learnstudycoffee

[learnstudycoffee]

how to study when you REALLY don’t want to

we’ve all been there. You have a paper due in the morning, it’s 10 pm, and you’re sitting at your desk, feeling dead. Or maybe it’s 3 pm, and you’re just SO overwhelmed with an endless to do list and so many pages to read or annotate or take notes on that you just think,

screw it. I just won’t do anything. 

Listen, I get it. I understand. I LOVE learning, but I often find myself bogged down by homework, that incessant, painful reminder that you’re being forced to learn.  Nobody likes that.

So below are some of my tips for studying, especially when you really, really don’t feel like doing it.

What’s your absolute dream school? Columbia? That’s amazing. Harvard? Incredible. Florida State? Awesome. Wherever you want to be in two years- whether it be college, grad school, teaching, etc. Picture yourself learning in your dream learning environment, doing what you love the most. Maybe for you, that daydream means picturing yourself in a New York City coffee shop, working on Literature homework from Barnard College. Or maybe it means cramming biology in a crowded, raucous library at UMass. Whatever makes you get excited about learning- take the fuel you feel from those daydreams and use it to fan the flames of your love for learning. 

Treat every single class like it’s your absolute favorite class ever. Listen. I don’t care if you have the shittiest teacher on planet earth. I don’t care if you couldn’t give less of a fuck about quantum physics or functions or whatever. You have the privilege and the opportunity to learn anything and everything, and we could all do good to stop taking that for granted. Treat AP Calculus like it’s your favorite subject EVER, even when- especially when it feels like pulling teeth. But how? You might be asking. The secret is that it’s really, really not that hard. There are so many ways to motivate yourself to do that subject you’ve been putting off for days, and you know it!! Use studyblr to find inspiration for That Subject™, make a study group, trap yourself in your dorm/library/coffee shop until you just finish one problem set, just START. Chances are when you see other people being productive and getting shit done in that subject (cough studyblr cough) you’ll want to do it too. 

Eat, sleep, and live. Listen to me: you HAVE to stop killing yourself to do more school. Your to-do list ISN’T GOING TO JUST GO AWAY. There’s always going to be things you have to do and things you could be stressed about. But stress, school, and homework are not excuses to abandon self-care, friendships and having a social life. Go out with your friends! Go to the movies! Go to that football game! Get the important stuff done and stop worrying about your endless list! Having somewhere to go will motivate you to get done faster, and you’re going to feel a lot better after going out and having fun than sitting at home alone procrastinating. Chances are, you’ll be more energized to get some work done too. 

Pay attention to what your body’s telling you. Switch out midnight iced lattes for smoothies and fruit. Eat lots of food that makes you feel good, healthy and fulfilled. Stop snacking on the same 4 chips every time you study and start learning how to fuel your body and your brain. If you know you can’t eat a full breakfast before school, find things you can eat, and I mean MORE THAN JUST COFFEE STRAIGHT FROM THE POT. Track what you eat for an entire week, and I mean EVERYTHING. Track your water intake, coffee intake, and soda intake. On top of food tracking, also track your mood, productivity, and overall feeling of wellbeing. At the end of the week, see what’s up! Look for patterns, dehydration, food inconsistencies, gross stuff you eat a lot, things you want to change, all of it. And then actually MAKE THE CHANGES.

I know I’m going to sound like your mom friend here, but that’s kind of what I am, so: drink👏🏻more👏🏻water👏🏻!!!!!!! I cannot STRESS THIS ENOUGH!!!!!!! FUEL YOUR BODY!!! YOU WILL FEEL BETTER!!!

in conclusion…

- picture yourself learning in your dream learning environment

- picture the payoff, you doing what you want to do - nursing or teaching or building fancy ass AI robotos or whatever it is

- do NOT take your education for granted!!!! learning is such an opportunity and not everyone gets it

- treat yourself like a normal human being.  take care of yourself.  shower.  eat.

- pay attention to your body.  pay attention to what you need.  pay attention to what you WANT

- drink your water, listen to some jazz, and just start somewhere.

- small progress is still progress 

[learnstudycoffee]

MASSIVE list of book recs

plays

death of a salesman, arthur miller

macbeth, shakespeare

a streetcar named desire, tennessee williams

hamlet, shakespeare

a raisin in the sun, lorraine hansberry

a midsummer night’s dream, shakespeare

antigone, sophocles

king lear, shakespeare

the glass menagerie, tennessee williams

othello, shakespeare

pygmalion, george bernard shaw

the tempest, shakespeare,

much ado about nothing, shakespeare

as you like it, shakespeare

the taming of the shrew, shakespeare

the merry wives of windsor, shakespeare

the merchant of venice, shakespeare

oedipus rex, sophocles

an ideal husband, oscar wilde

who’s afraid of virginia wolf, edward albee

our town, thornton wilder

waiting for godot, samuel beckett

fantasy/fairy tales

the ranger’s apprentice, john flanagan

harry potter series, j.k. rowling

inkheart by cornelia funke

throne of glass, sarah j. maas

the chronicles of narnia, c.s. louis

the lord of the rings, j.r.r. tolkien

the hobbit, j.r.r. tolkien

percy jackson and the olympions, rick riordan

eragon by christopher paolini

the bartimaeus trilogy, jonathan stroud

howl’s moving castle, dianna wynne jones

the wonderful wizard of oz, lyman frank baum

the books of bayern, shannon hale

ella enchanted, gail carson levine

the princess bride, william goldman

the raven cycle, maggie stiefvater

the sisters grimm, michael buckley

the spiderwick chronicles, tony diterlizzi and holly black

the alchemist, paulo coelho

forgive my fins, tera lynn childs

alice in wonderland, lewis carroll

the faerie path, allan jones frewin

the school for good and evil, soman chainani

the grimm legacy, polly shulman

the sweetest spell, suzanne selfors

the tales of the frog princess, e.d. baker

the wide-awake princess, e.d. baker

once a witch, carolyn maccullough

the silver bowl series, diane stanley

the emily windsnap series, liz kessler

fairest, gail carson levine

the fairy realm series, emily rodda

the water mirror, kai meyer

the two princesses of bamarre, gail carson levine

non-fiction

the seven habits of highly effective people, stephen covey

the seven habits of highly effective teens, sean covey

mencken’s chrestomathy, h.l. mencken

yes please, amy poehler

is everyone hanging out without me? (and other concerns), mindy kaling

audrey hepburn: an elegant spirit, sean hepburn ferrer

how to be lovely: the audrey hepburn way of life, melissa hellstern

how to win friends and influence people, dale carnegie

how to win friends and influence people for teen girls, donna dale carnegie

#girlboss by sophia amuroso

14,000 things to be happy about, barbara ann kipfer

choose to matter, julie foudy

the little book of skin care: korean beauty secrets for healthy, glowing skin, charlotte cho

where stylists shop: the fashion insider’s ultimate guide, booth moore

the girls’ book of glamour: a guide to being a goddess, jeffrie sally

the girls’ book: how to be the best at everything, juliana foster

the girls’ book of excellence: even more ways to be the best at everything, sally norton

the life-changing magic of not giving a f*ck: how to stop spending time you don’t have with people you don’t like doing things you don’t want to do (a no f*cks given guide), sarah knight

bossypants, tina fey

we should all be feminists by chimamanda ngozi adichie

behind the scenes: or, thirty years a slave, and four years in the white house, elizabeth keckley

the pillow book, sei shōnagon

eat pretty: nutrition for beauty, inside and out, jolene hart

eat pretty every day: 365 daily inspirations for nourishing beauty, inside and out, jolene hart

narrative of the life of frederick douglass, frederick douglass

narrative of sojourner truth, sojourner truth

12 years a slave, solomon northup

night, elie wiesel

poetry

the flowers of evil, charles baudelaire

a season in hell, arthur rimbaud

she walks in beauty, lord byron

shakespeare’s sonnets, shakespeare

we real cool, gwendolyn brooks

poems of emily dickinson

poems of robert frost

leaves of grass, walt whitman

the raven, edgar allen poe

poems of edgar allen poe

milk and honey by rupi kaur

the sun and her flowers, rupi kaur

the princess saves herself in this one, amanda lovelace

romance

romeo and juliet, shakespeare

emma, jane austen

ever, gail carson levine

pride and prejudice, jane austen

eleanor and park, rainbow rowell

sense and sensibility, jane austen

jane eyre, charlotte brontë

landline, rainbow rowell

madame bovary, gustave flaubert

to all the boys i’ve loved before, jenny han

love in the time of cholera, gabriel garcía márquez

the sun is also a star, nicola yoon

young adult

fangirl, rainbow rowell

great expectations, charles dickens

aristotle and dante discover the secrets of the universe, benjamin alire sáenz

when the moon was ours, anna-marie mclemore

the goldfinch, donna tartt

looking for alaska, john green

we were liars, e. lockhart

the wrath and the dawn, renée ahdieh

little women, louisa may alcott

palace of spies, sarah zettel

the clique series, lisi harrison

the finishing school series, gail carriger

eyes like stars, lisa mantchev

the ever after high series, shannon hale

along for the ride, sarah dessen

girl online, zoe sugg

keeping the castle, patrice kindl

stargirl, jerry spinelli

stir it up, ramin ganeshram

prom and prejudice, elizabeth eulberg

the summer i saved the world…in 65 days, michele weber hurwitz

pink and green series by lisa greenwald

six of crows, leigh bardugo

the catcher in the rye, j.d. salinger

the house on mango street, sandra cisneros

turtles all the way down, john green

under the lights, dahlia adler

geekerella, ashley poston

simon vs. the homo sapiens agenda, becky albertalli

it’s not like it’s a secret, misa sugiura

the idiot, elif batuman

the outsiders, s.e. hinton

everything leads to you, nina lacour

a wrinkle in time, madeleine l’engle

dumplin’, julie murphy

historical fiction

the great gatsby, f. scott fitzgerald

the scarlet letter, nathaniel hawthorne

a tale of two cities, charles dickens

the song of achilles, madeline miller

the last of the mohicans, james fenimore cooper

the constant princess, philippa gregory

the count of monte cristo, alexandre dumas

les misérables, victor hugo

war and peace, leo tolstoy

a mad, wicked folly, sharon biggs waller

manor of secrets, katherine longshore

to kill a mockingbird, harper lee

uncle tom’s cabin, harriet beecher stowe

atonement ian mcewan

the unbearable lightness of being, milan kundera

things fall apart, chinua achebe

ophelia, lisa m. klein

the god of small things, arundhati roy

gothic fiction

frankenstein, mary shelley

dracula, bram stoker

the picture of dorian gray, oscar wilde

wuthering heights, emily brontë

parody/satire

catch-22, joseph heller 

candide, voltaire

don quixote, miguel de cervantes

animal farm, george orwell

the importance of being earnest, oscar wilde

science fiction

the city of ember, jeanne duprau

1984, george orwell

the handmaid’s tale, margaret atwood

brave new world, aldous huxley

the lunar chronicles, marissa meyer

the time machine, h.g. wells

the fourteenth goldfish, jennifer l. holm

fahrenheit 451, ray bradbury

twenty thousand leagues under the sea, jules verne

the extraordinary voyages series, jules verne

epics

beowulf, author unknow

the odyssey, homer

the iliad, homer

the bhagavad gita, vyasa

the mahabharata, vyasa

inferno, dante alighieri

miscellaneous

the bell jar, sylvia plath

the secret history, donna tartt

swann’s way, marcel proust

the art of war, sun tzu

the awakening, kate chopin

moby dick, herman melville

anna karenina, leo tolstoy

the canterbury tales, geoffrey chaucer

the crucible, arthur miller

one flew over the cuckoo’s nest, ken kesey

the antichrist, friedrich nietzsche

sew zoey, nancy taylor and chloe zhang

the candymakers, wendy mass

my sister the vampire series, sienna mercer

eight hundred grapes, laura dave

their eyes were watching god, zora neale hurston

the adventures of huckleberry finn, mark twain

the adventures of tom sawyer, mark twain

a christmas carol, charles dickens

the old man and the sea, ernest hemingway

to the lighthouse, virginia woolf

utopia, thomas more

a spy in the house of love, anaïs nin

crime and punishment, fyodor dostoyevsky

the assistants, camille perri

a room of one’s own, virginia woolf

the joy luck club, amy tan

sputnik sweetheart, haruki murakami

the namesake, jhumpa lahiri

a thousand splendid suns, khaled hosseini

crazy rich asians, kevin kwan

save the date, morgan matson

neuromancer, william gibson

thanks for reading! i hope this helped some of you out. hugs, mel ✨✨✨

[learnstudycoffee]

how i use google drive for university - pt 1: digital notetaking  by kkaitstudies

idk about you but i’ve tested a bunch of note taking methods. in my last few years of university, i was indeed lazy and rarely referred back to the professor’s slides in the course shell. i opted to read off the slides in lecture and take notes. while MS OneNote is great, i found myself enjoying Google Drive much more. so here is a quick overview of how i take notes using Google Docs. 

folders are your friends

make separate folders for each of your courses. google drive even gives you the option to change the colours of the folders. in these folders, add any relevant coursework such as the syllabi, readings, and your notes document.

use one doc for notes per course

once you receive the syllabi, take some time to take note of required readings, and assignment deadlines. i have created a free template you can save to your own google drive that you can access here. fill out:

- course code & name - prof’s name, office hours, and email - date(s) for each week of class - weekly readings (tip: if you have online readings, you can link them in the doc!) - & open the document outline (view > show document outline)

you also don’t have to use all these features. T B H, i didn’t do weekly readings. a lot. oops. BUT i did always pay attention in lecture. i simply deleted the “reading notes” header every week i didn’t bother to read.

make use of early access to lecture slides, headers, etc. 

some profs (bless their souls) post the slides sometime before the lecture. if you have the time, copy the lecture slides into your notes. and if they don’t…type real quick to get all the info as it’s happening (or go back to slides online after lecture to see what you missed out on). i separate lecture topics with headers, with the bullet points underneath (see above). if there is anything that the prof says during class that isn’t in the lecture slides, i will change the colour of the text to a different colour. any important concepts or testable material are highlighted.

…and that’s how i take notes! everyone is different. not all note-taking methods work for everyone. this is what worked for me in my last 2 years of uni. hopefully a similar structure works for some of y’all! also, let me know what you think and @ me if you end up using my template. have a great semester!

coming soon: [ part 2: grade tracker | part 3: gmail and gcal ]

[learnstudycoffee]

Sexy Tips on How to Study When Out Of It™️

.Make tea/snacking food. I’ve noticed this helps me stay seated and actually study.

.20/5 rule. 20 minutes studying and working as hard as you can, 5 minutes scrolling on Instagram or having a dance party. Don’t try to be a different productive like cleaning. Do something mindless. (Unless cleaning is something you do mindlessly)

.have your papers organized by importance in front of you. Focus on one thing at a time.

.If you need motivation from friends, tell them to write you encouraging things to get it done!

.If it helps you, listen to music. Personally I recommend classical/instrumental music or music in a language you don’t know. ASMR can also be useful for background noise.

.Have water with you. Drink it. It helps you focus.

.Do your work right after school or right after you shower.

.Just do what you need to. Do no more than that.

IF YOU REALLY CAN’T WORK, DON’T PUSH YOURSELF TOO FAR. YOU KNOW YOUR LIMIT. DON’T HURT YOURSELF. good luck! xx

feel free to add some tips on studying when you’re brain isn’t being kind.

[learnstudycoffee]

one of the most toxic things i’ve ever done is ignore the bad in someone because i love them

[learnstudycoffee]

study moods by coffee order

iced coffee: semi distracted, post it note central, excitement for summer break, doodles in the margins

latte: in a library, the soft noise of many people being quiet in the same place, scratching of a pencil, productivity

cream and sugar: long to do lists, editing friends’ essays, incessant pen clicking, a well organized planner

espresso: the last study session before a big test, slight panic, hard work, a tall stack of flash cards

cappuccino: a big project, planning and preparation, detailed timeline, a promise not to procrastinate

black coffee: sleeves pushed up to elbows, determination, tapping fingers, piles of textbooks all around

americano: in a cafe, reading a book for class, slow but steady progress, slightly smudged notes in black ink

tea: a neat desk, classical music, reviewing old notes, pushing up glasses, looking forward to the future

hot chocolate: studying in bed, soft playlist in the background, nose stuck in a textbook, relaxed

[learnstudycoffee]

✨🎬🌟

[learnstudycoffee]

I know that starting bujo can be a daunting process, speaking from personal experience. As such, I have compiled a list of resources down below to help beginners to start bujo.

Guide 

Starting a bullet journal

A guide to bullet journal

Guide to bullet journal

Starting a bullet journal

Bullet journal

How I bullet journal

Notebooks brand 

Essentials A5 grid journal (example)

Rhodia webnotebook (example)

Scribbles that matter pro dotted a5 journal

Moleskine large hardcover journal (example)

Moleskine classic journal (example)

Moleskine large square ruled (example)

Leuchtturm1917 dotted a5

Bujo spread ideas

Bujo spread ideas

Bujo spread ideas

Bujo ideas masterpost by @optomstudies

Its ok if you are not an artistic studyblr by @tiyastudies

Bullet journal ideas

Youtube videos 

How to bullet journal

Bullet journal setup 2018

Bullet journal tips for beginners

Bullet journal flip-through and tips and tricks

How I use bullet journal (updated version)

Plan with me 2018 setup

Hello, 2018!//january bujo pwm

My 2017 flip-through

My 2017 bujo flip-through

2017 bujo flip-through

Printables 

Space tapes

Fall stickers and vocabulary worksheets

Christmas tapes

Super random sticker sheet

Inspirational spreads 

Overview

Daily spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Weekly spread

Monthly spread

Monthly spread

Monthly spread

Monthly spread

Monthly spread

Yearly spread

Other spreads 

Favourite films

Moodboard

Clothing spread

Gratitude spread

School year checklist

Places to travel

1 sentence a day

Reflection and looking forward

Year in pixels

Doodle ideas

Highlights

Last replaced

Videos, habits and finance tracker

Things that make me happy and dreams

Room tidying

Movie journal

Lookbook page

Bucketlist

Travel journal spread

Summer daze (good things)

How to make your bujo aesthetic?

How to banner by @studypetals

Easy doodles

Header ideas

Gradient titles effect tutorial

Faves

@studyrose @studywithinspo @studyquill @stillstudies @tbhstudying @journalsanctuary @crescentwords @doestudies @soymilkstudie @kaylareads @studylustre @hannybstudies @peachystudy @minijournals @somestudy @oikawastudies @studeying @lentilstudies @tomi-letters @emmastudies @smoinerd @mochi-studies @focusign @bluelahe @mildlineurs @cayliestudies @thearialligraphyproject @lycheestudy @hwangmyeons @quadrtics

Other masterposts made by me

Printables

Self care

College

Ace your exams

Apps for students

Note taking

The amazon products links are affiliate links. That means I do earn a small commission. This does not influence my opinions of the products in any way. However, if you are strongly against affiliate links, feel free to search up the products yourself.

Icon credit to @jasperstudies

[learnstudycoffee]

[8.24.2018] // weekly spread

→i legit passed out for two hours today when i meant to close my eyes for ten minutes lmao 😭😂 →ft. tombow dual brush pens, zebra mildliner & sarasa, crayola supertip

studygram // sonderandroses

[learnstudycoffee]

An amazing new coffee shop I went to this morning, and some more summer dailies ☕️☁️

[learnstudycoffee]

101 Study Tips

Take advantage of that lower workload in between exam periods to make good notes, clean your house, get work experience and do the things then rather than when you’re busier

Use Highlighters instead of pens to save time. Or vice versa depending on you

Change the timing in the pomodoro technique to suit you rather than the other way round

Use a planner to organise your day

Work out what time of day you study best. You could get up and study in the morning if you’re that sort of person

Attend your tutor or form sessions. Even if you don’t do much in them, you can

Keep your planner small and carry it everywhere

Even better, put your planner on your phone

 Don’t sulk if you fail, look back at why you failed and try to improve

If you get distracted by wanting to do something when you should be focusing, write it down. It gives you a checklist of things to do later

Do these things on the checklist in your study breaks

Answer questions without your teaching asking you to

Read about your subjects outside of your classes, especially in high school

Sit at the front of the class room

Don’t sit by yourself in class

Get an early nights sleep

Or at least use sleepytime to get a good time frame

On school days when you wake up, get up straight away, it stops you lazing about

Work hard from the start of the year. There isn’t a time to slack off

Try spaced repititon for learning key facts or a revision schedule

Have snacks and a drink during study sessions. Preferably water.

Summarise and make all your notes onto smaller bits of paper for revision, it helps you recognise what the important facts are

To avoid study stress, take breaks and avoid studying for more than two hours a day

It’s also good to have a day where you don’t study at all once a week

Don’t schedule too far in advance, you’ll just get busy in the meantime or change your methods

When you’re feeling too stressed to work properly but not studying stresses you out, do easier tasks like reviewing flashcards or watching videos on your course

Do as much of your work in school as possible

Prioritise your classes. Especially if you have loads

Make any big habit changes you’ve been thinking of at the start of a term or new year

Study a little before bed, you’ve probably seen that study that says you remember more just before bed

Only make flashcards of the things that you don’t get or are important, not everything

Use online sites like Brainscape, Memrise, Anki or Quizlet for flashcards between devices

Print off your powerpoint slides before a lesson

If you can’t do that, read ahead in the textbook

The syllabus is your guide, so use that as a framework for your revision notes

Your stress and nerves are normal, don’t worry

Aim to finish your revision a week before your exams, it makes you start earlier and finish earlier, you also can rest before your exam

When you pick your subjects, choose the subjects you love

Don’t drink alcohol when you’re studying or any type of drug while studying

Don’t listen to how much everyone is studying. A lot of people big it up or say they do none, usually both aren’t being truthful

Take messy notes in class and neaten them up later

Or take your notes online or on a computer

Have a folder to put your loose sheets and handouts in

Keep your to do list and schedule all in one place, whether that’s a book, app or phone

If you fall behind or are ill a lot, your classmates are your friends for a realistic description of what you’ve missed

When at school, know all the places you’d like to study in case one of them is busy

Don’t work in your bed if it makes you tired

Or work in your bed if all your seats are uncomfortable and it’s distracting

Don’t have too much coffee! And energy drinks are just terrible for you so maybe not have those either

You don’t have to be truthful to your actual opinion in essays, just go for what option has the most points

Listen to your teacher

Have your window open, the fresh air helps

Use practice papers and questions, they really help

Try to teach others as well or if you can’t, explain it in your own words to yourself

Combine more than one technique, so that the weaknesses of each method gets covered by another

Seriously just listen to your teachers

Check your emails every day

Set realistic goals and try not to be too harsh and unrealistic about the time you’ll spend achieving these as well

Use loud and annoying alarms to get you to do things

If you have to read, read out loud rather than in your head

Use a hair tie if you have long hair to keep it out of your face

Keep clean and get dressed for studying

Don’t waste your term making your notes pretty, if it helps, make sure the benefits outweigh the time it takes

Study when you can. Don’t study if you’re too exhausted to do so.

Keep your desk as clean as you can

Know your sources of motivation. Possibly find a way to put that in your study space.

Attend as many classes as possible and don’t skip

Keep yourself busy with stuff that isn’t studying

Reward yourself for your hard work

Before you go back to school, start to wake up earlier so you’re ready

Wear comfortable clothes to school

Or wear whatever makes you feel good, feeling bad can be pretty distracting

Always think about the next step early, whether thats getting work experience, choosing subjects, finding a job or picking a thesis

Always eat breakfast

And always eat lunch too! Especially at school

Do whatever is best for you. Don’t follow a studyblr trend, do what’s best for you.

Make your studying a habit. Do it nearly every day for a long time and it’ll begin to feel more like second nature

Get to know your teachers if you can

And don’t be afraid to ask them for help outside of a lesson, either by email or afterwards, it helps a lot 

Look at the types of questions you often get wrong as well as the topics you keep missing out on 

Keep a spare bit of food in your bag, I usually have some sesame snaps in my bag as a small snack so I don’t have to get up to get food

Make productive friends and people with similar goals to you

When revising, revise everything and then focus on your weak points

Don’t spend too long on tumblr, and if you are right now, then this is your reminder to log off!

Don’t panic when you don’t know all the answers in a test, do you really need 100%?

Break your studying into smaller bits and spread it out over time to avoid headaches, burnout and all the problems that come with it

Eat better. Get enough fruit and vegetables

Don’t forget about Protein, from meats, nuts, etc. it helps a lot

If you’re falling asleep in class, I usually drink water, pinch myself, take lots of notes and fidget to keep myself up

Regularly clear out your bag, because a lot of stuff builds up

If you’re a more artistic person, use drawings like visual notes, mindmaps, timelines and literal drawings to help you study

If you study with a friend, quiz each other

Study on public transport if you can, notes and flashcards on phones are good for this

Don’t neglect any of your subjects, make sure they all get some time spent on them

Also focus beyond your first exam, it’s easy to overprepare for the first test and then not be ready for the rest

When taking a test look through it quickly before hand

Remember you don’t have to take the test in order

Review your notes all the time, review helps the memory

If you want to pull an all-nighter see if you can do it in the morning or day instead, and don’t do it the night before anything important

Always look at the details, especially if you get a mark-scheme or guide for your assignments

Constantly be taking on new improvements and trying to improve your methods

[learnstudycoffee]

zero to hero: HELP I CAN’T/DON’T WANNA START STUDYING

five minute strategy. this is something that has really worked out for me: when i can’t bring myself to start, i force myself to do something just for five minutes. then once i’m in, i go on a roll of 20-minute periods of studying, rewarding myself every time i am successful in accomplishing that 20-minute period. the rewards i’ve given myself range from tea/coffee, small 5 minute breaks, to hanging out with my friends or buying things i’ve always wanted to buy.

be curious. don’t get me wrong: not every subject is equally appealing and sometimes i do struggle with boredom. but since i enjoy quite a lot the process of studying and learning more about medicine, during the first month of the semester i force ahem, give myself every day about 5-8h to be curious on the subjects i’m studying. so if, say, i’m studying cardiology and i want to learn more about valvular problems, i’ll read from textbooks and borrowed notes even if it’s not something our professors have talked/might be talking soon about, because it’s something i want to know more about today.

go study somewhere that is relaxing to you: yes, even if it’s an hour-long drive from where you live. Always better to lose an hour or two than an entire day or week.

make it fun: …and now as last resort (or maybe not) try to blend in at least one of your hobbies into your way of studying. if you’re into drawing, include sketches or doodles in your study notes to help you remember facts, lists, etc. coming up with crazy games, small challenges or milestones can also help. be inventive! think of a way to make it fun so you can actually bring yourself to start.

the trick is to reduce the total amount of time you spend procrastinating, or thinking about doing it; doesn’t matter how you start, so long as you do start. Trust me, you’ll be better off starting at 20% of productivity (then slowly walk your way up) than not starting at all. Your future self will thank you for that.

now i know this is not our ideal goal, but sometimes it’s always better to face that exam having learnt a 50% of the subject instead of just a 2% because you thought it was too late to make a difference, or decided that you were done trying to find ways to make your studying more enjoyable/fun, because you felt that by doing that, you weren’t being productive enough. (And i’ve seen that happen a LOT.)

[learnstudycoffee]

What I Learned From University (2nd Year)

See what I learned in first year here

Adjust how you study → I have a different study method for each class. Even if the content is similar to another class or you’ve had the prof before, you have to personalize your learning.

You can skip class sometimes → My introductory microbiology class was the worst class I’ve ever taken and I love microbiology. The prof sucked and I found I could just catch up on notes on the bus and have extra time to sleep in. I rarely skip class but I realized my time was much better spent working on other things. Only skip classes if catching up on notes is more efficient/a better use of your time than actually going to lectures. Also, don’t be afraid to take a day off (when you can) if your mental or physical health is suffering.

Group projects suck → I knew this already but nothing could have prepared me for what I had to deal with in my one semester long research methods class. I wish I had talked to my TA  or prof earlier to explain what was going on and how I could fix it. (Side note: Use Google docs for group projects!)

Mentoring programs are a great thing to be involved in → I got involved with a mentoring program for women in stem at my university and it has been such a valuable experience! I have access and connections to upper year students and women working in academia and industry who are there to provide help and guidance. My only regret is that I was too timid to ask for help at the start – take advantage of the opportunities you have!

Get larger projects like reports and essays done as soon as you get them → My organic chemistry lab reports always took so long to write so I would delay working on them. However, I eventually got into a routine of finishing my lab report (or at least 95% of my report) on weekends (my labs were on Fridays) and it made my life so much easier! Just get it done and you won’t have the looming stress of a big project or report hanging over you.

Go to social events on and off campus → You can be social in so many different ways at university! Find something you’re comfortable with or go just outside your comfort zone. I went to a pizza party for psych majors and it was chill. I also went to a pubcrawl and it was so much fun. If you’re hesitant, drag a friend along the first time but make sure you talk to new people!

Apply for summer jobs early → Lots of good summer jobs for university students are posted early! I check my university’s job board and also look for jobs that are meant for students (where I live the government will provide funding for summer students to certain organizations). Make sure you send in your applications in as soon as possible too! Even if the deadline to apply is in two weeks, some places will get in touch with applicants (and could potentially hire someone) before that deadline. Find out if your uni has a career advising office (or something like that) and check it out, if you need help with resumes, cover letters, interviews, etc.

Leave your options open  → If you’re unsure about your major or career path, leave your options open as much as you can! Use the time you have now to explore what you really like. Last year I made the decision to do a double major in biology and psychology, because I wanted to go to med school but also wanted to leave the option of research (in bio or psych) open. Now, I’ve decided to major in psych and minor in bio, with the intent to pursue clinical psychology. I took classes and got research experience that helped me make an informed decision about what I really like and want to do.

Get involved in research and use your connections → Get research experience as early as possible. This will help you figure out if you actually want to pursue research or not, and will be so helpful with applications if you end in a position where you’re doing your own research! I have found it much easier to get involved with research by having connections (like talking to a prof, grad student, or upper year undergrad student who is already involved with a lab) rather than sending out cold emails to profs and hoping they’ll reply. If you are sending an email to a prof/lab you don’t have any connections to, make sure your personalize it – mention any prior experience you have and why you’re interested in that lab specifically.

Check your email constantly → As a general rule, you can never check your email too much. Make an effort to reply to emails as soon as you get them, because otherwise you might forget about them. In general, reply to emails within 24 hours anyways.

Take a summer class → I took a summer class on the psychology of motivation and it was totally worth it. I knew I would have to take a summer class at one point and I knew I would prefer to do it earlier in my degree (taking a summer class in my last year does not sound like fun). It was refreshing to see how well I could do when one class was my only priority and I was able to learn/retain the content so much better. It was also nice that I was able to take an upper level course (my previous psych courses had been only 1st or 2nd year level) by itself so I could get used to the increased demands. One thing to note is that summer classes go by really quickly (in my case 3 lectures were equivalent to 3 weeks of classes) so make sure you’re keeping up with the material.

Find your optimal level of stress → One thing I learned in my motivation class is that we all have an optimal level of stress. Think of it as an inverted U shape, with performance on the y axis and stress on the x axis. The highest point, the top of the U, is your optimal level of stress, where stress is helping you perform to the best of your ability. If you move past that point (either less stress or more stress) your performance is going to decrease. If your stress levels are high and anxiety-causing your performance is going to suffer. I found my optimal level of stress when I was studying for my first motivation midterm – I was cramming the night before but because I had no other pressing responsibilities (like 4 other classes) I was able to feel stressed without feeling panic or test anxiety also. Find your optimal level of stress and see how well you perform. Remember that feeling when your stress levels are rising so you have a baseline to get back to.

Don’t get stuck as “premed” → Being premed is completely okay but don’t close yourself off from other options. I know so many people who are premeds and are also biochemistry majors. Some of these people don’t even like biochemistry but stick with it because they think it will make their application look better. Please study something you’re actually interested in. Med school is a great option but just make sure you have a plan B (and a degree that is going to suit this plan B). I know someone who graduated with their biochemistry degree and regretted it – by the end of their degree, their plan was no longer med school and they wished they had done a general biology degree, w classes they liked, while taking a few biochem classes they liked. I used to consider myself premed but I realized clinical psychology is a much better fit for what I actually like/am good at. Just make sure you want to be a doctor for the right reasons is all I’m saying.

Morning classes are actually kind of okay → Everyone talks about how bad morning classes are, but I actually prefer them. I have a hard time paying attention in later classes and it’s really nice to have all my classes done by mid-day. Just make sure you keep a regular sleep schedule (i.e. try to go to bed/ wake up at reasonably early times so your body can recover better on the nights where you get less sleep) 

Always come prepared → This applies for so many things. Bring a snack, don’t forget your charger, do your readings. You’re never going to regret being prepared but you may regret not being prepared.

Be ready to register for classes → Know your time and date to register for classes and be ready to click register right at that time! I always make multiple schedules b/c often the lab times or classes I want to take are full. If a class is full, make sure you know what to do. Register on the waitlist. If there isn’t a waitlist, find out who you need to talk to (usually the prof or department head). Check back a few times a week to see if spots open up in classes, because a lot of people change their schedule. Don’t wait to talk to an academic advisor if you’re not sure which classes to take or have any concerns.

Quizlet is a blessing  → Quizlet is an app/website that lets you make flashcards and view other people’s flashcard sets. Study flashcards while you’re waiting in line for coffee or on the bus. You may also be able to find flashcards from people who took the same class as you – use those! If you make your own flashcards be a nice person and share them with your friends :)

A bad grade is not the end of the world → In one class I got 35% on my first midterm and never managed to get a midterm grade higher than 68%. I was absolutely destroyed when I saw that mark on my first midterm and was ready to give up. Please don’t give up! I talked to my prof and was able to have my other midterms weighted more and I used my lab reports to bring my mark up. If you show your profs you’re working hard they’ll do what they can to help you out. It’s really easy to feel like your hard work is not making a difference, especially if you’re continually not getting the results you want – this doesn’t mean you should stop working hard, it just means you may have to study differently, review material daily, and ask for help! If you fail you need to remember that you will have to work harder – you have to keep up with the new material and relearn the old material. I wasn’t overly happy when I saw my final grade in the aforementioned class but, when I compared it to my first midterm and my feelings of utter confusion, I was satisfied with my grade because it showed my progress and improvement (and I also used it to motivate me to never let it happen again).

Realize that everyone is at university for different reasons → Some people have big goals, some people are still figuring it out, and some people just want to get their degree as soon as possible. There’s nothing wrong with being any of the above, just don’t expect everyone to have the same goals as you.

Know the deadlines for dropping courses → Even if you don’t think you’ll be dropping or changing any courses, write the dates down in your planner. My friend waited a few days too long to drop a math class that turned out to be extremely difficult and, even though she passed it in the end, she was stressed out all semester and her performance in other classes suffered as a result.

You’ll always be meeting new people and making friends → I lived off campus first year and felt like I had missed my chance to make friends. I shouldn’t have worried so much. Second year was much better in that there were a lot more familiar faces in my classes and I got to know other people much better through smaller classes and labs! Other people are always happy to make friends so just take the first step by starting a conversation :)

You can’t give 100% all the time → Some of the best advice that I was given this year was that you can’t give 100% all the time. You only have so much time and energy (mental and physical) you can give. For some tasks, the outcome from 70% effort and 100% effort may not be too different. Figure out what tasks those are so that you have enough energy to give 100% when you really need it.

[learnstudycoffee]

[learnstudycoffee]

How to Handle Having TOO MUCH To Do

So let’s say you’re in the same boat I am (this is a running theme, have you noticed?) and you’ve just got, like, SO MUCH STUFF that HAS to get done YESTERDAY or you will DIE (or fail/get fired/mope). Everything needs to be done yesterday, you’re sick, and for whatever reason you are focusing on the least important stuff first. What to do!

Take a deep breath, because this is a boot camp in prioritization.

Make a 3 by 4 grid. Make it pretty big. The line above your top row goes like this: Due YESTERDAY - due TOMORROW - due LATER. Along the side, write: Takes 5 min - Takes 30 min - Takes hours - Takes DAYS.

Divide ALL your tasks into one of these squares, based on how much work you still have to do. A thank you note for a present you received two weeks ago? That takes 5 minutes and was due YESTERDAY. Put it in that square. A five page paper that’s due tomorrow? That takes an hour/hours, place it appropriately. Tomorrow’s speech you just need to rehearse? Half an hour, due TOMORROW. Do the same for ALL of your tasks

Your priority goes like this:

5 minutes due YESTERDAY

5 minutes due TOMORROW

Half-hour due YESTERDAY

Half-hour due TOMORROW

Hours due YESTERDAY

Hours due TOMORROW

5 minutes due LATER

Half-hour due LATER

Hours due LATER

DAYS due YESTERDAY

DAYS due TOMORROW

DAYS due LATER

At this point you just go down the list in each section. If something feels especially urgent, for whatever reason - a certain professor is hounding you, you’re especially worried about that speech, whatever - you can bump that up to the top of the entire list. However, going through the list like this is what I find most efficient.

Some people do like to save the 5 minute tasks for kind of a break between longer-running tasks. If that’s what you want to try, go for it! You’re the one studying here.

So that’s how to prioritize. Now, how to actually do shit? That’s where the 20/10 method comes in. It’s simple: do stuff like a stuff-doing FIEND for 20 minutes, then take a ten minute break and do whatever you want. Repeat ad infinitum. It’s how I’ve gotten through my to do list, concussed and everything.

You’ve got this. Get a drink and start - we can do our stuff together!

[learnstudycoffee]

I have a really hard time with Russian cases. Do you have any tips on how I could learn them and actually understand which one shoul I use? Thank you

Hmm. I will try to answer this as best as I can.  There are six cases used in Russian. They are: Nominative, Accusative, Genetive, Prepositional, Dative, and Instrumental.

When would you use them? 

(The main uses, I am not writing all the ways the cases are used)

1. Nominative: For the grammatical subject of the sentence

Она студентка. She is a student.

2. Accusative:  For a direct object of a transitive verb

Я купила книгу и чай. I bought a book and tea. 

“Я” is the grammatical subject and is in the nominative case, “книгу & чай” are the direct objects because they are the object affected by the verb “купила”.

3. Genitive: For possession, to denote nonexistence, relationship between two things, accusative of animate nouns,  quantity, after certain numbers, negation after transitive verbs, and after certain prepositions.

Он сын моей сестры. He is the son of my sister

Here we are showing possession. The construction “of” in English is often used with the genitivie case in Russian.

У меня есть кошка. I have a cat.

When you say you, or anyone else, has something, the construction “У” is followed by the genitive case. “Кошка” is nominative because it is the subject.

Нет времени сегодня. There is no time today.

Here we have a case of nonexistence shown by the word “нет”. Время becomes времени as it takes the genitive case.

Есть две ручки. There are two pens.

Numbers in Russian are tricky. Numbers 2-4 take the genitive singular, 5-20 take the genitive plural as well as 5-0 after that. Since the number 2 “два” takes the genitive singular, ручка becomes ручки.

Я вижу моего брата. I see my brother.

Here the direct object after the verb “вижу”is the brother. Normally, we would say it is the accusative case, but since the brother is an animate object, it takes the genitive case instead. мой брат becomes моего брата.

Я спала после работы. I slept after work.

Here we have a genitive preposition, после. Since the preposition takes the genitive case, we must put работа into the genitive.

4. Prepositional: Used after certain prepositions, notably в, на ,о/об.

Я в парке. I am at the park.

Она думает о школе. She thinks about school.

5, Dative: For indirect objects of a verb, impersonal constructions, age.

Анна дала ему новую книгу. Anna gave him a new book.

Anna is the subject, the book is the direct object that goes with the verb “дала”. The indirect object here can be thought of “to who” the book is being given. She gave the book to him so that is why ему is dative.

Мне 5 лет. I am 5 years old.

Here we are expressing age. To say how old you or anyone is, the subject takes the dative case.

Мне надо купить хлеб. I need to buy bread.

Here is an impersonal construction. Expressions such as надо & нужно take the dative case for the subject that needs to do something.

6. Instrumental: to express the means by which an action is performed, with the preposition “c”, predicative instrumental, past of “to be”, time of day.

Она пишет карандашом. She writes with a pencil.

Here we are expressing the means by which the action (writing) took place. With what does she write with? A pencil. 

Я смотрю фильм с Анной. I watch the film with Anna.

This is an example of the preposition c. You can think of the construction “with” in English as something that takes the instrumental case in Russian. (There are some exceptions but you don’t see them when you begin to learn Russian) 

Я отдыхаю летом. I rest in the summer.

Летом is in the instrumental case as it is a time expression that denotes the time of an action.

Он был врачом. He was a doctor.

Here the past tense of to be “был” in conjunction with an occupation requires the instrumental.

There are many other uses for the cases, but you learn them much later on. There’s also technically a seventh case, but it is rarely used and you don’t learn it.

How do you form them?

Masterrussian.com does a good job of showing you how to do this as it varies depending on gender, number, and spelling. Link: here

How to memorize them?

I learned them by having a declension chart handy. Here are the ones I made!

My first tip would be to make sure you know the gender of nouns in the nominative case. Gender tends to be transparent in Russian, but it can get tricky with the plural of neuter nouns that look like feminine nouns or masculine nouns like папа. 

Next, try to remember the common ways that the cases are used. If you see a “в” in the sentence, it probably is the prepositional case; a “с” might mean the instrumental case; нет means the genitive case.  I found that this chart that visually shows the cases helps you remember when to use the cases. By having “keywords” to look out for or verbs that you know use certain cases, you create connections between cases and how they are used.

If you look at any declension chart, you can see that many cases share the same endings. This makes it easier by having fewer endings to remember and by reinforcing the same endings in your memory.

Learn the cases ONE at a time. In a classroom setting, this is simple as the instructor plans the lessons this way. When you self-study, it is easy to try to do all the cases at once, but it will just become confusing. Try the easier cases first such as accusative and prepositional with simple sentences. The more you repeat exercises, the more you will start to “feel” the pattern, making it easier to learn. It takes time so you won’t feel comfortable with cases for a few months, but that is perfectly fine :)

Use an app to help. This app works by presenting you declension exercises. Duolingo does a good job with practice for cases, as well as this Russian grammar app. Link: [Android] [iOS].  Or use a website like this for practice.

I think it helps to read sentences in Russian and learn to identify cases. That gives you a frame from which to work from. If you like Memrise for vocabulary, there is a course that helps you with declensions in Russian to make it a bit more interactive. Really, the way you learn cases is through practice! :D

[learnstudycoffee]

Hey guys, so I’ve seen some posts around about daily routines so I thought I’d share my own. I consider myself to be great at being productive even early in the morning, and here’s how I achieve that. Hope this is helpful, and feel free to ask me questions if you have any!