Our Guide to Surviving the End of the School Year

To all teenagers: we know you can’t stop thinking about summer. However, there’s still a lot of work to do before the end, so here’s our survival guide to help you end the year on a high note and ace your exams.

Planning: the key to success

Waiting until the last minute to start studying for an exam only increases the risks of failure. To avoid being in this situation, write down the date of your exam as soon as you know it. Go over everything you need to study and break it into more manageable chunks, then start planning study sessions for this particular subject. Studying and doing a few exercises every day will help you remember (almost) everything.

Don’t become a hermit

Who said you have to hide in your room for days to study? If you want to form a study group with your friends, go for it! But make sure everyone is serious and disciplined: question each other for an hour, then allow yourselves a 15-minute break to chat and have fun. Once the break is over, re-focus and get back to work.

If the sun is shining outside, head for the poolside or the park to study, or if you feel like your head is going to explode, grab a snack or go for a run to clear your head.

The last 24 hours

The night before your exam, go over the information you still struggle with, but don’t overdo it: while this quick review is essential, it should not take most of your night. Instead, kick back, relax and do whatever might keep the stress away, but most importantly, go to bed early to wake up refreshed and ready to go. Before drifting off, make sure you have everything ready for the next day. This way, you’ll have a few extra minutes of sleep the next morning while still having enough time to have a hearty breakfast.

Once you receive your copy, skim through the exam. How you manage your time should depend on the type and number of questions in the exam. Here’s an example of how much time should be spent on each so as not to run out of time:

Read each question carefully to make sure you really understand the instructions. If there’s a question you can’t seem to understand, skip it and come back to it later. There should be no blank space left once you hand in your copy. Unless it is mentioned otherwise in the instructions, you won’t lose points over a wrong answer, so take a guess: who knows, you might get a few extra points!

This article was written in collaboration with School Success, a company dedicated to the academic success of primary, secondary, and college students. School Success offers homework help, remedial classes, curriculum enrichment, and test preparation services.