Photo by Sarah Babineau

Yes, it's that time of year again... Finals.  It sucks because of the incredible amounts of information that we must learn, memorize and then regurgitate.  On the bright side, summer break is just around the corner! YAY.

As a Senior, I believe that I have had enough experience with finals and writing exams to share with you some tips that I have found most helpful.

First of all, I wish someone had told me earlier that if you have testing anxiety, contact your school student services.  You can arrange various things to make life a lot easier.  I for one write my exams in a separate room from others so I don't get embarrassed if I get panicky.  There are also counsellors who can help you learn new testing taking techniques and help you with breathing techniques and so on.  Don't be afraid or embarrassed of asking for help.

Start studying early.  I will admit that I haven't always been the best at this.  I find that I will concentrate on my first exam and then everything just snowballs because I wasn't concentrating on exam 2 or 3 until the night before.  It's great if you can get into the habit of reviewing your notes everyday, this will make it easier to memorize.  If that's not possible, try picking a day, like sunday, where you review all your material from the previous week.  Also, if you get a few days off before your finals begin, don't forget to review material for the latter exams!

Photo by David Best

Study in groups then study by yourself.  I love and hate group study sessions.  I love it because you help each other really understand the material. It's a good way of figuring out the information.  I hate it because a lot of times people will start to talk about everything but your study material.  What I suggest is that you pick a group of people to study with who you are not great friends with outside of school.  This helps because your sole goal will be studying.  I also suggest that you separate and study by yourself after.  Memorizing is hard but if you read thru the information and than say them over and over again, visualize them, say them out loud, you will start to be able to get things to stick.

The day before the test should be solely for review.  You should have memorized and learnt the material by this point.  I like to get a friend or my parents to quiz me on the information.  By the time you feel comfortable with the information this should be easy.  If you are too busy, or you are still studying by the night before, it's ok.

Make sure that you are eating well, sleeping well and taking care of yourself.  How you feel is incredibly important when it comes to testing.  Especially if you are anxious.  Take walks periodically when you are studying to get some fresh air and to take your mind off of things.

Just keep going.  I know that many people feel like just giving up, or are just winging it.  Try your best.  It's ok if you don't get the best mark in the world.  But once you believe that you did everything that you can with the time and resources that you have, be happy and be proud of yourself.

Good luck on your exams.  Just keep Studying!