(I'm Really Curious 0-0)

25.03.24

Day 8/ Day 8

I know it was a 9 day thing but it was because I had to go to school tomorrow but now I don't need to cause I just dropped by picked up my things and certificates etc etc... so my break starts here!!

The exam was alright, kinda unexpected paper but it's done now!

So what am i gonna do for 2 whole months?

Finish a course that I've been ignoring for way too long

Read as much as I can

Post some study related content here

I'll be posting a weekly reading challenge later on, like cause I wanna actually see how i complete it xD

Refresh (139 days left)

So, we're going back on the countdown... Since my final exam schedule just got released and honestly I'm feeling kinda excited. If this was last year, I was literally really nervous and was overwhelmed but this year? I just feel calm and excited.

I'm gonna start to study more consistently from now, especially in Arabic and business studies so let's see.

That's it for now <3

How have you guys been?

Update

Today was my last highschool exam that was in my school. With this, it's straight up finals in March (in another school) and I just have to say... I literally feel so damn happy. Like, everyone was getting so emotional and I was like "Yaaayyy" but literally, it's really cool. I don't know how I survived the past 2 months, from January, we had around 18 exams plus 2 practicals and my brain is fried.

I had no time to even log in here, with revision and exams and studying (and reading Onyx Storm) so yes, no time. But I have around 2 weeks for my finals to start and officially, it's the last month of high school and damn I am happy.

I've been getting some anxiety about finals but I'm trying to be calm, like seriously... I'm also kinda worried about fasting and studying together but I guess I'll manage.

So yeah, how have you guys been?

128 days left

Personally today was not bad but i could have done better...

Today I:

Did almost 1 chapter in accounts

And completed the main topics in economics for 2 lessons

(I kinda lost track of time during breaks so i couldn't do business studies but I'm still happy with this progress.)

Tomorrow's to do list:

Study 8 lessons in Arabic for mid term

Study 2 lessons in business studies (part 1-3)

[I think I'll manage that]

Relentless hardwork beats talent/intelligence. Every. Single. Time.

So the next time you feel like you're not talented/intelligent/good enough. Remember this. You're working hard for it. That's what matters.

There will be people better than you but there is absolutely no rule for you to not work harder than them.

I want to be completely honest.

There are going to be people who are better than you.

There will be times when someone is going to get ahead of you

And there will be times when you worked hard, and you didn't achieve it.

And yes, it is fine. Completely fine. You are allowed to be disappointed. You are allowed to be sad. And you are allowed to get pissed.

It's the brutal truth that you may not get what you want all the time. And you should learn to be okay with that.

129 days left

Okay, my English exam went alright, not too bad but i didn't do anything else today which is bad but I'll make up for it tomorrow. I got to study for Arabic, Economics, Business studies and Accountancy in these two days... I'm comfortable with computers because our teachers keeps tests frequently so yeah but the others? Definitely not.

So, tomorrow's to do list (study wise):

Complete Accounts lesson 4 and half of 5

Economics chapter 6 and 7 (Part 1-3)

Commerce chapter 9 and 10 (Part 1-3)

[I hope I have time to do this much but let's see]

Goals for the next (last) year of highschool!

As much as I love that this is the last year I'm gonna stay in school, I may need to work extra harder to manage everything.

So, I'm gonna keep this goal list as a reminder and motivation!

Personal:

Have a better sleeping schedule (impossible but let's try)

Exercise everyday (Also impossible but let's ignore this)

Maintain good mental health (laughs in hysteria)

Pray Tahajjud everyday (atleast try)

Recite Quran everyday

Search for some jobs and college research (mostly after October/December)

Academic:

Get a 97+ % in my finals (aiming 99 or 100)

Study the lessons in the same week they're completed

Study everyday for 2 hours

Finish assignments soon as possible

Study on weekends

Extra curricular

Keep revising my Arabic

Finish a book a month

Go on my first and last field trip some how!!

Maintain this blog (duh)

Escape P.E practice (spare me)

Improvements to be made in:

English (both academic and non academic)

Confidence

Public speaking (I'm so bad at this)

Lessening screen time

"Push harder than yesterday if you want a different tomorrow."

How To Self Study

This is coming from a girl who spent her fresher and sophomore year studying at home and yes, I got good grades. So, here are some tips that I followed for studying by myself without depending on any teachers.

So, let's get into it!

Gather and organise material

This is important, why? What are you going to study if you have absolutely no idea what your syllabus and study material is? By materials I mean:

Textbooks (If you have any)

Practice papers

Previous year papers

Extra reading materials/ Reference books

If you don't have any textbooks. Go through the topics that you have and gather resources from different sources.

Tip: Have at least 1 extra reading material for every subject/paper. It helps you understand some topics that are explained in a complex manner in textbooks which is almost all the time.

Don't depend on your teacher

Teachers are good. Seriously. But their attention will always be shifty. They have a lot of students to teach, from many other classes so if you depend only on your teachers for clarifying your doubts or being at the back of you to study then newsflash, its going to be hard. Rather, be your own teacher. Don't go "I'll ask this to her/him tomorrow after class" because that will be your answer every time you have even a small question which can easily be solved by a simple search. You're saving your time and theirs.

Tip: If you're someone like me who gets distracted when you take up your phone even for a second then write down all your questions in a paper and search them later after your study session.

Make notes

I usually say this because notes help you understand topics. There are many methods of taking notes. I usually don't follow any structure for note taking, I just read and write keywords under the topic name, linking a few things here and there.

Tip: Notes need not be aesthetic. Seriously. You can be as messy as you can.

Watch videos related to concepts

This helps and I know most already do this.

Tip: When you finish watching a topic, close the video and write down what you understood and then play the video again, fill in the gaps that you missed and watch it again.

Study in chunks

I always believe that whatever you do, you should do in chunks. Instead of doing one chapter, divide it. Into small bits. I'll tell you, you'll see the difference. I don't usually recommend Pomodoro since it doesn't work for me. I don't keep a time limit or a set number of breaks. I finish a chunk and if I am tired, I take a break otherwise i continue.

Tip: Self quiz yourself after each chunk and then take a break. Then after you finish the chunks for the whole chapter with the self quizzing then self quiz yourself randomly for every chunk. Here's an additional tip. Take 20 second breaks.

Period of deep work

This is not a new concept, i didn't realize i did this at first. Basically, when you start your work. You do nothing but work. Like nothing else. No phones. No snacking. No unwanted thoughts. Just nothing but what you have to do. That is to study.

Tip: It is difficult to implement this right away especially if you have a habit of it getting distracted easily so i just suggest => Start smaller. One topic with full concentration. It would usually take you 20 - 30 mins to get immersed in the work. 40 mins if it's something you don't like but once you get the momentum? An unbelievable achievement really. And then, change your environment.

Quality > Quantity && Consistency> Cramming

One hour of productive studying is better than nine hours of useless studying. I feel like it's better to study 20 mins everyday rather than the whole night before an exam. It just causes stress.

Tip: Start early. Your teacher is on chapter 5? And you still don't get chapter 1, it's fine. Start learning. Seriously, it's okay to be behind. You just have to stick. Do it everyday and you'll see results that is better than those who are just keeping up with the teacher.

Deadlines Are Mandatory

Have deadlines. There are a number of ways to do this. I'm a person who is really lazy and a weird soul who would never complete their to-do list for the day if they write it down. It would always be left unfinished. So i just keep a mental time limit and the thing i have to get done.

Tip: Overestimate your deadline. Like, let's say i have to complete around 15 lessons that week. I keep my deadline to around 25-30 and i eventually complete 15. It's about adapting to what works for you. Just change according to what works for you.

Practice questions / Previous Year Papers

I can never emphasize this enough. The best way to prepare for any exam is just do practice questions or previous year questions. You will learn a lot of things. The topics that are important or repeated. The topics that are never asked.

Tip: Grade yourself on each paper. Circle the questions in your textbook while you are studying and practicing. Then when you have to actually study then you can actually revise the topics a bit more thoroughly. If you want to know more, click here.

It's okay to be behind in class

During my first term in senior year, the whole class was around 5 chapters ahead for every test and exam while me? If they were on chapter 12, i was in chapter 4 or 5 but i understood the concepts and took my sweet time with each chapter. Because the more time you take for a chapter, the better it stays in your memory.

Tip: Here is where active recall comes handy. When you revise one chapter, take a 2 day break and study another subject and then go back to the chapter and answer the practice questions. If you're able to do them, great! If not, revise more and then look at it after 3-4 days. Repeat until you have no mistakes in your answers. This helps in long term retaining.

Make It Interesting

How do you study boring subjects? You adapt. Mind maps don't work for me. Neither does flash cards. So, i found something that did. Storytelling. Take your most boring subject, turn it into a story. Make it bearable.

Tip: Tie it somethings that you like. For example, business studies was the most boring one for me so obviously, every topic was a story for me. HR Theories and Processes? ==> An office romance story. Management Principles? ==> A fantasy story where a group goes on a quest. Make It interesting. Make it gripping. And let me tell you, this actually works because our minds grasp stories better than just normal theory jargon.

Difficult Topics Are Only Difficult Because You Think They Are

This was something that i learnt the harder way. Everything looked difficult at the beginning. Everything. But the most difficult paper was maths. Because i had no teacher. Literally. I was learning from YouTube, searching different sites for tips and tricks. I thought it was too difficult and then i was like "i have to do it anyway no matter how much i brood" so i started from scratch like 3 months before my exams.

Tip: A mind set change is everything. If you think it is easy. The topic will be more bearable. If you think it's tough, it's going to be more tough. If you want some more tips for complex topics, click here.

Hope this helps !!! :)

22.03.24

Day 5/ Day 9

Not a very productive day but I did:

Glance through the important questions and case studies

Revised MCQs

Total hours of studying: 1 hour 30 mins