Study Skills: TESTS
Start Early – the best thing you can do to improve your test grades is to start studying the first day of a new Unit/Chapter. Spend at least 5-10 minutes each day M-Th reviewing the material from class that day. This is in addition to actually completing all of your homework due the next day in class.
Read the text as the chapter/unit progresses - not the day before the test! If you are unable to read the assigned pages on any given day, at least look at the pictures and read the captions for them. This will give you a framework with which you can listen and participate in lectures and discussions.Take notes as you read – keep a notebook next to you, and stop after each half-page or a single section. Try writing one or two sentences to summarize what you have just read. Keep a separate page and/or make flash cards for vocabulary words in bold – write these down as they appear in the text, and write the definition for each bold word, or any word you don't know. No…this is NOT quick or easy BUT it does help you learn the material!!
O.K. – so now it's still a couple of days before the test, what can you do to start preparing for the test in a more focused manner?-Flash cards – if you haven't already prepared them, NOW would be the time to make around 6-20 flash cards using the unit objectives to respond to.
-Form study groups – try reviewing with at least one other person. You can use the unit objectives, textbook, notebook, and flash cards as resources to review from. You could do this during common study halls, or after school. We realize that this doesn't work for everyone, but it might work for you! P.s. – providing food for your study group makes it much easier to get together! Rotate this job.
-Ask questions during class – in the final days before a test, take a look at your unit objectives, text, and notebook and try to find at least one question each day to ask the teacher to clarify for you. You can even use the few minutes when the teacher is taking attendance to prepare your question!
-See your teacher for extra help – at least one time before each test make an appointment to see your teacher during a study hall or after school. Use this time to go over old tests, or the Unit objectives, making sure that you understand what you will be tested on for each objective.AND Remember – getting good grades on a test doesn't mean you're smart or not smart; it has more to do with how you prepare for the test! 
University of Texas STUDY RESOURCE