Senior Jeff Reese: A midterm is all the knowledge from the first half of the school year into one test. As someone who has taken a midterm, I have found some easy ways to help me study and understand the material easier.

Notes are a big thing study your notes from the classes that you’re having your midterm in and taking notes writing something down helps me remember it more than just looking at it over and over trying to memorize it it’s something that has also been proven to help with memory.

Second, I would suggest time management something very important and the most important to me pacing yourself is good you don’t want to be studying for hours on hours if you pace your self you will be calmer and focused.

Thirdly, don’t put studying off to the last couple of days don’t procrastinate it’s something that will always hurt you in the end, and the more time you study and know the material the better. Fourth ask for help if you need help it’s not something that is bad having people help you with something that you don’t understand fully is normally most people receive help with many things in life.

Senior Joe Stern: If you didn’t do as well as you hoped on a midterm, do not panic. Make sure to identify what went wrong: did you study enough? Were you missing knowledge in a specific part of the curriculum? Hold yourself to improving on future tests. Study the material again so you can guarantee that you know it.

Midterms are not the only factors in your grade so there are numerous other chances to improve. The worst thing you can do is blame the test or the teacher.

Midterms are supposed to be challenging. Work with the teacher to improve your grade for the future.

You can always refer to their syllabus or talk with them to see if they offer extra credit. To prevent yourself from ever being in a situation where you get a bad score, take plenty of time beforehand to prepare, review, and practice material from the first semester of your class. Making study guides over winter break is often the best method of preparation for good scores.

Just remember in the long run that your grades are subjective. One bad grade on a midterm won’t ruin your chances of success in life. As a person, you amount to more than a number.

Senior Matthew Aulicino: The memory of the first midterm exam week is still fresh in my mind, being that my first midterm exams were last year. I remember being stressed about how hard or easy they are tests were going to be and what test I should prioritize.

In my mind, I was going headfirst into the unknown. The teachers were very helpful though and gave us study guides and what material we needed to study.

This was a game-changer, now I just had to take my time and study. I remember taking two different approaches to my studies. For my World History test, I broke my studying into different sections and did one each day for a short amount of time.

For my Math test, I sat down a studied for two hours straight. When I sat down to take the math exam I couldn’t remember anything I did even though I spent two hours on it.

The World History exam I did a lot better on because I broke it up and didn’t overload myself. I learned that it doesn’t matter how much time you spend studying it matters how you study.

If you take the time and study the right way you can go into the exams feeling confident and stress-free and that is the most important thing.

Senior Anthony Klecha: A lot of kids, especially underclassmen, stress themselves out over midterms. Midterms are a big deal in high school and college, but most kids will work them out to be a bigger deal than they are.

If I happened to see a friend or student who is worrying about midterms I would do a handful of things to help them relax. I would first help them study if I had the same class as them because the more comfortable you feel in the subject the less worried about the midterm you become.

The most important thing I would point out is that the midterm is not the last grade you get. Let them know that even if they happen to do bad, that they will have the entire second semester to work that grade up.

Midterms are not the end of the word if you happen to get a bad grade. The most beneficial thing a midterm gives you is an insight into what you need to study more and it helps you prepare better study habits for the second semester.

Doing bad on a midterm can also give you that “chip on your shoulder” feeling to help you do better in all your classes after the midterm too. Yes, they can be stressful, but the most important thing is to study and do your best, if you put the most effort you can into it you’ll get the results you want to see.

Senior Dom Wilmer: There are many resources that students can use to prepare themselves for midterms.  Most of the resources they can use can be found in the school.  The students can go to the library and check out a book that contains information about a specific subject.

Every student has an iPad that they are given and can utilize it and look up practice problems for their test on websites such as Khan Academy, Duolingo, and Quizlet.

Khan Academy is one of the best options to study science, math, English, or history because the guy who teaches on it goes into great detail and gives a great explanation on everything he teaches.

Students can use Duolingo to practice spelling and pronunciation of a language they are taking.  Quizlet is a good option because usually, students can find a Quizlet made for their subject and can practice it or they can always create their own and share it with their classmates.

Another resource the students can use is the review packets teachers give them.  It is not promised that a teacher will give out a review packet but if they do it is most important that you review it because that is what is most likely going to be on the midterm.

Also, if the teacher is reviewing in class you should definitely pay attention if you are shaky on the subject.

Junior Matthew Polinsky: I took my first midterm my freshman year. I was pretty scared when I first took my midterm because they had been hyped up as like “do really well on them or you’ll fail” which only added to anxiety and stress for me.

I had been scared of failing a few of them because I knew that those ones would be extra hard because the class was decently hard for me as a freshman.

My biology midterm had been this twenty-some-page packet that I thought I would definitely fail and thankfully I didn’t. Another midterm that was very hard was my religion midterm.

So I was a little freaked out that we would now have to go over an entirely new section in a few days. You may be scared to fail one of your midterms but as long as you study hard and stay calm you’ll do fine.

Junior Drew Fontana: The biggest misconception about midterm exams is how big they are. While the name

“midterm” certainly carries some weight, the test itself is not a huge test.

In my experience, the midterms I have taken have been only 10-20 questions more than the normal-sized test.

Midterms usually range from 35-50 questions max. Do not get this confused with how much the midterms are worth, an astonishing 10% of your final grade.

The countless hours of studying and coffee breaks are absolutely needed for tests like this, but each test has roughly only 50 questions, and most are multiple-choice.

Sophomore James Sweeney: Students can become confused and worried while preparing to take their midterm tests.

The amount of material can seem overwhelming, especially when one is studying for multiple difficult classes.

Here are some tips on preparing for midterms that may help you: The best and most efficient way to prepare for the midterms is to do well in the class.

If you put in the work that was expected of you for the semester, you will have learned the material and feel much more confident taking the midterm.

By actively participating in class and making an effort to learn, you will prepare yourself much better for the midterm than just trying to learn all the material in the few days leading up to the test.

The review has its place. Take the time in the days leading up to the midterm to go over the subjects you feel weak in. Being able to recognize gaps in knowledge is essential. Look over the units of the courses you are worried about.

Are there certain concepts that you might need more work on? Study what is hardest for you so that you can improve. Of course, it is unreasonable to expect anybody to give an entire week or more to studying for tests in school.

This is where the last aspect of preparation comes in: relax.

If you have put in the work that was necessary, and have studied the important concepts of the class, you will do well on the midterm. It is incredibly important to take some time to relax before the midterm.

Going into the test comfortably and with a clear mind will do much more for you than staying up until 3 a.m. to review the night before.

Sophomore Gregory Schmidt: The midterms are one of the most stressful times of the year for schooling here at Central Catholic. A lot of students tend to get paranoid, anxious, and stressed over the midterms.

Today I’m here to say they aren’t as bad as talked about. As a sophomore at Central, I have been through both the midterm and final.

Through both the midterm and final there were tests I did good on and not so good on, and my biggest takeaway from it is after all the tests were said and done it was not worth stressing.

Depending on your teacher, your midterm could be a big portion of your grade or a little portion. Personally last year I would look at my grades see the classes I was not doing well in prioritizing those classes, and then look to see how much the midterm would affect my grade.

Usually, at the beginning of December, your teachers will make a study guide for the midterm and go over the criteria that are on it. I can not stress this enough those will be your best study materials for the midterm.

A teacher never wants their students to fail a midterm so usually they put everything you need to know on a study guide or will go over it with you in a class.

If there is anything you should take away from this it is that to review the study guide and do not stress if you do not do as expected there will always be a way to boost your grade back up.