It is that time of year when students are being tested for what they have learned so far in the semester.  

Midterm week is one of the most stressful periods of the semester, making it important to consider a strategic plan for studying without the angst.

Here are some tips on how to make it through the week:

• Use study methods that actually help you learn the material.

If you don’t think the lengthy notes you’re taking in class will help you memorize terms or equations, make notecards. Notecards can be a very effective learning method. You can use a lot of different colors to help you organize the different terms you need to memorize. It is also easy to quiz yourself with notecards. Organize the cards into piles of what you need to study more of and what you understand well enough.

• Study in a good, hard-working environment.  

If you have any distractions going on around you, it won’t help with your studies. You need to be in a quiet environment where you can actually hear your thoughts. Distractions, such as checking your phone to roam social media or surf the internet, lead to procrastination. Pictures on Instagram will not help you study for those midterms, so turn off your phone if necessary.  It is even harder to stay focused while writing a midterm essay, because it is so easy to open up tabs on the internet to go on Youtube or Netflix. Restrain yourself from doing so. Fifteen minutes on the internet could easily turn into three hours, taking a lot of your study time.

• Most importantly, allow yourself to have some time to breathe.  

Sometimes it hurts us more to over prepare. Midterms are stressful and students should definitely work and study hard to reach for an A, but there are times when students should also take a break from studying and just breathe.