9-12/12/18 - 90-93/100 Days Of Productivity

12/8/19

3 days until A Level results day and I feel physically sick knowing that what’s on that paper is not going to be a reflection of my best work by a long shot.

However, I know that I will have plenty of opportunities to prove myself at uni. New chapter, new start. It’s all a learning curve and those results can’t hurt me. I’ve already got a confirmed place at uni; now I need to focus on that.

Good luck to any fellow A level takers of 2019. We will get out the other side x

Absolutely! I don’t have a MacBook - I have a seven-year-old, slow and slightly broken HP laptop that has served loyally as a faithful study companion. I have mildliners, yes - but not because everyone else has them. I have them because I actually like them!

I take the time to write up my notes neatly because they go into a folder that is inspected by my teachers - we get told off if we put scruffy work in. But I make them more aesthetic as a way of assimilating information and having a productive way to chill out.

The whole point of having a studyblr for me was to keep on track for my personal targets. If those targets were straight Cs instead of straight A*s it wouldn’t be any less valid.

I don’t have muji pens or the finest notebooks - I save up and buy some of my favourite Pentel Energel pens whenever I can because they are actually fairly expensive as pens go and I sure as hell wouldn’t buy them at all just because everyone else is raving about them. Otherwise, it’s a cheap notebook for me all the way - because guess what? The paper you use doesn’t impact the quality of your notes.

You do what’s right for you, studyblrs of the world.

Your aesthetic does not invalidate the quality of your account.

call for change: studyblrs

I have had this blog for about a year now, and I’ve come to realise the unattainable perfection of studyblrs. I created this account to motivate and educate myself and I feel as though these ‘perfect study notes’ hold unrealistic expectations. This is why I have decided to post things that are more realistic, educational and have a positive impact on the community. Please reblog this to spread the message: You do not need perfect notes, every stationary item, a macbook, top grades or an aesthetic study space to be a studyblr. All you need to do is do the best you can.

11/3/19

I’m really happy with how today has gone. I’ve had two hours of French and an hour of Biology, and then started these notes in one of my frees

Happy Monday 😊

The vermillion Mildliner is my favourite colour right now. Channelling those autumn vibes (despite the fact it’s still technically summer) 🍁

The Cambridge bottle reminds me of my ultimate goal at this point in my life. Let’s go get it!

18-19/11/2018 - 70-71 days of productivity

I’m having an awful mental health day. I don’t know if I’m worried about something or not... that is the beauty of depression. It’s been at bay for a while but I’m afraid it’s going to come back and I hate feeling like this :(

I just want a hug.

And to hear back from Cambridge. Anything. I don’t care if I get rejected, I just want to know.

Other than that, this morning was ok, and I got a fair amount done. It was my Maths morning today so I did a bunch of integration. Fun times!

26/09/18 - 15/100 days of productivity - studying with a full-on cold :(

Happy Wednesday guys! I had a full day of lessons today. The routine is pretty much the same as Tuesday (and, as you’ll find out, Thursdays and Fridays too). Anyway, this is what my Wednesday looked like :)

06:45-07:20 Up, washed, dressed and out the house

07:35-08:00 Commute to school

08:00 German quizlets in the sixth form work room

08:30-08:50 Form time with my lovely bio teacher! Fun times

08:50-09:50 Chemistry ft a fun rant from my teacher (not really it scared me even though it wasn’t aimed at me!) about how we are all deluded if we think we are going to succeed by putting such little effort into things

09:55-12:25 Double German! (With a half an hour break in between, don’t panic). Half was spent studying Der Vorleser, the other half on grammar

12:30-13:30 French with my favourite teacher. I did a listening assessment and... not much else to be fair 😂

13:30-14:00 Lunch/ form competitions. I represented my form in skittle sorting with one hand. I won my heat but came in third overall so far. The rest of the forms play tomorrow. We are out of the running for the form prize but I did get the bag of skittles haha

14:00-15:00 Biology - the topic was regulating gene expression on the transcriptional level and I LOVED IT. What an amazing way to end the day!

15:40 Arrived home to chill out. Honestly I feel awful so I decided to take a break.

17:00 Tea time :)

17:30-20:00 Maths revision before I move on to A2 stats (ew)

20:00-21:00 A cup of tea for me... plus some Vick’s Vapour rub and paracetamol haha

Night all! I might do another of these when I’m not ill so you can really see my life - this is nothing compared to how I normally work. Yes it’s a lot but I have to plough through.

Not long until A Levels are behind me...

which is a good thing because I - funnily enough - hate La Haine

27/09/18 - 16/100 days of productivity

Well, today was... interesting. I got to school at 8am, went to form, had a cup of tea and did a maths challenge in said form... and spilt my water all over my bag. My important stuff was fine, but my phone and everything up front got soaked. Oops!

I had to lay all my stuff out on the desk and wait for my mother to bring a spare backpack. Of course, stupid me forgot to take my key out that bag so I was locked out for an hour when I got home :(

Other than that, I had 4 free periods and 1 lesson today. I made biology notes on gene regulation and the lac operon from 08:55 to 10:55 and did a mixed exercise on geometric sequences from 11:20 until 12:20.

Then came Chemistry, where we did worksheets on orders of reaction because my teacher had a massive migraine.

Lesson 5 was my designated time to see my tutor, who is a retired maths teacher and is helping me along. We spent 45 minutes talking about the binomial expansion and then radians, which was great fun. That was such a nice way to end the day.

When I got home (which was almost an hour later than usual since I was locked out!) I kind of flopped on my bed and completely forgot that I had to do homework due in tomorrow.

So at 17:00, I sprang into life again and finished German (pictured) and then Chemistry. That took until 21:00, when I forced myself to stop.

Girl’s gotta look after herself, you know?

3-8/12/18 - 84-89/100 days of productivity

Omg life is so hectic right now - sorry for no posts for ages! So I have had my Cambridge interviews (I think they went... ok?) and am now revising for mocks beginning on Monday morning with German!

I’m at my friend’s house doing some Quizlets of new vocab :)

I used to think scientists were mortal gods; that I should never be clever enough to be one of them. Even now I am astounded every day by the minds that solved some of nature’s most incredible problems. Maybe that’s why I took no interest in science until I was 14.

Or maybe it was because of all I have been told over the years. I was told I was hopeless with maths - my secondary school maths teacher admitted that I was only in the top set because my confidence was already on the floor and would not allow them to move me down.

I was told that if I needed to be medicated for depression and anxiety, I would have no hope in the “real world”.

I was told that given my socioeconomic status (my single-parent family is among the poorest 10% in the U.K. based on income) and postcode, all the predictions pointed to my failing school. I don’t suppose the truancy due to constant bullying helped my case. If I didn’t even have a desk to work at, how could I ever expect pass any of my exams? (Look carefully at the picture and you’ll see carpet. It’s 23:56 on a Sunday and I am reunited with the only study space I have in my family home - the top of the stairs!)

And yet here I am, despite all the odds. I did not fail in school: I was top in my year, twice. I am striving for a first in my chemistry degree at a Russell Group university. I taught myself an A level in maths and got a top grade. I am now so totally in love with my degree and with learning that it hurts.

I did all that from the top of the stairs.

[Sorry for the rambles, and I hope that the wall of text doesn’t look like bragging. It’s just that lately, I’ve been so overwhelmed with how far I have yet to go, and I’ve only just realised how far I’ve come.]