The Not-So Exam Prep

Since I am an Industrial Design major, I never have exams that consist of more than just identifying a piece of art. Theres no real way to spell out topics for answering the same question each time. So instead of using Design History, I decided to use Foundation Drawing. Each week we learn a newconcept/topic to apply in class then for homework due the next week. I am a linear learner which means I like lists and everything to be laid out in front of me to check off. So I am creating my own twist on the topic outline. In Drawing, each topic builds on the last and each homework uses all of the previous concepts. I created a concept/topic outline off all of the concepts learned thus far. This ensures that I will not forget to include each concept in my homework. This also allows me to keep building on this list and by the end of the semester I will have every topic covered with anexample of what our professor wants. These examples are up on Blackboard but not in any sort of order. We are being graded on how well we use the concepts in each drawing. This has helped to be a checklist for each homework and I hope it will be useful for more homeworks to come.

Studying in the Sand

It's that time of year when people are just itching for a break and what better break is Spring Break? Some people may disagree and say when exams end in the Spring. Well, what I say back to that is, if you're going anywhere that's even slightly warmer than the Greater Syracuse area, it's a heaven sent break. My Spring Break is located in South Carolina where it's not too hot this time of the year, but the sun is still shinin'. Spring Break is supposed to be filled with no worries and much needed sun, but as I escape off to La-La Land, I suddenly remind myself; Dr. Wiles has been so kind to give an exam the day we come back from Break.


When I first heard our second exam was to be given the day we come back, I became stressed and convinced that all I would be doing is studying while on vacation. With our assignment this week being Exam Prep, I became aware of the timing of these strategies (well at least in my case). BIO 123 has a lot of information attached to it and especially for this exam; we have been learning about all the different systems in the body and it is essential that we memorize and understand the location, structure and function of each part.


For one of the assignments attached to learning about Exam Prep was making a Source Outline. This outline is used to organize information by source when it comes time to review for the exam. The directions state to list a source that's used in class then to write titles or headings to identify each section of the source. This kind of outline shows a great strategy for a text-based class where reading is required along with lecture, but with BIO 123, that isn't necessarily the case; the text is used more as a reference if we are confused on a topic. The lecture notes and items discussed specifically in class are what is asked on the exam. Even though the source outline wouldn't be the best strategy to use for the exam, a class like PSY 205, where the exam is 1/2 lecture and 1/2 text would be a great way of reviewing for that exam.


The other outline assigned was the Topic Outline. I loved writing up this outline, because as I was writing it I was also reviewing the material and in a efficient way. For the topic outline the directions were to organize the information given in a specific class by topics and also subtopics. With this outline, it was especially useful because BIO has so much information packed into one exam that it would be hard to miss a topic or subtopic if I do a Topic Outline. When making this outline it was like more of a study sheet a teacher in high school would give me than just a typical outline. It would be crazy for me not to get below a B when using this outline because all the information I need to know is right in front of me in a neat, organized format.


What's great about both of these outlines is attached to both of them is a Study Schedule where you write down the date where you're going to review it and also the time frame when this studying is going to be taking place. Again, these strategies are being given at the right time because now when I'm on vacation, I will have a course outline done and ready to be reviewed and I also will have scheduled times where I will need to take a break from the fun and sit down to review. I'm going to focus on picking mornings for studying, because at that time of the day, I'm more productive and it's unlikely for me at that time to skip out of studying.


With doing these strategies on Exam Prep, my stress level towards the 2nd BIO exam has gone down tremendously. Knowing that a break I've been looking forward to for a long time will not be ruined by constant worrying and stress, is a huge relief. Using the course outline and other Exam Prep strategies will make me into a more efficient studier when starting to review for exams in the future, not just this one BIO exam. Actually now that I've said all of this,studying in the sand doesn't sound so bad.

Exam Prep

I was thrilled when I found out this week's topic was Exam Prep-- I just happen to have two mid terms coming up. I usually put off studying till about 2 or so days before the exam, if not the night before. This probably explains why I do not always do so well on exams. I have never been a good test taker, and being unprepared doesn't help either. Because I am a very kinesthetic and visual learner, the best study aides come in the form of note cards, study guides-- things I can visually read as well as actively participate in.

So this week I decided that doing the 20 minute test prep would be the most effective way to prepare for my up coming exams. This technique has always worked for me in the past, so I know I can trust it. Here's a few reasons why it works for me:

1. It's Quick and Easy- It's name gives it away. The 20 minute test prep is great because it doesn't take up all your time. Sitting for long period of time and studying is never fun, and that isn't a problem this strategy. Depending on the class and the amount of notes of takes in it, this strategy can take anywhere from 10-20 minutes.
2. It's flexible- I feel like there is never enough hours in a day and sometimes working in time to study just isn't an option. The 20 minute test prep is great in that it doesn't take up a lot of time and its easy to do it whenever and where ever
3. It Works- If you do the 20 minute test prep, it is almost impossible for you to do poorly on the exam. You have so many materials to help you succeed such as the study guides , note cards, and test questions created during this strategy. Both of my classes have a lot of terminology so I found note cards extremely useful this past week. I sometimes even color coordinate my note cards!

So this week I kind of combined two strategies into one. I have two tests coming up, one in HTW 318 and the other in CFS 388. Obviously, I chose to do the 20 minute test prep because I know I can trust it. Also, as an introduction to the Experiment project we are starting, we got assigned to create a source and topic outline. Since they both are used for exam prep, I just did them together in my two classes.

Source Outline- This is great because it may not be extremely specific, but it gives you an overview of where all the key information for your exam is. Being able to look at my source outline and automaticall

y know all the places I can find certain information makes my life so much easier. In HTW my source outline was a lot more helpful because we use more sources in that class. In CFS we basically only have two sources where as HTW we have 3.

Topic Outline- I see the topic outline as a more specific version of the source outline. It takes the sources and breaks them down by topic. I have also been trying to improve on my organization skills and the topic outline helps me with it.

Overall, I had a great week doing exam prep and feel very confident that I will do well on my upcoming exams!

Exam Prep -> Converted!

Having the CLS strategy of the week be exam prep for a person who rarely has exams can be a little challenging. However, every week in my Design History class, we had to write a short one-page paper, which topics can range from the history of chairs, to describing how a room looks. Last weeks paper was about advertisements. You had to choose an ad for perfume in any magazine you liked, and then go into detail about it. I, of course, chose Beyonce's ad for a perfume called "Heat Rush" because it just sounded awesome! However, once I got to this point I found myself staring at a blank word document, wishing the paper would write itself.

I first set up an outline and listed the main points that I wanted to write about in the paper, and then from there I better formed my thesis. Before I new it I had a half a page of information written! I started to write the topic sentence for each paragraph and then slowly fill in the information I had listed for each topic. I used a topic outline for this, and wrote down each of the main points that I was going to elaborate on. This paper seemed like a breeze because it was over before I new it!

Having a topic outline helps plan out the paper and it is an advantage to have it pre-planned out because it helps to better the flow of your thoughts. When there are already main points to talk about you never have a chance to stop and think about what to write because you know what comes next. Also planning out and doing these strategies is the kind of learner I am, so I can absorb the information better.

Both the source outline and the topic outline (adapted to writing papers) helped me stay focus on what I need to get done and instead of wasting time on facebook and stumble upon I have it all set up already, so there was no time lost. I really recommend these strategies for when you have to write a paper. It is unbelievable how much is helps. Because lets be honest, writing a paper the night before is stressful and know one needs that!

EXAM PREP

This week, our class started to focus in on preparing for an exam. I was very happy to hear that we would be learning about strategies helping to get ready for an exam considering I am the worst test taker and I never know how to start studying for an exam. I usually just read over the notes that I take in class, and occasionally read the bold headings in the textbook. I used to really feel like I was studying hard when I just re-wrote everything down in my notebook over and over again, however, sometimes I got carried away and wrote every word and detail and that was too much work which I didn't even absorb.

So our assignment over the weekend was to create a source outline and a topic outline for one class which we will have an exam in within a few weeks. I chose to apply these two outlines to my Psych 205 class because we have our second exam in that class on Tuesday March 29th. The source outline is helpful because as I was organizing the assignment it allowed me to write down each chapter that will be included on the test. I wrote down the chapter number and what topic they narrowed in on. I then outlined which notes I took in lecture and which sub-topics the professor noted. The source outline is a great way for my ideas to be grouped together and I feel it starts off broad with a chapter, but then the topic becomes more familiar and then from referencing my lecture notes I can

have an understanding of the topics, but then after my weekly recitation I grasp an in depth meaning of the topics and the sub topics included which helps me learn tremendously.

The source outline is great for grouping ideas and taking it step by step from one chapter to then single definitions or what not, but I think the topic outline is a better mechanism for me personally. I like how the topic outline groups the main ideas into one letter of the outline and then underneath the chapter number is posted

as well as the page numbers. Beneath the main topic I write down what the lecture notes entailed for that topic. For Psych 205 especially this is going to be a convenient way for me to study because it clearly separates the four topics and I can make a study schedule which allows me to study perhaps one topic a night. Therefore, I will not become overwhelmed and I will study the one topic closely and all my notes are already outlined there for me, I just have to flip to a page in my notebook.

Moving along with my exam prep I thought the smartest way for me to create study sheets would be the 20 minute test prep. This seems like the most effective way for my learning style because I noted that I have my Psych 205 lecture on Tuesday morning and then Thursday morning I have my recitation from 8-9:00 am. After my recitation I always go straight to the library to try and get my homework accomplished ahead of time. Since I have a break from 9-11:00 which I will spend at the library I thought the idea of reviewing my Psych notes would be brilliant. I now have formed a routine where I will go to the library right after recitation and conduct the 20 minute test prep over the material that I just learned. I will get used to this routine and I believe it will work wonders for me because I am usually very focused right after class and I am most alert during the morning at that time. Since I am a visual and kinesthetic learner writing out the 20 minute test prep is the best way to go!

Problem Solving

This week we focused on problem solving. For me, the biggest challenge each week is knowing what work is due for what class. I always seem to mix up, confuse, or forget specific dates important things are due. I tend to be disorganized, but I have been looking for structure. So this week I decided to try Ranking Priorities in two of my classes. I chose to Rank Priorities for a number of reasons. First of all, I am a visual learner so being able to a visual reminder of what I must do was very helpful. Also, since I am a kinesthetic learner as well, I made sure that I could actively use my list by checking off each task as I completed it.

The first class I used Ranking Priorities for was CLS 105. I found this strategy very useful in this class because I had a lot of work that I needed to get done. Since I get overwhelmed easily, the ranking of each task helped me a lot because I knew exactly which tasks I had to accomplish before the others. I was able to see the things on my list that were necessary to complete, as well as see the things I didn't have to worry about. After I ranked each of my tasks on my list, I broke them up in to two groups, A and B, and then ranked them within the groups. I also added a finished column where I could add a check if I had that task complete. Adding the check also helped me because it gave me a visual reminder of which assignments I had completed and which assignments still needed to be done. Because CLS is my class with the heaviest amount of HW, I know that using Ranking Priorities in the future will benefit me greatly. I suggest using this strategy in any class with a lot of work because it is a great way to visually remind yourself what is due and what is necessary to complete, and what isn't.

I also tried Ranking Priorities for PSY 205. I found it worked wonderfully in this course as well. I thought about other problem solving strategies I could have tried in this course such as COST, but I realized that I didn't have a specific problem that needed to be fixed that Ranking Priorities didn't already! What is great about Ranking Priorities is that it shows your exactly what needs to be done and when. It also doesn't take a lot of time to do, and it works for classes with all different amounts of work. PSY 205 may not have a lot of work, but there are still things that I have to accomplish each week, even if it may be just studying. All around I think ranking priorities can work for any class and really recommend it for students who are easily overwhelmed, such as myself.

Problem Solving

With the amount of work in the college agenda, many important assignments may be accidentally put on the back burner. Since I am a visual learner, I enjoy having things laid out in front of me. Ranking Priorities seemed to be the best method to use. This past week I ranked assignments in two classes in order of how important they were to be completed. In Design History, we have an exam on everything we have covered so far. This was put at the top of my list. The next assignment was the weekly paper that is worth three points. The next two are to keep up on my reading and continue my study guide. For CLS, I ranked the completion of my Faculty Interview Project at the top. The next task to finish is writing this blog. Then finally is my Journal #4. This worked very well for me because I sometimes spend way too much time on things that aren't as important as some assignments. This created a checklist for me to follow so I would get the most important things out of the way first.

I got 99 pages of problems...

With all of the classes I'm taking this semester, there's a ton of reading... What was I thinking? 40 pages of psychology every week. 40 pages of communications due for each class- if I'm lucky the professor spreads the reading out to 40 pages a week. There's readings that are suggested for nutrition, but to be totally honest, I haven't even opened the book.

I'm a very linear person, meaning I need to see the situation, break it up into manageable tasks, in an order that makes sense. My classes take exams about every five weeks. Last week was the first round of exams and I learned as I sat down to study for each one, that I could not keep putting off my reading until the last minute li

ke I had this past time. I used the problem solving strategy, "One Step at a Time" this week to identify my problem and various ways to fix it.

With all of this reading I get overwhelmed and then end up putting it off until the last minute. The problem with this, as outline in my pictur

e, is that I run out of time to read so I miss some of the information. Also, I lose a lot of sleep before the exam because I'm busy cramming everything that we were supposed to have read and learned in the past five weeks. The possible things I decided I could do to make the reading more manageable are as follows: I can use my weekly D's Do and Due to chart out times for me to do some reading in small amounts. If that doesn't work than I was thinking I could give myself one day a week where I can get caught up on specific classes. I only have one class on Thursdays and a no classes on Fridays, so that would definitely be manageable. If all else fails and I continue to procrastinate, the least I will do is get caught up on my reading at least one week before the exam, so when it comes time to review, I know, or am more familiar with the material.

I found this problem solving strategy to be fairly useful. It worked well with the D's Do and Due Organizer, which I clearly am a fan of. It was helpful because it helped me to break my strategies down and then I could check things off as I got them done. Read pages 1-10 of COM107... CHECK!! Finish chapter 1 of COM107... CHECK!!

The other strategy I tried out was ranking my priorities. I love lists, but I didn't find this strategy very useful. For me, I already know what's important and get it done. Ranking things a, b, c, 1, 2, 3 was pointless. I felt like I was wasting paper. Why would I list something as a C, aka "optional", if it needed to be done? In my mind things either need to be done or they don't be. Priority is based on when things are due and I have my D's Do and Due to help me see when things are due and what I have to do to finish them.

Problem Solving Blog #2

Problem solving has always been an extremely difficult task for myself to deal with. I feel like I am always stressed out about something and I am terrible at figuring out ways to cope with so many things on my plate at once. Last week especially I had two exams, a paper, and two quizzes. On top of all my school work I also had sorority business I had to take care of, I had places I needed to be, meetings, and going to class in general always takes a chunk from my day. Furthermore, I really like to work out when I have a lot of things going on so that I become more relaxed, however with the whirlwind of events going on I barely have time to exercise.

Therefore, the problem solving strategy I used last week was Ranking Priorities. I really enjoyed working with this strategy because I have always been a list person and I always write down what I need to accomplish each day. I am a visual and kinesthetic learner so ranking priorities helps me actually see what needs to be done and in what order so that I know everything will eventually wrap up. For Ranking Priorities you can set up the list by week, month, day, or any creative way possible. Taking things by week often overwhelms me, so I chose to zoom in on a particular day, which was last Tuesday.

Like the first step that's stated on page. 227 of our textbooks, I created a list of everything that needed to be accomplished for that day. I wrote either an A, B, or O next to the task to determine which is the most important and so on. I then grouped within the A, B, or O's and decided which I needed to conquer first and what can potentially wait for another day or time. At the end of creating my list I wrote checks next to what I finished and then usually one or two of the optional tasks I left alone.

This strategy taught me that I need to try and focus on the most important tasks first and get those done and out of the way. Ranking priorities is awesome for me as a person because I am so scattered everyday that looking at the list as a reference for what I need to do and when helps me stay focus and gives me structure in my day, which I desperately need. Whenever I have problems I write them down and in the order I need to finish them, hopefully Ranking Priorities will help me in the long run and allow me to be successful in the classroom and outside in my everyday life!

Problem Solving

This weekend I was feeling very stressed out with my work load so when I sat down to read the problem solving chapter for CLS, I was grateful for the topic. In CLS, I have many things to do each week and sometimes it gets hard to manage everything, so I used ranking priorities to help me organize my thoughts. I first, got out my syllabus and looked over everything that needed to be accomplished for this Monday, and listed that. Then I slowly started checking off what I had done already, and what still needed to be finished. This strategy helped me feel more organized, because I got all the thoughts in my head out on paper so I could see what I needed to do. Rather then trying and worry about a bunch of assignments all in my head.

Ranking Priorities

Last week was definitely one of my hardest weeks here at SU. I had three exams in three consecutive days and the three exams were in my hardest classes: BIO 123, CHE 116, and PSY 205. On top of all of that, I also had different assignments in different classes so my priorities were all over the place. To be honest, I was completely overwhelmed with all the work I had to get done and stress was the last thing I needed when taking these exams.

The Rank Priorities assignment came at just the right time. In high school, I used to number the assignments I got each day to know right off the bat what was extremely important and what wasn't that crucial. I carried that habit on during the first couple months of school then just completely lost it.

When the Ranking Priorities assignment came up, I knew it would be a great thing for me because I sometimes get lost in doing the not-so-important assignments before I start on the crucial work.

The first class I thought of when ranking priorities was my BIO lab. We have a pre-lab due every week, along with some reading to be prepared for our weekly quizzes, and also a lab report that's due this upcoming week. While ranking my priorities for this class I was looking at the big picture instead of just focusing on the lab report because I needed to accomplish what was coming first.

The second class I did this for was CLS 105. There are many assignments in this class and I tend to get a little lost in what I should do first. To me, I feel that I should get my Journal done first before anything else because that's what takes me the longest and it's nice to not have to worry about it while I'm doing other things. So, I ranked my journal first then ranked assignments according to due dates.

I definitely know that I'm going to incorporate this strategy back into my daily planner because it really works for me in the long run. I also like that this strategy is course specified because it allows me to focus on each course and get done what I have to get done in that course.

Blog number 1

Paul’s Target Planner

Target planner is designed class with many steps required to pursue and achieve goals.  The bull eye’s design makes it easy for users to see the due dates from the first to the last step.  The target planner notifies users ahead of time of each step and the due date which would allow them to maximize their ability to complete assignments as they have an efficient amount of time.  The ideal classes that will work well with the Target Planner are classes with many steps toward a certain goal.

I used the target planner for both my ENL 213 class (English for non native speaker) and PSY 205 (introduction to Psychology).  The Target Planner is really helpful for my research project for my English class as there are many steps toward the final draft.  Also, Target planner is an excellent strategy to study for my psychology test because there are many chapters consisted in the test.  Therefore, I could study each chapter and build up to the last chapter to be ready for the exam. 

Since I have trouble staying focused on one particular topic or assignment for a long period of time, the target planner is a good way to set deadlines for specific portions of the complete assignment. For instance, in my psych 205 course, I split up the sections and chapters to study for so that I had a deadline for each chapter to study for. This way, I was forced to read and study a certain amount of pages in the text by a certain date so that I would not fall behind in my work. Psychology is a lot of textbook reading and memorization, so it is important that I spend a sufficient amount of time on each section/chapter in order to fully understand the material. Target Planner keeps me organized and concentrated on completing smaller parts of the ultimate goal or assignment so that I do not get overwhelmed or stressed out.

In my English class I have a research paper due toward the end of the semester. I know that I would just end up putting everything off until late April if I didn’t make a target planner, so I divided the assignment into smaller pieces to make it less stressful to think about. Now, my concentration is on the rough draft instead of the final draft. This makes me feel better about the final product when it comes time to complete the final draft because I will already have an essay that I can make changes on and fix.

I will definitely be using the target planner more often, especially in my mathematics 284 class. This class consists of weekly webassign homework. The target planner will help me break up the weekly assignments and complete them periodically throughout the week, rather than on a Saturday or Sunday night. I would recommend using this strategy to anyone that has trouble staying organized or that often times puts off work until the day before or even at the due date.

Blog 1 - Time Management

Hi, my name is Dom Tucci. I have found that I am a Visual and Kinesthetic learner. This means that I like consistency and routines. Things that go along with my learning style are highlighting big events or due dates and making a monthly planner. To do this I used the fritter finder. I found that this best fits how I learn because I can create my own routine in getting work done. Once I have established this routine, I rarely have a problem following it. While creating my fritter finder, I found that I can start my day at 8AM and finish all of my work before 7PM. I applied this strategy last week and found it to be successful. I was able to finish all of my work for every class in the time I had mapped out. This gave me more free time than I had in previous weeks. This plan also gave me Friday afternoons and weekends off.

I also did the D's Do & Due Organizer. I found that this along with the fritter finder works very well with my schedule. The green events are my classes/Due dates and the blue events are time slots that I need to get the specified work done.

Time Management

College has proven to be very different then high school. I have more free time during the days and I do not have a set schedule for when to wake up, and when to go to bed. I have had to learn how to budget my time better. So this past week I used two of Dr. Blumin's time management strategies, Fritter Finder and D's, Do and Due. Being in VPA I am a visual and kinesthetic leaner, meaning I like to learn by doing.

This week, the fritter finder visually showed me how to better plan out my week, and when my free time was. I needed to use this because it helped me see where extra time to study would be. Like on Tuesdays and Fridays, I am totally off from classes. This meaning that those days, I should wake up early and get a lot of my work done then. Also so mornings I wake up very early for my eight am classes, while other days, I start later but go till very late at night. I used the fritter finder to discover when what times during the day are the right times to study, and when it is good to relax.

As much as I liked using the fritter finder, I think that the D's, Do and Due, was the most useful. I got to plan out when I needed to work on College Learning Strategies, my 2D art class, and Human Sexuality. I liked being able to map out when my assignments were due, and what I had to do for each one. The D's, Do and Due, showed me when I needed to get each of my assignments done and by when. I found this helpful because my learning style is very hands on, and to physically make a schedule helps organize the thoughts in my head onto a piece of paper.

The strategies, I can see myself using for the rest of the year and beyond.

Blog 1- Time Management

Hello everyone! My name is Alexandra Ayres, but I go by Allie. My learning style is mostly kinesthetic with a little visual mixed in. Because I am a kinesthetic learner it is extremely beneficial for me to reenact, teach or do whateverit is that I am learning. That means that if I am learning about the parts of the brain for psychology, it is best for me to find and label them myself and then show someone else how to do it. Because I am a visual learner, I need to see things done. As it was discussed in my first IC with Wendy, I could sit in a lecture for four hours and still not really be able to remember or understand a lot because of my learning styles.

The first strategy I used for good time management at the beginning of the week was D's Do and Due Organizer:

I found that D's Organizer was very helpful because I have a lot of exams and papers due and I know when they're due, but I never take to time to plot out how much time it will actually take for me to finish studying or writing a paper. In a lot of my classes I don't really have nightly homework, so D's Organizer helps me to sort out the big projects into more manageable daily tasks. If you have a lot of nightly homework I can understand that the organizer may be a bit hectic to use, but for me it was very helpful to see how much I was actually getting done and understanding when I plotted the time appropriately.

The second strategy I used was the 20 min test prep:

Every day after class I would spend 20 minutes making some notecards for my upcoming NSD 225 (Nutrition) exam. I put in time on my D's Organizer to do the 20 minute test prep. For this semester I have a lot of major tests to study for. Last semester I had a lot of papers. The severe difference between the two semesters makes these exams seem sort of daunting. The 20 min test prep helped me to just sit down and start studying. That's always tough for me to do. I could keep thinking of starting something, but often times I don't start until the absolute last minute. Knowing that I only had to sit there for 20 minutes was a relief. After the first time, when I realized how much I could accomplish in 20 minutes I would compete with my past prep to see if I could accomplish more.

These strategies that I used this week were relatively easy to incorporate into my schedule and really helped my week to seem less daunting.

Time Management

Hello fellow Blogstars-

Within the past week, I have discovered that using the 20 minute test prep has helped me in the classes of Psychology and Spanish...but mostly for Psychology. This prep has helps me because I am a visual learner and helps me tremendously when I re-write my notes and not just read the notes to study. Also, because I am a kinesthetic learner this mechanism is nice for me because I think in short bursts and I can be focused for the 20 minute time length.

For Spanish 201, since this subject comes for naturally to me I don't need to study so regularly and therefore the 20 minute test prep is kind of unnecessary in that regard. Since a huge chunk of Spanish is about memorizing conjugations and learning verbs the test prep is not effective because for Spanish I can just look in a book and read over the conjugations and understand.

Overall, for the 20 minute test prep I use my notes to help me learn and write down the material, class notes are very important.

*And Sorry, I can't figure out how to make my picture not backwards.... so next time it will be posted the right way...

Time Management

This week's topic was time management, which I thought was very fitting considering I have three exams next week and it can get a little hectic come exam week. Preparing for more than one exam is a tough task and to be honest pretty stressful. Using the Fritter-Finder method, I am able to map out the week ahead of me and see the amount of free time I actually have to get my work done in a timely fashion. I've found that the best part of the Fritter-Finder is it sets me on a 9am-7pm window that allows me to get all of my work done in that time frame. I'm one who cannot work efficiently at night, so this is great for me because it gets rid of those late nights spent on homework.



Another method that I've been using for the past two weeks has been D's Due and Do. I like this method because along with setting the due dates, you also establish when you're going to do assignments. D's Due and Do method is great when a class is reading based. In my nutrition class, we have to read a chapter to two chapters a week to keep up with the material, which I sometimes procrastinate doing. This forces me to read through that chapter that day, or else it sets me behind in work...and no one wants to be behind work.




Also in my nutrition class, NSD 225, I have been using the 20 Minute Test Prep. The 20 minute test prep has really made a difference, even if I've only been using it for a short time. I used to just shut my notebook after completing notes and not look at it until the next class. Now that I've been reviewing my notes right after class and going over what I just wrote/ learned, I've become more confident looking towards exam time. The 20 minute test prep has been a great help.

Time Management

This week's topic was time management, something I know I struggle with every day. The first strategy I tried was D's Due and Do Organizer. I really liked this because I like how organized it makes me. Being able to open up to any given day and see what is Due and what I have to Do is extremely helpful. But as I started to use this strategy, I realized that it wasn't as helpful as I though. CLS 105 is basically the only class that I have homework in daily, and all my other classes are more reading based. This means that I can only use D's Due and Do organizer for CLS because ofthe amount of work that we do in that class. If you look at the picture of my organizer, you can see how bare it is because it works for only one of my classes. Because of this, I decided I would try another strategy in MAT 121. I had an exam coming up so I used the 20 minute test prep to prepare. Although at first I was hesitantto use the 20 minute testprep because of the amount of work I thought it would take, it actually has really helped me prepare for my Math exam. After each class I would go back to my dorm and re read my notes from that day, high lighting and staring anything that I thought wouldbe on the exam. Next I made a study guide of material my teacher said would for sure be on the test. This study guide I made soon never left my side. Everyone like to feel prepared for a test, and the 20 minute test prep does so and more. It really helps you not only know the material well, but also understand it. Overall I would say that the 20 minute test prep saved me the most amount of time because I didn't have to worry about cramming later on. I just reviewed a little bit each day, which in turn saved me a lot of time. D's Due and Do organized was helpful too, but just not with the classes I am taking.