As the first semester comes to an end, we now reach the halfway point of the school year. STA students are preparing for one of the most challenging and difficult times of the year for their academic career. With students having six classes, meaning six different exams, they now have vast amounts of material to constantly review so that they are prepared. With the 2nd quarter grades finalizing, many of these students feel very stressed and pressured. For example, Brennan Fassanella says that “I have tombs of study guides and notes to review for these midterms but the stress of needing to pass most of them to keep a good grade is constantly killing me.”

Midterms will officially begin on Wednesday, December 17th, and end on Friday, December 19th. Teachers have been assigning a variety of reviews to help better prepare students and to refresh what they have learned throughout the first semester. Students are applying a myriad of different approaches to better ready themselves for the upcoming midterms. Using resources such as online studying applications and perusing past assignments, students hope to be well prepared for the upcoming assessments. Andres Armijo, a junior, said “Quizlet has been helping me a lot, because I’ve been able to create all sorts of study guides that focus on specific material.”

Not only are students working extremely hard preparing for midterms, but teachers are also working hard to help prepare students to pass their midterms;creating acceptable material, giving access to past material, and much more. A majority of classes are having review sessions using different materials that are open to all students, such as, quizlet, kahoot, blooket, etc. There is also tutoring available after school for students that want any extra help. As midterms draw near, students should take a moment and realize that midterms are also an opportunity to help reflect on everything they have learned so far throughout the school year and what they need to work on. For most classes, the midterm will count as 10% of the final grade, so they provide a good opportunity to pull a borderline grade up to the next letter.

Whether you’ve spent weeks studying or are just now starting, a few smart strategies can make a big difference in your performance. Here are some last minute useful tips to ace your finals.

1. Prioritize study time on your weakest topics. Don’t waste your time reviewing things you already understand.
2. Do practice problems or review old exams and quizzes. Go beyond just reading notes. Spend extra time on exams you didn’t do as well on.
3. Teach the concept out loud or explain to a friend. This forces you to organize your thoughts, and helps with recall during the exam!
4. Use memory tricks such as mnemonics or visual charts. Associating topics with something catchy will make it easier to remember difficult concepts.
5. Don’t stay up too late– sleep matters! Rather than pulling an all-nighter, get your studying in early and sleep 8 hours. Luckily, getting out of school at 11:00 means you will have lots of extra time. Try your best to be well-rested so that you can remember what you studied!
6. Stay hydrated and snack to fuel your body. Your body and brain need energy to function efficiently.
7. Remove distractions such as your phone so that you can focus! You can also go into a different room that has no distractions.
8. Take breaks to refuel and stay energized. Such as walking around, doing a little workout to stay awake or making a nice snack!

By following these tips, you can make the most of the limited time before finals and have the best shot at success. Good luck Raiders!