Seton Home Study School Study Skills Online

UNDERLINING OR HIGHLIGHTING - Highlighting has become such a great way to study important points that you can now buy "highlighters," a special pen with see-through colored ink. If you own the book you are studying, it is a great way to bring important facts to your attention without having to read through the entire paragraph again. You want to be sure that you don't underline or highlight so much that it is useless. Underline or highlight when you read it the SECOND time; that way you will realize exactly which are the important points.

MARGIN NOTES - Some students like writing notes in the margins of the books they are studying. These notes may be simply a word or two; they may be simply a check mark. Sometimes they even follow an outline, such as noting points and putting numbers in the margins.

TAKING NOTES - For longer assignments, such as book reports, long essays, or research reports, students use 3 x 5 cards for note-taking. By coding the cards with the title and/or author's name, and also coding the subject, there is flexibility in using cards. Check the direction in your English lesson plans for more details for taking notes.

         SQ3R (Survey, Question, Read, Recite, and Review) - Researchers have found that the SQ3R method is the most effective method of studying.

• SURVEY - This means you need to survey the whole chapter or lesson. Look over the headings, the subheadings, the pictures, the maps, the graphs, and whatever else is in the chapter, without actually reading the text.

• QUESTION - This means to turn the headings and subheadings into questions. If the heading is "Causes of the Civil War," then you ask the question to yourself: What are the causes of the Civil War? You know that this section will answer that question. These questions could be written in your outline.

• READ - Read the text materials carefully and thoughtfully, thinking about the questions. Be thorough in your reading; look up words in the dictionary if you do not know the meanings. Look up more information on the internet or in an encyclopedia or dictionary if something is not clear. You may want to do your outlining at this point.

• RECITE - Since most people learn best if they hear information as well as read it, it is a good idea to recite the ideas after reading each section or subdivision. This should be done without looking at the book. If you cannot recite the information, go back and read it again.

• REVIEW - Usually a textbook has review questions at the end of each section or chapter. Review should be done each day as well as at the end of each week, and especially before taking a test.

If at all possible, your studies should be done each day. Please note, however, Math and English must be done each day so that the concepts can be applied in future lessons. Success in both of these subjects depend on your remembering and being able to use what you have previously learned.

CONCLUSION

If you need help, the best persons to ask are your own parents. They care about you more than anyone else in the world. They will help you to learn how to study and help you while you study. Remember that you are part of a team, the family team. If you need help, your teammates in your family will help you.

Pope John Paul II wrote the following to a group of students:

I hope that you all find in your homes an atmosphere of real love. But I also wish to invite you to establish, and always maintain, a relationship of great and true affection with your parents; they are your first friends. To a large extent, your life in the future depends on how you are today in harmony with, and cherish respect for, those who begot you and brought you up.

Next: take the Study Skills Review. After you have completed the Review, your results will be displayed.