Every student has a complicated relationship with studying. Becoming a student who has disciplined themselves enough to set aside time each night to study may seem like an impossible task. However, one can easily turn any two-hour study session into a creative night. Junior Shakira Khan discovered the community of studiers during her junior year and has become obsessed ever since.

“I was such a big procrastinator and my grades would just go up and down,” Khan recalls. “Then I came across this community with all studying and I found it really interesting and it helped me to do it too and I thought it was really fun and it really kept me motivated to do school work and then my grades really started to go up.”

Khan, along with sophomore Alexa LoBasso, share some of their biggest studying and organization tips that have helped them be successful in their regular, AP and honors classes. 

Using A Planner

Planners are an easy way to organize due dates and events. You can simply go to any store and find one that has the right look for your schedule.

• “I use a planner because it helps me stay organized,” sophomore Alexa LoBasso said. “I write down my homework and after-school activities so I don’t forget them. After I accomplish each subject or assignment I check it off.”

Alexa’s Tips for Using a Planner

• “Buy a planner from Walgreens or even the school store”
• “Set a reminder on your phone to fill it out after school so you don’t forget”
• “You can also write in your planner at the end of every class”

Bullet Journals

The latest trend popping up all over social media is bullet journals. Most people look at these and just automatically decide that they could never do it because it seems like it’s too much work. However, if you are someone who finds the everyday normal planner to be “boring” then maybe you can give bullet journaling a try.

• “A bullet journal is like a planner that you can make your own and customize any way you like,” Khan said. “It’s way more fun to do and it keeps me way more organized and more motivated to do my homework and get creative.”

  

Different ways to Take Notes

Notes are usually just written on some lined paper, with maybe a few words legible because your teacher was talking so fast you could only write three words, and then it’s thrown into the bottom of your backpack until the day before a test when you find it again only to realize you wrote nothing. However, these notes are sometimes the only way you can pass a test, so what better way to be able to read the notes you wrote than finding new approaches to your note-taking. For example, students find it useful to use various colors to separate ideas on their notes, as well as using banners and boxes as ways to make key points stand out.

• “You always want to key the most important things that your teacher leans more towards talking about and look up the most important concepts of that chapter in your textbook and make notes on that,” Khan said. “I have a lot of markers dedicated to note taking and I get a lot of pens for it and I’ll usually doodle on my notes or label them with marker and go over it with cursive.“

Having the Right Stationary

Another trend that seems to be on social media is stationary. Now, I know that maybe pens and markers are not on your top list of priorities when you are thinking about notes, but having nice stationery is a good way to motivate you to not only take nicer notes, but also a way to help you be more creative with your note-taking.

• “YouTube is why I recently got into looking for more stationary,” Khan said. “I like markers that are really smooth when I write and ones that don’t smear.” 

Shakira’s Stationary Recommendations

• Muji Pens
• Zebra Sarasa
• Pilot Juice
• Stabilo Highlighters
• Zebra Midliners

Websites and Apps

Using different platforms to help you study can also be helpful if you are struggling with different topics in class that may go beyond the regular textbook.

Shakira’s Recommendations: 

• Quizlet
• Chegg Study
• Good Notes

“StudyGrams”

You can actually use social media to your advantage! Instagram is home to some of the greatest studying accounts, often referred to as, “StudyGrams.”

• “Basically a ‘studygram’ is where you post pictures [of your notes] and give people tips on better studying skills,” Khan said. “You’re helping people out just overall and encouraging people to study more. It also gets you more involved in studying and your school work and it helps you get better grades because I know personally it helped me with my grades and it made studying more fun for me.”

Shakira’s “Studygram” Recommendations: