Seven simple steps to midterms success

Midterms are coming up. Need I say more? Here are some tips to keep you off fmylife.com.

Experts say that listening to music while studying can aid concentration. They also say, however, to avoid music with lyrics, as such songs may be distracting. You don’t want to absentmindedly ask your study group why your shirt’s turned inside out. If you’re not into Chopin’s Nocturne in B-flat minor, try something with lyrics that you can’t understand. Might I suggest the theme to Cops? “Bad boys, bad boys…”

Using more than one sense while studying helps to embed the information in your brain. The typical way that people do this is to read their notes aloud. Why not switch it up a bit and bring some other senses into the mix? Use different scented markers to highlight different points in your readings: strawberry for Aristotle, orange for Hobbes and licorice for Rousseau.

Alternatively — if your smeller is broken or you’ve just got the sniffles — try associating different ideas with different foods. Eat chocolate for civil wars, cupcakes for world wars and potato chips for revolutionary wars. (Warning: may cause sudden weight gain.)

Many people find it helpful to study in an isolated area, like a carrel. If you have a hard time getting hold of one because you’re not yet working on your thesis, make one of your own. All you need are a few chairs, a bed sheet and some pillows. Don’t pretend you’ve never made a fort before. While this may disturb your roommate, you luckily won’t be able to hear him shout at you from inside your imaginary castle.

Set goals. After each page you write, reward yourself with an episode of “The Bachelor.” Or, if you’d rather not kill the brain cells that you’ve just spent hours attempting to nurture, take a 10-minute nap.

Get up, and stretch every hour. It invigorates the body and the mind. Personally, I make sure to do it every time I study. There’s a reason the Marquand staff calls me “that girl who lies on the floor all the time.”

Give yourself a pep talk when you start feeling overwhelmed. Look at yourself in the mirror, smack yourself around a bit and say “You’re gonna eat lightnin.’ and you’re gonna crap thunder!” Just try not to do it in a shared bathroom, or you’ll get a nickname, too.