How to Study For a Test With Mind Maps?

Lead-in Part

Are you someone whose yearly semester exams are around the corner and still wondering how to study for a test to score great marks? Or do you know someone in the family struggling to study for an upcoming test?

When it comes to academics, tests are very important as it not only judges us on our learnings but helps us understand which areas from our side need extra attention and where we excel. In this article, we will list out some of the key points that would help you study for a test and will help you understand how a mind map comes in handy when we have to retain more complex information.

How to Study for a Test?

If a student is looking for ways to study for a test, they will need to create a comfortable environment that would assist them in studying better. In addition, there are several key points they should follow if planning to study complex material, like:

  • Start ASAP: It is always advisable to start studying for tests at the earliest. The last-minute study will create confusion in your mind and might not be productive if you plan to retain the information longer. At least give yourself two weeks to study a topic in detail. This way, you will have enough time for revision, sorting out all of your doubts, and getting the confidence you need for the test.
  • Create Mind Maps: Mind Mapping allows students to organize complex information in a diagram visually. Students can create different mind maps that they can use to quickly revise the material right before the test.
  • Create a Routine: Multiple studies have shown how creating a schedule helps complete the course on time and ensures that a student thoroughly understands every topic. When a student follows a routine, they get to dedicate a particular time to their studies, health, extracurricular activities, and revision. This helps in creating a healthy environment.
  • Comfortable Environment: If you are studying in an uncomfortable environment, chances are you might score poorly on the test. There is a link between students’ grades and how much sleep they get. This, however, does not simply imply getting a full 8 hours of sleep before a big test. Also, ensure that there is sufficient positive energy in and around your studying area.
  • Eliminate Distraction: When studying for a test, avoid distractions by turning off your phone and annoying background noises like the TV or radio. If you cannot study at your home for some reason, try going to a friend’s place where you can do a group study and effectively sort out each other’s doubts.
  • Healthy Diet: Most adult students go ahead with energy drinks or coffee. Coffee, energy drinks, and even sugar will temporarily boost you, but your blood sugar will plummet. For more focused and sustainable energy, try healthy snacks like edamame, apples, or nuts.

Mind Map Helps To Study for a Test

A mind map’s structure is related to how our brains store and retrieve information. It also aids in seeing the big picture by communicating the hierarchy and relationships between concepts and ideas. With technological advancements, you should use tools like EdrawMind to create well-organized Mind Maps.

English Vocabulary Mind Map:

To elaborate on the importance of mind mapping for studies, we have created a mind map in EdrawMind, which depicts different aspects of mastering ‘English Vocabulary.’ Students can duplicate this template from EdrawMind and customize it per their requirements.

As you can see from this template, we have laid out the central idea or the Main Topic, i.e., English Vocabulary, in the middle and added different subtopics radiating out of it. Nouns, Numerals, Interjections, Adjectives, Adverbs, Articles, Prepositions, and more play a crucial part when we try to master English vocabulary. For some students, who would find it difficult to retain the information, we have added examples and explanations of the same in the further sub-nodes. In the mind map, you will see how there are different types of Pronouns, and in order to put them in a boundary, we used EdrawMind’s feature that enables us to put the contents of a subtopic under one boundary.

My Paper – English Renaissance Mind Map

Another example of studying for a test with a mind map would be creating the ‘My Paper – English Renaissance’ mind map using EdrawMind. As we all know, the English Renaissance is a huge topic and has multiple chapters dealing with Shakespear, Symbolism, Dramatic Conflicts, Themes, Comparisons, and more. If a student would simply note down all the aspects in a notebook, it would be difficult for them to revise right before the test. In order to avoid cram sessions or last-minute hassle, they can use this mind map template and add relevant data as per their study materials.

Another important part of creating a mind map for a test is that a mind map allows you to easily create connections between different subtopics. As you can see from the above mind map, we have created a connection between Romeo & Juliet with the subtopic, ‘Love,’ and have added the subtopic ‘Style’ with the ‘Comparison.’ This way, students can easily map out the similarities between two or more subtopics of a single central idea.

Free Mind Map Software

As you saw here, EdrawMind is a great mind-mapping tool to create mind maps to study for tests. Some of the handy features of this free mind map software are:

  • Ready-Made Templates: EdrawMind has thousands of ready-made templates that save you time if you quickly create a mind map to study for a test. With this free mind map software, you can duplicate any ready-made template and customize it per your requirement.

  • Custom Style: This free mind map software comes with different style options. From changing the shapes of the Main Topic to modifying the colors, themes, shapes, cliparts, and even the background, a student can create a custom mind map for every topic.

  • Easy File Sharing: With EdrawMind, students do not have to worry about collaboration or file sharing. EdrawMind Online has a real-time collaboration feature that allows multiple students to get on with their group study sessions. One can easily share their mind map for tests in different formats, like Graphics, Office, and more.

  • Multiple Modes: Unlike other mind mapping tools, EdrawMind comes with multiple modes options, like Outliner, Brainstorming, Gantt Chart, and Presentation Mode. After creating the mind map for the test, a student can easily transform it into an outline mode or vice versa. Additionally, they can create a slideshow to showcase their mind map with their classmates. One can even zoom in on a particular topic with the in-built traverse mode.

Final Thoughts

A quick Google search on studying effectively for a test will give you thousands of ways. Depending upon your resources and availability of time, you can create your study plans. If you have the test in just a week, create a mind map to organize your study materials and see which areas you lack and which are important. EdrawMind provides free templates, themes, and online resources that ensure you study effectively and ace your exams. Download this free mind mapping tool to answer how to study effectively for a test.