Attention passengers: we have entered the third quarter. Red alert! Red alert! Motivation down! This is not a drill! Fasten your seat belts ladies and gentlemen, your GPAs are going down.

The third quarter is always the worst for me. Gone are the days of academic motivation, the nights of getting enough sleep. With all the work piling up from the second winter break we had (I mean—the snow days), it’s hard to effectively study for the tests and quizzes that make grades appealing to colleges, and overbearing parents. To hopefully reverse this lack of motivation in myself as well as all of you who sympathize with me, I’ve come up with some tips on how to study that hopefully will motivate all of us to hit the books.

1. Whatever you do, make sure your notes are neat. If your handwriting isn’t the best, type out your notes. JC requires students to have laptops for a reason, you know. Notes are important to reference when studying for tests, midterms, and finals, and if they’re not legible, they’ll be useless as a reference tool when studying.

2. I, personally, love to color code things. Although some people say it isn’t helpful, I love to highlight, underline, and categorize things that I read and take notes on. Color coding important terms, examples, and topics helps me remember and reference things better than I would be able to if my notes were just black and white. If nothing else, your notes will look so beautiful that you won’t be able to keep yourself from looking at them. Hopefully you won’t be able to keep yourself from reviewing them either.

3. Flashcards are a perfect way to review terms and small concepts quickly, especially for people who learn best by reading and repetition. Writing down the terms on the cards will get them into your head, and repeatedly quizzing yourself will make them stay there.

4. Personalize your studying. Find ways to relate what you’re learning in class to yourself and your life. When studying about muscles or bones in anatomy, I often find myself grabbing my arm when talking about my radius, or tapping my forehead when thinking about the skull. Repeating those actions when taking tests helps me remember the words that correspond with them, even if I do look a little crazy while doing it.

5. Overall, paying attention is one of the biggest keys to effective learning. You’d be surprised how much easier you’ll recall things while studying if you get off of Pinterest and listen to what your teacher has to say, even if it’s not as exciting as those super cute flip flops from Anthropologie.

I don’t know about you, but I feel very accomplished when I know I’ve studied my hardest, and what makes it even better is having neat notes and flashcards to show for it. Hopefully these tips got you nerdishly excited to study for your next test or quiz.

Kaley Martin is an Opinion Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.