not really big on tips with academics, more of staying and feeling alive on 12-hours class days
ive been mentioning in some of my posts that i have 11 to 12 hours class schedules this semester, and those days (wednesday and thursdays) are probably the most difficult days to squeeze in study time after class... especially wednesday since for thursday there's 4 major subjects to study for. and since the semester is ending, i'd like to share the things i've been doing because surprisingly i haven't felt any signs of burn out since this second semester.
note: i have a pretty lax schedule aside from wednesdays and thursdays this sem so most likely i won't be able to abide by these the following semester once our hybrid classes start + different schedule
1. workout first thing in the morning
started this one with just planks before and it helped me a lot with back pains due to sitting the whole day since after my last class at 7:30 pm, I would still continue to study after eating dinner, feeding Luna and so on. and recently i've been doing a 15-minute work out of 2-3 sets depending how much time i have before class starts and = instant energy boost. i noticed i didn't need to nap as much as i used to, but once i get to nap, i would feel all my tiredness from the day
2. sleep early on other days (M, T, F, St, Sn)
honestly still working on this because i like to do a lot of stuff within a day because i like getting things done as soon as possible and in advance for more leisure time + more time to do extra readings/notes and etc but this one is a necessity to lessen the probability of getting burnt out
3. supplements + caffeine
bee pollen supplement, vitamin c and collagen are the ones i take daily. aside from energy boost, as someone who hates being sick and doesn't like taking meds, i should keep myself healthy. i think caffeine, coffee speaks for itself for a 12 hr class haha
4. wednesday no-sleep
as much as possible i dont like doing this because not only is it a bad practice but since my wednesday schedule is 7:30am to 7:30pm and i have 4 major subjects on thursday, i need to sacrifice sleep to read through and study for those subjects especially during pre-exam week and exam weeks.
5. study buddies~ (+fun break times)
my group of friends from senior year has been a big help with this, we go on discord almost everyday and even though we are all from different majors (respiratory therapy, physical therapy, nursing, medical technology, architecture, marketing) we like hanging out on dc to study together for accountability and additional fun for studying :) we also have break schedules like wordle time at 12 mn where we all drop what we're doing (unless its very important) and go on wordle.
6. n a p s
this speaks for itself + i mentioned lots of times i love naps, sleeping in general since i was a kid. please make sure you take naps whenever you can, even a quick 15- to 20-minute nap could be an instant energy charger + it's also a break for our brain, to enhance memory and performance.
7. time management/prioritize
hmm another thing i'm still really working on, but since my gap year i like making to-do lists the night before and now i would make a list of things i need to do and highlight them in different colors for those i need to accomplish within the week and on another sheet of paper i would write down 3-5 tasks to get done within the day. +
8. not skipping meals
i used to not like eating breakfast but i've been practicing to do so recently because it's a necessity and since i worked out, i need to recharge or else i would fall asleep during morning class and even just a simple oatmeal is a big help with concentration (+ to avoid diabetes since both of our parent's family have a big history with diabetes mellitus, type 2) and i think there's a lot of people the same as me that when i really focus on something there's that tendency to put aside meals and eat once i get done and it's not a healthy thing to do especially since working/studying requires a lot of brain energy + energy in general, which we get from eating meals on time to avoid additional stressors such as stomach pain or headache from skipping/missing meal time. that being said, let's also eat healthily
9. cold shower before class
i swear i can never focus if i don't shower with cold water in the morning, especially with these kinds of schedule. it really wakes me up and theres a lot of benefits to showering with cold water (+ i live in a tropical country, it helps lessen me being irritable with the heat especially this summer time, specifically from 9-12nn, then i would shower again before lunch time gets done because it's also really hot at 1 to 4pm)
10. stretching
12 hours of class sounds bad but continuously sitting down for 12+ hours with pre-class and post-class study sessions is BAD. i can't begin to imagine how painful my neck, back and glutes would be if i don't move around every after 2 hours or whenever i can. im actually requesting to my mom if we could have a bar height table when we move so i could study/attend class with the option to just stand whenever i want to.
11. don't forget to wind down
personally i love going on a bike ride and walk around our village with the intention to just breathe in some air and do some sight-seeing, relax to wind down. sometimes i would do those to work out or do other exercises to sweat out the day's stress. other than those, sleep, read, watch, browse through my coloring books and do some coloring are other ways i like to wind down. another important note to not go to bed with a headache and/or get burnt out easily.
12. last but not the least, HYDRATE
water, water, water. sometimes i infuse my water with cucumber or lemon but usually it's just ice cold water in my 750mL flask and i would drink every now and then, especially when i can't focus/feel sleepy and refill at lunch, mid-afternoon and dinner. i also like drinking cold water as soon as i wake up and it's just really a necessity.
1. turn off your phone and leave it in your locker/back. sometimes, lectures get really boring, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to pay attention! seeing your phone will make you feel distracted. hiding it will help you concentrate more in general
2. raise your hand. be that kid. there's nothing wrong with it. they're just jealous you actually know the answers ā„ļø raising your hand will make your teacher be more lenient with you. it works on the most intimidating teacher too
3. take notes. don't worry if they're messy. you can rewrite them when you get home. I recommend having a messy notebook for in-class notes and a neat one for the notes rewritten if you have time. it's a sort of a learning method too. writing it once is equal to reading it 7 times
4. listen. listen. listen. listen! listen!! listen!!! I can't stress this enough!!!!!
5. never cheat. what you remember from the material is way more important than a grade. this way you'll never learn from your mistakes
Have you ever found yourself in a class or lecture so madly and rapidly writing notes that you miss a tonne of what the teacher is saying? And you sometimes have to ask the person next to you so you can āget with the programā ā¦. At this most ordinary juncture, you can forget trying to capture exam hints dropped by the teacher, you are simply inĀ āsurvival modeā!
Apparently learning in class is more effective with the 80/20 rule. That is listen 80% and write 20% of the time. And youāre thinking āyeah, right, dream onā¦ā It is ākindaā challenging and semi-unrealistic to achieve this, but if you actually read-up before class about the topic and prepare your notes (see last posts), you CAN be more chilled, and perhaps achieve a little of the 80/20 rule, in order to pick up on hints and material for exam questions. Ā Some teachers inadvertently drop hints without realising, but if youāre so focused on writing chicken scratch, you would sooo miss those hints. Ā Try this hack and seeā¦Ā
Do you have any tips for someone who has trouble focusing in class? I find I can't listen to my teacher for all that long before I get distracted..I love your blog by the way! ā¤ļø
Iām so glad that you like my blog! As far as tips to help you out, well firstly make sure that youāre sitting in the best place to focus: you probably have already thought of this but make sure that youāre not sitting next to people who distract you and that youāre close enough to the teacher. Itās often easier to focus when there are fewer distractions between you and the teacher.
My only other real tip is try to immerse yourself in the content: in classes where I have trouble focusing I try to go over the chapter/s that will be gone over in the class at home and then I map out a plan of the main topics and create a sort ofĀ āfill-in-the-blanksā notes to fill out during the class; sometimes itās easier to stay focused when youāre listening for something specific to come up!Ā
I hope that helps a little bit, feel free to message me again!Ā
Just a few quick tips to incoming college freshmen:
Where to sit in class: Iāve seen several posts about striving to be a aces student that mention sitting in the front row which is a good tip in general; I personally have anxiety in social/classroom situations so the best seat depends entirely on the class for me and it might for you too! For instance I speak up a lot in math classes so I feel more comfortable towards the back so that I know that no one is really staring at me as I speak. In history I sat at the front because my professor encouraged a very calm environment that I felt completely comfortable in. In English/Writing courses I sat in the first or second row because getting to know those teachers felt like a good idea (tip on that below). In art I sat at the front because there was minimal interaction with the professor, she was very good she just didnāt require much more than our attention so it was easier to focus at the front. In philosophy I sat at the back because the classroom was small and I was originally a little intimidated by the professor though I learned throughout the semester that he was a great teacher and a nice person (I mentioned that it was my birthday at the start of the week when an essay was due and he told me that it was fine if I handed it in one class late without my even asking).Ā
Teachers: If you donāt get to know/speak to any of your other teachers PLEASE make some sort of nice with your English/writing professor! And any other subject where you write a lot of semi-opinion type papers (like philosophy). I tend to use a lot of commas in my writing because thatās how I speak too, also itās just how I was taught. Once my English (and then also my philosophy) teacher knew how I spoke about things in person and then also a bit of what I was like as a person/student when talking it seemed to help with them being able to read the papers I was turning in as my papers and not just a paper with an unknown voice. It helped me at least.
STAY ON TOP OF YOUR HOMEWORK: Please make sure that you do all of your homework as it gets assigned! Do not leave it until the last minute and PLEASE do not rely on the idea of extra credit EXTRA CREDIT CANNOT FULLY REPLACE REGULAR CREDIT. Also try to do every single piece of homework that you can; my math professor gave us a lot of just practice homework and doing it really helped me to understand the material better. And my philosophy and history teachers both gave out suggested readings and when I had the time to it definitely helped me appreciate the courses more. Just because a paper or project doesnāt count for very much doesnāt mean you shouldnāt do it. In programming it was possible to miss a few projects if you made nearly perfect on all the others and still come out with a grade but every single person who relied on that idea came out with a lower mark than they really should have because they didnāt do the work.Ā
Your teachers understand that you have a life: not every single teacher is going to be willing to just hand out extensions or forgiveness but most of them really do understand that while school may be your number 1 priority you have other obligations too. Talk to them, be honest with them, and most of them are willing to help. With the exception of one all of the teachers that I have had are teaching college/uni because they want to teach, because they like it, so they really donāt want to ruin the fun of learning for you; they want to help you.
Thatās all I have right now, and I know that they all based on my individual experience so you could be totally different and this could be no help but I would also like to stress that my ask box is always open if you ever are stressed, confused, or just need someone to talk to! Iām here for you and so are so many others in this wonderful community. Iām planning on continuing to share what few tips I have once my school year begins in ernest (mid-September). Please reblog and add/comment your thoughts!
So if you ever take a college/uni course that seems like it might involve a lot of class discussion make sure that in the first class you sit next to the coolest/most attractive/smartest people you can, itās hard being introverted, because I almost guarantee you that the tutor will start off withĀ āthis class is about interaction so we are going to start with ice breakersā and bam you now have a perfect excuse to introduce yourself to that cute girl who you might want to get to know more, that that smart dude that you might want in your assignment group or that cool dude that looks like he could get you into parties.Ā
When new students enter the class they usually have a lot of questions.Ā It can be a scary experience when joining your first bellydance class and no one understands that more than your instructor.Ā Remember, we were in your shoes once!Ā Below are a few tips to help you cope with the new and exciting world of bellydance.
It's perfectly normal to want to hide in the back row!Ā But challenge yourself to switch it up every other week.Ā Trust me, everyone else is just as focused on doing the right move as you are!
Make friends with experienced students!Ā They are usually more than willing to help and meeting new friends is a great way to break the ice.
Listen to your instructors.Ā As is the case with any other educational class, leave the cell phones on silent and pay attention to get the most out of this experience!
Believe in yourself!
Ask questions!
Bring water!Ā Water is an essential part of class and is not always readily available.Ā Bring your own just in case.
Push yourself but know your limits!Ā If you have physical limitations discuss those with your instructor prior to class.Ā If you need a break, don't be afraid to sit it out.
Show up on time and ready to learn.Ā So the "on time" part is pretty straight forward but what does "ready to learn" mean?Ā Leave your baggage from the day at the door.Ā Don't bring family drama with you into class or stress from today's office meeting.Ā The point is to enjoy class and take time out for YOU!
Don't get bogged down if you can't get a move right the first time.Ā Practice makes perfect!Ā Remember, everyone learns at their own pace.
Don't make unrealistic goals!Ā Professional dancers are not grown overnight!Ā It takes YEARS of practice and dedication but that level is certainly attainable if your heart is in it.
These are the basic survival tips and hopefully will make your class time more enjoyable.Ā Hope to see you in class soon!Ā And remember....HAVE FUN!
