so even though school is over for many, a surprising number still seem to be interested in this post! i’ve never really done any sort of “advice” post before so this is kind of daunting but hopefully i do this right! i’m constantly honored that my friends ask me to help edit their essays so i thought this would be a good topic to start on. i’m definitely not the best writer ever but i hope this will help! keep reading for a few tips on writing a killer essay. :)

so even though school is over for many, a surprising number still seem to be interested in this post! i’ve never really done any sort of “advice” post before so this is kind of daunting but hopefully i do this right! i’m constantly honored that my friends ask me to help edit their essays so i thought this would be a good topic to start on. i’m definitely not the best writer ever but i hope this will help! keep reading for a few tips on writing a killer essay. :)

Masterposts

1. Advice and tools by @thegrangersapprentice​
2. Tips and links by @stemnerd3​
3. Resource masterpost by @etudiance​
4. Logarithms by @allydsgn
5. Graph shapes by @codeorg

Resources

1. Algebra II Homework Help
2. Khan Academy
3. ProfRobBob
4. Math Worksheets Land Printables
5. MathDrills Worksheets
6. Algebra Calculator
7. Mathisfun
8. Purplemath
9. Mathway’s Algebra Calculator

Masterposts

1. Resource masterpost by @etudiance
2. Some tips by @sundayscholar
3. Advice if you suck at geometry by @ballpenned
4. Cool trig gif post
5. Pythagorean formula explained

Resources

1. Hippocampus
2. Khan Academy (and trig only)
3. Geometry Dictionary
4. MathForum Info on Proofs
5. Geometry4Everyone
6. Math Fortress
7. Brightstorm
8. ProfRobBob (and trig only!)

Masterposts 

1. Resource masterpost by @etudiance​
2. Final precalculus review by @studteaing
3. Precalculus review by @productivityjunction​
4. Rules for transforming functions

Resources

1. Precalculus Tips
2. Handouts and Notes
3. UC Irvine Videos
4. Huge cheat sheet
5. Khan Academy 
6. Trig identity hexagon
7. ProfRobBob
8. Precalc class on EdX
9. Cheat sheet for dummies

Masterposts 

1. How to study calculus by @sundayscholar
2. AB calculus resources by @intellectus (#spon oops)
3. Studying for college math (emphasis on calculus) by @hexaneandheels
4. AP calculus tips by @kingdomstudies
5. Guide to calculus BC by @scolasticus

Resources

1. How to Succeed in Calculus
2. Krista King (the b e s t)
3. Calc AB Study Guide
4. CliffsNotes Calculus
5. Paul’s Calculus Notes
6. WOWMath Worked Free Response
7. Mr. Calculus
8. Cool Calc Cheat Sheet
9. University of Houston Calc Guide
10. ProfRobBob

Masterposts 

1. How to Study Statistics by @study-well
2. Scanned stats notes by @mildstudies
3. AP by Michelle
4. Killer stats notes and pdfs by @communitystudy

Resources

1. 1st Semester Study Guide
2. Formula Sheet
3. AP Stats Tutorial
4. CourseNotes
5. Another formula sheet
6. ProfRobBob
7. Online statistics calculator
8. CourseNotes

1. Great tips by @hexaneandheels 
2. Process of studying math by @doitforthea
3. More study tips by @study-hack​
4. Amazing math masterpost by @studybuzz
5. Tips for studying math by @studyign
6. This incredible resource blog: @themathblrs

• Get all of the supplies you need- Personally, I use two 1.5 inch binders and a supply bag, plus a few spiral notebooks. but you should really use whatever keeps you organized. (My supplies tag, Stationary Stores to Check Out, Supplies Masterpost, How to Keep Binders Organized for School)
• Invest in a good planner- Whether it’s a bullet journal, passion planner, or just a cute notebook you picked up at target, planning ahead and keeping track of assignments is really important during high school. 
• Clean/organize your room- and I don’t just mean stuffing everything in the closet. dust, vacuum, and put all of your things where they belong. (Organization Masterpost, my organization tag)
• Perfect your study space- Clear away all of the extra papers and make sure that you have everything you need for study sessions. (My study spaces tag)
• Wake up early a few times and run through your morning routine so that you won’t rush on the first day of school. (Tips for Balancing Sleep & Education, my sleep tag)
• Pack an emergency bag with pads/tampons, lip balm, painkillers, hair ties, deoderant, band aids, etc. You never know what you (or someone else) might need! Also: Always bring a water bottle to class! I can’t tell you how many times I will have forgotten my water bottle at home and hated myself for it all day at school.

• Don’t worry too much about getting lost, most schools have signs around the halls with directions to classes. and if you’re really confused, just ask a teacher or anyone who seems friendly.
• Get started on the right foot with your teachers- It will help a lot later in the school year when you need an extension or you turned something in late. 
• Don’t worry about memorizing your schedule! A pro tip is for the first few days, have it as your lock screen just in case you need it. I guarantee after the first week of school you’ll know your schedule like the back of your hand.
• Calm down. I like to remind myself that it’s the sophomores first time being sophomores, it’s the juniors first time being juniors, and the seniors have never been seniors before. Everyone is way more focused on themselves in you, so if you accidentally do something stupid it’s more than likely that no one noticed it.

• Go to sports games, school musicals, and other social events! It’s really easy to meet people there.
• Join clubs/activities that you’re excited and passionate about, because they’re perfect places to meet people who have the same interests as you! Try to join a variety of different activities so that sophomore and junior year you have choices as to what you want to focus on.
• Just introduce yourself- No one is as scary or as mean as they look. As long as you’re nice and not screeching at the top of your lungs about something, they’ll usually be nice back.
• Don’t make dating your first priority. There are so many other things to focus on when adjusting to a new school, but if you end up meeting someone and you feel comfortable, by all means go for it :)
• Avoid drama- I’ll be the first one to say that I love hearing about all of the stuff that goes on at my school, but there’s a difference between hearing about it and actually getting involved.
• Upperclassmen are your friend- They are not as scary as they seem. I promise. 
• Make time for family. They love you, and they just want to see you succeed. Life is going to get very stressful and chaotic within the next few years, so keeping a good relationship with your family is important.
• Remember that you never know what someone else is going through, so be kind and respectful to everyone :)

• Try not to procrastinate- this is a big one, and probably the hardest, but it will make your life a lot easier if you procrastinate as little as possible. (Beating Procrastination)
• Participate and stay engaged during class- not only will this help you better understand the material, but teachers respond well to students who are actively participating in their class.
• If you have extra time in class, get started on homework! This will give you extra time for yourself at home later and is a good habit to get into before classes start getting harder.
• Figure out how you study best- In high school there are a lot more tests and quizzes to study for, so test out different study methods and see which works for you best. (My study tips tag)
• Pay special attention to your grades and make sure you’re doing as well as you can. The next few years get harder so freshman year will help buffer if things get rocky later on!
• Get help if you’re struggling- ask a teacher for extra help, find some resources online, talk to your parents, whatever works. don’t be afraid to ask for help.
• Take advantage of tutors, resources, and your teachers! One thing I would definitely recommend doing is visiting a teacher after school or during homeroom (if your school allows that) to work on anything you’re having difficulty with. It will help establish a good relationship with your teachers and is similar to the concept of office hours in college.
• Don’t stress too much about college. it’s a couple of years off and it’s great to keep it in mind, but you’ve got plenty of time until then. If you’re ahead of the game and want to get a jump start on college apps, take a campus tour or two and see what you like or start researching different schools! (My appblr tag)
• Take one full day off a week! Don’t do any schoolwork, just relax and spend time with friends. Your brain will thank you. (Ways to Destress, Feel Better Masterpost, Self Care Masterpost, my self care tag) 
• Your health is more important than any grade. (My health and mental health tags)

• As a class, AP World History is known for having one of the more notorious AP exams. This probably because it literally covers all of world history (which is way too much information for one class if you ask me). The College Board splits it up into six general periods. That’s how my teacher set up tests (1 per period), and I bet a lot of other teachers out there do that too.
• The AP exam is really tough, not gonna lie. It includes (as of 2017) multiple choice questions, short answer questions (SAQs), one document based question (DBQ), and a long essay question (LEQ). The College Board does change the test every year though, so make sure you know what’s going to be required of you before exam day.

• Read the textbook your school provides and take notes! Keeping all of the information that sticks out as important and making sure that you remember key concepts in each unit is really important to AP World History.
• Be familiar with the kinds of questions you’ll be asked, whether it’s on the MC, SAQ, DBQ, or LEQ section. This will help you be more prepared for the info you’re going to need to remember and who knows- maybe you’ll come across a question on the AP Exam/unit test that you’ve already written about (this happened to me!). 
• Start reviewing for the AP Exam early. This is important for every AP Exam, but especially for APWH since you’re literally covering all of human civilization.
• Keep tests, practice exercises, quizzes, and essays that you’ve completed throughout the year and use them to study. Learning from your mistakes is something that can help in virtually every class.
• Learn how to write the essays! Not fulfilling the requirements for SAQs, DBQs, and LEQs is what kills a lot of exam grades. If your teacher assigns essays throughout the year, take them seriously and get feedback so you know what you need to fix. If your teacher doesn’t assign essays, find some prompts and ask them if they’ll revise it with you.
• Know all of the essay requirements by heart. You’ll save a lot of time by not having to look and double check that you’ve fulfilled everything on the checklist.
• Take practice tests! I can’t stress this enough. Even if you’re convinced you’re going to fail the AP Exam, taking practice tests and review quizzes is a great way to review for tests in class.
• If you can, get a review book! Throughout the entire school year I used this book as my textbook (I hate the textbook our school uses) and for the AP Exam I also used the Princeton Review book. They aren’t the end all be all, but I did find them really helpful.
• Be able to make connections between different points in world history and explain them. (This will help with your synthesis points on the essays) Use specific facts, people, and events to explain your reasoning!

• Course and Exam Description
• Course Overview Modules
• General Info Sheet
• 2017-2018 Changes

• Pearson Practice Tests and Essay Questions
• Barron’s Practice Test
• Tests by Chapter
• Practice Quizzes
• More Practice Quizzes
• Official Practice Questions (scroll to bottom)
• Sample Questions
• 1,748 Flashcards 
• FRQ & DBQ Tips

• Crash Course World History- good for a quick refresher
• Get A Five- similar to Crash Course, but more tailored toward the AP curriculum with more videos & practice quizzes included
• AP World In 16 Minutes- just kind of a funny thing that’s good for reviewing in a short period of time
• Period Overviews
• Outlines
• Cram Packets

• AP Psychology
• Freshman Year
• Sophomore Year
• Study Music
• Food
• 5 Recipies That Make Your Life Easier
• Top 5 Apps for Students

• find a study partner
• do extra practice or research
• teach it to someone else (this works so well!)

• use a concentration check sheet (every time u get distracted, put a check on ur sheet. this is supposed to program ur mind to pay attention)
• while u read, talk back to the author
• ask questions during lectures (this is scary ik!! but do it!)

• preview and skim the material before u read it. or google it!
• write out a list of vocab words before a lecture and leave some spaces between them to fill in during the lecture
• read ahead of lectures
• watch crashcourse tbh

• look for bolded words, graphics, pictures, chapter review questions in ur readings
• listen for verbal clues like emphasis and repetition during lectures
• make urself a study guide as u read and write down questions for urself to answer later as review (kinda like cornell notes)

• apply vocab words to ur life
• make flashcards and sort them (try not to have more than seven items in one category!)
• use mnemonics

• after u read, ask urself questions
• talk abt what u learned w/ classmates outside of class
• again, teach someone else

• convert info into a chart or graph
• draw it out
• make a mental video of a process
• look at picture/video examples

• ask urself: is this something i already know?

• make a list of what u remember from class
• review notes at the end of the day, every day
• stop after reading each prg to write a question in ur notes
• make ur own practice quiz

• make a daily/weekly study schedule
• create a time budget/time tracker (track everything ur doing for a week and see how u can be more efficient w/ the time u waste)
• divide the reading/vocab by the number of days before an exam and do a little bit each day (u can use sticky notes to divide ur reading)

• stop stressing! this sounds stupid and it isnt going to be easy, but anxiety causes u to lose focus. try ur best to think positively. sleep a lot. minimize ur caffeine intake. take a walk maybe
• when u need to remember something, look upward or close ur eyes (when ur eyes are open ur using visual parts of ur brain that u might not need to be using)
• find a rival! (like the person right above u in class rank) secretly compete w/ them (envy can improve mental persistence bc it makes u focus more intensely) but dont overdo it! 
• walking and sleeping build memory storage in ur brain
• eat flavonoids! (grapes, berries, tea leaves, cocoa beans make neurons in the brain more capable of forming new memories + increase blood flow to the brain)
• obstacles force ur brain to try harder, so space learning lessons apart or create a puzzle to solve or change ur physical setting