How to get an A in A&P

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Hello! I just wanted to share on how I got in A in A&P. A little background first so you can see what and how this class has fit in with my lifestyle. I am a stay at home mom of a 5 and 2 year old...some people might say "well yeah!, that's why she is getting an A!"...well not by a long shot!..I have to study around everyone's else's schedule so I study when my 2 yr old is napping (if he goes down for one) and mostly at night when everyone goes to bed so roughly 8 - 11 or until midnight-ish and get up at 6 to put 5 year old on bus. I am also taking chemistry and critical thinking. (And in high school i wasn't even close to an A student) So here is how I am studying. Now it really depends on your instructor if they hand out lecture notes at all....mine did and when ever we printed them off I immediately made those lecture notes into quizlet flashcards. Then I would go on youtube and watch anatomy gmc and mr. Fords channel. After watching the videos on the topics ( i bought barron's ez anatomy and physiology) i would read the chapters in that book...(this book has review questions at the end of every chapter and its actually easier to understand than your textbook)... i also bought (A visual analogy guide to human a&p) and this helps people that learn with pictures and mnemonics)...oh and by the way the coloring books are nice but I didn't have time to color and with the visual guide mentioned above i didn't have to buy them)..I also have a voice recorder and i will read off the lecture notes followed by my quizlet flashcards and then i would play them in my car or when im cleaning. So recap! Attend lectures/lab, make flashcards, record yourself w/ flashcards on voice recorder, you tube channels, the two books above (and your text book). Usually i am studying at least 30+ a week all together...but with finding a system that works well, the hours have been getting lower. Good luck to everyone!

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Was the class hard, even though you did a lot of preparing?

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I found A&P Lecture to be standard science fare, challenging and requiring study but not too difficult.

The A&P Lab I on the other hand, well midterm was the professor handing us a blank sheet of paper and us identifying and giving functions. I was unprepared but had luckily studied (oh boy was that class empty after that exam) so I didn't go in completely blind. Eeked out a C. Final coming up, Studied my rear off this time as i knew what to expect, but right before the test I blanked on things I had been going over, panicked and started cramming along with all the other nursing students.

Took it, was extremely brutal: forgot more than my share of things which i sadly remember now. I felt OK when I walked out of the class, but felt progressively worse until now when I am 95% sure I failed it and will walk out the class with a D and have to retake it.

Yargh. I made A's in every other class I took including Micro and Micro Lab, and yet all i feel is the sting of failure.

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great advice! i do the same i love quizlet flashcards for on the go, u can listen to the cards play in your car thru the aux like you would an mp3 or voice recorder as well. good luck everyone.

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I think you have to go into the class interested and excited about the human body.... if not its going to be a struggle. My instructor read over the lecture notes so I personally had to teach myself...if you can learn the material as if you could teach it to someone you will do just fine.

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1) Flash Cards

2) Elaboration. Make it funny. Like this

3) Teach it to someone. They don't need to understand it. If no one available, teach it to your dog. If it doesn't run away, give it a cookie. Use a webcam if you have to.

4) Make anatomy drawings by hand and Flowcharts plus drawings for physiology.

5) Mnemonics suck unless there's no other good option. I'd rather learn the material than the mnemonic for it.

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Thank you SO much for this post. I'm a SAHM to 3 kids under 7 and I just registered for my first pre-reqs and hae tons of butterflies! I need to ace my prereqs, and your advice is great. I already looked up Barron's, seems like a great help. Guess my kids will be learning A&P right along with me. :)

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Thank you SO much for this post. I'm a SAHM to 3 kids under 7 and I just registered for my first pre-reqs and hae tons of butterflies! I need to ace my prereqs and your advice is great. I already looked up Barron's, seems like a great help. Guess my kids will be learning A&P right along with me. :)[/quote']

Your very welcome! I was in the same boat you are in...scared ******** and doubting myself even before classes started!...make some goals on where you want to be in 5-10 years and some personal posters on encouragement to yourself and hang them near your desk just in case you start slipping you can look at them and pick yourself up again...what also helped me is the inspiration of my babies...I put in all this hard work for them so they can have a better life. good luck to you!

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Thanks for this information. I just placed an order at my local library to get these books. I have to take the HESI A2 in a month, do you think these anatomy tips will help?

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Thank you so much for sharing this information.

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Yes, my kids are the reason for me going back. It's funny, I feel like I'm going to be a better student now just because it has to be worth it, otherwise it's taking time away from them. I want them to have a better life and for me to have achieved my goals. Having kids is an unbelievable motivator.

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Thanks for this information. I just placed an order at my local library to get these books. I have to take the HESI A2 in a month do you think these anatomy tips will help? [/quote']

If you went to class and if you can pretty much explain it to someone off the street you should be able to score high in the a&p part

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