Have you been struggling with your homework, tests, or quizzes? Try some of these study skills for high school students and try to improve your grade!
It can be frustrating if you spend a lot of time on a subject, but are still stuck on the problem.
Practice some of these study skills and you will be able to score better on exams, understand the material better, and improve your interest in learning.
Before we get started, make sure you are in the mindset that you want to improve and change for the better.
If you just read through this and do not take any action, then there will be no results. YOU have to follow through and take initiative to be able to do better.
Genius Study Skills for High School Students
Stay Organized
This may sound easy and skippable, but this is one of the most important tips to improve your studying.
If you don’t have your books or supplies next to you, will you be able to do well in class?
In order to stay organized, keep a planner with you and a sorting system.
Jot down any assignments that you have to do in your planner and remember to check them consistently.
Keep a sorting system with you for any loose papers, assignments, and past quizzes or tests.
I loved using a single folder with multiple pockets in high school to organize my assignments. You can label each one for each subject and place the corresponding papers in each.
But, remember to clear out your past assignments and papers every once in a while so your folder doesn’t get overstuffed.
It’s also great practice to whip out your old assignments and check if you still remember them. Try some of the problems out and if you breeze through them, then you are in good shape.
If you find yourself pondering and getting stuck, consider reviewing those questions and learning them again. It’s always a good idea to understand how to do something now than be more confused later on.
Use Practice Problems
One of the best ways to learn and understand is to go through practice problems and examples.
You can find practice problems and exercises in textbooks, online, and in worksheets from class. You can also ask your teachers for extra worksheets or practice materials.
They will know that you are interested in learning and putting an effort to understand the material.
Plus, you will be able to gain some pointers.
Practice problems are really useful. When I took the SAT the first time, my score was not as high as I wanted it to be. I took the time in between the next SAT to study and prep for the test.
It took some time, dedication, and several practice problems to boost my score by over a hundred points.
Take advantage of practice problems to help you target your weaknesses. If you struggle with certain problems, check which step you make an error and try to fix it as you go.
Past Assignments are Your Best Friend
If your courses are cumulative, you want to keep your past assignments, quizzes, and exams handy.
Store it in a filing cabinet or transfer the papers to a binder with tabs for each subject. Then, before any quizzes or tests come up, you can review those assignments.
Go through your past assignments and check any problems that you missed, made an error on, or struggled with.
Tackle those problems and try to find methods how to solve them. You can go ask your teacher, check online, or ask your friends.
Make sure you understand how to solve it because you don’t want to be confused on your next quiz or exam.
Even if your quizzes or exams are not cumulative, you should still form a habit to review and learn the concepts. You never know when you will need a specific piece of information or skill, so better be prepared than clueless.
Interested in reading more posts like study skills for high school? Check out How to Study Last Minute and Still Ace Your Test.
Seek Help
You might have seen this a bazillion times, but this is one of the most effective ways to learn.
If you don’t understand something, ask your peers, teachers, or anyone. Go online, look for resources, and watch videos.
Don’t just be stuck. Go look for ways to solve the problem and learn how to improve.
Some steps to go about understanding a problem:
- check online for resources or video tutorials
- ask your friend about the problem
- go ask your teacher for help
- get a tutor
If the first step doesn’t work, move on to the next step. And getting a tutor doesn’t have to be expensive! Check out any study centers or free tutoring at your school for help.
If you don’t know where to go, ask your teachers, counselors, and the library for help.
There might be study groups or clubs at your school, so check those out. If there aren’t any, consider starting one on your own (which fyi will look great on your resume or college apps).
Set Up a Schedule
If you are dedicated and keep up a study schedule, then you will be able to see results quickly.
Follow a set schedule where you set aside 30 minutes to an hour each day to study for a subject.
You can use either a paper or digital format for your schedule. Try to use different colors for different subjects and set aside time for each class.
Be realistic with how you manage your study time. Don’t go checking hours off your schedule and promising yourself that you will study five hours straight on Thursday when you know it won’t happen.
Instead, start with these three pieces of info:
- timeframe (when your quiz or test is going to be in)
- total time (the time you are trying to study in total for)
- free time (the realistic time that you will be free)
So say I have a math test in one week and I want to study for a total of 5 hours when I’m actually free for 49 hours.
I would use one color to block off all the hours that I have classes, work, or am busy. Then, use a different color to highlight any hours that you are free.
Out of the hours that you are free cross out the hours that you want to study. If you get in the mood some days, you can also increase your studying so you can get more material in.
Do not use all your free hour boxes as study time because you need to take into account unexpected circumstances, meal times, and hygienic times.
You can also use different colored Xs for different classes that you need to study for.
Interested in more posts like study skills for high school? Check out 11 Genius Study Tips for Exams.
Be Creative With How You Study
If you are a busy person and don’t have a lot of time to study, here are some tips to incorporate studying into your daily life.
When you are brushing your teeth, you can have a list of vocab words taped on the wall to go over. Each day you will have at least four minutes of vocab studying.
If you need to remember concepts or historical facts, you can listen to videos, and podcasts, or record your own. It will be most effective if you can record the sections that you need since that is already studying them once.
Then you can reinforce your memory by repeating the recording. The more time you spend crafting your study materials, the more review you will be accumulating for yourself.
If you have to work and don’t have time to sit down and study, you can listen to the podcasts of your recording.
Try to add studying to your daily routine without taking away from anything.
If you are studying for one hour, use that entire hour. Do not do anything else that detracts from your focus. Don’t be scrolling through social media, replying to texts, or checking the weather.
Be proactive with how you study and think of ways to incorporate studying even if you only have minutes free.
If you have passing periods and get to your classes early, whip out your notes or listen to your recording. The minutes add up and you will be doing yourself a favor by constantly reviewing.
Ask Questions
Be assertive and keep asking questions. If you are stuck on a question, dive deep into it and figure out the core idea.
If I was confused about how to solve an equation like 3x + (8 – 5) = 21, then I would go search different topics pertaining to this problem.
I will check out PEMDAS and learn what each of them means. Then, I will try to utilize the rules with the problem. Next, I will solve it and try to plug the answer back into x to see if it matches the equation.
Sometimes you just want to take the questions and break them apart piece by piece. Don’t worry if you are confused or lost on concepts.
Just start small and understand each step bit by bit.
Be relentless with your questions and get to the root of them to get the most out of any problem.
Share Notes
If you have the same classes as your friends, you can create a study guide or note compilation.
You will be able to annotate, edit, and add to each others’ notes. The more notes you can share and go over, the more points of view you will be able to see and learn.
You can also collaborate and create a study guide together. I usually recommend not relying on each other to craft a study guide since you might skim over some parts.
However, you can create a study guide on your own and then collaborate with your friends for another study guide. Then you will be able to see concepts and ideas from various perspectives.
A collaborative study guide and notes will allow you to read through more details and any parts that you might be missing.
You should learn strategic study skills for high school because that will allow you to study smarter instead of wasting time.
Studying effectively is better than studying for hours and hours and absorbing a small slice of the ideas or concepts. Take more time to understand a concept rather than wasting time skimming and repeating errors.
Make Studying Easier
If you can turn studying into a habit, it will be easier to ease into it.
Set up a study space where you don’t have to get up and search for writing tools or paper. If you are tight on space, you can grab a clear storage box with a lid and fill it with all the items that you need to study.
Then place it by a desk or your normal study spot. The more accessible and easier that you can make studying, the fewer obstacles that you have to go through.
I remember procrastinating when I noticed I did not have my notes to study with me. It took half an hour before I decided to get up and study, but if the notes were already next to me, I wouldn’t have wasted that time.
Plan your next moves and each time you find yourself drifting off to find something, jot it down.
Next time, you will be able to have all of the study materials that you need.
Here is a list of items that you might want to gather for study sessions:
- pens and pencils
- paper (lined and scratch)
- highlighters
- eraser
- white-out
- water
- snacks
- chargers
- headphones
- hair tie
Eliminate as many distractions and obstacles to your path of studying.
Hopefully, these study skills for high school students are helpful for you and prepare you for any upcoming quizzes or exams!
