4-Step Study Method
Contrary to what you may have heard, Organic Chemistry is not a difficult class. But, because of the large amount of material covered, standard study methods generally don't work. If you follow the four steps outlined below, you can better manage the large amount of material covered in Organic Chemistry.
- Recopy your notes.
Recopy your notes after each lecture. This will reinforce the information you just learned. Make sure you understand what you are recopying. - Write your One-Page Summary.
This is the key step! Summarize your notes onto one page after the completion of each chapter. (Click here for an example of a One-Page Summary.) It is much easier and more productive to study from the one page of condensed notes. - Understand and memorize your One-Page Summary.
Don't blindly memorize. You must understand your summary before you memorize it. - Do problems.
To thoroughly understand the concepts presented in each chapter, do as many problems as you can from your textbook. For extra practice, click the Practice Problems tab and select the appropriate topic. Try to relate each problem to a point on your One-Page Summary. Write out all the steps of your solution, especially when the question involves structures.