Learning How to Learn: How to Succeed in School Without Spending All Your Time Studying; A Guide for Kids and Teens

by Barbara Oakley

look away to see if you could recall them? ______Yes ______No 7. If your studies involved working problems, did you actively work and rework key examples by yourself, so you turned them into sets of brain-links and could rapidly call the solution to mind? ______Yes ______No 8. Did you discuss homework problems with classmates, or at least check your solutions with others? ______Yes ______No 9. Did you actively work every homework problem yourself? ______Yes ______No 10. Did you talk to your teachers, or to other students who could help, when you were having trouble with your understanding? ______Yes ______No 11. Did you spend most of your study time focusing on the material you found harder? That is, did you do deliberate practice? ______Yes ______No 12. Did you interleave your studies? In other words, did you practice when to use different techniques? ______Yes ______No 13. Did you explain key ideas to yourself, and perhaps to others, using funny metaphors and images? ______Yes ______No 14. Did you take occasional breaks from your studies that included some physical activity? ______Yes ______No TOTAL: The more “Yes” responses you recorded, the better your preparation for the test. If you recorded three or more “No” responses, think seriously about making some changes in how you prepare for the next test.