Getting together as a group to study can be a very productive way to study. It can also be a great way socialize and procrastinate. So, before signing up for a study group, make sure that the group will actually be helping you study, not eating up valuable study time.

Here are 7 Tips to Create an Effective Study Group

1. Don’t make the group too big, 4-6 students is ideal.
2. Designate a moderator.
3. Each member should be responsible for a particular topic or section.
4. Study that section before meeting as a group. Identify key points or messages.
5. Group member’s job is to summarize the key points and help the others in the group if they have problems with that topic

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6. Have practice quizzes or tests. Each group member could prepare some quiz topics from the material that they are covering.
7. Ask the teacher for any guidelines. It might be a long shot, but the teacher just might be willing to identify key topics that should be covered.

Why Study Groups Work

The power of study groups can be summed up in one word: paraphrasing.

Paraphrasing is a great tool for students to have at their disposal. Not only does it help students develop deeper understanding of a subject, it helps them avoid plagiarism, something that becomes very important as the years go by.

In Other Words

Paraphrasing simply means putting it in your own words. As students review the section that they are covering for the study group, they should practice paraphrasing; that is, putting it on their own words. After reading a page, students should ask themselves, “What does this mean?” and re-state the section in their own words. The phrase “in other words” is the study group student’s best friend.

How a study group helps:

• Gives students new perspectives on a topic
• Helps divvy-up the studying responsibilities
• Gives students a feeling of camaraderie
• Helps develop group work skills
• Helps with test preparation
• Can remove study-related stress

Early Years

It’s more than a month into the school year. By this time, young students should be getting over their new-school year anxiety and starting to show excitement about the classroom, their teachers, and their new friends. A large part of the early years of school is social, including group play and recess. This part of development can lay the groundwork for a child’s attitude about school. They should be getting the message that school is a safe, fun place and that learning can be fun.

On the academic side, the early years of school are about critical groundwork; children are building the foundation for future skills (counting, learning their letters, and basic reading skills). While some problems might sound alarm bells, problems at this point might just as easily resolve themselves.

Middle Years

By the middle of October, students should be well into their school routine. The back-to-school jitters should be long gone.

If students are having issues, be it not keeping up with homework, or getting easily frustrated, now is the time to seek help.

It’s still early in the school year, and by seeking help now, students can quite easily repair academic problems and get on track.

High School Years

For many high school students, heading back to school is like jumping into the deep end of the pool. There is no easing into it. The school year starts off with a big splash, often with homework and assignments from the very first day of class. By mid October, students may have already dealt with midterms and major projects and essays. There is no time to waste; the first report is on the horizon, and high school students need to keep their eyes on the prize. One bad test mark can set the tone for the rest of the year. It’s important that if highschoolers are not adjusting to the new grade, they seek help. A little extra support can help students stay organized, stay on track of their homework, and keep up with the new curriculum.

It’s important to not be shy about asking for help; the many tutoring options are there for that specific reason. Often, the simple act of asking the teacher for extra help shows a willingness to improve, which can go a long way when it comes to the report card.

Have you ever asked Tim, your 5th grader, to bring the garbage out, only to trip over the bag halfway down the back steps? And when you go looking for Tim, you find that he’s engrossed in a computer/TV/videogame.

So you ask him about the garbage and he simply says that he forgot. What? He forgot a task while he was mid-way through it?

Doesn’t it seem like some days he has the attention span of a gnat?

Before you haul Tim off to the pediatrician’s office for a prescription, take a look at his after-school behavior. When it comes to the computer/TV/videogame, isn’t it funny how he can focus on nothing else for hours on end? Sure, when it comes to homework you have to nag and bribe, but when it comes to his favorite hobby, his attention is best described as undivided.

If your child can focus on some things, but not on others, it isn’t ADD; it’s childhood. It is simply a lack of motivation and interest in something that they have to put effort into, which is pretty common.

Turning our children into rock stars of focus may not be the easiest task in the world, but it isn’t necessarily one that requires medication. If your child can get to the 6th level of Super Mario Brothers, he can certainly learn to multiply fractions.

Let’s face it: children are into immediate gratification. They’re programmed to enjoy immediate results. Video games, good. Solving fractions, bad.

Just like other school skills such as organization or tidiness, paying attention is a skill that can be learned.

Oxford Learning has been using unique teaching methods to help children become aware of what their minds are doing as they are learning. Our techniques help children become aware of when they are off-topic, and teaches them to re-focus themselves. At Oxford Learning, students learn follow-through and stick-with-it-ness. Which are much needed skills, but unfortunately, very rarely taught in schools.

It’s a skill that they can use to make sure that the garbage bag ends up in the trashcan, and not on the back steps.

Being able to focus may not make children love their trigonometry homework, but it will help them get through the task much quicker.

Some children genuinely have a neurological disorder that requires treatment and a physician’s help. However, before placing a label on your child, consider the fact that maybe he just hasn’t leaned to pay attention yet.

Find out more about ADD/ADHD with Oxford Learning’s downloadable ADD/ADHD brochure, A New Way of Thinking about Paying Attention, by Dr. Nick Whitehead.

Quick, what was the last thing that somebody asked you to do?

Can’t remember? It’s not easy to keep track of all the things that we’re asked to do in a day. That’s why it’s important—for young and old alike, student and non-student—to use an agenda.

We’re bombarded with information throughout our day. Studies have shown that the short-term memory is capable of holding roughly 4-9 items, and only for a short period of time.

So don’t rely on your memory. Write it down. That’s why schools hand out agendas to students. It isn’t to doodle in during a boring lit class. It’s to keep track of assignments, homework, social activities, birthdays, and tests.

It’s there so that students don’t have to rely on imperfect short-term memory.

Students receive a lot of information during each school day. Using an agenda helps them sort, categorize, and remember that information.

Whether they realize it or not, and agenda helps students develop organization skills. It helps them to keep their priorities in order. It even helps them learn how to prioritize their responsibilities.

It also helps to reduce stress.

The trick, however, is to actually use it. The agenda can’t just stay in the locker during class, or in the book bag after school. To be effective, students need to make using the agenda part of their daily routine.

Oxford Learning has a great program that helps students learn how to use an agenda effectively. The “Get Organized Bootcamp” helps students learn to use an agenda, take notes in class, manage projects, and set goals.

Ask your local Oxford Learning about the “Get Organized Bootcamp.”

1. Oversleeping/Not Getting Enough Sleep. Students of all ages need a bedtime. Research has shown us time and again that during sleep, the brain files and stores information learned throughout the day. Just as oversleeping can wreak havoc on a morning routine, not getting enough sleep can seriously disrupt a student’s ability to focus in class.

2. Poor Nutrition. Food is fuel—the better the quality, the better the performance. If children eat a sugar-filled breakfast, or skip breakfast altogether, they run the risk of performing less than optimally in school. Without proper nutrition, children can tire out and lose focus. Students should be focusing on their teacher, not on their rumbling bellies.

3. Too Much Screen Time. TVs, computers, and cell phones are distracting to students. Mounting evidence is showing that multitasking is not as good as was originally thought. When students are trying to do homework, having online access doesn’t necessarily improve their ability to work, and it can detract from their ability to focus on a single task for a period of time.

4. Procrastinating. Everybody likes to relax after school (or work). But from social lives to family responsibilities to sports and extra curricular activities, it can be tempting to leave homework until the last minute. Too many distractions, not following a schedule, or not using an agenda can put homework on the bottom of the priority list. When students put schoolwork on a backburner, it can lead to last-minute scrambles and late-night cram sessions, neither of which pay-off in the classroom.

5. Not Getting Help. One of the biggest mistakes that students make is waiting until the last minute to seek help. Often the first report card is the first indicator that something may be getting off-track, but it can take a call from the teacher or a failing grade before students seek out support. At that point it will take more effort to correct the problem than if a student had asked for help at the “I’m-not-really-understanding-this stage.”

Oxford Learning has great programs to help students get rid of bad habits and get on track for a better school year. Contact an Oxford Learning location near you to find out how your child can ditch bad school habits for good.