Thrive in college - RECREATION and REST

   Both exercise and rest improve a mode of studying.

Regarding exercise:  When your body is getting more oxygen, your brain functions better.  Exercise fosters this.

   So what exercise should you do?

                                                Whatever you like to do!

   When I do a physical activity I like, it is not “exercising,” it is a fun activity.  For example, I will get out of bed early to play a game of golf.  Pick a physical activity you like, and then engage consistently.  And hopefully you like several physical activities.  Mix it up a bit.

   A college is a unique environment where you can find people to do one of numerous sports or recreations.

   And walking, running, swimming, lifting weights, etc., can all be done by you any time you want.

   Get creative!  At Virginia Tech, my friend and I use to throw a flying disc on the drill field in the afternoon sometimes.  That is still a fond memory.

   To keep active daily my senior year, I would walk up the stairs in my seven story dorm every day after classes and after eating.  What a great daily practice!

   And I learned Friday nights were my time to shine on the basketball court my senior year since all of the athletes were out socializing.

   Honestly, if I had Virginia Tech to do over again, I would spend less times watching sports, and much more time going on a Saturday hike in the beautiful mountains.

   Stay active!

Regarding rest:  Weekly you should take a day of rest from school work, or two half days if that is the way your schedule works out.

   You and I are human, and we humans need rest in order to refresh our souls, our minds, and our bodies.  Make this a top priority!

   Honestly, working various jobs through my life, I have always preferred the routine of the work world, because at 5:15pm or whatever time, I am off until the next day, and I have my weekends free.  Whereas in college, there is always another chapter you could be reading.  Having that load looming can cause stress.  And having a sporadic schedule can add stress.

   Develop your own schedule!  Build your own routine!

   There will be plenty of occasions when it will be best or necessary to call an audible, yet a consistent routine leads to success in college.

   And if you worship in a church, there will be a number of periods when it is “crunch time.”  At such a time, it may be best to take a morning off from “church,” and spend that time in intimate worship of God in your room.  Corporate worship can be spiritually enriching, yet sometimes you need minimal distractions in order to relish and rest in the true love of our loving God.

                    What is your favorite recreation activity?

Hunter Irvine

Thrive in college - GO FOR IT!

    From the first quiz to the final exam, GO FOR IT!

   One of my favorite teachers at my high school was Mrs. Totten.  She was a popular teacher because she was fun.  She liked being with students.  She enjoyed coaching the cheerleaders.  She would even volunteer to help with prom.  She had a perpetual sense of humor.

   Once in the middle of class, the subject of college came up.  Mrs. Totten made one strong statement: ‘Go to class.  Even if you feel like turning off your alarm clock, and even if your room-mate is staying in bed, and even if it is really cold, go to class.’

   At Virginia Tech, I took her advice, and I think she was right.  I do not recall the exact count, because it was in the last century, yet I only missed around five classes in four years at Virginia Tech.  I missed even fewer as a part-time student for four years studying at CCU.

   The secret: Be determined to get to class.

   Once at CCU before an 8:00 am Monday morning history final exam in mid-December, it was about five degrees outside here in Colorado.  Snow and ice were in the crevices of my car doors, and in the crevice between the trunk and the body of the car.  I could not get my car doors open!

   Such had happened before to me with that old car, and I was ready for it.  I knew under such conditions it was easier to get my trunk open.  That car had back seats which would fold down in order to put long items like skies in your truck.  Yet you had to press a button from the inside.  The evening before the final, I made sure that button was pushed!  I even put the one seat down ahead of time I think.

   Thus that morning, I scraped the new layer of snow and ice which had collected during the night in the trunk crevice.  Then with a tad of muscle, my trunk lid opened.  I crawled through my trunk and was able to get into my car!

   Several times at CCU, I had car issues with my old car.  I remember two occasions when my housemate was nice enough to drive me to school.  Then in the afternoon, both times I ask two different classmates from two different classes, whom I knew lived off campus, for a ride.  Both were totally willing to drive me home.

   College is a once in a lifetime adventure, (for fortunate people).  Make the most of it, remembering that when that season is over, you will get paid for crawling through your trunk.

Tip: Ear plugs during a test help me concentrate!

If they might help you, be sure to get permission from the professor first, so she or he does not think you are putting an electronic device in your ear.

Hunter Irvine

Thrive in college - PREPARATION

PREPARATION is key.

                                            Prepare all out!

   When I was a student at CCU, students had Labor Day off.  It felt like a bonus holiday.  Several times I used that day for extra preparation, helping myself to a great start to the semester.

   For example, my second year at CCU, on Labor Day I went to Clear Creek in Golden, Colorado.  Sitting on a large flat rock at the edge of the water, I read a long chapter for my Introduction to Theology class.  Finding the chapter wearisome, reading outside by a river on a hot day eased the burden.

            Where is your favorite place to study?

Study suggestion:

When reading or studying something burdensome,

or when stress is high, 

it may be beneficial to find a unique study spot.

Hunter Irvine

Thrive in college - PASSION

PASSION is imperative.

            Choose a major which fits your passion!

   As a student at Colorado Christian University, I was totally engaged because I was carrying out my passion!  And I had much hope my studies would lead to a career which fit my passion.  Success resulted.

            What is your passion?

Study with success!

   The best way to engage in studying is by interacting with your textbook.  Do not just read a textbook, rather interact with that book!

   How do you interact with your book?

You highlight key points in your book.

You ponder what the author is saying.

You respond to what he or she is saying by writing notes in the margin.

   Interacting with your book, you go from listening to a long lecture to having a conversation.  You are more likely to remember what took place in a conversation.

   One of my great unexpected blessings as a student at Colorado Christian University was my opportunity to serve as the Biblical Studies tutor for one year.  I totally enjoyed it.

   In that position as a tutor, I stated to every student: ‘A highlighter is your most important study tool.’

   I know there is much more online reading today.  Yet you can still do electronic highlighting.

   One barrier to highlighting: When I was in high school, all of our textbooks issued to us students were the property of that school.  We were instructed not to write in them at all.  How limiting.  Unfortunately, many students develop the mentality that it is wrong to write in a book, even when they are at the university level where textbooks are often their own property.  If that is the case with you, write in one of the first few pages of one of your textbooks which you own: 'Highlighting my book is a good thing!'

   When reading library books for research papers, you obviously cannot highlight.  For a physical library book, plop sticky notes right where main points are stated in the book, so you will have that information marked for when you start writing the research paper.

   Finally, write all you want in books which you own.  It is your book, thus get personal!  When I really agree with what the author is saying, it often helps to write personal supporting statements in the margin, and to give my logical reasoning.  When I really disagree with what the author is saying, it sometimes helps to write out my disagreements in the margin, and to give my logical reasoning.

   Ponder what the author is saying!  Then respond in writing!

   The bottom line: Highlighting, pondering statements made by the author, and responding in writing in the margins of the book, fosters textbook engagement.

   My formal education at all levels was not interactive enough in my opinion, with the exception of Colorado Christian University.  Yet one great blessing regarding my life long education over many years: When reading, I have interacted with countless books with a highlighter and a pen.  If you do likewise, you will learn more.  And if you are a student, you will have key information on paper to review before you take an exam.

Hunter Irvine

Do great on a test!

   I am an interactive learner.  I am a thinker.  I am creative, in my own personal way.  On the flip side, I do not like standardized tests!

   Yet when a student at Colorado Christian University, I learned some techniques which aided my success.  I would have never graduated summa cum laude without implementing these techniques.  Consider them, and discover whether they will help you.

   When starting your exam, scan the entire exam to see the nature of the test.  Then my big suggestion: Start with the essay questions if there are some.  And of those questions, start with the one of which you are certain of your response.

   Why?

   Essay questions are the most challenging, yet if you are prepared, then you will be all set to write your answers without the distraction of the many issues covered in multiple choice questions.

   As you continue, if there is an essay question you do not know the answer to, skip it until later.

   Second, go to the short answer questions.  After doing the essay questions, thoughts should be flowing on the subject at hand, and you should rock the short answers.

   Again, skip any questions you do not know until later.

   Third, answer the multiple choice questions.  After writing those essays and short answers, you are on the downhill slope, and you can roll into multiple choice questions ready to focus on the correct answers, rather than getting distracted by the junk heap of possibilities.

   Again, skip any questions you do not know until later.

   A big tip: I use to cover the multiple choice possibilities with my arm when I was reading the question.  I would try to think of the answer without looking at the selection.  Thus I had my answer before looking at the various wrong choices.

   For the finale, go back and answer the questions you did not know and thus skipped.  (If you skipped many, scan the entire exam at the end to ensure you do not to miss any.)

   Hopefully by the end you are in a zone on the subject, and hopefully you are not feeling a time pressure, thus it is the best time to consider any answers you were not sure of earlier.

   For this last step, if you have extra time, take it!

   When I was a student at Virginia Tech back in the last century, I was often one of the last students out of a class during a test.  And some of those classes had more than a hundred students in them.  I studied for those tests, and I realized that spending an extra fifteen minutes or so working on my test could result in getting one or two answers correct which would have otherwise been wrong.  Those were some of the best spent minutes for me at Virginia Tech.

   Take your time and do it right!

   And stating this at the conclusion, I declare what should be done first: Pray.

   If you say a prayer sometime before the test, even if it is on the way to the class, you are opening yourself up for God to help you become more focused!

Hunter Irvine