LC 2022 - Study Log

JellyIsAwesome

Hi everyone!

This is the start of my study log which I'll hopefully update regularly.

Currently, I'm doing the following HL subjects:
English
Irish
Maths
French
Biology
Physics
Chemistry
Applied Maths

I'm hoping to study medicine after the Leaving Cert, and I'm aiming to achieve 550+ points and a good HPAT result to go along with that.

Let's be honest, this isn't going to be a walk in the park. I'll have to put my head down and I'll have to make some sacrifices in order to achieve my goals.

I'm going to have days where I'm working flat out, and also days where I might not even touch a book. Nevertheless, I'll be giving you guys a glimpse into what it's like to be a student, and moreover, how a 5th year student is coping with the impacts of COVID-19.

JellyIsAwesome

I primarily use a flashcard program called Anki to study all of my subjects.

It's based on the concept of spaced repetition, and I think that it's been very effective for me so far.

I create all of my own flashcards for every subject, and I roughly review over 1000 cards daily. It takes me 2-3 hours to finish reviewing all of my cards, and I have to admit that it does take a lot of willpower to get through all of them.

I'll be sharing my mood for the day by using different post icons.

To-Do List

• Applied Maths H/W
• Duolingo - Irish
• Finish Anki reviews
• Complete 10 HPAT sample questions

Reflection
I had a pretty productive day today, but I felt that I procrastinated too much on social media. I'm going to try and cut down on my screen time and replace social media with reading.

JellyIsAwesome

Out of all my subjects, English is my weakest subject. I find that writing essays under exam conditions is quite difficult as you have a short amount of time to write a good essay. I'm also clueless as to how I should go about studying English, given that we've got a heap of notes. If anyone has any tips for English, I'd really appreciate it if you'd let me know.

I must admit, Applied Maths is a really rewarding subject. It might look daunting at first, but once you understand the concepts behind each topic, it's actually not that bad. It's also very satisfying when you spend ages working away on a difficult enough problem and you eventually end up solving it.

To-Do List

• English: Write essay
• English: Make Othello cards
• Maths: Functions H/W
• Applied Maths: Practice Q4 from exam papers
• French: Learn off oral piece 'Mon Uniforme Scolaire' 1/3 learned
• Duolingo - French
• Review Anki cards

Reflection
Overall, another productive day. I managed to cut down on my screentime today and hopefully I can keep this up. I have online classes tomorrow, so I'll keep you all in the loop.

JellyIsAwesome

I usually sleep from 22:00-05:30, but over the last few days I've slept at around 1AM, with my wake up time remaining the same. I know that this isn't healthy but I don't feel any adverse effects from sleeping for around 5 hours. This definitely isn't a sustainable lifestyle, so I'll try to revert back to my normal sleep routine.

Since COVID-19 is widespread, we're into a 3rd lockdown. This means that most of the country is closed, including schools. We've been doing online classes since the beginning of January so that we won't fall behind, and I think that our teachers are doing a great job despite the circumstances. I actually think that online classes can be just as effective as normal classes, if used correctly.

You can't ignore the mental health problems given our current situation though. Personally, I'm coping well with the lockdown, and I'm surprised that I still have motivation to study. For others, motivation can be hard to find, and if anyone here feels like this, just know that there's millions of students across the world feeling the same way. If you feel like you are struggling, the best thing you can do is talk to someone.

Classes
English: Discussed 'The Threat of Chaos' in Othello.
Chemistry: Ionic and Covalent Bonding - 6.1 to 6.5.
Maths: Corrected H/W. Finished Functions chapter.
Physics: Force, Mass and Momentum.
Irish: Discussed background behind 'An Gnáthrud'.

To-Do List

• Chemistry: H/W
• Physics: H/W
• Maths: Functions H/W
• Applied Maths: 5G, Q8
• Duolingo - Irish
• Attend classes
• Review Anki cards

Reflection
My classes today ran smoothly and I was happy with the amount of studying that I did today.

JellyIsAwesome

I slept at around 1AM and I woke up at 5:30. I know that I said that I was going to try and change my sleep routine, but I think that I'm feeling pretty comfortable sleeping like this.

During my spare time, I used to read articles and pay close attention to the news. Nowadays, I try to avoid actively searching for news as I find that it can be depressing at times. I don't need to know if the COVID-19 cases are x today and y the next day. What would I do with that information?

Another reason why I stopped browsing the news is because I'd often find myself stuck in a rabbit hole. I could spend ages scrolling through articles, which was a form of procrastination for me. Of course, I still stay informed by listening to the BBC Global News podcast. It saves time as I don't waste time reading articles and it also curates the news for me, giving me the most important news items of the day. What used to consume hours of my time now only takes 15-20 minutes with roughly the same yield.

Classes
Physics: Force, Mass and Momentum.
Applied Maths: Connected Particles - 5G, Q9, Q10.
English: Discussed 'Othello and War'.
French: Went through a comprehension.
Maths: Functions - Revision exercises.
Biology: Genetic Crosses - Q6, Q7.

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - French

To-Do List

• French: Study oral piece 'Mon Uniforme Scolaire' Moved to tomorrow
• Physics: Make flashcards
• Maths: Functions H/W - 27/01/21
• Biology: H/W - 27/01/21
• English: H/W - 28/01/21 Moved to tomorrow
• Applied Maths: H/W - 29/01/21 Moved to tomorrow
• Physics: H/W - 28/01/21 Moved to tomorrow
• Practice 10 HPAT questions Moved to tomorrow

Reflection
I managed to stay productive today, and I'm going to end the day early so I can sleep at 10 from now on. I've got a few tasks left to do, so I'll tackle them tomorrow.

JellyIsAwesome

Today I woke up at 3:30, and I got roughly the same amount of sleep as yesterday, despite sleeping earlier. I'd say my body will readjust to my 'new' sleeping routine again, but it'll take time.

I like to listen to music while studying. Here's my go-to playlist. I feel like this playlist helps me get in the zone and it stops me from getting distracted by other things. However, I can't listen to music with lyrics as I'd find myself bopping along to them.

Classes
Maths: Corrected H/W. Started Indices and Logarithms. Functions test next week.
Irish: Discussed réamhfhocail - 'ar'. Started reading 'An Gnáthrud'.
Chemistry: Corrected H/W. Ionic and Covalent Bonding - 6.6 to 6.7.
Biology: Corrected H/W. Genetic Crosses - Q9, Q11. Genetic Crosses test next week.
French: Started a new comprehension.

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - Irish

To-Do List

• English: H/W - 28/01/21
• Applied Maths: H/W - 29/01/21
• Physics: H/W - 28/01/21
• French: Study oral piece 'Mon Uniforme Scolaire' On hold
• French: H/W - 28/01/21
• Chemistry: H/W - 28/01/21
• Maths: H/W - 29/01/21 Moved to tomorrow
• Biology: H/W - 29/01/21
• Irish: H/W - 28/01/21
• Practice 10 HPAT questions

Reflection
For the HPAT, I focused on Section 3, which focuses on patterns and sequences. I didn't do too well when I corrected my questions from the HPAT sample paper that I bought from ACER. I'm going to try and make it a habit of practicing recognising patterns for at least 5 minutes everyday. I don't exactly know how I'll practice, and I'm going to have to do some research to find an effective method.

Homework took up a lot of my time today, but I managed to finish the majority of them. Time was pretty tight, but I was happy with the amount of studying I did today.

carr62

Gosh, JellyIsAwesome - you are doing fantastic work there but it seems a very heavy workload. I know you are going for high points, but I wonder if that is sustainable over 2 years? Only you know if it is, but I would just say go easy on yourself, if you don't get to keep to your schedule don't fret about it. Try to eat well, and above all please try to incorporate some exercise and something fun in to your day too. I have a 6th yr and a 5th yr here, neither are near as organised as you, though I must admit neither will end up with near the points you are aiming for either, haha! But that's ok too. Try to not lose contact with friends and relations either, it's important that study doesn't become your sole focus. Saying that, you certainly seem to be set up for success in your Leaving Cert. I'm sure you only get out what you put in to these things. I doubt you will need it but best of luck !

JellyIsAwesome

carr62 wrote: »

Gosh, JellyIsAwesome - you are doing fantastic work there but it seems a very heavy workload. I know you are going for high points, but I wonder if that is sustainable over 2 years? Only you know if it is, but I would just say go easy on yourself, if you don't get to keep to your schedule don't fret about it. Try to eat well, and above all please try to incorporate some exercise and something fun in to your day too. I have a 6th yr and a 5th yr here, neither are near as organised as you, though I must admit neither will end up with near the points you are aiming for either, haha! But that's ok too. Try to not lose contact with friends and relations either, it's important that study doesn't become your sole focus. Saying that, you certainly seem to be set up for success in your Leaving Cert. I'm sure you only get out what you put in to these things. I doubt you will need it but best of luck !

Hi carr62, thank you for the heads up, I really appreciate it.

I did TY last year, so I had a long break from doing anything. It's a shame my TY got cut short - I ended up missing a French trip because of the first lockdown. I enjoyed TY while it lasted though, and that's what counts I guess.

Your advice is very helpful, and it's definitely what I needed. I haven't burned out yet, and I'm hoping that I won't in the future. If the worst comes to worst, I'll be prioritising myself over my studies for sure.

I hope your children do well and are ok given the current situation. It must be very hard for your 6th year because of all the uncertainty, and I feel the exact same way about my LC next year.

JellyIsAwesome

So we're nearing the halfway point for the school year. I feel like I've been efficient with my time so far, and that I'm studying effectively, but I'm going to do some more research just to see if there's anything else I can do. I also need to research how to prepare for section 3 of the HPAT.

The handy thing about online classes is that we can multitask. I'd usually make flashcards while the teacher is explaining a topic and during idle moments of class, I can either study, do homework, or just relax.

Classes
Physics: Corrected H/W. Started Pressure, Gravity and Moments.
English: Discussed 'Imagery and Symbolism' in Othello.
Irish: Continued reading 'An Gnáthrud'.
French: Continued doing a comprehension.
Biology: Genetic Crosses - Sex Linkage.
Chemistry: Corrected H/W. Ionic and Covalent Bonding - 6.7 to 6.9.

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - French

To-Do List

• Maths: H/W 29/01/21
• English: Select 15 quotes from Othello and make flashcards.
• Physics: H/W 01/02/21
• Biology: H/W 02/02/21
• French: H/W 02/02/21
• Chemistry: H/W 02/02/21

Reflection
I managed to finish my homework by around 5pm. I have to admit, I could have been more productive with my time, as I spent the next 6 hours after that by a mixture of studying / procrastinating. YouTube is both a blessing and a curse. Initially, I was browsing YouTube to watch a chemistry video, but I ended up getting sidetracked and I wasted a good bit of time when I could have studied.

My problem isn't that I don't have enough time, in fact I have all the time in the world, but rather my problem is that I lack the discipline to stay focused. I'm aware that I've achieved great study habits this year, and I'm not downplaying them by any means. I'm proud of how far I've progressed compared to when I was in 1st year. However, I believe that people can always improve themselves. My self criticism isn't self detrimental, but instead it is the first step forward to further bettering myself.

'The first step in solving any problem is recognizing there is one' - Will McAvoy

JellyIsAwesome

I remember watching this video from a few years ago. I understood the key message behind this video, but I couldn't relate to it when I was younger. Have you ever felt invincible and felt like you can take on the world? I have, and that's a very apt way of describing my mindset when I was younger.

I haven't changed much since then. I'm still ambitious and I'm still quite driven. However, I've definitely come to terms with how the world works and I've become more of a realist. COVID-19 made me realise the spontaneous nature of life. If you told me in 2019 that the world would be engulfed by a pandemic and that we would spent the majority of the next 2 years cooped up in our homes, I wouldn't believe you. I'd think you're daft and definitely some kind of crazy conspiracy theorist with the tin foil hats and all.

My point is, no one planned for COVID-19 to happen. As the saying goes, the best-laid plans of mice and men oft go astray. Life tends to throw a wrench in the works and threatens to ruin our plans. For a plan to be successful, perseverance is essential. I remember watching another video a while back and I watch it whenever I lack the motivation to do anything. The video focuses on perseverance in life and I think this video could benefit a lot of people today, given the troubling times we live in.

Classes
Maths: Corrected H/W. Indices and Logarithms - 7.2
English: Read essays about Othello.
Applied Maths: Started Relative Velocity. Did worked example 4.1. This chapter is usually done in 6th year, but our teacher decided to change things up.

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - Irish

To-Do List

• Chemistry: Make flashcards
• Physics: Make flashcards
• Maths: Make flashcards
• Maths: H/W 01/02/21
• English: Make mindmaps
• Practice 10 HPAT questions Moved to tomrrow

Reflection
I had a very productive day. I made my first decent looking mind map today. I took the extra time to make it look aesthetically pleasing and I'm really happy with it. I ended up making 3 mind maps in total, and I decided to store them in a folder rather than stick them up on a wall where they could get damaged. I think I'm getting used to sleeping from 1AM to 5:30, so I'll just stick with it for now.

Recently I read a book called 'Digital Minimalism' by Cal Newport. Before reading that book, I was already familiar with how our devices can make us unproductive, and I deleted all of my social media accounts when I was in 3rd year. I haven't looked back since then. After reading that book, I decided to quit using my phone. As of today, it's turned off, in a drawer and it's going to collect dust. I'm only going to use my phone if I'm leaving the house, which is unlikely for the majority of this year. I've also started to block distracting websites on my computer, including YouTube.

JellyIsAwesome

I managed to complete all my homework yesterday, so I have the full weekend to study. I'm thinking of using more mind maps in my studies as it's really growing on me. The satisfaction you get when looking at your finished mind map, it's incredible.

Today I realised that it's important to revise things that you've already done before, even if you think you know it well. I was attempting some questions in Applied Maths on a topic that we've already covered and I was quite rusty at it. I was able to vaguely remember how to do the question, but I wouldn't be comfortable answering that in a test. From now on, in all my subjects, I'll schedule when I will practice certain topics in the exam papers. I feel that's the best way to go.

Daily Routine

• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - French

To-Do List

• English: Make mindmaps
• Applied Maths: Practice Relative Velocity questions
• Chemistry: Make flashcards
• Maths: Make flashcards
• Physics: Make flashcards
• Irish: Make flashcards
• Biology: Make flashcards
• Practice 10 HPAT questions

Reflection
I discovered that there's Discord servers where you can study with other people. You can choose to study with your camera on, share your screen, or you could turn off your video and mic, and just be present. I found it was really helpful, and I met a lot of new people. Whenever we were studying, I could see the others in my group and they could see me. It was really motivating and it stopped me from procrastinating. What's more, I got to socialise with them whenever we took breaks. It's definitely helping me to cope with the lockdown and I'd highly recommend it. I managed to study over 8 hours today because of that. I've never even managed to study that long in my life! Not even during the JC! If you're a student feeling unmotivated and maybe even lonely while studying, give it a shot. There's many study servers out there and there's no harm in trying them.

JellyIsAwesome

After yesterday's very productive study session, I decided to take it easy today.

Daily Routine

• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - Irish

To-Do List

• Applied Maths: Revise projectiles

Reflection
Today wasn't one of my good days, as I spent the majority of the day watching Netflix. I did manage to study for 3 hours, so I'll take that as a win for today, but I definitely could have spent my time better. Besides, it's probably important to take breaks once in a while, you know?

JellyIsAwesome

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - French

Classes

• Career Guidance: Talked to the teacher about how we're finding classes.
• English: We were split into breakout rooms and we talked about our essays. We also talked about other stuff and I felt like I really needed to socialise with someone.
• Chemistry: Corrected H/W. Ionic and Covalent Bonding. Skipped 6.10. Went through 6.11 to 6.12.
• Maths: Corrected H/W. Indices and Logarithms - 7.3.
• Physics: Continued Pressure, Gravity and Moments. Physics teacher is replaced by a sub teacher for a full week.
• Irish: Finished reading through 'An Gnáthrud'

To-Do List

• English: Read essay
• Chemistry: H/W 03/02/21
• Maths: H/W 02/02/21
• Physics: H/W 02/02/21

Reflection
Considering the amount of studying I did yesterday, today went a lot more smoothly. I attended my various online classes today and we got a good bit of homework, but it wasn't anything too bad.

JellyIsAwesome

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - Irish

Classes

• Physics: Continued Pressure, Gravity and Moments.
• Applied Maths: Continued Relative Velocity. Applied Maths teacher is replaced by a sub teacher for a full week.
• English: Read an essay related to Othello. Split up into breakout rooms to test each other on quotes.
• French: Continued doing a comprehension.
• Maths: Corrected H/W. Indices and Logarithms - 7.3.
• Biology: Corrected H/W. Genetic Crosses - Past Exam Questions.

To-Do List

• English: Make a mindmap
• Irish: Learn 3 new paragraphs from any of the sample answers
• French: Learn 'Mon Uniforme Scolaire' I keep putting this off for some reason, so I'll commit to doing this during the weekend.
• Applied Maths: H/W 05/02/21
• Physics: H/W 04/02/21
• Maths: H/W 03/02/21
• Biology: H/W 03/02/21
• Practice 10 HPAT questions Moved to tomorrow

Reflection
I had a very productive day today. I got a fair bit of homework to do and it took a good bit of my time. Overall, I'm quite happy with how I spent the day and I rewarded myself by watching an episode on Netflix.

JellyIsAwesome

Have you ever been away from home and missed it? That feeling sucks, and all you are longing for is to go back home. Well, to be honest with you, I'm starting to feel the same way about school.

I think most people my age would say that they'd want to leave school as fast as possible and get it over and done with, but I don't think they actually genuinely feel like that.

But, I hate to admit it. I miss school. I miss those ordinary moments in class where we sit in silence listening to the teacher. I miss talking to my friends face to face during lunch. I miss those brief moments when we'd see other people and greet each other in the hallways. I miss the socialising and especially the conversations we'd have before the teacher comes to class. I miss going to the bathroom and seeing a heap of other people there. I miss going to school in the morning and hanging out with the lads. I miss the banter we'd have in class. I miss seeing other people in the classroom with me, because it kept me motivated to stay focused.

Now, all we have is our devices and online classes, where we spend the majority of our day sitting down, which certainly isn't healthy. With all this in mind, didn't we take being physically in school for granted?

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - French

Classes

• Maths: Corrected H/W. Indices and Logarithms - 7.3.
• Irish: Received essay corrections.
• Chemistry: Ionic and Covalent Bonding. 6.12 - 6.13.
• Biology: Genetic Crosses
• French: Continued doing a comprehension.

To-Do List

• Maths: H/W 05/02/21
• Biology: H/W 04/02/21
• French: H/W 04/02/21
• Applied Maths: Revise projectiles
• Practice 10 HPAT questions

Reflection
I managed to finish my homework and review all my daily cards quite early today, so I had a few hours to spare. Overall, I had another productive day.

JellyIsAwesome

After hitting snooze on my alarm clock quite a few times, I ended up waking up at half 8, which is a big difference compared to waking up at half 5. It's been nearly 2 weeks since I started sleeping for 4 hours a day, and I don't think my body can keep up with it anymore. I've been trying to revert back to my usual sleeping time of 10, but every time I try, I find it very hard to sleep.

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - French

Classes
Physics: Continued Pressure, Gravity and Moments.
English: Planned Othello essay that we'll be writing tomorrow.
Irish: Went through the majority of notes in 'An Gnáthrud'.
French: Discussed 'Le Comparatif'.
Biology: Genetic Crosses
Chemistry: Ionic and Covalent Bonding. 6.13 - 6.14

To-Do List

• Biology: H/W 09/02/21
• Physics: H/W 08/02/21
• French: H/W 09/02/21
• Sleep at 10pm

Reflection
I'm writing this the following day as I didn't get any time to update the log before sleeping, but I managed to finish all of my tasks for today and I didn't do any further study as I wanted to try to sleep at 10.

carr62

You know, I'm going to say something you sure won't want to hear - but if I were your mother I'd be
proud of course, that you were so committed to your studies - but also a little concerned. You are sacrificing so much right now for this amount of study. Do you go for walks, look for any signs of the season changing, listen to the birds? Catch a movie on Netflix, or maybe pick up a TV series you've missed? These things won't be there in 2 years, these are little things that maybe you should consider. Try not to be too blinkered in all the study. Yes, it's great, but health, family, friends are equally important. This is a long haul to the exam, so cut yourself some slack. You know, if I were your mother I would say....ok, midterm is coming up.....you need a break. No study. No books. Lock them up! Bake, cook, paint pictures, watch YouTube, run, walk, take baths, sleep, read ( recreational!!) do whatever you can, but just know that exams , careers are great, but at what cost? Taking a week off the books is not going to make a not of difference to how you perform in an exam in a year or mores time. Consider it. If the thought fills you with dread, then it's time to really take stock and wonder is this taking up too much of your life right now? I'm only a mum who knows nothing about hpat and such like. But my advice to you would to think seriously about walking away from the books during midterm. If the thoughts of that concern you, just have a chat with a parent, teacher, whoever, just to check that you are at where the others in your school are at. Certainly seems like you are at a good school. Now don't get me wrong - I'm not saying throw it all up in the air and stay in bed haha. Just maybe take your foot off the gas a bit now and then. Be kind to yourself. You have obviously got intelligence and a great work ethic, so those will bring you far in life. Mind yourself.

JellyIsAwesome

carr62 wrote: »

You know, I'm going to say something you sure won't want to hear - but if I were your mother I'd be
proud of course, that you were so committed to your studies - but also a little concerned. You are sacrificing so much right now for this amount of study. Do you go for walks, look for any signs of the season changing, listen to the birds? Catch a movie on Netflix, or maybe pick up a TV series you've missed? These things won't be there in 2 years, these are little things that maybe you should consider. Try not to be too blinkered in all the study. Yes, it's great, but health, family, friends are equally important. This is a long haul to the exam, so cut yourself some slack. You know, if I were your mother I would say....ok, midterm is coming up.....you need a break. No study. No books. Lock them up! Bake, cook, paint pictures, watch YouTube, run, walk, take baths, sleep, read ( recreational!!) do whatever you can, but just know that exams , careers are great, but at what cost? Taking a week off the books is not going to make a not of difference to how you perform in an exam in a year or mores time. Consider it. If the thought fills you with dread, then it's time to really take stock and wonder is this taking up too much of your life right now? I'm only a mum who knows nothing about hpat and such like. But my advice to you would to think seriously about walking away from the books during midterm. If the thoughts of that concern you, just have a chat with a parent, teacher, whoever, just to check that you are at where the others in your school are at. Certainly seems like you are at a good school. Now don't get me wrong - I'm not saying throw it all up in the air and stay in bed haha. Just maybe take your foot off the gas a bit now and then. Be kind to yourself. You have obviously got intelligence and a great work ethic, so those will bring you far in life. Mind yourself.

You might be surprised to hear this, but my mum has been saying the exact same things you've been saying! The thing is, I understand her point, but studying is pretty much an addiction for me I guess. Like, I'd feel guilty if I took a day off, but I'll think about taking a break or maybe even studying a bit less during the mid term.

But, to be really honest with you, everyday feels like a break. The teachers don't really check our homework and I could just easily get away with not doing it. There's also not any way for the teachers to know if we're studying, so I could also get away with not studying as well. Although, I enjoy studying and doing the work as I like learning new things.

You know, I've been meaning to try meditation for a while, so yesterday I decided to try it and I managed to sleep well last night. (I managed to sleep from 10 to 5.30) I think that it's a good idea and I think I'll trying to meditate for at least 5-10 minutes everyday to unwind. I also do watch Netflix or go on YouTube and do other things aside from studying, but I don't really mention it that much here.

But as always, thank you for that, it's definitely something that I'll think about doing.

JellyIsAwesome

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - Irish

Classes

• Maths: Corrected H/W. Indices and Logarithms - 7.4
• English: Wrote an Othello essay
• Applied Maths: Corrected H/W. Continued Relative Velocity.

To-Do List

• Maths: H/W 08/02/21

Reflection
Overall, I had a pretty productive day today.

JellyIsAwesome

Daily Routine

• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - French

To-Do List

• Applied Maths: Study and practice exam paper questions in Relative Velocity
• Irish: H/W 08/02/21

Reflection
I spent the majority of my day doing Applied Maths and I did quite a few exam paper questions. I feel that I'm starting to get the hang of Relative Velocity and it's not actually that bad once you are able to visualise it.

JellyIsAwesome

The pomodoro technique is supposedly meant to boost your productivity. I tried using it last year, but after a month of using it, I gave up on it. I'm trying to use it again, as I feel I can be more productive with my time. I always procrastinate. Every. Single. Day.

Even before I started this study log, I find that if I leave things to the last moment, the pressure of the limited time forces me to take action and complete my tasks. I'd describe myself as working most efficiently under pressure, but I don't want to spend the end of each day fighting against time to finish my tasks.

That's why I'm trying out the pomodoro technique again as I want to better track how I spend my time and accomplish my tasks sooner so that I can unwind and relax by the end of the day. Hopefully, this small change will improve my overall lifestyle, especially my sleep.

I'll keep you updated.

Edit: It's nearly the end of the day, and I decided to setup a pomodoro system. I'm going to be sticking to the normal system of 25 minutes per pomodoro with a 5 minute break after each one. After 4 pomodoros, I'll take a break ranging from 30-60 minutes.

Daily Routine

• Review Anki cards 5 pomodoros.
• Duolingo - Irish

To-Do List

• Applied Maths: Study Relative Velocity 3 pomodoros.
• Irish: Make vocabulary flashcards 1 pomodoro.
• Irish: Make grammar flashcards 1 pomodoro.
• English: Make mindmap flashcards Cancelled.
• English: Pick another 15 Othello quotes and make them into flashcards. 1 pomodoro.
• French: Make French grammar flashcards Cancelled.
• Biology: Make flashcards 1 pomodoro.
• Maths: Make flashcards Cancelled.
• Physics: Make experiment flashcards Cancelled.
• Chemistry: Make flashcards Cancelled.

Reflection
I managed to finish 12 pomodoros, which adds up to 5 hours of work. I had time to keep pushing on, but I decided to just enjoy the rest of the weekend.

JellyIsAwesome

I've decided that I'm going to go from 7.5 hours of sleep to 9 hours of sleep. My old routine was to sleep from 10 - 5:30, but after doing some research, I realised that I might benefit with more sleep. From now on, I'll try to sleep at 11, and wake up at 8.

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards 3 pomodoros.
• Duolingo - French 1 pomodoro.

Classes

• English: Started Emily Dickinson. Discussed her biographical details as well as aspects of her style.
• Chemistry: Ionic and Covalent Bonding - 6.15
• Maths: Corrected H/W. Indices and Logarithms - 7.4
• Physics: Continued Pressure, Gravity and Moments.
• Irish: Went through exam questions in 'An Gnáthrud'. Went through another réamhfhocail - 'do'.

To-Do List

• English: H/W 09/02/21 2 pomodoros.
• English: Make mindmap flashcards 1 pomodoro.
• Maths: H/W 09/02/21 1 pomodoro.
• Irish: H/W 10/02/21 1 pomodoro.
• Physics: H/W 09/02/21 1 pomodoro.

Reflection
I had a productive day today, completing 10 pomodoros, which is over 4 hours of homework and studying. If you include the number of hours I spent in online classes (7 hours), I spent 11 hours today doing school work. The rest of the time was spent taking breaks and sleeping. I'm really going to miss waking up at half 5, and who knows? I'd probably even naturally wake up at half 5 tomorrow without an alarm. But I hope I'll wake up at 8, I haven't had sleep which lasted 9 hours in a very, very long time.

JellyIsAwesome

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards 3 pomodoros.
• Duolingo - Irish

Classes

• Physics: Continued Pressure, Gravity and Moments.
• Applied Maths: Continued Relative Velocity.
• English: Emily Dickinson - 'I felt a Funeral, in my Brain'.
• French: Did a quiz.
• Maths: Corrected H/W. Indices and Logarithms - 7.4
• Biology: Started Genetic Engineering.

To-Do List

• English: H/W 11/02/21 1 pomodoro.
• French: H/W 10/02/21
• Maths: H/W 10/02/21 4 pomodoros.
• Biology: H/W 10/02/21

Reflection
I managed to wake up at 8 today, which means I slept for 9 hours! It might not seem like a big accomplishment to many of you, but it is to me.

I also had a productive day in school, and I learned a lot of new things.

I have to be honest though, Maths is meant to be one of my stronger subjects, but I spent 2 hours doing the homework, and I didn't even finish all of it. I'm not sure if I'm the only one that finds what we're doing difficult, but I'm sure that there's bound to be others that are struggling.

Overall, I recorded 8 pomodoros today, and combined with my classes, I spent roughly 10 hours doing school work.

Hopefully I'll get 9 hours of sleep tomorrow as well. See you tomorrow!

JellyIsAwesome

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - French

Classes

• Maths: Corrected H/W. Indices and Logarithms - 7.5
• Irish: Started a new Sraith Pictiúr.
• Chemistry: Finished Ionic and Covalent Bonding. Started Shapes of Molecules and Intermolecular Forces. 7.1 - 7.2.
• Biology: Continued Genetic Engineering.
• French: Corrected H/W. Went through 'Le superlatif'.

To-Do List

• Maths: H/W 12/02/21
  
• Chemistry: H/W 11/02/21
• Biology: H/W 11/02/21
• French: H/W 11/02/21
• Physics: H/W 11/02/21
• Applied Maths: H/W 12/02/21

Reflection
I managed to get 9 hours of sleep today, and I'm happy with my sleep routine. My daily routine is definitely tighter, as I've lost 2 hours in my day thanks to sleep. There's not a lot of wiggle room and it forces me to make the most out of my time, so I ended up procrastinating less, despite having less time.

Maths is starting to become difficult for me, so I think I'll have to catch up by rereading the notes and using online resources like Khan Academy (which I haven't really tried before).

I also completed 9 pomodoros today, so in total, I spent nearly 11 hours doing schoolwork.

JellyIsAwesome

Daily Routine

• Attend class
• Review Anki cards
• Duolingo - Irish

Classes

• Physics: Continued Pressure, Gravity and Moments.
• English: Emily Dickinson - 'The Soul has Bandaged moments'.
• Irish: Went through a Sraith Pictiúr.
• French: Corrected H/W. Continued 'le superlatif' and 'les adjectifs'.
• Biology: Corrected H/W.
• Chemistry: Corrected H/W. Shapes of Molecules and Intermolecular Forces. 7.3 - 7.4.

To-Do List
I didn't get any homework, so I don't have any tasks for today.

Reflection
It was the last day before midterm for many of my classes, so we didn't get any homework. I spent the afternoon completing my Anki reviews, doing Duolingo as well as using Khan Academy to learn logs.

JellyIsAwesome

Today's the last day of school, and luckily for me, I managed to complete all the homework for the midterm. I'll be taking a break from studying and I'll see you all in a week or so!

carr62

Delighted to read this. Enjoy your midterm. You most certainly have earned the break. Looks like you are on course to do a fantastic Leaving Cert, or , heaven forbid, should we be back in a predicted grades scenario no one would dare to give you anything other than H1s at this rate!

JellyIsAwesome

After a long and relaxing mid-term, I'm finally back!

I'll be replacing my 'to-do list' with 'completed tasks' and I'll also using less formatting so that I can create posts in a shorter amount of time.

You'll also notice that my posts will be in the evenings, rather than early in the morning, as I've changed my sleeping schedule to 11:00-8:00.

I purchased the online package from a certain HPAT preparation company today and my initial impression is that it functions well and there's so much content available.

Classes

• English: Revision class on poetry.
• Chemistry: Went through class quiz answers. Shapes of Molecules and Intermolecular Forces. 7.4 and 7.6.
• Maths: Length, Area and Volume - 4.1
• Physics: Started Work, Energy and Power.
• Irish: Started 'An tEarrach Thiar'

Completed Tasks

• Anki
• Duolingo
• Attend classes
• Maths H/W
• Physics H/W
• HPAT drills

JellyIsAwesome

Classes

• Physics: Continued Work, Energy and Power.
• Applied Maths: Continued Relative Velocity.
• English: Emily Dickinson - 'There's a certain Slant of light'.
• French: Went through adjectives and other grammar points.
• Maths: Length, Area and Volume - 4.2
• Biology: Started Classification of Organisms.

Completed Tasks

• Anki
• Duolingo
• Attend class
• HPAT drills

JellyIsAwesome

I completed a practice HPAT exam under exam conditions and I have to say, it was tough. I achieved an average score, but it's not enough to get into Medicine if my HPAT went like that. Luckily for me, I have a year to prepare, and I'm sure that I'll improve.

I also didn't have any classes today.

Completed Tasks

• Anki
• Duolingo
• HPAT Test
• HPAT Drills
• Maths H/W
• English H/W
• Physics H/W
• French H/W
• Biology H/W

JellyIsAwesome

Hi! In order to maximise my time, I'll be posting weekly from now on. I'll keep it confined to subjects and topics I study, rather than what I do in class.