How to Review & Study Science
Use what cognitive science actually shows works: self-test instead of reread, space your practice instead of cramming, and mix words with pictures.
Most students study by rereading and highlighting, and most students are surprised on the exam. The reason is that rereading feels easy, and that easy feeling gets mistaken for learning. Cognitive science points the other way: the study moves that feel harder in the moment (testing yourself, spacing practice out over days, explaining ideas in your own words) are the ones that actually build lasting memory. Learning scientists call the big one retrieval practice: pulling an answer out of your head strengthens it far more than putting it back in front of your eyes. Nurses use spaced review to keep drug facts current, medical students use flashcards and self-quizzing for the boards, pilots and surgeons rehearse checklists from memory, and coaches interleave drills so athletes can switch skills under pressure. Learn to study the way memory really works, and you spend less time and remember more.
- Common Core · RST.9-10.2Determine the central ideas of a science or technical text and summarize the key supporting details accurately in your own words.
- Common Core · WHST.9-10.9Draw evidence from informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research, including when restating ideas from memory.
- NGSS · SEP-8Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information: read, restate, and organize scientific information so it can be recalled and used.
- Ohio · Ohio ELA RI.9-10.2Analyze the development of a central idea over a text and provide an accurate summary that captures it.
- AP · AP Bio SP 5Analyze and study data and models; explain and connect concepts rather than memorize isolated facts.
- Summarize notes in your own words: Retrieval and elaboration both start from being able to restate an idea without copying it, so students first need to summarize accurately.
- Tell recognizing apart from recalling: The core idea is that recalling (blank page) beats recognizing (looking at notes), so students must see the difference between the two.
- Plan study across a few days: Spaced practice requires scheduling short reviews over several days, so basic calendar planning is needed.
Prerequisites are inferred: pending teacher review.
Re-learn the skill with worked practice and clear examples.
Build a real study plan from three moves that research supports: space your practice across days (not one cram), test yourself instead of rereading, and pair words with pictures. Use the comparison below and follow the worked plan to turn one late-night cram into a short daily routine.
| Plan | Total study time | Recall on a test 1 week later |
|---|---|---|
| Cram (all in one night) | 3 hours | low |
| Spaced (1 hour on 3 days) | 3 hours | high |
Using the table (cram = 3 hours in one night, low recall; spaced = 1 hour on 3 days, high recall), which conclusion does the data support?
Reviewed| Plan | Total study time | Recall on a test 1 week later |
|---|---|---|
| Cram (all in one night) | 3 hours | low |
| Spaced (1 hour on 3 days) | 3 hours | high |
- A.More total study time is why the spaced group did better.
- B.With the same total time, spacing study across days beat cramming it into one night.
- C.Cramming and spacing work equally well.
- D.The spaced group only did better because they studied longer.
Show the worked solution ▾
Answer: B. With the same total time, spacing study across days beat cramming it into one night.
- Step 1: Compare what is held equal: Both plans use 3 hours total, so total time cannot explain the difference.
- Step 2: Read the outcome: The spaced plan shows high recall and the cram shows low recall, so spreading the same time out is what helped.
Why it's right: The table holds total time equal at 3 hours, so the higher recall for the spaced plan must come from spreading it across days, not from studying more.
- A: The table shows equal total time (3 hours each), so more time is not the cause.
- C: The recall column differs (low vs high), so they are not equal.
- D: Both groups studied the same total time; the spaced group did not study longer.
Aligned to RST.9-10.2: read data and state the central idea · reading level ~grade 9
A student says: 'I highlight my notes in three colors and reread them the night before. I feel like I know it, but I blank on the test.' What is the best fix?
Reviewed- A.Add a fourth highlighter color.
- B.Replace some rereading with self-testing from memory, spread across a few days.
- C.Reread the notes two more times the same night.
- D.Only study the parts that are already highlighted.
Show the worked solution ▾
Answer: B. Replace some rereading with self-testing from memory, spread across a few days.
- Step 1: Name the weak method: Highlighting and rereading are passive; they build a feeling of knowing (recognition) without building recall.
- Step 2: Swap in the strong methods: Self-testing (retrieval) plus spacing across days builds the memory that survives to test day.
Why it's right: Highlighting and rereading feel productive but only build recognition; switching to self-testing spread over several days builds the recall the student is missing.
- A: More colors is still highlighting; it does not add retrieval.
- C: More rereading the same night is more of the method that already failed.
- D: Studying only highlighted parts keeps the same passive method and narrows what is reviewed.
Aligned to NGSS SEP-8: study and retain information · reading level ~grade 9
Which study session uses DUAL CODING (words plus a picture)?
Reviewed- A.Reading the paragraph on the heart out loud five times.
- B.Drawing and labeling a diagram of blood flow while reading the steps in words.
- C.Copying the paragraph on the heart word for word.
- D.Listening to a recording of the paragraph on the heart.
Show the worked solution ▾
Answer: B. Drawing and labeling a diagram of blood flow while reading the steps in words.
- Step 1: Dual coding needs two forms: Look for an option that uses words AND a picture together, not words alone.
- Step 2: Check each option: Only drawing and labeling a diagram while reading the words combines a picture with words.
Why it's right: Dual coding pairs words with a picture; drawing and labeling a blood-flow diagram while reading the written steps does exactly that.
- A: Reading aloud repeatedly is words only, no picture.
- C: Copying is words only, and it is transcription, not a picture.
- D: Listening is words only, no picture.
Aligned to SEP-8: represent information in more than one form · reading level ~grade 9
- A student turns a page of notes into ten flashcards and reviews them for ten minutes on three different days.
- Before a unit exam, a student redraws the immune-response pathway from memory, then checks it against the labeled diagram.
- A study group writes quiz questions for each other instead of rereading the chapter together.
Fill these in as you work through the lesson.
- Retrieval practice (pull the answer out of memory (self-test)):
- Spaced practice (short reviews across several days, not one cram):
- Dual coding (learn it with words AND a picture):
- Interleaving (mix problem types so you choose the method):
Recalling beats ; spacing beats ; and pairing words with a gives memory two ways to find the idea.
- Name one passive study move you use now and the active move you will replace it with.
- Sketch a study calendar that spaces one hour of review across three days.
- Explain in your own words why self-testing helps more than rereading.
Turn a cram plan into a better one: 'The night before, I will reread for 3 hours.' Fix it: I will ____ myself instead of rereading, spread the time across ____ days, and add a labeled ____ to the written notes.
The vocabulary of this topic, shown in the way you will meet it.