Finals are coming up in less than a week. That means it’s time to study! If you need to change up your study habits or need to learn how to study, these five tips for studying can really help you become prepared for your final tests.

1. Start Early

Cramming information into your brain at the last second will only give you a headache. Start early so that you can memorize information over time and develop a better understanding of the material you need to know. Spending hours staying up late at night and studying the night before will make you tired and instead of sleeping a home, you might fall asleep during the test and fail.

2. Create flash cards 

“Make flash cards,” suggests senior Dani Leiato. “Reviewing the material goes by quickly, and it’s fun!” This is the best way to memorize the material fast! Flash cards are quick to make, easy to carry around and can be used for studying in almost every class.

“Make sure that you understand the material well. Don’t just read through the material and try to memorize everything,” says TestTakingTips.com. Flash cards may be quick and easy to read, but make sure you carefully read them so that the info doesn’t travel straight through your brain.

3. Make a study schedule

“Figure out how many days you have available to study for your final exams, mark down when each of your exams will be, and then estimate how much time you will need to study for each one,” says Keren Perles on the website Bright Hub Education. Make sure you plan for when and where you will study. If you do not plan your study sessions, you may wait to study until the last minute or not study at all.

4. Go over past tests and quizzes

“Go back and review all your notes and quiz yourself,” said senior Kevin Nugent. Many of the questions on your finals will be similar to the questions given on previous tests. Everything that you should have learned over the semester is on your tests. Go over the answers you missed on past quizzes and tests so that you can learn how to do them correctly on your final test.

5. Quiz yourself online 

Whether it is about a book, math equation, or an event in history, the internet provides many quizzes that will help you prepare for finals. Websites like Spark Notes, Cliff notes, and Quizlet are great for taking practice tests. On Quizlet, there are pre-made flashcards for vocabulary from specific books, multiple choice tests for just about any type of math subject and terms to remember for any great war or historic event.