HowtoStudyChemistryEffectively (copiedfromBriskandBosworth) Introduction: EverystudentwouldlikeanAinchemistry.Manystudents,however,firstneed to learn the techniques that will help them earn high grades.

h grades. If you were successfulinhighschoolwithouteverthinkingabouthowtostudy,youmight not be prepared for the fact that college courses require a great deal of independent learning, and that you have to integrate material from lecture, textbooks, handouts, and problems with what seems like little guidance comparedtowhatyoumayhavebeenusedto. Thetechniquesdescribedhere willhelpyoustudychemistryandothersciencesmoreeffectively.Theywillnot onlyimproveyourgradesbutwillgiveyoumoreconfidenceaswell,sothat learningchemistryisapleasureratherthanachore. HowtoReadandUnderstandYourTextbook: Manystudentsmakethemistakeofreadingatextbooklikeanovel;theyreadan entirechapteronceandthenattempttodotheproblems.Tolearnthemostfrom a textbook, you must actively read; that is, you must constantly be thinking about what you are reading, pausing to relate it to what you have just read before,andmakingsureyouunderstanditsapplications. 1. Surveythechapter. 2. Outlineorunderlineasyoureadactively. 3. Dopracticeexercisesandfinalexercises. 4. Keeparecordofquestionsandanyproblemsyoudontunderstand,so thatyoucanconsultinstructors,classmates,textbooks,orlecturenotesfor answers. GettingtheMostOutoftheLecture: 1. Readtheassignmentbeforethelecture. Page1of5

2. Try to take notes in outline form showing major topics, subtopics, and theirrelationships.Includeexamples. 3. Readovernotesthesameday. Rewrite,change,andaddnoteswhere necessary. 4. Makesureyournotesarecomplete.Ifyoumissedpartofthelecture,find outwhatitwasyouomittedandfillitin. SolvingProblems: Most of your time in chemistry should be spent solving problems that are applicationsofconceptsandformulaslearnedinlectureandfromthetext.You canimproveyourabilitytosolveproblemsbylearninghowtothinkaboutthe examplesthataresolvedforyouinthetext,studyguide,andinthelecture,and alsobylearninghowtothinkaboutthemanyrelationships(formulas)usedin theproblem. 1. Makesureyouransweriswhattheproblemaskedfor. 2. Make sure your answer is reasonable. When you study example problemsinyourtextandstudyguide,thinkaboutthemagnitudesofthe answerssothatyouwillhavesomeconceptofreasonableanswers.Ifyou calculatethatthemassofamoleculeis10kg,itisclearthatyouhavemade anderror.However,ifyoucalculatethat106kJ/molofheatarereleasedby areaction,youwillnotrealizethatyouhavemadeanerrorunlessyou havepreviously noted reasonable values for heat being released from chemicalreactions. 3. Makesureyouranswerhasthecorrectnumberofsignificantfigures. ProblemSolvingTips: 1. Identifytheknownquantitiesandtheunknownquantitiesaskedfor. 2. Planthesolution:Whatdoyouknowabouttheunknownthatmightlinkit Page2of5

togiveninformation? 3. Performcalculations. 4. Checkyouranswers. ManagingYourTime: Learntomanageyourtime.Thisskillwillbeinvaluable,especiallyifyouplana careerinscience.Learningchemistrytakestimeandenergy,andyoushouldtry tostudysomechemistrynearlyeveryday. 1. Constructastudyscheduleatthebeginningofeachweek. 2. Bespecificastowhatyouplantododuringyourstudysessions. 3. Overestimatethetimeyouwillneedtocompleteeachassignment. 4. Besuretoincludeinyourscheduleenoughtimetocompleteallother necessarytasksaswellastimeforleisureactivities. TipsonCreatingaStudyArea: 1. Studyinacomfortablebutefficientareaminimizingdistractions. 2. Makesurethatyourstudyareaisequippedwithalltheitemsyouwill needforstudying. UsingStudyGroups: 1. Formastudygroupconsistingofthreetosixseriouschemistrystudents. 2. Trytoconveneatthesameplaceandsametimesweekly. 3. Assignspecifictaskstomembers. 4. Spendmostofyourtimediscussingandsolvingproblems.

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5. Increasethetimeforyoursessionstoprepareforexams. Eachmember should be responsible for preparing and presenting material that will appearontheupcomingtest. PreparingforandTakingExams: To adequately prepare for an exam, you must first organize your time in advance. Startstudyingafewweeksbeforeanexambyaddingtimetoyour usualstudyschedule,andusethisadditionaltimeforexampreparationonly. 1. Deviseascheduleforpreparationafewweeksbeforetheexam. 2. Determine which topics you know well, which topics you do not understandcompletely,andwhatmaterialyoudonotknowatall. 3. Spendmostofyourtimeactuallysolvingassignedproblems,aswell as newproblemsfromyourtext,studyguide,andpreviousexams. 4. Reviewpreviousexamstoremindyourselfofhowyourknowledgewillbe tested. 5. Work with your study group as much as possible developing outlines, solvingproblems,andcreatingpracticeexams. TheNightBeforetheExam: The night before the exam should be used for a quick review of the more importanttopicsorareviewofthematerialyouarestilluncertainabout.Atthis point, you should have studied all of the relevant topics and associated problems. Chemistry cannot be learned overnight and any attempts at crammingtheworkwillonlyresultinmoreanxietyduringtheexam.Learning anyscienceisagradualprocessrequiringmuchtimeandenergy. Remember, yourexamgradeswillreflectyourstudytechniques.Adequatepreparationnot onlyincreasesyourknowledgeandimprovestheskillsrequiredfortheexam, butalsoreducesyouranxietylevelsothatyoucanthinkmoreclearly.

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TakingtheExam: 1. Readinstructionscarefully. 2. Answerthequestionsorsolvetheproblemsyoufeelsureaboutfirst. 3. Showallworkclearly. 4. Useacalculatorwithallrequiredfunctions. 5. Check your answers to see if they match the questions and if they are reasonable.

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