Getting Through Midterms

Ahh Midterms, the halfway point in the semester and the week of craziness before spring break. This is when most of us become addicted to caffeine, stress eat all of our feelings and emotions (candy, dessert, pizza, all the unhealthy things), sacrifice sleep for more studying, get slightly moody from being overwhelmed with stress, could care less about our personal appearance and live in sweatpants or yoga pants, and feel like our worlds are going to fall apart and we are going to fail. We stress so much over a simple test, everyone tells us we are going to be fine, but in our midst of craziness we don’t believe them. 

Here are some friendly tips to help get you through this week of craziness without losing your mind!

1.   TAKE A DEEP BREATH!

2.   Get organized, make your note cards, study guides, etc. (the more organized and prepared you are the better you will feel).

3.   Study with friends! This is my saving grace. I can study by myself and feel like I know nothing or become confused. When I study with friends and talk it out I build my confidence on the subject and retain the information so much better. Plus a lot of times your friends will have ways of remember things that might help you. The best way to do this is to study on your own first and then come together.

4.   Pack yourself healthy snacks and meals. You may really want that slice of pizza, cheeseburger, cheesesteak, etc. They taste great and smell amazing however, they make you feel stuffed, bloated, sleepy, and after you eat them you usually just want to go take a nap or watch TV. Healthy options will keep your brain powered, body fueled, and you focused. (Treat yourself though: Have an iced tea, chocolate milk, chocolate covered peanuts, pretzels, strawberries etc, popcorn, ice cream, and even splurge on a cookie if you really want).

5.   Caffeine, caffeine, this all personal preference. I myself am not a huge caffeine person. I drink tea from time to time, but have noticed since graduate school I drink more. I try to limit my caffeine though. Instead of constant caffeine during midterms when I feel like I am crashing I will grab a raspberry iced tea, a soda, or really cold water to wake me up. I will admit I go for the caffeine when those crashing points hit, but I try to wait until then.

6.   Get some sleep! You will not remember anything if you don’t get sleep. A tired mind is a lazy mind, a lazy tired mind retains enough to just get you through the day. You need your rest!

7.   Give yourself a break! You can only study so much and there is a thing as OVER STUDYING!! Go out and do things. Go see a movie, grab dinner, hang out with friends, spend time with family, lounge around and watch Netflix, go to the gym, etc. Whatever will help to relax you! Remember you are a person who has a life and needs. School is a priority but it is not your whole life. You need breaks!

8.   Most Important Learn what works best for you. For instance, I like

-         using a white board to write everything out and visually see it.

-         Color coding my note cards.

-         Studying with my friend, we work so well together (I am very lucky).

-         Talking out my note cards while I drive (probably not the safest but it helps me).

- I also take excessive notes during class so that when I go back I can remember everything from that lecture.

Now that you have some tips for next time and your exams are done enjoy your Spring Break =)

-Jessica

Tapping into how we learn

  

   One of the greatest things about my Neurological Basis of Communication Disorders class this semester is the way my professor taps into all of our areas of learning. We all learn differently whether it’s auditory, visual, or Kinesthtic, my professor tries to reach us all. We watch videos where we can see images/diagrams of the brain in 3-D, form groups and learn topics from our classmates which is great because we all learn differently, and we do hands on activities using our own creativity. She also provides us with charts that are in color and labelled by numbers to give us multiple ways to remember the information. Sometimes she even asks us to do things with our non-dominant hand so that we activate a different area of our brain. For example, our one homework assignment was to brush our teeth with our left hand. You would be amazed at how much more alert you become when you try to brush your teeth with your left hand (if your right hand dominant). Something that is a normal and almost automatic thing for you suddenly becomes a challenge. This is by far one of my most challenging courses this semester in regards to the curriculum but, I am loving every moment of it!

 -Jessica

Spring Semester Classes

I have finally had all of my classes for the Spring Semester, thanks to Mother Nature giving us some snow days. This semester I am taking Neurological Bases of Communication Disorders, Diagnostic Methods, and Language Disorders in School-Aged Children. The semester is already starting off different than last. My classes are more hands-on and interactive which is great because we are now taking things we learned last semester and either expanding off of them or applying them to real life situations/cases.

What am I learning this semester?

 In my diagnostics class I get to learn all about how to administer, score, and understand standardized tests. For a group project we conducted a language sample that we get to transcribe and see all the way through which is really cool. In my language disorders class we are learning all about speech-pathologists roles in a school-system, children learning/having difficulties with speech and language in academics, and different prevention/ intervention methods. In my Neuro class we are learning ALL about the BRAIN!!! What is really great about this class is that we not only get to learn about the brain which I personally find fascinating, but we get to see how different disorders/diseases affect the brain in regards to how, where, and possibly even why. 

This semester is going to be a challenge, but I am looking forward to it =)

            -Jessica