I’ve always been a huge fan of math. It makes more sense to me to problem-solve using logical thinking, one step at a time. My favorite part of math problems is when I get the correct answers. I know it sounds silly and obvious, but there is so much joy and pride in knowing I understand the material enough to get the problems right, which is why I had such a trying time in pre-calculus honors. The material was difficult to grasp and the amount of homework assigned to us was nearly impossible to accomplish day by day. I would try to participate in discussions; since I barely understood the short lectures, I would have to go home and study the textbook before formulating any questions. My test scores were terrible despite all the late night studying and cramming I would do. It didn’t help that I had dance practice every single day, sometimes I wouldn’t get home until 9 PM. So there I was, sitting at my wooden kitchen table, studying and exhausted, trying to finish up problems number one through one-hundred thirteen, odd. As you can imagine, this habit of mine was not doing me any favors. Rather, it was suffocating my grades and brain! I had to do something different, pronto!
I forced myself to make the most of my time, which usually meant meeting the teacher during lunchtime to ask homework questions from the previous night, studying ahead on the weekends, and starting homework during dance practice when I wasn’t on stage. I think the step that helped the most was asking questions – tons of them! If I didn’t understand something, you better bet I asked it, if I wasn’t sure how to get from one step to the next, I would make it a priority to ask. Textbooks can only explain so much, so talking it out with my teacher and listening to her explaining each detail of the process are relieving and encouraging. Put together, my question-asking and improved time management worked heavily in my favor. Although I wouldn’t always get the test scores I wanted, I understood what I was learning on a deeper level. Funnily, that gave me more pride and confidence than answering every question right.
