It’s funny how we can watch Netflix for 3 hours straight without blinking. But when we sit down to do something “hard,” like study, we are suddenly distracted by every little teeny tiny thing. Many of my clients and students come to me complaining that …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. I’ve written a number of blog posts and made several videos about various methods for studying vocabulary words. But this post is about how to study hard vocabulary words or concepts that you’re struggling to remember or understand, for whatever reason. …
I talk (and write) all the time about different study skills and the importance of using study methods that a) match you as a learner, and b) match the material you’re studying. But this post isn’t about  how to use those study techniques. Instead, it’s …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. Wondering how to study for exams? Plain and simple: You need to study in short, frequent increments, a little bit each day over a period of time. At all costs, avoid studying in one large chunk. Actual science tells us that …
I love hacks. Who doesn’t!? As a student myself, I especially love study hacks, and as a teacher too, I especially love sharing a good study hack with others. (Obviously that’s why I started the SchoolHabits blog and YouTube channel.) In general, we should vary …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. Knowing how to edit your own essay is a superpower. Sure, so is knowing how to write an essay – obviously – but knowing how to edit your own papers is what takes your writing to the next level. As a …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. We treat our backpacks like garbage disposals: we throw everything in there from granola bar wrappers to dried-out pens, old papers to dead calculator batteries. I’ve even seen things as odd as a bungee cord and a camping canteen. (Yes, the …
I wrote a blog post about how to organize old school papers a while ago (read that post – Part 1 – before this one!), but I’m still asked this question all the time. While the minimalist in me is internally shouting “Throw them all …
Are you a slow reader? If so, how do you know? Did someone once tell you that you were a slow reader, or do you just feel like you’re reading slowly? Also — does it even really matter that you read slowly? If you are …
I am a super-focused person. I know what I want, I figure out how to get it, and then I take care of business. While I call it “focus” because I want to be nice to myself, those who know me well might choose …