Study Smart:Ace Your Tests!

Rock Your Exams! Test Tips by Test Type

Excellent Essays

• Plan to write or print so someone else can read it.
  
  
• Read the question carefully.
  
  
• Do what the question asks.
  
  
• If your teacher asks you to compare one thing to another, ask yourself how are these two things alike? Write those down.
  
  
• To contrast means, how are they different?
  
  
• To explain means, show the steps. How did something happen?
  
  
• Use a piece of scratch paper to make a little outline of your answer.
  
  
• Write down the most important things you need: facts and ideas that will answer the question.
  
  
• This will help you organize your thoughts.
  
  
• Put the most important facts in your first paragraph.
  
  
• Give yourself enough time to read your answer over.
  
  
• Cross out and correct any mistakes you made
  
  
• Make sure the names and dates are right.

Mastering Multiple Choice Tests

• Read the question.
  
  
• Don't look at the answers yet.
  
  
• Close your eyes and try to remember the answer.
  
  
• Now look at the answers on the test. Is your answer there?
  
  
• Yes? Mark it. No? Put a check in the left margin next to the question you don't know and go on.
  
  
• Answer all the questions you know the answer to first.
  
  
• Got a hunch? Go for it. Your first idea is usually right.
  
  
• Cross off any answers you know are wrong.
  
  
• Now there are fewer choices.
  
  
• Do two answers look a lot alike? Choose one of them.
  
  
• Go with your hunch.

Answering True or False Questions

• There are more true than false answers on many tests.
  
  
• Answers that have the words some or many in them are usually true. (Like the first tip!)
  
  
• Answers that have the words always or never are usually false.

Filling in that Blank

• If the blank has the letters an in front of it, that means the teacher is looking for a word that starts with an a, e, i, o u
  
  
• If the blank has the letter a in front of it, the teacher is looking for a word that starts with a consonant, like c, d, f, g,
  
  
• Try to remember the words the teacher put on the blackboard.
  
  
• Those words and ideas are most likely to be in a "fill in" question.

Match those Matching Questions

• Read the whole question.
  
  
• Now start. Don't worry if there are more answers than questions.
  
  
• Make the matches you know first.
  
  
• Cross out each match as you use it.
  
  
• You can draw lines, too, from the match to the answer.
  
  
• Follow your hunches. They are usually right.

Thanks to Julie.d, Nancy.s, Wendy.f, Carine.m, Sophie.G, Sommer.l, Rhonda.c and Suzanne.h for their suggestions.