Study Skills

Learn skills that will help you study and learn more effectively, both in and out of school! Problem-Solving: Finding a good solution Solving a problem takes understanding, creative thinking, and determination. My problem-solving checklist: Read and understand the problem. Underline the question. Circle important information. Choose a strategy (draw a picture, make a list, work backward, guess and check, look for a pattern). Solve the problem. Check the answer. Research: Finding information When you know how to find information, you can learn new facts and answer your questions. My research checklist: Decide what you what to find out. Narrow your topic to something manageable. Search for information using more than one reliable source. Take notes (remember to keep track of your sources). Use the information by putting things in your own words. Opinion: A view or idea about something While opinions are people’s personal ideas, it is always best to form opinions based on facts. My forming-an-opinion checklist: Form a tentative opinion about a topic. Use multiple reliable sources to look for more information. Look for information from different viewpoints and perspectives. Ask people about the topic and what they base their opinions on. Form your opinion based on the things you have learned. Question: To ask or inquire Asking well-thought-out questions will help you learn more effectively. My question checklist: Think about the topic you are studying and what exactly you want to know more about. Don’t think in terms of a simple YES/NO question. Think about why you are asking the question: simple clarification, new perspectives, different opinions, etc. Keep the question focused on one topic. Try to keep the question free of bias or opinion. As you look for answers, clarify your question if needed. Informational Reading: Understanding a nonfiction text Reading is more than just pronouncing words. Reading is about understanding. My reading-for-information checklist: Scan the section to make sure it contains what you are looking for. Read the entire section more than once. Use context clues or a dictionary to figure out what key terms mean. Use any text features to aid your understanding (pictures, infographics, captions, etc.). Pay attention to bullet-point lists of key concepts or end-of-section summaries. Make notes, create a list of key terms, or write a summary to help solidify your understanding. LEARNING STRATEGIES STUDY SKILLS T-3