Are note-cards really an effective way to study?

Are note-cards really an effective way to study?

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“Many times studying is a very passive activity, meaning that we often don’t get our brains, and our bodies in the process. This makes it harder to learn and retain information.? Think about how most students are taught to study.? After teaching for over ten years I can tell that note-cards are the most popular method I’ve seen.? While this method can work, it’s effectiveness can be greatly enhanced if we take it to the next level and make it an active process.? The result is that you can learn more information in less time.? Wouldn’t even a 10 percent increase in learning and memory be huge advantage??? How much time would this save over the course of semester, a year, or a lifetime?

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How can you accomplish this?

The next time you or your child have information to memorize and learn, instead of just writing the word or concept on one side of a note-card and the answer on the other side, draw a quick picture next to the definition.??

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Use colored markers, crayons, or pens to make it stand out. Make the drawing very outrageous and silly.? Make items extra large, or very small.? The goal is not to create great artwork; the purpose of this activity is to activate different areas of the brain as you are thinking of what to draw.? Don’t let your child tell you they can’t draw!? This is not an acceptable answer for this method, because the learning comes when they are thinking of what to draw.??

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Research shows that when people draw, different regions of the brain are activated causing more pathways to be formed in the brain.? This, in turn, creates a larger impression which leads to greater retention of information.? In addition, you are also moving your hands while you draw the picture. This helps make using note-cards more of an active process, creating even more pathways for the information to nestle iself in the student’s brain!

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Your Education Coach,

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Scott Straub

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p.s.? Be sure to check out www.ScottStraub.com for our latest products.

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4 Steps That Can Help Students in Any Grade…

Children Do Poorly in School Because Educators Don?t Teach Students How to Organize?

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Stand in any classroom and you will find students fumbling around in messy notebooks and backpacks looking for their assignments and supplies. In today?s busy classrooms, fundamental skills such as getting organized are often overlooked, and this causes many children to fall behind. www.scottstraub.com

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In those same hectic classrooms, fundamental skills are not being taught because of added pressure on educators from federal and state authorities, principals, and parents. Skills such as how to organize notebooks, lockers, and backpacks, are often glossed over, or not even taught, and for many students that means it is sink or swim in the classroom.

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Step into any classroom and you will find students fumbling around in messy notebooks and backpacks looking for the day?s assignments and materials. Walk down any middle school hallway and kids will be frantically staring into their overcrowded, disorganized lockers scrambling to locate textbooks, trying to make it to class on time.

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When teachers were asked if unprepared children do worse in school, they responded with a resounding ?YES?, but who is teaching these struggling students how to cope with today?s fast-paced classrooms? Yet, the lack of basic organizational and memory skills is often the cause of declining grades and self-esteem in children.

Fortunately, there are ways to correct this prevalent problem. By using my four step PORR method, any locker, notebook or backpack can be organized in no time. Here are the steps.

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1. Purge – Completely empty out each notebook, locker, and backpack.

2. Organize – Use a checklist of necessary materials to re-organize everything. There must be a place for everything!

3. Replace – Replace all books and supplies in the correct place.

4. Restock and Repeat – Restock with needed supplies and repeat as necessary.

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If you need a working model of a neat notebook, for example, have your child find a classmate who is already organized and have them show your child how they stay organized. Modeling good habits and systems can be the fastest method to change a child?s messy ways.

There is Hope…

For most students it?s not intelligence that holds them back in school, it?s the habits and systems they use on a consistent basis.

Welcome to Scott Straub?s blog. Unlike many blogs that are just promotional sales

letters in disguise, you will be receiving information you can instantly put to use at school to help you, or your child, get the ?edge? in school. Not an edge over other students, but the ability to quickly and easily master the essential skills every student needs to know ? but often isn?t taught in schools these days due to serious time constraints.

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How can you be sure that the strategies I teach will work for you or your child? Well, I used to be the worst student in my grade. When I finally learned and used these powerful techniques, my world changed. For the first time since I was about 8 years old, I started doing well again in school. Over the past 15 years I’ve taught my unique system to thousands of students, and I can help you or your child too. Incorporating these time-tested strategies can help every student, from elementary school to graduate school, succeed. You can read more about my life at: About Scott Straub.

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In school it is critical that students be able to access their assignments, notes and materials very quickly as the modern classroom moves rapidly. As a teacher, I had the opportunity to witness so many children fall behind because they spent precious classroom time searching for the necessary books and supplies. These students were just like me, smart kids who simply lacked good organizational skills and techniques.

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If you would like to receive my book ?Earn A?s Quickly And Easily, Even If You Have Never Been On The Honor Roll Before?, simply sign up for my FREE newsletter at www.ScottStraub.com. You?ll receive free chapters and you?ll also receive incredible discounts at stores such as Staples and Office Depot through the newsletter; PLUS you will automatically entered to win a $200 gift certificate from Staples (as long as you are a current subscriber.)

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Your School Coach,

Scott Straub