You are at your desk, typing furiously on your laptop trying to finish your term paper due at eight in the morning. The seconds are ticking by, and you are wondering why you waited so long to start your paper. A few minutes later, you are getting ready to click the submit button, when an alarm rings and you find yourself in bed, having woken up from your dream.

Many students find themselves up in the morning trying to finish their assignments, barely alert enough to do them properly. But why would someone put themselves in this position? Because of all the activities after school or the desire to go out with friends, some people may accidentally forget about their assignments and end up doing them last minute. Others assume they will have time later and decided to relax instead of work.

It can be difficult to manage all of your extracurricular activities and study productively, but with Regents and finals, there are many tips and tricks you can use to study more efficiently. For example, you can take advantage of your time at school by working on homework during free periods.

Where you study is also important. For many, it is good to find a quiet place to study and turn off any distractions like your phone or TV. Depending on your preferences, you can also study with friends or listen to music if it helps keep you focused.

There are studying tricks for specific subjects, like making charts, diagrams and timelines for history exams to better visualize important events in the past. “I like to rewrite my notes, and especially for math, I rewrite the equations and important terms,” said Iris Zheng ’19. Moreover, for subjects that require calculations or a solving process, taking time to complete practice tests under testing conditions can help you familiarize yourself with the general style of questions and how to approach them.

It can be difficult to manage all of your extracurricular activities and study productively, but with Regents and finals, there are many tips and tricks you can use to study more efficiently.

There are a lot of tools as well to make studying a little easier. Take advantage of spare time during your commute, by going on Khan Academy or Quizlet to review online. Besides not having to make your own flashcards, you will lose virtual ones and can access them on any device. Review books are also helpful. “I read review books and do the practice problems. I also jot down information that I don’t know or are hard to remember while I read,” said Xiang Li ’19. For Midterm Exams, Regents exams, and Finals, you have to cover an entire year’s worth of information, so review books can be good summaries of the topics you need to know. Even before the exams, there are review sessions on specific topics led by teachers after school.

Be sure to manage your time well before exams. Try to eat well, sleep well, take breaks, and relax. Most importantly, do not give yourself a reason to be stressed!