A Better Student

College Cram Sessions How to Make Intense Study Times Count

During freshman orientation you were advised by your orientation counselor to review your class notes everyday. There are times that you just can't commit that much time daily to studying. Most college kids experience this at some point or another in their college career. The cost of procrastinating with studying means that you have to spend hours before an exam trying to cram in four weeks work of class notes and three chapters of information. Now you're wondering how you can retain such a large amount of information and make at least a passing grade on the exam. Even though cram sessions are the most ideal way to prep for a test, there are some techniques that you can use to make the most of a cram session.

The order in which you study the material will have a big impact on the amount of information that you are able to retain. Since you will most likely be studying for a long time, it is important to cover the material in the best order for you to remember. You will be at your best when you first begin studying. By the time a few hours pass by, you will probably be tired and will not remember as much information. For this reason you should study the most complex and difficult material first. It will be easier for you to understand the difficult information when you first begin studying than it will be to try to cover it later.

Review all the main points and ideas of the material you are studying. This will help you to better understand the detailed information that you read later on. It helps put the information into perspective so you understand what you are reading. Without having the main idea of the detailed information, the importance of the material is likely to get lost. This will have a negative effect on the material you are studying.

Hopefully you've been taking good notes during lecture time. These notes will come in handy as you are cramming for an exam. When you first wrote your brain was introduced to the concepts that were spoken in class. You don't need to read the notes in depth. Simply skim over them to refresh your memory about what was lectured in class.

Flash cards are great for learning information like dates and other kinds of facts. You can easily create your own flash cards using three by five index cards. Write the question on one side and the answer on the other side. For example, you would write "Date of the Gettysburg Address" on one side of the card and "1863" on the other side. Going through the flash cards several times will help engrain the information inside your memory.

Make sure that you are taking breaks during the cram session. Taking ten minute break for every hours you are studying helps make sure you don't get overwhelmed with the cramming session. During the break you should stretch, exercise, get a bite to eat, or relax. Breaking for even just a few minutes will do wonders for your cram session. The break serves as a sort of rejuvenation and reenergizes you for the studying you have ahead of you.

While it is good to eat a snack before studying or during your breaks, you must be careful the kinds of foods that you eat. Some kinds of foods can have a negative impact on your cram session. Many people think they need to have lots of caffeine to stay awake during a cram session. The problem with caffeine is that the effects won't last as long as you think they will. Inevitably, your body will crash. The same is true of snacks.

Nourishing foods are the best to eat during a cram session. A meal that is balanced with carbohydrates and protein will give you the energy you need to study for an extended period of time. Be careful, though, that you don't overeat. This will cause you to become sluggish and reluctant to study.

Try not to stay up all night before a test. Depriving your body of sleep may inhibit your performance on the test. It is best to get at least a little bit of rest before the test.