Exams are fast approaching for many students at Somerset Academy Canyons. A testing season can bring anxiety and stress for many learners between juggling final exams and AICE and AP exams. Although there are numerous ways a student can stay afloat in the sea of cover sheets and scantrons, some of which will be discussed in this article to support and guide many who may need the reinforcement. 

The first way to stay on top of the testing season, and the most important tip, is not to wait to start studying until three days before the exam. Even though the human brain is impressive and can store significant information, it will not help if you first look at your textbook the week before your exam. If anything, it would simply muddle your thought process rather than help it. The ideal time to begin studying for exams would be a few weeks in advance, or if you want to be prepared, it should be a few months. Using a longer time to study allows just as much extra time to retain the information being reviewed and studied. By better retaining the information, the more likely it will be stored in the brain’s temporal lobe and be remembered on test day. 

The second tip is also important: look for different study methods that fit your study habits. If you’re a visual learner, then use flashcards. If you’re better at learning through listening, then find a review guide on YouTube. For example, a valuable study review would be Heimler’s History on YouTube if you take an AP history exam. Do not let how someone else studies affect the way you do; everyone has different methods of studying and cannot be compared. 

The third tip is simple: get a good rest the night before. If you are tired during exam day, all the information spent studying will be lost as the answers blur as you struggle to string a sentence together. But if you get a good night’s rest, you will be in your peak form for test day, and all the information you learned will flood back from memory, and you will ace your test. 

It would be best to use the last tip right before the exam: take a deep breath. If you allow your anxiety to improve, it will cause you to triple-guess your answers and be stress-inducing. Take a deep breath, release all the anxiety built low in your gut, and remember that whatever happens, happens. Good luck this testing season, students of Somerset Canyons. You will do wonderfully.