Woah, that was fast! The school year is almost  over. We all know what that means! Final exams, yay! Isn’t that exciting? On a serious note, final exams are approaching quicker than we realize. They will be taking place the week before winter break, all week. They count for 15% of your class grade, so you should take them seriously. As of now, that leaves a couple of weeks to study and prepare. But is that enough time? Yes it is, if you follow this guide.

Prioritize Classes

To most people, prioritizing is common sense. But what if you feel like you need to prioritize all of your classes? It can be overwhelming to think about where to start when you have eight exams coming up. But don’t fret.  There are measures you can take to sort it out.

First, think about the classes you are especially struggling in right now. Maybe English is easy for you, but right now your’re having a hard time with Algebra. Now separate all of those classes you are struggling in, and look at your current grades in those classes. Start off with studying the hardest or the one you have the lowest grade in. After you’ve studied for all of your hardest classes, move on to the easy ones. Again, start off studying for the one you have the lowest grade in. Remember that you know your abilities better than anyone else, make sure you focus on the things you know you need to review.

Studying

This brings me to studying. How do you do it? Well, there are many methods.

You could get in a group and review questions with your friends. Talking about the information out loud and having a deep conversation about it can help you to remember it.

You could try Quizlet, and make virtual flash cards to go over or you can make your own on paper note cards. Flash cards are especially helpful for memorizing vocabulary or specific facts.

Taking notes over the material in your textbook can also be helpful, even if it is not the most fun. Writing information down can help you memorize the information.

Another method is to just study by yourself in a quiet, comfortable place. This way, you can focus on your work. Don’t forget to take breaks every 30 minutes! Seriously, you will retain the information better if you take breaks!

Talk to your teachers

Final exams also means the end of the semester and the finalization of your grade, meaning that this grade will become a part of your permanent record. If you are worrying about your grade, you should check all of your classes for missing assignments and low grades. Some teachers will still let you turn in late assignments, and others may even let you retake a test for a better grade. However, each teacher has different rules, so check out your syllabus to figure out their policies on late and make-up work. If that fails, just talk to them! It never hurts to try.

Rest and sleep

It’s important, people. Seriously. Do NOT pull an all-nighter studying. It is proven that sleeping after studying is necessary, because while you’re sleeping, you brain places the information into long term memory. Obviously, this is very beneficial, you need to be able to remember as much as you can. Along with sleeping, you need to eat! Even if you don’t usually eat breakfast, you definitely should the day of your finals. This will improve your focus and make you an overall better test taker. Plus, who wants to be hungry in the middle of a test?

In the end, it’s your finals you need to prepare for. Even in the classes you feel confident in, at least look over the information before you take the test.  The last thing you want is to be stressing about the stuff you should know. Remember that these are just tests on your ability to recall knowledge, they do not determine your intelligence. While getting good grades is important, they are not the end all be all of high school. Your life is not over just because you didn’t do well on one test. Don’t get too down, because in January you get a fresh start at the beginning of a new semester! Good luck on your exams!