Exams are stressful

           

2/25/2018

Last week on Friday, I had to take an exam for my calculus two class. Just hearing the words calculus and exam is frightening.  I probably studied for seven hours throughout that week but it seemed like it didn’t help me as much as I thought it would. However, the thing that helped me a lot on the exam was a six by ten note card that our professor allowed us to use.  Of course other students in lower math courses aren’t allowed to use note cards but that's because in calculus two we have an abundance of formulas to remember.  We also need to know trigonometric identities so that we can switch a piece of the function so that when we try to make an integral simpler.  It will help to get rid of the integral so that we are able to get the answer. Monday through Wednesday, I wasn’t really able to study for maybe ten or thirty minutes each night.  I was busy with finishing homework for other classes and studying for my history quiz.  On Thursday, I only had one class and then I came home to study the whole day after I finished my homework.  I spent probably five hours just looking at the review sheet our calculus professor gave us.  It seemed like the list kept on going forever and that there was too much to learn.  After studying for hours, I felt confused and distraught when I couldn’t remember how to do some problems.  After I finished the exam on Friday, I knew I messed up on a few of the problems and I felt that studying for so many hours barely helped me with only a few problems. Now I have to wait until next week to see how I did. Don’t get me wrong, I love math but it can stress me out like crazy.        

Self management

This week has been so stressful with all the things I have from all my classes and preparing for my calculus two exam.  Throughout the beginning of the week I am not as busy as I used to be since I changed my class schedule for one of my classes.  On Mondays usually at three o'clock I would have to be starting my calculus two laboratory but now I'm going on Wednesday at three o'clock to five o'clock.  However, I also have church as well on Mondays. On Tuesday, I have two classes but I use that day to do most of the chores at home.  If I have extra time, I also work on as much homework as I can.  Then Wednesdays are my longest day at school.  I'm there from eight am till six pm.  I have three or four hours of a break throughout that time.  However, I use most of that time just to eat breakfast and lunch.  I also use another hour just to work on the calculus two laboratory earlier so that I can finish it all in one day instead of working on it another day at school.  However, one thing I'm really happy about from planning out eight am classes from Monday through Friday is that I get Thursday's pretty much off except for my eight am class.  That is where I do all of my calculus two homework because that is the only day I have time to work on it.  With my calculus two exam coming up, I hope to make some time throughout this week by finishing some of my homework from other classes earlier.

Second semester

2/11/2018

                     It is crazy how long it has been since I have written a blog. I had a great winter break, but it is now spring and it's time to start working again. This is the third week and I already feel like there is a lot more homework compared to last semester. In my English class, we have to read usually. thirty pages for each day of class. Last semester, we would be reading maybe ten pages or less. In my calculus lab two, we have to complete eleven labs instead of ten labs. I don't know why college seems to be a lot harder but I have been doing a decent job of staying ahead of things.  For my history class, we have to read this very long chapter each week and take a test on it every Thursday. I read each chapter on the weekend because I'm usually busy throughout the week with homework from other classes. After the first semester, I have learned that I shouldn't procrastinate as much as I should have last semester. I remember staying up super late till one am to finish my calculus homework. After I passed calculus with a B-, my goal for this year is to get a job at the university as a math tutor. This year, I'm trying to be more responsible with the way I use my time and how to use it wisely so that it can benefit me. My other goal for this semester is to get an A in my calculus and I hope to achieve this goal by working harder but also smarter.