I got my books! Any tips for studying?

Lounge
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I just got my books in the mail (Tuchman’s A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century, and Norton’s Critical Edition of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales), and I am starting by reading the history book.

The thing is, I don’t just want to read. I want to study and remember. I am tired of not knowing anything about literature anymore. I know I’ve mentioned it before, but for those who don’t know, my BA is in English Literature, and I don’t know the authors of most books let alone details, dates, or pertinent historical information.

My memory is better now than it has been in a long time. However, I am tired of my high schooler asking me questions about books that I studied and not being able to answer them. Maybe if I learn them over again, I can answer them for my next child. Also, it will be good practice for my next Master’s degree.

Anyhow, the point of this lengthy post is this: I need study tips! I am a visual and kinesthetic learner. I really struggle with lectures unless I take notes from them. But I need study tips from fellow sz sufferers. What helps when you have memory problems?

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Pomodoro Method

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Interesting! I will give that a try. I had never heard of it before and had to look it up. I think I can do 25 minutes at a time. I need a highlighter and a spiral notebook, though.

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I’m visual too. Mind maps worked great.

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Mind maps confuse me. I can do formal outlines, but not mind maps. One benefit to doing formal outlines is that I have to keep writing them to get them perfect, so I memorize the content well. The downside is that it takes forever. I need something faster.

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Also a small lap sized white board and erasable marker if you are repeating or memorizing.

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I just went out and bought a notebook. It is all perfect and new! Thank you for your suggestion @Skims. You have been most helpful. :slightly_smiling_face:

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I’d just take it as a meditative practice to make sure you are comprhensively following what’s stated, sentence by sentence.

Forget page numbers and long term goals. Enjoy the voice of the author… Learn to subtract your own monologue… Consider it healthy to seek interpreting the words as they were meant to be stated.

But really it’s falling in love with reading each and every sentence… for whatever worth or lack thereof they have… That makes a good reader… And makes reading the proper escape that it can be.

I just got my anthropology book… I plan on starting to read it tomorrow.

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Good luck @Azley! Are you taking an anthropology course or just reading the book?

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Just reading to get my feet wet. I actually want to study business, but I’m not buying the material until I get through this one.

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I don’t know if I can offer the greatest advice, but I recommend with stuff like history breaking it up into segments.

Like say to yourself “Tonight I am going to study/and read the first 5-15 pages.” Or whatever segment works for you.

Then the next night study the next 5-15 pages.

With this method you wont be overwhelmed (I hope so at least).

Also if you’re a visual learner, don’t move on in the book until you have positive images of the segment you read.

Maybe go onto YouTube and look up lectures of the same topic. Since YouTube is primarily visual I hope that will also help.

Take care, good luck. Those sounds like fascinating topics! :v:

  • Monte
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