STUDY SKILLS IN 6TH FORM

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STUDY SKILLS IN 6TH FORM

• MRS MOTHERSDALE

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LEARNING STYLES

• Howard Gardner identified a range of learning
  styles and intelligences all of us have these
  intelligences just in different balances.
• There is no BEST of WORSE type of intelligence or
  learning style just what is right for you.
• Learning is the processing of information we
  encounter, which leads to changes or an increase
  in our knowledge and abilities.

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LEARNING STYLES

• Linguistic Word smart
• Do you consider yourself good with words and
  their meanings?
• Can you explain things simply and concisely when
  necessary?
• Can you remember things you have read and heard?
• This form of intelligence is all about how we
  deal with language, words and their meaning and
  is often highly developed in writers and poets.

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LEARNING STYLES

• Logical-Mathematical
• Are you good at solving problems?
• Do you find it easy to work with numbers?
• Do you sit watching illusionists on TV and try
  and figure how they do it?
• This form of intelligence relates to how we
  reason and solve problems and is often highly
  developed in mathematicians, scientists,
  engineers and computer programmers.

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LEARNING STYLES

• Spatial
• If someone describes the layout of their house to
  you, do you find it easy to visualise it your
  head?
• Can you imagine what your lounge would look like
  painted in green and orange polka dots?
• Are you good at judging distances?
• Can you tell which way is North?
• This form of intelligence relates to how we
  visualise and perceive physical space in our
  heads and is often highly developed in chess
  players, architects and in those home designers
  you often see on TV (although you wouldn't always
  think that was the case!).

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LEARNING STYLES

• Musical
• Have you found it easy to learn to play an
  instrument?
• Can you sing in tune and tell when others aren't?
  
• Do you compose your own music?
• Do you have rhythm?
• Can you tell when someone playing an instrument
  has played a duff note?
• This form of intelligence is not just about music
  and composition. It is also about our ability to
  identify the pitch and the rhythm of the sounds
  we hear around us everyday. As you would expect,
  this form of intelligence is often highly
  developed in professional musicians and Dj's, but
  also sound engineers, record producers and, in
  some cases, mechanics who can diagnose a fault
  from the sound a car makes.

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LEARNING STYLES

• Interpersonal People Smart
• Do you like meeting new people?
• Do you find it easy working with a team of
  people?
• Do you find people often tell you their problems
  because you are a good listener or give good
  advice?
• Do you remain patient when trying to teach
  someone something you are good at or you know
  more about?
• This form or intelligence is often highly
  developed in individuals whose work is people
  orientated, for instance, teachers, counsellors,
  hairdressers and receptionists.

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LEARNING STYLES

• Intrapersonal Self Smart
• Do you know what your strengths and weaknesses
  are?
• Do you allow yourself to show emotion?
• Would you describe yourself as spiritual?
• This form of intelligence relates to an
  understanding of our private inner-selves. You
  can probably think of people you know who
  probably wouldn't score highly on this at all and
  others who would.

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LEARNING STYLES

• Bodily-Kinaesthetic
• Do you consider yourself a skilful sports player?
  
• On the dance floor, do you consider yourself as
  someone who can dance, or someone who randomly
  moves their arms and legs?
• Could you walk a tight rope, even if it was just
  a few centimetres off the ground?
• How easy do you find it to thread a needle?
• Can you pat your head whilst rubbing your
  stomach?
• This form of intelligence relates to how skilful
  we are in the movement and use of our body and is
  often associated with professional sports people,
  dancers and circus artists.

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MRS MS INTELLIGENCE!?!
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So what does all this mean? How best to learn?

• Linguistic people may find it easier to learn by
• Writing letters, poems, stories, descriptions
• Leading an oral discussion or debate
• Creating audio tapes
• Giving an oral presentation
• Writing or giving a news report
• Developing questions for, and conducting an
  interview
• Presenting a radio drama
• Creating a slogan
• Writing their own story problems
• Keeping a journal or diary
• Writing a verbal defence
• Creating a word game to go along with your
  present topic

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Logical/Mathematical people may find it easier to
learn by

• Listing or organizing facts Using deductive
  reasoning skills
• Using abstract symbols and formulas
• Solving logic and/or story problems
• Doing brainteasers
• Analyzing data
• Using graphic organizers
• Working with number sequences
• Computing or Calculating
• Deciphering codes
• Forcing relationships/Syllogisms
• Creating or finding patterns
• Hypothesizing/Conducting an experiment

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Spatial people may find it easier to learn by

• Creating charts, posters, graphs, or diagrams
• Creating a Web page or PowerPoint project
• Making a videotape or film
• Creating pie charts, bar graphs, etc.
• Making a photo album
• Creating a collage
• Making a mobile or sculpture
• Designing a mind map
• Making a map
• Using colour and shape
• Pretending to be someone else, or something
  else.

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Musical people may find it easier to learn by

• Writing or singing a curriculum song in the
  content area Developing and/or using rhythmic
  patterns as learning aids
• Composing a melody
• Changing the words to a song
• Finding song titles that help explain content
• Creating a musical game or collage
• Identifying music that helps students study
• Using musical vocabulary as metaphors
• Creating, designing, and building a musical
  instrument
• Incorporating environmental sounds into a
  project or presentation
• Using percussion vibrations
• Showing or explaining tonal patterns

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Interpersonal people may find it easier to learn
by

• Giving feedback to the teacher or to classmate
• Intuiting other's feelings
• Empathy practices
• Person-to-person communication
• Cooperative learning strategies
• Collaborative skills
• Receiving feedback
• Group projects
• Teaching someone else something new
• Learning from someone outside of school
• Other points of view
• Acting in a play or simulation
• Conducting an interview
• Creating "phone buddies" for homework

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Intrapersonal people may find it easier to learn
by

• Keeping a journal or diary
• Setting short/long-term goals
• Learning why and how the content under study is
  important in real life
• Describing his/her feelings about a subject
• Evaluating his/her own work
• Describing his/her personal strengths
• Carrying out an independent project
• Writing or drawing a personal history of his/her
  work
• Creating his/her own schedule and environment for
  completing classwork
• Having silent reflection time
• Using Focusing and/or Concentration skills.

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Body/Kinaesthetic people may find it easier to
learn by

• Creating a dance or movement sequence Role
  Playing
• Using physical gestures to communicate an idea
• Performing a skit or play
• Making manipulatives
• Building a model
• Performing Martial Arts
• Making a board or floor game
• Putting together a puzzle
• Creating and/or participating in a scavenger
  hunt
• Performing a pantomime
• Demonstrating sports games
• Sticking post its around the room and
  visualising where they are.

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Other general study tips - reading

• Everyone gets waylaid by routine tasks that
  provide relief from the uncertainties of
  studying. Don't feel guilty, but try to keep the
  distractions under control.
• To focus back on your studies, set yourself
  short, active, meaningful tasks, with deadlines.
• Whenever you can, give yourself a decent chance
  by studying at your best time of day.
• Don't worry about 'storing' knowledge in your
  'memory'. Concentrate more on understanding and
  taking notes of key points.
• When you get to important parts, you should be
  making some kind of jottings, either on the text
  itself or on a pad, to help yourself engage
  actively.
• Think about what you want to achieve.
• Decide whether to skim read, or read 'properly'.
  If you are going to read 'properly', set yourself
  a suitable target

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Reading properly!

• Easy text, covering fairly familiar ground
• 100 words per minute
• 12 pages per hour
• Moderately hard text, which you want to follow
  reasonably closely
• 70 words per minute
• 8 pages per hour
• Difficult text - unfamiliar material, which you
  want to understand in depth and take notes
• 30 words per minute
• 4 pages per hour

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NOTE TAKING

• What is the point of notes?
• Taking notes is one of the core activities of
  being a student. It is the cutting edge between
  you and the subject matter, where you work in
  your own personal ways at making the knowledge
  your own. It is hard work, but it serves all
  these purposes
• Focusing your attention. Making notes stops your
  mind from wandering as you read.
• 'Making' sense. Writing notes forces you to seek
  out some sense in the words in the text. It also
  helps you formulate ideas from the text in ways
  that make sense to you.
• A form of 'external' memory. Your notes act as a
  kind of extension to the memory capacity of your
  mind. They give you rapid access back to the
  knowledge you have been accumulating.
• A symbol of progress. Notes give you evidence of
  the work you have done. They can make an
  important contribution to your morale.
• Preparing an essay. Making notes is an essential
  part of drawing together ideas when you are
  constructing an essay.
• Pulling the course together. As you study a
  course, your mind becomes cluttered with
  disconnected bits and pieces. Making notes which
  summarise a section of the course helps you to
  create order. It makes your new ideas less
  confused and more useable.

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WHAT SORT OF NOTES?

• Notes on cards Buy a card index box and a set of
  cards. When you have read an article or a
  chapter, make notes on a card.
• Mind maps If you think visually, try doing your
  notes as a diagram, or 'mind map'.
• Structured summary notesIf you underlined words
  in the text as you read, then you can make notes
  at the end by going back and selecting some of
  the underlined words for summary notes. But pay
  attention to the way you set the notes out on the
  page. Use headings and bullet points. Place the
  points in clusters. Use arrows to show links. Use
  coloured pens. Be creative in thinking up ways to
  make the notes meaningful to you.
• Taking notes is a way of making yourself seek out
  the bones so that you can finish up with a
  stripped-down version of your own.

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RESEARCH

• Make sure you have the question written down
  clearly.
• Read any guidelines you are given.
• Make lists of types, places and sources of
  information.
• Invest in tuning up your web searching skills.
  These skills will be invaluable for research, and
  for many other aspects of study and for life in
  general.
• Sort and file your information as you collect it.
  
• Think ahead to the analysis and writing up.

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WRITING ESSAYS

• Stage 1 Think about the essay title
• Stage 2 Gather Material
• Stage 3 Get ideas on to paper
• Stage 4 Organising
• Stage 5 Drafting
• Stage 6 References
• Stage 7 Polishing

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AND FINALLY!

• Unsuccessful students
• Need outside controls from parents teachers.
• Dont measure their own work but depend on
  teachers comments.
• Work only sufficiently to get by with what
  teachers and parents expect.
• Blame others for their problems
• More often than not copy out the ides of others
  without thinking about them.

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WHERE AS!

• Successful students
• Get their rewards form meeting the high standards
  they set themselves.
• Set their own study goals.
• Blame no-one but themselves for failure but are
  able to recognise success.
• Keep at it when problems arise and look for
  solutions
• TRY DIFFERENT AND NEW WAYS OF STUDYING AND
  SOLVING PROBLEMS!!
• http//www.bbc.co.uk/learning/returning/betterlear
  ner/studyskills/a_introduction_01.shtml