sit for 3-4 hours and take the test. Do this with breaks and everything – try to mimic the test day as much as possible. This is so you can be as comfortable as possible when taking the actual test, and nerves won’t be as big of a deal, which is extremely important. 

Go over the questions you get wrong. We generally get the same types of questions wrong – whether they’re words in context or geometry – and because of this, you should recognize them and work on them. You’re not going to improve until you nip these types of problems in the butt.

Learn techniques that work for you. As aforementioned, the SAT is pretty much all about mastering the test – from the timing to the types of questions. There are a ton of techniques, and you need to find which ones will help you get the test done most effectively. Personally, I use my calculator A Lot during that portion because I’ve been using a graphing calculator since seventh grade and I’m used to that, whereas I know a lot of people who would rather do it mentally because that’s faster to them. Both are valid, but they work differently for other people. I can make another post on the techniques that helped me in each section if you guys want, or you can message me to talk about it!

Study as often as you can. This is more during the school year, but take this from experience – studying consistently really really really helps. Especially because a lot of these techniques only work for a standardized test like the SAT, you lose some of these skills if you don’t practice them. I went down A Lot from the first time (August) and my second (December) simply because I hadn’t touched the test more than three times within those months (which I don’t suggest doing). Try to make time for studying in your schedule; do what works for you, whether that’s studying grammar rules for half an hour to doing a no calculator math section during your lunch.

Read more. It’s really easy to get bogged down by the dreaded classical lit passages in the reading section (PLUS the fact that it’s the first and longest section of the test), so it’s useful to be well read and familiar with those types of passages. Last summer, I threw Pride and Prejudice and Anna Karenina in my mix of books to read, and I’m sure it really helped.

Spend more time on your tough sections. This is pretty much the same reasoning as tip #3, but it’s important anyway. Why spend time on the writing section everyday if you’re averaging 2 wrong when you can devote that time to math? Just be sure to still practice them, but not fuss over it.

Take breaks. This is important!!! Don’t spend a billion hours studying everyday; it’s useful to have a fresh pair of eyes when looking at a new test. Before the August SAT, I went to the library everyday to take a practice test from 8-12 and had the rest of the day to chill and not worry about it (unless I got a lot wrong – then I’d go over a few questions). Find a balance.

Be realistic. Finally, don’t expect to go from an 800 to a 1600 in a month. I have a friend who went from averaging in the 1100s to the high 1300s at the end of the five weeks because she studied a lot every single day. If you’re not doing that, don’t expect a super high increase (unless you get lucky hehe). Additionally, given the curve, it’s much easier to go from a 900 to an 1100 than a 1400 to a 1600, so keep that in mind before you beat yourself up about your score!

So those are my quick tips! I really hope they helped, and if you have any questions please feel free to message me!! Good luck on your SATs, everyone!

[jani-studies]

Hi guys! Seeing that the August SAT is right around the corner, I thought I’d give my two cents for which studying tips helped me do fairly well on the SAT (if you want to know my score, shoot me a message! otherwise, I don’t think I really need to tell everyone publicly).

I did an SAT course with a CBO for five weeks in July last year and did not improve At All from the first to last week, but I went up 80 points when practicing by myself in the weeks before the August SAT, so here’s what I did!

Take full practice tests. So much of the SAT is just measuring your ability to take the test itself -- your skills and intelligence can only take you so far. Knowing this, it’s so important to take as many full practice tests as you can in order to get the gist of the types of questions they ask and to be more familiar and comfortable with them.

Study in a testing environment. Go to a library where you can sit for 3-4 hours and take the test. Do this with breaks and everything -- try to mimic the test day as much as possible. This is so you can be as comfortable as possible when taking the actual test, and nerves won’t be as big of a deal, which is extremely important. 

Go over the questions you get wrong. We generally get the same types of questions wrong -- whether they’re words in context or geometry -- and because of this, you should recognize them and work on them. You’re not going to improve until you nip these types of problems in the butt.

Learn techniques that work for you. As aforementioned, the SAT is pretty much all about mastering the test -- from the timing to the types of questions. There are a ton of techniques, and you need to find which ones will help you get the test done most effectively. Personally, I use my calculator A Lot during that portion because I’ve been using a graphing calculator since seventh grade and I’m used to that, whereas I know a lot of people who would rather do it mentally because that’s faster to them. Both are valid, but they work differently for other people. I can make another post on the techniques that helped me in each section if you guys want, or you can message me to talk about it!

Study as often as you can. This is more during the school year, but take this from experience -- studying consistently really really really helps. Especially because a lot of these techniques only work for a standardized test like the SAT, you lose some of these skills if you don’t practice them. I went down A Lot from the first time (August) and my second (December) simply because I hadn’t touched the test more than three times within those months (which I don’t suggest doing). Try to make time for studying in your schedule; do what works for you, whether that’s studying grammar rules for half an hour to doing a no calculator math section during your lunch.

Read more. It’s really easy to get bogged down by the dreaded classical lit passages in the reading section (PLUS the fact that it’s the first and longest section of the test), so it’s useful to be well read and familiar with those types of passages. Last summer, I threw Pride and Prejudice and Anna Karenina in my mix of books to read, and I’m sure it really helped.

Spend more time on your tough sections. This is pretty much the same reasoning as tip #3, but it’s important anyway. Why spend time on the writing section everyday if you’re averaging 2 wrong when you can devote that time to math? Just be sure to still practice them, but not fuss over it.

Take breaks. This is important!!! Don’t spend a billion hours studying everyday; it’s useful to have a fresh pair of eyes when looking at a new test. Before the August SAT, I went to the library everyday to take a practice test from 8-12 and had the rest of the day to chill and not worry about it (unless I got a lot wrong -- then I’d go over a few questions). Find a balance.

Be realistic. Finally, don’t expect to go from an 800 to a 1600 in a month. I have a friend who went from averaging in the 1100s to the high 1300s at the end of the five weeks because she studied a lot every single day. If you’re not doing that, don’t expect a super high increase (unless you get lucky hehe). Additionally, given the curve, it’s much easier to go from a 900 to an 1100 than a 1400 to a 1600, so keep that in mind before you beat yourself up about your score!

So those are my quick tips! I really hope they helped, and if you have any questions please feel free to message me!! Good luck on your SATs, everyone!

[jani-studies]

an SAT studying tip post is in the making!!!!!

[aquacitys]

academic success is not the most important thing in my life, i tell myself as i’m having a breakdown because of academic success, the most important thing in my life