Test-Taking Strategies

What You’ll Find Here: 3 Videos • Exam-Day Strategies • Time-Management Tools • Stuck-Problem Routine • Self-Check • Downloads

On This Page: Start the Test | Before the Test | Manage Your Time | Use Your Time | Moving On | Time to Check | When You Get Stuck | Toolkit | Move Forward | Quick Self-Check | Downloads | Need Help? | Choose One Action

Show What You Know on Exam Day

Preparing before an exam matters, but the choices you make during the exam matter too. A good test-taking strategy can help you read more carefully, use your time more effectively, recover when a problem feels difficult, and avoid losing points because of missed directions or unfinished work. In this lesson, you will learn how to:

• Use the first few minutes of an exam wisely.

• Read directions and preview the test before beginning.

• Decide where to start.

• Manage your time without rushing.

• Recognize when it is time to move on and return later.

• Respond to difficult problems with a structured strategy.

• Save time to check your work before submitting.

You do not need to feel completely confident before you begin. A thoughtful plan can help you stay organized and make the next useful decision one problem at a time.

The first few minutes of a math exam can help you understand the directions, see what the test contains, and decide how you want to begin. Instead of immediately starting Question 1, take a short amount of time to get organized and make a simple plan.

As You Watch

Think about this question: What do you usually do during the first two minutes of a math exam?

VIDEO COMING SOON!!

Try It Now

Create a short routine you can use when your next exam begins. Try:

Settle → Read → Preview → Plan → Begin

Before solving:

1. Settle your materials and take one slow breath.

2. Write your name and any required information.

3. Read all directions.

4. Check that you have all pages or sections.

5. Preview the exam.

6. Notice point values and longer questions.

7. Identify a problem you know how to begin.

8. Save some time for checking at the end.

Practice this routine during a quiz, homework review, or practice exam so it feels familiar before test day.

A good exam-day routine actually starts before the exam is handed out.

Know What You Can Use

Check whether you are allowed:

• A calculator.

• A formula sheet.

• Scratch paper.

• Notes.

• A ruler or graphing tool.

• Other approved materials.

If you will use a calculator, practice with the same calculator beforehand.

Read the Directions Carefully

Directions may tell you to:

• Show all work.

• Simplify completely.

• Round answers.

• Use exact values.

• Include units.

• Use a particular method.

• Explain your reasoning.

• Answer every part of a multi-part question.

Reading directions is part of solving the mathematics correctly.

Preview Before You Solve

Notice:

• How many questions and pages there are.

• Which problems look familiar.

• Which appear longer.

• Which have several parts.

• Which are worth more points.

• Whether there are graphs, tables, word problems, or explanations.

A preview gives you a map of the test before you begin.

Good time management does not mean working as fast as possible. It means making thoughtful choices so that one difficult problem does not prevent you from working on the rest of the exam.

As You Watch

Think about this question: How do you usually decide when to keep working on a difficult problem and when to move on?

VIDEO COMING SOON!!

Try It Now

Imagine that your next exam lasts 60 minutes. Decide:

• Total exam time: 60 minutes

• Time I want to save for checking: __________

• First progress checkpoint: __________

• Second progress checkpoint: __________

• Symbol I will use for problems I want to revisit: __________

• What I will check during the final minutes:

Your plan does not need to be exact. Its purpose is to help you stay aware of the whole exam rather than letting one question use too much of your time.

One useful strategy is to make more than one pass through the exam.

First Pass

Complete problems that you recognize and know how to begin. If a problem becomes confusing, mark it and continue.

Second Pass

Return to questions that need more thought. Start with problems that are worth more points or that you believe you can make progress on.

Final Pass

Use the remaining time to:

• Finish incomplete work.

• Check marked problems.

• Look for blanks.

• Check signs and copied numbers.

• Check units and rounding.

• Make sure you answered every part of each question.

Moving on is not giving up. It is a strategy for protecting your opportunity to earn points elsewhere.

Consider moving on when:

• You have reread the problem several times and still do not know what it is asking.

• You are repeating the same step without making progress.

• You are staring at the page without writing anything useful.

• The problem is taking much longer than its point value seems to justify.

• Your frustration is making it harder to think clearly.

Before moving on, write down anything useful you know:

• A formula.

• A diagram.

• Given information.

• An equation.

• A first step.

• A partial setup.

Then mark the problem clearly so you can return later.

Checking does not mean redoing the entire test. Use the final minutes strategically.

Look for:

• Blank questions.

• Missing parts.

• Negative signs.

• Copied numbers.

• Arithmetic mistakes.

• Decimal placement.

• Units.

• Rounding.

• Incorrect formula substitution.

• Answers that do not match what the question asked.

Do not change an answer only because you suddenly feel uncertain. Change it when you find a mathematical reason.

Getting stuck does not mean you cannot do mathematics or that the rest of the exam will go badly. It means that your current approach has not led you to the next step yet. A structured routine can help you slow down, organize what you know, try another approach, and decide whether to continue or move on.

As You Watch

Think about this question: What usually happens in your thinking when you get stuck on a difficult test problem?

VIDEO COMING SOON!!

Try It Now

Write a short routine you can use during your next exam. For example:

1. Take one slow breath.

2. Reread the entire question.

3. Write what I know and what I am looking for.

4. Identify the topic or type of problem.

5. Write a formula, diagram, table, equation, or first step.

6. Try one different approach.

7. Estimate what a reasonable answer might look like.

8. Mark the problem and move on if I am still not making progress.

9. Return later and begin again with a fresh look.

Practice this routine during homework or a practice exam rather than waiting until exam day to try it.

When you do not immediately see what to do, try one or more of these strategies.

Restate the Question

Put the goal into your own words:

• I need to solve for x.

• I need to find the total cost.

• I need to compare two choices.

• I need to find the slope.

• I need to explain what this answer means.

Write What You Know

For a word problem, try:

Know: ______________________________

Looking For: _______________________

For other problems, you might:

• Label given values.

• Draw a diagram.

• Create a table.

• Copy the equation.

• Mark important features of a graph.

Identify the Topic

Ask yourself “What kind of problem does this resemble?” Recognizing the topic may help you remember an appropriate formula, rule, or method.

Write One Correct Step

You may not see the entire solution yet. Write the first step you do know. One correct step can sometimes lead to the next one, and meaningful partial work may also earn partial credit.

Try Another Representation

Consider using:

• A picture.

• A table.

• A graph.

• An equation.

• A number line.

• A diagram.

• A list.

• Words.

A different representation may make the structure easier to see.

Try a Simpler Example

Replace complicated values temporarily with easier ones and ask what the process would look like.

Estimate

Ask:

• Should the answer be positive or negative?

• Larger or smaller than the original amount?

• Approximately what size?

• What units should it have?

Estimation can help you decide whether your approach is reasonable.

Sometimes students physically move to the next question but continue thinking about the previous one. Create a short reset phrase such as:

• “That problem is marked. I can return later.”

• “I am starting fresh on this question.”

• “One difficult problem does not erase what I know.”

Then treat the next problem as a new task. You are allowed to reset more than once during an exam.

Ask yourself:

• Do I know what materials I am allowed to use?

• Will I read the directions before solving?

• Will I preview the exam?

• Do I have a plan for where to begin?

• Do I know how I will mark questions to revisit?

• Do I have one or two time checkpoints in mind?

• Do I know when a problem is taking too much time?

• Will I show useful partial work before moving on?

• Do I have a strategy for what to do when I get stuck?

• Will I save a few minutes to check my work?

• Do I know what common errors I should check for?

You do not need an elaborate system. Choose a few strategies that help you stay organized, make steady progress, and show what you know.

Choose the tool that would be most useful to you right now - you do not need to use all of them.

If you are unsure what your instructor expects on an exam, ask before test day when possible.

Useful questions might include:

• Are calculators allowed?

• Will we have a formula sheet?

• Do we need to show all work?

• Are partial-credit points available?

• Should answers be exact or approximate?

• Will there be multiple-choice, written-response, or both?

• How much explanation is expected?

Knowing the expectations lets you practice under conditions that are closer to the real exam.

Choose one:

• Write your beginning-of-test checklist.

• Decide how you will mark problems to revisit.

• Create a time plan for your next exam.

• Choose one or two progress checkpoints.

• Practice taking a homework set in two passes.

• Write your personal “When I Get Stuck” routine.

• Practice restating a difficult problem in your own words.

• Make a list of errors to check during the final minutes.

• Ask your instructor one question about the exam format or rules.

My next action: ______________________________

When I will do it: ____________________________

You do not need every problem to feel easy. Start deliberately, protect your time, use a strategy when you get stuck, and keep making the next useful decision.