Tip #8 - HOW YOU PRACTICE IS HOW YOU PLAY

"How you practice is how you play" is an important saying in any field, whether sports, acting, music, or even testing. It is easy to see the relevance of this saying in sports. For example, a football team does not practice for 20 minutes each day and expect to be ready for the game. The players do not jog during every practice. No, football teams practice for several hours each day and they run full-speed every time they get the chance. They do this because that is what the game is going to be like.

Likewise, you need to practice for tests using a similar mindset. There are several strategies that will help you practice in such a way that you will be ready for game day (or test day).

1. Teams practice in a similar environment that the games are going to be played in. So, do the same thing. Sit at a desk or table. This is what you will be doing during your test, so practice it. Do not study relaxed in your bed or in a big comfortable recliner. You want your body to know that when you are sitting at a desk, it is time to study.

2. Football teams do not practice baseball or basketball. They practice football. Likewise, practice what is going to be on the test. Know what the test is going to be like. The test is going to consist of working out problems. Therefore, you need to practice working out problems, not just looking at how problems are worked out. Take several practice tests completely. Get the feeling of how long it is going to take to complete the test.

3. Football teams practice their "2-minute drill" or how to try to score quickly in the case that they are losing and the game is almost over. Likewise, practice getting stuck and working your way through it. Keep practicing the steps you use to get through getting stuck. For example, if you get stuck, your first step could be to skip the problem and come back to it. When you come back to the problem, you might be able to answer it because you have seen a similar problem to it. If not, you can cancel out some of the choices and make an educated guess. Make this process of working through getting stuck a habit so that if you do get stuck on a test, you do not have to think about it. Your mind already does what it has been trained to do.

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