The end of the school year is fast approaching, and for most high school kids that means dreaded final exams. For New York state students, it means Regents exams! We discuss studying and test-taking tips, and give some ideas on how to handle stress. The Tada! team has had an exciting day. First we drew our new album art with chalk, then we played UNO (Nikki won the championship and Chris came in at a close second). And now we’re bringing our latest insight to you!

Show Notes

Snack of the Day

Every episode, we just have to eat something and share it with you. Today, we’re having sandwiches and pretzels, with light mayo of course!

Picks

This week, we’ve chosen our favorite picks to share with you. Have you found something interesting that you think we should mention on an upcoming show? Let us know in the comments or by email.

• David: Think Geek
• Nikki: Crocheting!
• Chris: Google Wave, Google’s future solution to e-mail, chat and document collaboration; and his article about creating your own job

Test Preparation and Regents

• Studying
  • Review Sessions
  • Study Groups
  • Practice Tests
    • Knowing the test can make all the difference
    • Provides insight into what you know and don’t know
  • RegentsPrep.org
• Test-Taking Tips
  • Don’t Cheat
    • You’ll only make yourself feel bad
    • Chances are, the person next to you struggled with the exact same problem and you’d be copying down a wrong answer
  • Keep calm
  • Read the question fully
  • Read every answer, even if you think you picked the right choice
  • Highlight (if allowed), underline, circle
  • “Brain Dump” – write down as much information you can remember as possible to use as reference
  • Skip a question and return to it if necessary
• Handling Stress
  • Breathe, but don’t hyperventilate
  • Feel prepared — just remember that you do know this stuff, since you’ve been doing it all year
  • Don’t procrastinate when it comes to studying
  • Take the day before the exam to relax, and only study lightly (if at all)

What’s your opinion on the Regents or standardized testing in general? Have some studying, test-taking, or anti-stress tips to share? Email us with your thoughts, or leave a comment below!