Does anyone have test taking tips and strategies?
I have a Spanish midterm for my Spanish 3 class and I am really nervous. All of it is reading and writing and I know the material, but I am really bad at tests so I was wondering if anybody had strategies to do better. For example, covering up a word you don't know and treating it as a blank to figure out what it means, stuff like that. I would really appreciate anything you could offer me. Thanks in advanced!
5 Answers
I used to impart a citizenship class at a community center. So the thing was to write the question in English (in order to write that you need to read it, right? :D ) then hispanize the English pronunciation, read it out loud and then write the question again.
Same thing with the answer.
One day as i was walking at a Swapmeet this sixtyish woman approached me and thanked me for having her pass the citizenship test in English. She didn't know much English...
I too am bad at tests and I was told once to learn the material and then the day before the test to not even think about it. It worked.
Learning a foreign language is performance oriented and is a lot like learning a sport like martial arts or like learning to play a musical instrument. If you are taking lessons, you can't be 'perezoso' and let everything go until the last minute. You have to work at it constantly.
While leaning Karate I worked out at least an hour every day. I still do so I won't lose any skill. When learning to play the guitar (as a child) I practiced two to three hours a day.
Foreign language is like that. I know. I had to learn English. I worked at it every day many, many hours a day. Always listening for new vocabulary always practicing every point of grammar in my English classes. You can't let up for a moment. The only tip I can give you now is to review like mad every thing that you have studied, practice it until you can't stand it anymore, then totally relax the day before.
The results. I have earned my black belt in Karate. I play the guitar (and the piano) very well, and my English is such that people that I meet have no idea of my Latina background. I look like a California girl and talk like one. You can do similarly well in Spanish if you really throw yourself into it.
For the "specifics" on what to do while taking the exam, follow the advice given to you by FELIZ77. In fact he has given you specific techniques while I have spoken in more general terms. 
Buena suerte.
Hello Madisonas,
A warm welcome to the Spanish Dict forum
You said:
I have a Spanish midterm for my Spanish 3 class and I am really nervous. All of it is reading and writing and I know the material, but I am really bad at tests so I was wondering if anybody had strategies to do better. For example, covering up a word you don't know and treating it as a blank to figure out what it means, stuff like that. I would really appreciate anything you could offer me. Thanks in advanced!
1.Build up your knowledge, understanding and skills gradually over an extended period of time!This will help you to gain a deeper understanding of what you have learnt, rather than a surface knowledge!
2.Keep making sure that you continue to understand what you are learning and ask your teacher questions if you need clarification or simply do not understand a topic at all!
3 Don't cram in last-minute learning ...it seldom works!!! Revise throughout the year ...not just when exam time is approaching! The advantage of doing this, is that if you have gaps in your knowledge and /or understanding these can be dealth with/resolved long before the test! In many, perhaps most, subjects, if you don't understand the basics you will probably experience considerable difficulty in building upon your foundational knowledge with more complex topics The foundations of a house take longer to complete than the rest of it, but the benefits are enormous! In the case of study of the language: more indepth and accurate understanding of the topics covered, and greater confidence in discussing and explaining fundamental points!
4 Read all the instructions and questions very carefully and thoroughly before attempting to answer any of them!
5 Be aware of: 1 How many questions you have to answer, and 2 how much time you have to answer all the questions so you do not run out of time!
6 Make sure you get plenty of sleep the night before! Do something relaxing like going out with some good friends to help you relax the night before but don't go to bed late. It can be very diffcult to concentrate /focus on anything if your brain has been deprived of sleep!
7 Remember that if you do not know a word / or are not familiar with a word, you can try to understand it from the context: that is, the rest of the words in the sentence, Doing that will often give you an idea. When you read through a new/unfamiliar passage for the first time, just try to get a general idea of the meaning! (a feel for the text/story) Obtaining an overview will usually help to avoid getting too caught up in translating sentences literally 'word for word'!
I hope this helps
Hola Madison and welcome to the form. Some ways you can prepare for your midterm is to study,take lessons,ask questions and just relax. You won't get a bad grade if you try your best and forget the rest mate. Good luck on your midterm mate .
