Tag: Study Skills

STUDY SKILLS FOR OUR STUDENTS

February 3, 2020

St Stephen’s is a subscriber to the study skills website www.studyskillshandbook.com.au

This is a website that helps students develop essential skills for academic success. There are units of work on topics such as improving time management skills, how to study, research skills, summarising, technology use, brain and memory.

There are heaps of resources, including useful handouts, grids and planners on the Things to Print page. We spend time in Forum and Education Plus working through some of the Study Skills Handbook activities, as well as using other resources. Parents are encouraged to chat to their children about the study skills covered at school, as well as to take a look at the site for advice and assistance with their child’s study routine.

To access the handbook, go to www.studyskillshandbook.com.au and login as a subscriber with these details:

username: ststephens

password: 100success

Dr Liz Criddle

Deputy Head – Teaching and Learning

STUDY SKILLS TIP FOR JUNE: IMPROVING TYPING AND HANDWRITING SKILLS

May 31, 2019

So you don’t have much homework tonight? Assignments and study notes up to date? Have you ever thought about spending a bit of time each night learning touch typing?

Touch Typing is when you can type without looking at the keys while you type. This means you can type much faster than if you had to look and see where each key is, and it means you can keep looking at whatever it is you are typing instead of the keys. This is an incredibly useful skill to develop – it will help you at school and later in life as well, improving your efficiency and speeding up work on assignments and essays. Once you learn touch typing, you will know where the keys are located on the keyboard through your sense of touch and you will be able to look at the screen or whatever you are typing rather than the keyboard.

On www.studyskillshandbook.com.au there is a section to get you started on your journey of learning touch typing. Click on unit Technology Tools and on the Learning Touch Typing page you will find links to lots of free software to help you develop your touch typing skills as well as some great tips to get you started. There is also a discount voucher to the professional TypeQuick course. Being able to touch type will definitely make life easier for the students in the senior years and beyond. 10 minutes practice a day could end up making a big difference.

But don’t neglect your handwriting skills either. As long as you have to submit handwritten work or handwrite for tests and exams it is also important to improve the legibility and speed of your handwriting. Go to www.studyskillshandbook.com.auand visit the Writing Skills unit and click on the Improving Handwriting section. You’ll find some excellent strategies for improving your handwriting as well as some special pens that can assist you with this such as the RingPen shown below.

pen1

Should students type or handwrite their study notes?

Short answer, they are better off doing whatever the exam or test will be. So if the exam is handwritten, it is better to handwrite notes. This creates muscle memory, it sets up a pattern in the brain of what they will be doing in the exam. If they do not have exams, then it does not really matter, they can choose to either type or handwrite their notes.

For students who do have written exams, they are better off getting used to writing as much as possible, especially as students do less and less pen to paper and more and more on the keyboard. It is also argued that by writing the information, you set up pathways of familiarity and recognition in your brain that will kick in when you are in an examination situation.

On the other hand, some subjects have so much content that to try and wade through it with handwritten study notes would take forever. A good compromise for students who would prefer to type is to start making initial notes on the computer as this allows you to cut and paste, group information and rearrange it with ease. Once you have a core set of notes completed, you may like to further summarise some sections on paper using a more graphical or visual form of note-taking such as mind-mapping. And when you are learning the notes, read a section, then see what you can write without looking, this way you will be testing if the information is in long-term memory and practicing your handwriting at the same time!

Given that students now have to be masters of both the pen and the keyboard it is important to develop both legible handwriting and touch typing skills. When exams all go to typing at some stage, which they will inevitably do, everything will change.

Sarah Cooke
Careers Advisor

STUDY SKILLS TIP FOR MAY: BARRIERS TO DEVELOPING A GOOD MEMORY

May 6, 2019

Many students say ‘I don’t have a good memory’ but there are many barriers to developing a good memory that are able to be overcome. Here are the top 3:

NEGATIVE MINDSET / ATTITUDE

Henry Ford once famously said, “whether you believe you can, or you can’t, you are right”. This refers to your mindset or mental attitude, and the concept that your mind is powerful enough to enable your thoughts to create your reality. If you have a negative attitude to your memory, it will likely reduce your chance of developing and maintaining a good memory. There are some simple steps you can take to start making changes to negative thoughts. Be aware that negative thoughts are just a habit, and habits can be changed with a little effort. Awareness is the key to changing a habit, as you need to consciously be aware of the current habit before you can change it – so start catching yourself in the act of making negative statements. Affirm your intention to improve the way you think. Then correct the negative statement you just made, and make it into a more positive one.

ABSENTMINDEDNESS / NOT PAYING ATTENTION

The first stage of the memory process is encoding the information that is to be remembered – thus the brain uses the senses and emotions to process the information and form a memory. Here are some ways in which you can be less absentminded:

– Setting an intention to become more attentive.

– Sitting up front where there are less things to distract you, especially if you have difficulty paying attention in class.

-Taking notes in class to ensure you listen.

STRESS / ANXIETY

Stress will increase the likelihood of being distracted, resulting in low concentration meaning that information may not be encoded accurately – and thus cannot be later retrieved. Stress may also result in mental blanks. For example, if you’re stressed before an exam, you may not be able to think clearly and access and retrieve the information you need. The best thing to do is to take ten deep breaths and calm down to allow your mind to focus.

Learn more at the Brain and Memory unit of www.studyskillshandbook.com.au.

Our school’s subscription details are –

Username: ststephens

Password:100success

Sarah Cooke

Careers Advisor

STUDY SKILLS TIP FOR MARCH: SETTING UP YOUR SPACE AT HOME

March 1, 2019

The start of a year is a good time to reassess the space where you work at home. It is best to work in whatever space has the least amount of distractions. Here are some points to consider:

Natural lighting is best, but if not possible then a good strong bulb in your room and a bright desk lamp is essential. What is the lighting like in your study area?
Fresh air and oxygen to the brain helps keep you mentally alert. What is the ventilation and air quality like in your study area?
Your work space sets the tone for the way you approach your study. Is your desk large enough? What is your working space or desk like?
The chair you use should be comfortable (but not so comfy you fall asleep) and adjustable to reduce strain on your neck and shoulders. What is your chair like?
When you are trying to memorise things, quiet is essential. No music (unless it is certain types of classical like baroque). How effectively can you keep your room quiet?
Storage is essential to help you keep your notes organised and sorted. Shelves, a filing cabinet, drawers. What is the storage like in your room?
It is important to keep your study area uncluttered and organised. A large pin board for notices and a calendar are useful. How organised is your study area?
How many distractions do you have in your room? Computer, phone etc? It is always a good idea to switch off or remove distractions before you start work. If you have to use your laptop make a conscious effort to not use personal technology during times when you are doing schoolwork. How well do you cope with the distractions in your room?

To learn more about setting up an effective work area at home (including the effect the colour of your room has on your ability to study and how to set up your room ergonomically) visit the Home Study Environment unit of www.studyskillshandbook.com.au.