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[andiesguidetotestprep]

You're Worth The Time

Hi, my name is Andie and my goal is to help average students get into their dream colleges by becoming excellent test takers.

Studying for an exam in a class you don't easily understand can be frustrating. And getting help can feel like a waste of time when you're considering the (oftentimes) daunting hill of information you don't know. But, I just wanted to take the time to let you know:

You're worth the time

There have been times when I would go to office hours and other students were already there, and I would consider leaving so that I didn't take time away from them. There was so much I didn't know that I felt they had a much better shot at success. But, it doesn't matter. I had a chance at doing well and I knew that self-rejecting and choosing not to get the help I needed just because I felt dumb or inferior wasn't going to put me any closer to the success I desperately wanted.

I don't know if you've ever been in a similar situation, but if you have or do in the future, just know that you are capable and worthy. But, most importantly, you are worth the time.

Your personal cheerleader,

Andie

[andiesguidetotestprep]

How I Avoid Embarrassment When Asking Basic Questions

Hi, my name is Andie and my goal is to help average students get into their dream colleges by becoming excellent test takers.

Asking questions people believe (or assume) you should already know the answer to can be stressful and lead to embarrassment. When I was taking AP US History, I had a friend who constantly asked really basic questions frequently. Whenever her hand would go up, groans would sound around the classroom. I hated that for her, and started telling her to just ask me first and if I couldn't answer it then ask the teacher. And she thanked me, but declined. She was super confident and didn't care if anyone else was annoyed at her for seeking clarification.

There have been many times when I didn't ask a question I really needed to understand the answer to because I couldn't get over the embarrassment of asking such a "simple" question. Thinking back to this class and her confidence sometimes gave me the push I needed to just do it. But, that spark of confidence was fleeting and unsustainable. So, if anyone else is struggling with asking these types of questions, I would like to offer some tips on what has worked for me:

Find someone you trust to ask. I lucked out when taking calculus that I had a TA who was kind and non-judgemental. There were times I would show up to office hours and would struggle through elementary concepts. Fortunately, he was willing to break everything down even if the concept was simple and something I should remember learning a long time ago. Finding someone, be it another student or a teacher for a different class, that you know will be kind and explain whatever you're struggling with non-judgmentally can be really helpful when trying to push past the embarrassment of not knowing something and asking for help.

Google it. While I don't recommend becoming too reliant on tools such as WolframAlpha, Symbolab, etc. sometimes you may need to search their sites (and potentially sign up for a free trial) in order to see the problem broken down step-by-step. This way you're "asking" your question and not having to worry about what people will think of you because of it.

Send an email. Somethings are easier to ask via email.

If you're in class or choosing to ask questions face-to-face and the person you're asking says something along the lines of "you should already know this", keep this in mind:

It's important to remember that it's okay not to know everything, and it's better to ask for help than to pretend that you know something you don't. By letting them know that you don't know the answer and asking for help, you show that you are trying to learn.

Some responses you can consider to "you should already know this" are:

"I'm sorry, but I don't actually know the answer. Could you explain it to me?"

"I understand that I probably should know the answer, but I don't. Could you help me out?"

"I know I'm supposed to know this, but I'm not sure what the answer is. Could you help me?"

Don't be discouraged if you're preparing for an exam and you come across information you don't know or problems you don't know how to solve. My goal is to help you learn some strategies for improvement so you can master the content and get an excellent exam score! If you’re using this to help figure out how you can prepare for your upcoming exam, I hope you found value in this article. If you did, please like it and share with a friend! And, I would love to hear what topics you would like for me to cover next!

You've Got This,

Andie

[andiesguidetotestprep]

How I Avoid Frustration When Tackling a Difficult Problem

Hi, my name is Andie and my goal is to help average students get into their dream colleges by becoming excellent test takers.

Learning something new can be difficult. I have found myself getting frustrated when I'm not learning it as fast as I want to or when I'm pressed for time and I don't manage to understand a concept on the first read through. In times like these, how I avoid frustration is by:

Stepping away from the problem. Taking a much needed step back can allow you time to process and reflect on the question and the methods you've been using to solve it. Sometimes, I'm able to return to the question later with a new idea on how to solve it or a different perspective on where I might have been going wrong.

Finding help. Going to your teacher or a tutor has been one of the most helpful things I've done. For so long, I was so scared of being seen as dumb that I avoided asking for help, even if I really needed it. But, I've learned that it's okay to ask for help!

Checking the steps I've already done. Sometimes the issue with your problem isn't what you think it is. There have been times when the reason I'm not able to move past a certain point in my problem is because there is an error with the work I've already done. Simply checking your work can help a ton!

Looking for a step-by-step tutorial for a similar problem. This has saved me so much time! Bonus points if the person explaining it doesn't assume you know everything (even if you "should") and takes the time to explain foundational concepts that are super important to be able to solve the problem.

These are just a few strategies that I have found helpful for me when I'm trying to tackle something difficult while preparing for an exam. If you’re using this to help figure out how you can prepare for your upcoming exam, I hope you found value in this article. If you did, please like it and share with a friend! And, I would love to hear what topics you would like for me to cover next!

Until Next Time,

Andie

[andiesguidetotestprep]

How I Prepare for a Test

Hi, my name is Andie and my goal is to help average students get into their dream colleges by becoming excellent test takers.

Preparing for an exam is hard, especially when you have really only done enough so far to submit assignments worry-free of getting a 0. Maybe you're averaging 80's and 90's with a few 70's sprinkled in there. Or maybe you're averaging 70's and 80's with a few 90's sprinkled in there. No matter which group you fall into, if you're going to be ready by exam day and score higher than you've averaged so far on class assignments, you're going to need to prepare.

Preparation comes down to doing the work repeatedly with quality feedback. If you're in a math class and you find yourself struggling to complete the homework each night, you've probably been tempted to use Symbolab or Mathway to do your calculations for you. Or, maybe you're in an English class and you've really been struggling to improve your writing and you've been tempted a time or two to let ChatGPT do its thing.

If this is you, that's okay. That was me too. Now, I'm not going to tell you what you should be doing (or shouldn't) that's for you to decide. I'm just going to tell you what's been working for me to improve my understanding and scores in class.

Step One:

Make a plan of action. This is the easy part because there is so much information out there that can tell you how to build the best study plan for your personality/situation/zodiac. I'm going to give you a quick overview for how I built my study plan, but if you're interested in learning more (in depth) on how to build an exam ready study plan, drop a comment below or send me an ask to let me know you're interested.

The way I used to build my study plan was by identifying what I knew I didn't know, how much time I had to learn it, and how much of it was bound to be on the exam. After I figured out as much as I could about those factors, then I made a timetable for what to practice each day. Following that, I went online and put together a bunch of practice problems and tried to do as many of them as possible.

This sounds great in theory, but it's a lot of unnecessary work that doesn't necessarily lead to the result you want. For one, it's hard to gauge how many questions of one topic will be on an exam. Even if your teacher points out a particular topic or chapter as important, it doesn't mean it will be all over your exam. One time, I was studying for a calculus exam and spent so much time reviewing improper integrals because I wasn't too confident on the topic and our teacher had mentioned in class that it was one of the more important chapters know. So, I went online and found a bunch of improper integral questions to practice. When it came time for the exam, there ended up being only one question on the exam related to improper integrals!

And, to add insult to injury, after the exam he mentioned offhandedly in class that all of our exam questions were taken directly from our homework. Those little facts changed how I decided to approach studying moving forward.

Now, I focus on the homework problems, extra practice worksheet problems, and study guide problems my teacher gives us. And the way I plan to study is by deciding how much time each day I'm going to work on those practice problems.

Step Two:

Find a way to stay accountable. I found a fun way to do this was by creating a study stream. For a while, every time I needed to study, I would stream the session on youtube. I made sure my camera could capture my computer screen, notebook, and me. Then, I placed my phone across the room (or you can record using your phone) and that keeps you from using your phone.

Step Three:

Get in the reps (repetition). The last part is notably the hardest part because you just have to do the difficult and sometimes mundane work. I use the practice questions I gathered in step one, set up my accountability system from step two, and get to work! Setting yourself a timer is a great reminder that this will eventually come to an end, and always helped motivate me to stay focused. Also, I found that starting as early in the day as possible (for me it was around 6 am) worked best, because I could do it before my day truly began.

If you're using this to help figure out how you can prepare for your upcoming exam, I hope you found value in this article. If you did, please like it and share with a friend! And, I would love to hear what topics you would like for me to cover next!

Good Luck,

Andie