How to be prepared for fourth quarter

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Story by Elena Rivera, Staff Writer

With spring break and the fourth quarter quickly approaching, students must ensure that grades are not slipping with some helpful tips to keep them on task during this time. Freshmen and sophomores should be looking to end the year strong. Juniors should be striving for good grades and strong SAT or ACT scores. And seniors need to make sure that they keep up their academic performance as well. The fourth quarter can be a stressful one, especially with finals and end of the year AP and AICE exams.

 

The first thing that is the most helpful in keeping grades up is organization. Often, students forget their homework because they never write it down. Keeping an organized planner, as small as it may seem, is a really good way to keep on track. Having a planner allows for better time management, resulting in less forgotten assignments. Time management and planning can be very important for students that have homework and extracurriculars. It can help to block out specific times for homework and creates an outline to follow for the week. Using a planner can also help with gradual studying leading up to a test.

 

“It helps to set aside designated times for tasks so that you can plan for breaks between studying and assignments,” said junior Alyssa Diaz. “It helps with not feeling so overwhelmed and it helps with focusing on school work.”

 

It seems obvious, but studying will always help with getting better grades. By studying for tests, there will be a great improvement in grades and it will help you to feel more comfortable in the future for exams. Gradual studying, studying a little every day, can help to disperse a large workload and can help lessen the need for cramming before tests. Cramming the night before, although it may work for the test the next day, is ultimately a bad decision come exam week. Most students do not absorb the information when they cram and can forget it as soon as they take the test. Some study tools that could help with studying are Quizlet and Kahoot. These apps can help make studying easier and more accessible, so that you don’t have to study at home. This can be helpful for students with busier schedules and are juggling classes and clubs or sports. 

 

“I use Kahoot to study. I think it’s an easy way to review for tests,” said sophomore Christian Mora.

 

The final thing to keep in mind is that you should keep your expectations for fourth quarter realistic. Challenging yourself to get better grades is good, but make sure that the goals that you set are attainable. Often, setting goals that are not realistic can put more unneeded stress on students. By making sure that you do the best that you can do individually, you can end the year strong.

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