I’m sure a lot of you have been told to put your phone away when studying. Whilst this is obviously a beneficial way to avoid the instagram scroll every five minutes, this week’s blog will look at how your phone is actually an amazing resource to help you focus. There are multiple great study apps out there to help you. So if you’re looking for revision tools, help to get rid of distractions, or ways to find motivation, this blog is for you!
Your phone is your study friend!
Here are a few of my favourite study apps that will maximise your learning, increase your productivity, and help you keep on track with your studies.
Forest
If you read my recent blog about kick starting the IB, then you’ll already know about the app Forest. But I’m going to talk about it again as it’s one of my favourites for all students!
Are you always sending Snapchats on your phone when trying to work? Or are you constantly checking your Instagram feed? If so, Forest is for you! When you want to limit the distractions on your phone, open the app and a seed is planted. But if you click off the app too quickly in order to check Insta or Snapchat, your seed will die. Which makes you feel very guilty! Thus, the aim of Forest is to stay on the app for as long as possible, so that your seed grows into a beautiful tree. Over time, Forest tracks how many trees you have managed to grow successfully. This is great motivation for staying focused. In addition, you can spend virtual coins you earn with Forest on planting trees in real life! Not only are you forced to stay focused and work efficiently, but you’re helping the environment too.
Be Focused
Again, if you’re looking for a study app to help you stay on task then Be Focused is brilliant. This app follows the Pomodoro Technique, whereby work is broken down into intervals (typically 25 minutes in length), separated by short breaks. Be Focused helps you get things done by breaking up individual tasks into more manageable chunks, separated by regular breaks. You specify how much time you want to alternate between focus and breaks, which proves to be effective for retaining motivation and productivity. Be Focused also allows you to record how much time you’re engaging in certain activities, so you can keep a close eye on your study pattern!
Quizlet
If Be Focused or Forest have helped you stay on task, the next challenge is learning all your knowledge. This is where the free app Quizlet comes in, helping you study on the go! With Quizlet, you can create your own sets of online flashcards. Alternatively, you can choose from tons of flashcard sets created by other students. Quizlet generates multiple games and activities using your flashcards, to help you learn the facts! I adored using this app for revising my ESS (Environmental Systems and Societies) definitions. It can also be valuable for learning vocab for your foreign language subject.
AnkiApp Flashcards
AnkiApp is a similar flashcard app to Quizlet. It’s designed to help make memorising facts easier. This app monitors your progress, and subsequently chooses the flashcards that you need to work on the most. So AnkiApp helps you tackle those topics you find the most challenging. Again, you can either make your own virtual flashcards, or choose from a large number that are ready for you to download.
XMind
If you’re searching for a study app to help you collate and organise ideas, then look no further! XMind is a mind mapping tool, which means that you can effectively brainstorm ideas when you’re on the go. Perfect if you need to get all your ideas down in one place, and create an intelligent, clear mind map. This app is a great one for those of you trying to brainstorm ideas for forthcoming Internal Assessments, or that TOK essay!
So I hope today’s blog will change the way you view your phone. Remember, it is an amazing study tool! There are tons of great study apps out there to help you. But if you find you’re still after subject specific support, don’t forget to check out Lanterna’s Online Private Tuition and our Study Courses. ‘Appy’ studying pals!
