[micdotcom]

[cravings]

teacher: this is NOT a test you can study for the night before

me:

[la-linguistique-deactivated2015]

French Grammar Masterpost

For easier browsing on this blog, here’s a post of all the grammar points posted or reblogged by this Tumblr, for easier access. These usually deal with intermediate/advanced grammar points, pulled from various sources :

C’est Or Il/Elle Est? - Here

Avoir + Agreement of Past Participle - Here

Using ‘Parce que’, ‘Car’, ‘Puisque’ and ‘Comme’ - Here

The Conjunctive Pronoun ‘En’ - Here

Use of Tenses with Depuis, Il y a and Pendant - Here

The Relative Pronouns of Qui and Que - Here

Le Versus Lui in French - Here

Use of ‘De’ Versus ‘Des’ in French - Here

Omission of Plural Indefinite ‘Des’ After ‘De’ - Here

The Different Words for ‘Number’ and How To Use Them - Here

Using ‘Quand-Meme’ in French - Here

French Subjunctive/Indicative - 1, 2

The Construction of Questions in French - Here

‘Then’ in French - Ainsi, Alors, Donc; Apres, Ensuite, Puis -  Here

Use of the Definite Article and the Body - Here

Le Passe Compose Avec Y Et En - Here

Imparfait Versus Passe Compose - Here

Using ‘Enfin’ in French - Here

Using Mieux vs Meilleur - Here

Temporal Prepositions - Here

When Verb + De + Infinitive - Here

When Verb + A + Infinitive -  Here

Time Based Nouns - Here

Demonstrative Determiners - Here

Proper Nouns in French - Here

Aspirated Hs / Le H Aspire - Here

Abstract Vs. Concrete Nouns - Here

‘Personnes’ Vs. ‘Gens’ in French - Here

Common French Mistakes:

Examples of French Mistakes - 1

French Vocabulary Lists: 

50 Advanced French Phrases - 1, 2, 3

French Nationalities & Countries - Here

Marriage & Relationship Vocabulary - Here

Film & Television Vocabulary - Here

French & Italian Comparative: Family Vocab - Here

French & Italian Comparative: Places Vocab - Here

Personal Vocab Lists (Note to Self): 

20 French Expressions - 1, 2, 3

Using French Slang:

Using ‘Foutre’ in French - Here

Using ‘Putain’ and ‘Merde’ Adjectively - Here

For all other miscellaneous French posts, the tag can be found: - Here

[studyblr-1234-deactivated201703]

My Top 5 Tips for efficient studying in university: 

1) Take your basic notes before the lecture 

(you can take them with you and annotate them in class) This is probably the most important thing I’ve learned from my two years at uni so far, for two reasons: 

a) Taking a full set of notes during a lecture is time consuming, and you will tend to focus on keeping up with note taking, rather than what your lecturer is saying. Its also really easy to get behind, and writing quickly for several hours hurts your hand! 

b) If you go to your lecture totally unprepared, you are likely to find a lot of what your lecturer is saying going totally over your head and it is so easy to switch off completely and end up gaining nothing from being there, where as if you have a vague understanding of the lecture before hand, just being there is effectively revision, and helps you memorise the content. 

Seguir leyendo

[studyingblob-blog]

Hey guys! A little while ago, I decided to establish a study plan for myself, and I decided to make it into a master post. So..here’s my usual study plan. Enjoy!

Study Plan

Day 1:

make vocab flashcards

start writing/highlighting notes

read your textbook/chapter twice

Day 2:

review flashcards twice

read notes twice

read textbook/chapter once

create some diagrams

Day 3:

find a video about the topic

read your notes aloud once

read your textbook/chapter once

review diagram

Day 4:

try rewriting you notes from your memory

read notes aloud once

read textbook once

practice vocab flashcards

Day 5:

make a summary of your chapter/lesson

go over vocab

read notes

read textbook

find more videos on the topic

Day 6:

try to find an educational song about the topic(trust me, it makes concepts stick in your head)

review vocab

read notes aloud once

read textbook/chapter once

go over diagrams or try to redraw them from memory

Day 7

go over your vocab

watch another video

read aloud notes

read material

go over diagram again

get a good night’s sleep!!!

Hi! Hoped that was a bit helpful! That’s the way I usually study for exams. Let me know if you’ve seen any other posts like these or have some ideas for studying! I’d love to see more posts about study plans since I’m always looking for a new way to study. :D BTW: The banner was made on Canva. =D

[study-alvvays]

Hey everyone! Natalie here :) I asked my followers to submit some of their favourite study tips for a masterpost, and here they are! But first, here is my favourite study tip: Break it down! If you use an agenda or a planner, break every task you need to complete down into smaller, more manageable bits, and schedule some for each day. If you prefer to-do lists, make a list for each task with the smaller, broken down sections of the tasks! Completing a few of the smaller pieces is really satisfying, and motivates me to keep working hard!

And without further ado, here are the submitted tips! Happy studying, xx 

My number one study tip is to set realistic goals. If I do not do that I do not yield productive results. :) - @go-studyblrr

My number one study tip is to always eat, drink water and go to the bathroom before you study so you won’t be interrupted .I also turn off any electronics I have around and I try to only touch my phone if I need to look something up on google. - @meesfit

create a playlist of songs that can help you focus on your studies. songs shouldnt be distracting, or you wouldnt be able to study as effective as you hoped to. - @proudnerdinsenioryear

Walk around while reciting things you need to memorize and you’ll remember them better. - @spork-of-humanity

A lot depends on your preferred learning style, but I find actually sitting down to study (and not just thinking about it) pretty much works 100% of the time. - @hufflestnerd

Maybe it’s just me, but my tip is that don’t take a break every half an hour unless you need it. Just keep going as long as you can until you feel yourself loosing focus and then take your break. - @bci-need2study

When you’re trying to study for exams, TURN OFF YOUR PHONE HIDE YOUR LAPTOP (unless you need it to study) As someone who has ADHD and has trouble staying focused already, Trust me when I say that you don’t need that distraction - @abstractedthinking

My number one is def find a pandora/Spotify/YouTube playlist of instrumental classical music or just calming music in general, or some ASMR YouTube videos to have playing in the background while you study. It helps me focus so much more than listening to music I would normally listen to does, and it keeps my stress levels down during the process :) - @geometricstars

My number one study tip would be to find a well-lit, organized place that you can find your own to study at. A nice study spot makes all the difference! - @omnesviae

My number one study tip is to have someone quiz you on the material. This works especially well for vocabulary that you need to memorize; however, if it is math, I normally redo some of the problems that I’ve had in past assignments and I’ll be fine! - @stargazedaspirations

Teach someone! Even if you are just babbling it to you brother wearing headphones or the kid you are babysitting,I find that having to explain something actually makes me learn it a lot better. And for subjects like physics and maths, practice questions until you drop. - @zazastudies

“See one, do one, teach one” works well specifically for math, but can pretty much apply to anything (i.e. For cellular respiration watch/listen to the lecture, write the steps yourself, teach it to your cat) - @saltwillneverheal

I personally find revising with blue ink really helpful! Blue ink studying is something I picked up in junior year and have been practicing since. - @jennstudies

For me, I like studying to music with lyrics because then the songs are stuck in my head and I relate the study material to the songs. Music - lyrics or not - is a great way to study because it keeps you focus and helps you to remember material easier. - @kaya-studies

don’t put off anything you can do right now - @rebekahh-jaynee

i also like to study in unconventional spots when im a little worn out at the end of the day. laying on the floor, sprawled awkwardly on the couch, even reading with my head dangling from the bed. this helps me think better and makes me feel less stressed or restrained. - @n1hao

[studyquill]

hey guys! it’s currently spring break for many, although most people’s spring breaks have already passed. i scheduled this post, so right now i’m on vacation in washington dc! 

i travel quite a lot so here are my tips for how to study while you are traveling. keep in mind that these are for your average vacation trip, not heavy duty travel like backpacking. 

this is legitimately the hardest thing in the world. if you’re not a stationery addict, you can skip this part. (although i hope you keep reading!)

condense your giant pen collection into a small bag and include only these things:

1 mechanical pencil & graphite for it

an eraser

1 black pen for writing 

2-3 colored pens and 2 highlighters (in one color scheme)

if you need other supplies for a specific subject (like i would need a protractor because i have geometry) bring that too.

this probably seems self explanatory but it’s really really really important. make sure you have chunks of time set aside to do schoolwork, most likely in the evenings after you return from whatever fun activity you did that day. if you’re a morning person, try working in the early morning! i find myself to be more focused and alert right after breakfast.

if you need a planning system, perhaps bullet journaling? [my bullet journal tag] you can also use printable daily planners which can be found in my printables tag.

if you have online versions of your textbook, use those instead of lugging around a ten pound deadweight. chances are, you’re not going to use that whole thing. scan in the pages you think you’ll need, or even the whole book if you want to be extra prepared.

make sure you also have what you need on your phone.

a white noise app [ noisli | relax melodies ]

download study music [ my study playlist on spotify ]

bring earbuds or headphones !!!

bring earplugs if you need them

make sure you’ve brought your phone charger

you can easily find a general packing list on google, so i’m not going to include one. here are some specific things you may need for studying:

book light - you don’t want to drain your cell phone battery because you need its flashlight on to work in the dark

clipboard - if you’re outside or somewhere else without a flat surface to write on, this will save your work

loose leaf paper - not a notebook! too much unnecessary poundage

i would consider myself a seasoned traveler (not really, but i’ve traveled more than the average person), and here are some tips for traveling.

wear a cross body bag and keep it in front of you to prevent being pickpocketed. if you must, bring a high quality backpack. (i have a vendetta against jansports and their zippers so i don’t recommend those.)

drink lots and lots of water - overstated but so incredibly important in keeping you healthy and preventing severe jet lag

have fun at your destination! you’re out there to do what there is to do, not study all day! you can study at home.

credit to Laura Reen for the icons used in the banners 

[apricot-studies]

great post!

[sophrosille-deactivated20170422]

This post contains condensed notes made from Marty Lobdell’s 1 hour long lecture (link’s here), which features many effective study techniques and tips.

1. TAKE BREAKS.

25-30 min of studying, followed by 5 min break (a.k.a. pomodoro technique). Once you get used to the load of studying, you can increase your time of one study session, just follow this rule:

“The moment you start to slide, you’re shovelling against the tide, what you need to do is what? Take a break.”

2. REWARD YOURSELF AFTER EVERY STUDY SESSION.

”Things that are reinforced, we tend to do more of. Things that are punished or ignored, we tend to do less of.”

To put it simply, rewarding yourself after every study session will make you more likely to study later.

3. GET A STUDY ENVIRONMENT.

Everybody has special rooms for sleeping, food making, bathing, etc., but who has a room for studying?? Not many. Well, obviously, not everyone can afford one, but there’re some tricks, which will help you to create a study environment.

Get a study lamp. ONLY turn it on while studying. DO NOT use it for other purposes.

If you’re studying in a room, which has bed (bedrooms, dorm rooms…), turn your desk away from your bed to face a blank wall.

The context provided by environmental cues largely determines your behavior, so create a study environment, which encourages you to study. Distracting cues’ examples: bedroom - sleeping cues (bed), kitchen - food cues, living room - TV, radio, people, etc. All these distractions prevent you from studying!!

4. KNOW THE CONCEPTS, NOT THE FACTS.

For example, it is like knowing the words of a song but not knowing what a song is about. FACTS = song lyrics, CONCEPT = song meaning.   Facts can easily be looked up if needed.

5. NO HIGHLIGHTING.

Or at least no highlighting after reading a text once.

6. TAKE NOTES.

Take notes during your class/lecture/etc.. After the class is finished, take out your notes the first free moment you’ve got and expand everything you’ve written. Give it some depth. If you do that like 2 (or more) hours after the class, you will have forgotten much of what you had written. So do this as soon as possible.

7. TEACH. TALK OUT LOUD.

One study showed that best way of studying is to do 80% of reciting and 20% of reading. So, teach others what you’ve learnt or dialogue with empty chairs if you have no one to teach. What you can teach, that you understand.

8. STUDY TEXTBOOKS USING SQ3R METHOD

Survey - go through an entire chapter, look at the pictures, graphs, questions… Question - While surveying, you might get some questions. If not, then ask yourself questions like: “What’s this?”, “What does this graph mean?”, etc. This will cause you to look for answers and “if you intend to find something, you find it.” Read - (20% of time) Recite -  (80% of time) Review - after some time has passed.

9. USE STUDY GROUPS.

Study groups are not only good for finding someone to teach (#7), but also great for reviewing the learnt material (#8) - discussions with your study buddies might provide you with different perspective and insight. Also, study group members can point out your mistakes that you haven’t noticed! Moreover, they can help to create a study environment, too (#3)! When you see other people studying, you get more motivated to study yourself.

10. USE MNEMONICS FOR FACT MEMORIZATION.

Because sometimes concept learning is not enough. :(  Make acronyms, coined sayings, or interacting image associations  to help yourself remember the facts. The weirder, the better.

[everything-studyblr]

I know you’re tired, I know it seems impossible, but you can do this. You really can. Take a deep breath. All your problems can be fixed, one by one. Don’t think about how much work you still have to do in a month, just start. Start somewhere, anywhere. Remind yourself what you’re doing it for.

little mantra to keep me sane when school’s killing me (via everything-studyblr)

[studymedically]

50 Reasons Why You Should Study

Need motivation?

To get an education. 

To earn a degree. There are barely any jobs that offer positions to people without a degree, or are on the path of obtaining one.

To prove people wrong. That science teacher that said you’ll never make it in the medical field? Make him eat his words. 

To prove yourself wrong. Every student has doubts on whether or not they can be good enough in the classroom. Prove yourself wrong, and always be better than you were yesterday. 

This is a privilege. Regardless of how much you believe that you HAVE to do this, to some extend you don’t. Realize that you have the privilege of an education even being an option for you.

Take advantage of what you’re capable of. Don’t waste a perfectly intelligent mind. 

More money. That degree can do wonderful things to your bank account in the future. 

It’s interesting. Studying can get pretty boring, but there are always those topics that spark your curiosity and motivate you to learn more.

It’s attractive. Not everyone cares for someone who is academically gifted, but a partner who is eager to learn makes me eager to take my pants off.

It’s useful. That random fact that you read in a random textbook can stick with you and really end up helping you out one day.

It’s fun to know useless shit sometimes.

To make your parents proud. This is one of the main reasons I study. My parents have always been aware of my capabilities and have pushed me to be academically better every year. They know I have big dreams, and I just want to achieve them so they can know that their child made it.

To make myself proud. This goes along with number four. Knowing that you accomplished something, however small or big the thing may be, is a huge self-esteem booster.

To be independent. There’s nothing quite like knowing that you don’t need someone else’s job, degree, intelligence, or presence to make you successful.

To pursue your passion. 

To gain knowledge. Whether its in your field, or a completely different one, being knowledgeable is just downright fun.

People will look up to you. Your siblings, your best friends, and your classmates may see you consistently studying, and it could motivate them to do the same. 

To make a name for yourself. “Oh yeah, (insert name here), I know them. Aren’t they like really successful now?”

To become your own role model.

To be able to pay off your student loans.

Because the long nights and excessive coffee will all be worth it. Even if it doesn’t seem like it now. 

To exercise your brain. Your brain is just like a muscle, and like the body it needs to be exercised. 

To improve your hippocampus. Your hippocamus is responsible for memory, and if you study your memorization will become significantly better.

To not waste time doing useless stuff. 

Because stationary is amazing. I could spend a whole paycheck on just pens.

Because notes are actually all so pretty. 

To be productive. I used to spend a lot of time on social media, and although I still do, the amount of time I spend studying and getting stuff done has definitely increased.

So classes will be easier. 

So tests will be easier.

To impress your professors. Get those letters of recommendation! 

So the anxiety of getting a bad grade is sufficiently decreased. I constantly worry about my grades, but studying has helped me not worry so much.

Because coffee exists. 

There is no other atmosphere quite like the inside of a library. 

So you won’t have to retake a class. Failing a prerequisite for your major really sucks, so maybe try not failing the first time around. This also saves you a lot of money because you won’t have to pay for the class again. 

Finals week won’t suck as bad. You’ll be used to studying so when finals week comes around it wont nearly be as stressful as for those students who are now opening a textbook. 

You won’t go to as many college parties. Don’t get me wrong, I am all for socializing and having fun, but a lot can go wrong at a college party very quickly. And there’s no better way to prevent that, than just not going to the party cause you’re reading your economics textbook. 

You’ll get used to FOMO. Fear of Missing Out. Every teenagers nightmare. Eventually, you’ll get used to the feeling. 

You’ll be getting the most out of your college experience. You’re paying for these classes. Might as well try your best to pass. 

You’ll get used to not getting enough sleep. So, if you decide to go to grad school you’ll have that department covered. 

There’s really good study music out there. 

I guarantee there will be at least 5 places on campus, or around you that are perfect for studying, and you’ll want to go there everyday. 

You’ll become a pro at writing essays, or lab reports.

You’ll learn fairly quickly that study groups rarely work. 

You’ll make a lot of friends that are just as passionate about studying as you are. And you will cherish them. 

Beauty and Brains. Don’t you want to fit that description? 

Thousands of students before you have done it, so you can too. 

You can run a studyblr. Aren’t they the cutest? 

You get really good at time management. 

Sleep becomes 5x more satisfactory after a night of studying.

Because you want to. There’s no better motivation for studying, than the motivation that comes from within. 

[studysection]

I hope you enjoy these inspirational quotes I collected and add them to your collection, either in your bullet journal, your planner or your pocket for some extra motivation!

Charles Bukowski

“If you’re losing your soul and you know it, then you’ve still got a soul left to lose.”

“We are here to laugh at the odds and live our lives so well that death will tremble to take us.”

“To not to have entirely wasted one’s life seems to be a worthy accomplishment, if only for myself.”

F. Scott Fitzgerald

“Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat.

“Genius is the ability to put into effect what is on your mind.”

“The world only exists in your eyes. You can make it as big or as small as you want.”

Mark Twain

“You can’t depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus.”

“Apparently there is nothing that cannot happen today.”

“The secret of getting ahead is getting started.”

“Do the right thing. It will gratify some people and astonish the rest.”

“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.”

George Bernard Shaw

“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.”

“The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want and if they can’t find them, make them.”

“Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”

“We are made wise not by the recollection of our past, but by the responsibility for our future.”

“Just do what must be done. This may not be happiness, but it is greatness.” 

“Life would be tolerable but for its amusements.”

“If you leave the smallest corner of your head vacant for a moment, other people’s opinions will rush in from all quarters.”

“You use a glass mirror to see your face; you use works of art to see your soul.”

“Imagination is the beginning of creation. You imagine what you desire, you will what you imagine and at last you create what you will.”

“People who say it cannot be done should not interrupt those who are doing it.”

“Success does not consist in never making mistakes but in never making the same one a second time.”

Charles Dickens

“Have a heart that never hardens, and a temper that never tires, and a touch that never hurts.”

“There are dark shadows on the earth, but its lights are stronger in the contrast.”

“There is a wisdom of the head, and a wisdom of the heart.”

Anton Chekhov

“Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice.”

“You must trust and believe in people or life becomes impossible.”

Robert Frost

“Don’t ever take a fence down until you know why it was put up.”

“The best way out is always through.”

“Freedom lies in being bold.”

“In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on.”

“Happiness makes up in height for what it lacks in length.”

“Always fall in with what you’re asked to accept. Take what is given, and make it over your way. My aim in life has always been to hold my own with whatever’s going. Not against: with.”

Virginia Woolf

“Arrange whatever pieces come your way.”

“You cannot find peace by avoiding life.”

“If you do not tell the truth about yourself you cannot tell it about other people.”

Maya Angelou

“Whatever you want to do, if you want to be great at it, you have to love it and be able to make sacrifices for it.”

“Nothing will work unless you do.”

“We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated.”

“My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.”

“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.”

J. R. R. Tolkien

“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

“It’s the job that’s never started as takes longest to finish.”

“Not all those who wander are lost.”

[deutsian]

On being intermediate in a foreign language

So idk I’ve wanted to write a rant/discussion about being intermediate for a while now so yeah here we go. I hope people can relate.

Defining “Intermediate”

I think this is quite difficult and will vary depending on the individual’s approach; but for those familiar with the CEFR levels, B1 & B2 are intermediate. I would class myself as a “comfortable” B1. Check out a Reddit thread here about this.

Why being intermediate is great!

Seems kinda obvious right? Once you’re intermediate you find it much, much easier to enjoy native materials in your target language, you’re no longer taking 20 minutes to form the most basic of sentences and you feel that you actually have a decent range of vocabulary. You can use the language to explore your interests in an entirely new language, you find it a lot easier to guess meaning based on context and you finally feel like you’ve made solid progress!!! ;D

Why being intermediate is also not so great :(

Intermediacy comes with its downsides though; we’ve probably all seen many jokey tumblr posts about the pitfalls of being intermediate and there’s definitely an element of truth. Here’s a few reasons why it sucks: - You feel like you hit a plateau and aren’t progressing anymore. - Any progress you do make seems to take forever - Whilst you can enjoy native materials you do with a lot of dififculty; so many words are still unknown and being able to understand about 85% of every sentence (with the 15% being the most crucial) is irritating. - You don’t know how to explain to people where you are learning-wise - people literally expect a “I’m a beginner” or “I know [fluent] X”. - Going from lower to higher intermediate [or higher to advanced] takes a lot longer than it does to go from beginner to intermediate. - Trying to have a conversation is still a battlefield and whilst you’re used to hearing native speakers speak, tis still very fast and difficult to comprehend.

How to overcome these downsides?

The most important thing is - please don’t give up. Spending hundreds of hours to get to intermediate and quitting because it’s hard will be very silly. I have a few tips for how I’ve been managing my intermediacy woes:

- You MUST work harder. You must be prepared to work a lot more than you were beforehand, it sucks but it’s worth it. - Progress WILL be slower. This chart HERE shows what I mean - with the first couple of thousand words learnt (to get you to intermediate) progress is very quick and can be noticed within a timeframe of a day/few hours. This is because the most common couple of thousand words will make up about 95% of all words you are going to encounter, to bridge that 5% gap you need to learn 10,000s more (unless your language has a small vocabulary set). So you ARE STILL MAKING PROGRESS IT JUST TAKES LONGER. Which means.. - Look back at your progress every few weeks or so. Ask yourself what you can do now that you couldn’t do the other month, think about all the words you’ve learnt or grammar or whatever it is you’ve improved. Don’t expect progress to happen at the fast pace it did beforehand. - Aim higher. It’s very easy to get comfortable at B1/B2 level and not challenge yourself (if that’s your aim then fine) but you need to try things that are above your level. Stop using English subtitles (or any), start reading teenage books, listen to your language spoken at natural speeds not lower ones, actually work on the areas of your language that are most difficult for you etc. Just aim to work harder and yes it sucks and yes you might find it complicated but it is SO worth it when you overcome that barrier. - USE. NATIVE. MATERIALS. Stop relying just on Duolingo/Memrise etc. don’t work just from a textbook or grammar book, don’t just use sites aimed at English speakers. Watch the TV shows, read the books, listen to the music etc. that the native speakers would.

TL;DR Give me the best way to deal with being intermediate

Challenge yourself. Try and transcribe a natural conversation, turn off the subtitles, read a novel, write short stories etc. Don’t get comfortable and challenge yourself - the only way you’ll improve is by focusing on the areas you struggle with.

—

Ok so this is just a personal post so people might have different ways of looking at intermediacy which is fine but this is my experience with it.

If there’s anyone reading this who feels like they’re stuck at an intermediate plateau; trust me, you’re not and as you go through this stage many things will start to “click” and lord is it amazing when that happens.

Enjoy.

[belleresources-blog]

:) 

[legolazy-deactivated20180115]

this was really helpful! 

[faetherial]

“Success is not by coincidence. Success is by design.”

As many of you have started school, I have decided to make a guide on how to keep those doors open for new opportunities and filling up that CV with plenty of things to get you to where you want! Note that this is from a highschool perspective (I admit I am an amateur at adult-ing), though college kids keep your eyes peeled if you find anything useful!

Defining opportunities This is an important first step. Opportunities usually are not a gift from heaven brought down ceremonially by a flock of angels. Instead, they’re usually hidden. So what exactly are they? An opportunity is:

A chance to expand upon existing skills

A chance to make change

A possibility of finding an undiscovered passion

A chance at learning something new

Adding experience to your CV

The list goes on. In short, an opportunity is anything that can make you a better person (academically/personally/professionally) than you are now. Think of it as an investment of sorts. In life, opportunities often come like this - high risk/high potential, or low risk/low potential. But school is one of the few places where opportunities are often low risk/high potential - the perfect chance to gain profits (in this case, it could come in the form of finding new passions/developing new skills/making an impact). Make use of this! Life does not often give you low risk/high potential things. 

So you know that sports team you never joined even though you wanted to but you assumed off the top of your head it would be a poor investment because you are a poor sportsman? That’s an opportunity (and low-risk too believe it or not). Or that opening on the debate team that you thought briefly about applying for? Or a writing competition in the local newspaper? 

All of these are ways in which you could possibly gain something (profits!). If they’ve crossed your mind, even briefly, and you kind of envisioned yourself being debating captain or a famous local writer - well don’t let it slip away. Write it down and have a good think about it. If it’s one of those things you list down as a possibility - well it would be worth it to pursue!

Reasons to actively pursue opportunities

Finding your passion - everyone has one (or even a few), but you’ll never find it until you look for it

Leaning new skills and seeing a new perspective

Increase your chances of success in the future - trust me pursue one opportunity and sometimes you’ll end up with a dozen more

Increase your mobility - the more opportunities you pursue (especially in a low-risk environment like school), the more directions you find you’re able to go

Motivate yourself - the more you realise you are capable of, the better you’ll feel about yourself, and the more motivated you are to accomplish more

Build up non-academic skills - a lot of workplaces require it trust me

Accepting that opportunities only come if you look for them Okay this sounds easy enough but trust me, changing a mindset is harder than it looks. Don’t just write it down as a quote in your bujo/planner - make it a goal of yours! 

Throw away the fear of social judgement - or at least try your best to ignore that voice in the back of your head. Seriously, it does you no good. Too often we are scared of ‘not being good enough for this’, or ‘I am not the type of person to do x activity’, or ‘I will get judged for what I do’ - the list goes on. Well, when that voice pops up in your head, repeat these three things after me. 

“Nothing is worth more than my success. Especially not an offhand comment by a negative person.”

“If you never try, your chances of success are quite literally zero.”

“The only way to be who you want to be is to just be who you want to be.”

Redefine your capabilities - when a new opportunity comes up at school, don’t think ‘it’s not for me’. Stop and think about it for a bit. Maybe you don’t have the skill set, maybe its something you have never tried before. But maybe its also something you’re interested in. If so, go for it. Just do it - literally. Think of it like this - if you already have a negative bias (”I can’t do it”), then if you fail you’ll get the satisfaction of being right all along, but if you succeed, it’s a pleasant surprise. Low risk-high potential.

It’s a way of finding your passion - if you’re like me and have zero clue about what you are going to do in the future, keeping your eyes peeled for everything is a great way of finding things you love. Honestly, twelve year old me would never have thought I would love everything to do with public speaking and politics (not kidding, I was the quietest kid in the class), but joining debating on a whim really opened my eyes. Do things you’ve never done before - trust me you won’t regret it. Could you fail at it? Possibly. Might you encounter ups and downs along the way? Definitely. But if you have time, try it out for a semester or two and you may get an epiphany. So often passions are not love-at-first-sight but a gradual realization of your love for something.

Put it in action - yes, the top two points may have sounded like non-substantial talk, but now’s the time to put it in action. Every time a notice comes up at school about a new activity, or an activity you’ve never heard of, write it down. Just do it. Create a list in your bullet journal for it. Now, when you go home sit down and have a good thought about each one - you may have some new realizations about what you are capable of. The likelihood is you’ve listed some of these opportunities as ‘maybes’. Well, if you have, pick the maybes to try. That’s where undiscovered passions are hidden.

Now that we’re covered with the self-reflection/improvement, let’s get down to the nitty gritty - putting it in action!

Write down your skill set Just do it. Everything you are good at, write all of it down. You don’t have to be better at it than everyone else - just as long as you feel good enough about it. Skill sets are important, whether it is drawing, writing, mathematics, etc. When opportunities come around, you can bet on your own special skill set to set you apart from everyone. This is what you can bring to the table - never belittle it. 

Now, once you’ve done that, keep track of it. If you’re good at design, practice design regularly - heck even put it in your habit-tracker. If you love arts do the same, never stop practicing. This applies to everything.

Actively search for opportunities Sounds simple enough but opportunities are not a gift from god. Sometimes, they’re something you have to run after and pursue relentlessly, or fight tooth and nail for them. Actively search for them! Ever thought to yourself ‘oh it would be cool if I learned x thing or developed x hobby’. Do not let that thought go. When it crosses your mind, do a 10 minute google search on it and if it interests you, definitely look for it. 

Well, what if sometimes opportunities don’t present themselves in your environment - you ask? What if nothing ever happens at my school? Well, this is the perfect opportunity for you to create something. Don’t worry, it’s not as difficult as it sounds. Sometimes opportunities are things that you physically create so if you have a dying passion for something (or even a slight interest) and find people who think the same - consider starting something!

Create a list of things that potentially interest you at school - treat this as your bucket list at school, give everything a try!

Talk to people - seniors, teachers, faculty advisors - when you actively look for something, you’re bound to run into things

Try your hand at problem solving - ever heard that problems are also opportunities? Yeah that, well there’s always room for patching up problems, and if you can come up with a way to do that, the rewards are immense!

Conclusion If you’re a student and you want a way to broaden the activities you participate in at school, I hope this masterpost helped!

[academla]

This is great!

[faetherial]

Omg you reblogged!!! Thank you so much xx

[thaniastudies]

Foolproof Guide to School Success!

Hi! I just finished my first year of college and I definitely have to credit the studyblr community for all the useful information and tips! I currently closed the year with a 4.0 and don’t plan on stopping!

 In high school I was an ok student but I decided to change all that when I started college. So, whether you’re in high school or college, it’s never late to change and attain academic excellence! So here are my tips! 

Try to get an early start on your day and sit closest to the front as possible. Studies show that sitting in the front of class will improve your grades and knowledge! 

A study showed that those who sat in the front achieved an average of 80% while those in the middle achieved an average of 71.6% on their exams. And guess who did even worse.. unfortunately those in the back scored an average of 68.1%

Distractions are decreased because there’s no one sitting in front of you, just the lecture which basically forces you to pay attention.

This increases the likelihood of your professor getting to know you. Why is that important? Well, in an accounting course I once took, I sat in the front, attended extra tutoring sessions hosted by that instructor, and generally put in extra effort in the class. By the end of the semester everyone was really struggling, over 20 students flunked out, and even my tips weren’t getting me to that A I wanted. Well, because I had established who I was and that I was serious about the class, my instructor bumped my final course grade from an 88% to 93%! She said she noticed the effort I put in so she gave me the grade she thought I deserved

Seriously, sit in the front!! 

Ok, now that you have a good spot in the class, make sure you take great notes! The Cornell notes system is great but do whatever works best for you. 

Abbreviate often

Date your notes at the top so you can order them chronologically. This will make studying a breeze later on. 

Find a color coding system that works for you. Highlight main ideas and vocab. 

Find a notebook that works for you. I was lucky enough to score 20 moleskines at my local thrift store at 1 dollar a piece so I’ve been using those. 

If you prefer loose leaf paper, buy a bunch and stick it into a flexible binder so you can organize and reorganize your paper. 

Use post-its and sticky tabs to add extra info that you might have left out during class. Use sticky tabs to find certain notes faster. 

These are some of my favorite note taking supplies:

These Pilot G-Tec pens are some of my favorite pens ever! They are super smooth and the lines are really fine. This 5 pack costs around $11 which is pretty affordable!

Mead notebooks are a classic staple. Seriously these are super durable!

These sticky post-it tab hybrids work really well for marking a page and highlighting important info. 

Mildliners are really nice and the colors are not to bright. A pack runs around $7 and a 3 pack is $15 on Amazon. 

If you want to go the extra mile, retyping up your notes is a great idea. That way your in class notes can be messy and it won’t matter since you’re going to type them up anyway. One Note is awesome for notes. 

I developed my own system for deciding on how I will study and how often I will study. It goes something like this:

Rank your classes in order of difficulty into three sections:

Easy, medium, and hard….

Easy classes get one point

Medium classes get two points

Hard classes get three points 

Is the class math related? ….. add 2 points

Is it science related? …… add 2 points

Is the class a subject that you struggle with? ….. add 3 points

is the class AP? ……… 3 points 

Add up the points for each class. 

Classes with 1-3 points: 

these classes are generally easy and have an easy instructor, contain info you already know, etc. 

These classes get 45 minutes a day in your schedule and minimal studying on weekends. 

Classes with 4-8 points:

These classes might need some more effort so try to…

Set aside an hour a day and 30 minutes on weekends. 

Classes with 9 points and up:

These classes are usually more intense, have daily assignments, have a strict instructor, etc. 

Set 2 hours a day and an hour or more on weekends. Consider going to free tutoring provided by your school, join a study group, or go to your instructor’s office hours. 

Plan your months, weeks, and days in advance! Keep a planner, calendar, or bullet journal. I personally use a bullet journal and keep a calendar printable in each binder I have for my classes. 

Include due dates, exam dates, when your rentals are due, etc. 

Look at it everyday!!! That way you won’t forget important events. 

If you want to, make it pretty! Decorate it with stickers, pictures, polaroids, etc. to make it more personal.

If you prefer minimalism, keep a simple planner or bullet journal system.

If an electronic system works better for you, go for it! But I’ve noticed that writing it on paper works best! 

Here are some great planners or journals to use:

Moleskines are always a great choice! 

This hardcover Yoobi journal is comparable to the Moleskine and comes in pretty colors! The price is awesome, each one runs at $6! 

Bando makes super pretty and trendy planners. They run from $20 and can get pricey though. It’s definitely worth it though!

This Sugar Paper gold polka dot planner is really cute and super affordable!

The AT-A-GLANCE planner has a monthly view and daily sections with plenty of room for writing in important dates and decorating with cute stuff! 

Kikki K has amazing planners. If you want to splurge consider their stuff. I’ve always wanted one but it’s around the price of a textbook :( 

While Studyblr has so many resources and tips, in case you haven’t noticed, a lot of the pretty pictures use muji pens, staedtler fineliners, and those cute lil’ backpacks. Remember that you have to use supplies that work with you. Here are the essentials to carry with you:

Notebooks and binders

A sturdy and comfy backpack. I use the Borealis backpack by The North Face on discount. Make sure it has comfortable straps, back support, enough room for all your stuff, and compartments for your food and water bottle. 

A phone charger. Keep it in your backpack. My phone has died on me so many times and it sucks, especially if you have to take the bus. Invest in a portable charger.

Earbuds are a must, especially if you take public transportation. Also great for when you’re at the library, gym, etc.

As previously mentioned, a water bottle and FOOD! Pack a lunch but also have backup snacks like granola bars or nuts. You need food and water for energy.  

Keep extra change. You never know when you need it!! 

Your planner. 

Pens, pencils, etc. Especially a stapler if you have homework that you regularly turn in!! Its really awk when someone doesn’t have a stapler and everyone in the class doesn’t either..

A laptop, seriously a must! Chromebooks are affordable! 

Hope that’s helpful! Looking forward to another year in college and staying in the Studyblr community,

Thania

[the-bookshop]

Strahov Theological Hall - Original Baroque Cabinets, Prague

[berkeleyandbiscuits]

How to deal with a concept you do not understand

Breathe. If you are starting to feel flustered, stressed, frustrated, take a break. The more angsty you feel, the less likely you’ll be able to focus on the actual concept. Take a break, study something else, but make sure when you’re trying to tackle a difficult concept, you are calm, cool, and collected. 

Re-read your notes. This one is obvious but ask yourself if you’re actually re-reading your notes or if you’re just glancing over the page. Sometimes it helps to rewrite your notes in a different way. 

Read someone’s else’s notes. Sometimes reading something in a different way can help you understand a concept you are struggling with. 

Ask someone but make sure whoever you’re asking won’t confuse you further. To be safe, ask a TA, your professor, or an experienced tutor. I cannot count how many times I’ve casually asked someone to explain a concept and I end up leaving 10x more confused. Make sure you’re asking the right people. 

Google it. Seriously. There are many amazing resources out there that may be as close as the click of a button. 

Re-watch a lecture, if possible. Some professors webcast their lectures and going over your notes while listening to them is really helpful when you can’t quite grasp a concept. 

Be patient. Sometimes, you’ll need to work at a concept over a number of days and that’s perfectly okay. The most important part is that you try your best to understand and that you realize everyone learns at different paces. 

Do NOT wait until the last minute to tackle a difficult concept. Procrastinating on this kind of stuff right up before an exam can increase your anxiety and deplete your self-confidence. Make sure you tackle these difficult concepts as soon as you encounter them so you can take your time to understand everything.