TEST TAKING STRATEGIES

Reading Enhancement and Development, Atkinson & Longman, 2003

MOTIVATING AND DISCIPLING YOURSELF

Take the Lead Review class notes

Preview upcoming chapter

Create list of words/objectives to accomplish

10 minute Workout Helps keep focus

Study Group

Reward Yourself

Get Busy

Check it Out Play concentration for 20 minutes. Make a

check mark each time you get distracted. The goal is to decrease the number of checks you make within that specified time (increasing attention span).

Whether you think

you can or think

you can‟t – you are

right.

-Henry FordTwentieth century industrialist

COPING WITH TEST ANXIETY

Before and After a Test:

Try exercise.

Take a class on relaxation techniques, time

management, study skills, and test taking.

Talk to others.

Avoid cramming.

Visualize success.

Relax.

Use self-talk.

COPING WITH TEST ANXIETY

During a Test:

Pause and breathe deeply.

Answer a question you know.

Ask for information.

Use self-talk.

MNEMONICS: MEMORY TECHNIQUES

Acronyms and Acrostics

Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally

Location

Make an abstract memory map (bones in the body)

Word Games, Puns and Parodies

I before E except after C.

“Two numismatists getting together for old „dime‟s‟ sake.”

Mental and Physical Imagery

The 21st president was Chester Arthur. Visualize an author writing „21‟ on a wooden chest.

SUGGESTIONS FOR TAKING EXAMS

Arrive on time.

Arriving late may make you feel rushed and panic.

Be alert.

Understand the directions. Ask questions if you are

unsure of anything.

Expect mental blocks.

Return to question later if allowed.

Find out if you are penalized for guessing.

If it won‟t hurt your score, never leave blanks.

Don‟t spend too much time on any one

question.

STEPS FOR READING OBJECTIVE TESTS Survey the test.

Prepares you for its contents.

Read through the whole exam and answer the questions you know first. Gives you confidence.

Go back to the questions you didn‟t know. Try to answer the question in your own words, then look for a

matching response.

If you do not know the answer, try to figure out what the answer is not. Eliminate the obviously wrong ones.

Read all choices before answering a multiple choice question.

For True/False sections, read each question thoroughly. Look for key words, always, never, seldom, and frequently.

Watch for double negatives as you read. Two negative terms make the idea positive.