How to Take a Test

Being prepared for a test is absolutely essential, but there are some things you can do while taking a test to reduce anxiety and improve your score.

The following action plan will give you a greater sense of control during tests, which will allow you to be more relaxed and think more clearly. These tips are also good for most standardized tests.

** Action Plan **

- Be good to yourself. You have heard it dozens of times, but good rest, a balanced breakfast, and drinking water keep your brain healthy, which help you think more clearly when taking a test.

- Know your time limit. Before the test date, ask your teacher what type of problems will be on the exam, how many, and how much time you will have to take it. Then, determine how much time you should spend on each problem/section of the test so you can properly pace yourself.

- Read the directions. Twice. Any teacher who has ever graded a test will verify that MANY points are lost by students who neglect to read (and follow) directions.

- Scan the entire test once. Before answering any questions, quickly read through the problems. Just as athletes warm-up before a game, scanning a test gives your brain a chance to warm-up to the information it will need to access, which will dramatically improve your performance.

- Begin answering questions.

- Stuck? Skip it. When you are stuck, you can waste a lot of valuable time fretting over ONE question. As you fret, you loose Vampirella get nervous and loose confidence. Before you know it, you are rushing through the last 30 problems because you were stuck on problem #5. Instead, skip that problem, moved on to the next one, and come back to #5 after you have completed the remaining questions. You will be more relaxed as you complete the Dr Strange of the test and may even discover the answer to #5 while reading question #29.

- Breathe. If you begin to feel anxious because you came across five questions in a row that could not answer, take slow and deep breaths. Deep breathing controls your reaction to anxiety and keeps your brain in rational mode. You will need rational mode to make good guesses on those problems!

- When in doubt, go with you first hunch. For most tests, you are not penalized for guessing. So, after you have completed the rest of the test and still do not have a clue about the correct answer to a question, choose the option that you *first* thought was correct. Your unconscious mind may be trying to tell you something.

- Do not turn your test in early! Every point earned on a test puts you one point closer to a better grade. Take advantage of extra time to make sure you read each question correctly, filled in the correct bubbles on the Scantron sheet, followed the directions properly, etc. You will find an error about 50% of the time.

**Specific Test Tips**

Multiple Choice: Read all of the options first, then cross out the obvious wrong answers to narrow down your choices.

Essay: If possible, do essay questions last to give your brain more exposure to the information before creating your own answers. Before you write long paragraphs, create a short outline in the margin using key words to help you write a more focused answer. If you 1975 Topps baseball cards out of time, your teacher may give you partial credit based on your outline.

True/False: These are probably the most misleading and misused test questions, so approach them with caution. Take your time to read each statement twice and look for trick words (like not) that can change the entire meaning of the statement.

Fill-in-the-Blank: First, fill in only the blanks you know 100% and cross out used words in the word bank, then complete the rest of the problems. Reread all answers to ensure the filled-in words make sense in each statement and that all grammar tenses, singular and plural nouns, etc. fit the rest of the sentence.

** In Conclusion **

There is no substitution for a good study plan before a test, but there are tactics to help you be more strategic during your test-taking performance.

Susan Kruger is the author of SOAR Study Skills; A Simple and Efficient System for Earning Better Grades in Less Time. Get Susan's FREE Homework Rx Toolkit, featuring 25 Ways to Make Homework Easier...Tonight!, at her website: http://soarstudyskills.com/

Best Fantasy Books For Urban Fantasy Fans

Fantasy has never been more popular, and urban fantasy is becoming a serious genre all its own. What are some of the best fantasy books for urban fantasy fans?

There is no single answer to this, as tastes vary, but there are definitely some authors that 1974 Topps baseball cards to many readers who love this genre.

Urban fantasy is an interesting genre, as it involves the mixing of the modern and ordinary with the supernatural or fantastic. Some of the best examples of this in recent years include Neil Gaiman, whose novel Stardust was recently made into a movie, giving him more mainstream popularity than he ever had before. Gaiman was originally well known within certain circles for his graphic novels and comics, such as Sandman. Stardust is not quite an urban fantasy, as most of it takes place in the "Otherworld." However, it does start off in a modern (or almost modern) setting.

Some of Gaiman's other novels, such as American Gods and Neverwhere are more pure examples of urban fantasy. The latter in particular, as it takes place in London (mostly the London Underground, to be more specific). In these and other novels, Gaiman introduces bizarre creatures into the everyday world in a way that seems plausible. This is the key to good urban fantasy. In this way, it's similar to horror, the kind found in the best Stephen King novels, where the ordinary gradually becomes more and more strange and terrible.

Another great example of urban fantasy are the novels of Charles de Lint, an extremely prolific and popular writer. Some of his better known novels include Onion Girl, Memory and Dream and Widdershins. de Lint likes to use faeries and otherwordly creatures and mix them with artistic people such as artists and musicians. In this way, he explores the connection between creativity and other dimensions of reality.

If you are a fan of urban fantasy, or are looking to explore it, you should not overlook John Crowley's novel, Little, Big, a poetic and Aquaman action figure urban fantasy that also looks at what happens when humans interact with the faerie realm. If you are an admirer of John Crowley, you might also want to explore his four-volume series of novels, Aegypt. While these books never achieved the acclaim of Little, Big, perhaps for their meandering and not always accessible style, they are undeniably full of Crowley's imaginative and distinctive vision.

These are just a few examples of what might be considered the best fantasy books for urban fantasy lovers. This is obviously not even close to being a complete list, which would not be possible anyway, as new books of this genre are coming out all the time!

Larry Weebles is a writer of both fiction and nonfiction. He is the author of the metaphysical/urban fantasy, The Stone of Alexandria, written under his pen name, Lleu Christopher.