You have not been doing the homework if you think this. Copying it from someone else may get you the ten points on that assignment, but will lose you far more than that on the test you will be taking. Copying it from someone else does not qualify as "doing" your homework.
DO YOUR HOMEWORK!!! Do it the day that it is assigned--even on Friday when you have the whole weekend ahead. The more time you allow to lapse between class and doing homework, the more likely it is that you will forget how to do something. Students find quickly in Chemistry that what seems perfectly simple in class often seems far more difficult when they get around to doing the homework.
DON'T COPY!!! Part of the magic of homework is that you can see what--if anything--you don't understand. If you copy someone else's you miss a huge opportunity for growth and understanding. If you do your own homework, you know where you have gone wrong and you can ask specific questions in class to get yourself on the right path.
You should have noticed that the warm-up question usually relates directly to the previous night's homework area students are most likely to have found difficult. That is your perfect opportunity to (1) ask questions to clear up any misunderstanding, (2) make corrections on your work (your warm-up), (3) see how other students or I have solved the same type of problem as it is done for you on the board, (4) solidify your understanding of the problems we are doing.
The test questions are not identical to the homework. There may be a change in the substances you are given, you may be beginning and/or ending the problem in a different place or you may be reversing the procedure from what was given before. However, if you have indeed been doing your own homework and coming in at Support to get any homework problems sorted out, you will be well prepared for your tests.
SHE GOES SO FAST!!!
Look around. Notice the faces of your frustrated classmates who think I'm going too slowly. Everyone learns in different ways and at different speeds. I try to keep everyone working together, but it's not easy.
Unfortunately, if you are one of those people who tend to go a little more slowly, you run the risk of being left behind. What to do? First of all, good for you for asking instead of crying in the dust you've been left behind in. There ARE things that you can do to keep up.
1. The calendar is posted for the entire month. You know in advance what we are going to cover; get ahead of the game using this information. Read ahead. Make notes on a topic before we get there. Put question marks in your notes on the sections you find confusing. Previewing the material will make it easier.
2. Find a friend who is doing well in the class. A student may explain things to you in a way that is more meaningful than what I say. (I can live with that) DON'T BE SHY ABOUT THIS!! Find someone you trust and you can count on to make this beneficial for you. Remember that by asking your friend to explain something to you, you give them the opportunity to get stronger, too.
3. Explain things to your friend. We all become stronger at the things that we teach. You teach your friend a section, or two. You might be suprised at how much more you know than you previously realized.
4. Re-work examples, warm-up questions, homework problems (you have answers to the odd ones in the back of the book). Don't just copy what you already have, write down the problem and put away the work from the first time. Try the problem with no outside prompting. If you get stuck, look briefly at the earlier work, then go back without further peeking and keep working.
DOESN'T SHE KNOW I HAVE OTHER THINGS TO DO?? (btw: the word is EXTRA-CURRICULAR!!)
Every year I have students who are athletes, thespians, musicians, part-time workers... There are many reasons why students are doing things other than high school in their daily lives. I understand that. I really do.
On the other hand... These activites are supposed to be EXTRA-curricular. That means "in addition" to the curriculum, NOT in place of it. If you cannot maintain your grades at school and do your extra-curricular activity, school is not the thing you should be dropping.
Whatever you think your career will be, that is irrelevant at this moment. If you plan on going on to a four year college or university, you probably need a good grade in this course. Please don't waste your breath and my time telling me how you will never use Chemistry in your chosen field so you "shouldn't have to" work hard or do well. I am unlikely to ever see you again, but I still learn your name, interact with you as I would any other student. (i.e. I don't need to know who you are for my chosen field, either--life is filled with little extras)
I played in the band; sang in the choir; acted in plays; took drawing, ceramics and French in high school. I very much believe in the value of a well-rounded education. I know, too, that one of the best lessons in life you can learn is how to live a balanced life; not focusing so much on only one area that others will suffer.
ATTENDANCE; WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?!?!?!
I am constantly amazed at students who miss class, are frequently tardy, rarely participate in classroom activities and yet they are surprised and often angry at the poor grades they receive. Are you truly surprised? How can you be? You know that you didn't attend class every day. You know that there are things that we do that you cannot get from outside tutoring or even from coming in at Support to ask me for help.
BE IN CLASS!! ON TIME!! Often students seem surprised that I am not happy with them for being late to class. This seems like a no-brainer to me, but let's pretend you've never heard this before. We have about 57 minutes of class each day (not counting block days). If you are three minutes late to class, you're not really only three minutes late. You arrive at the door three minutes late, then go to your desk, get out your paper, ask the student next to you what you missed (distracting other students), hopefully get started working on what you missed and try to catch up to where you should be.
I've watched it happen hundreds of times. Even my most responsible students usually lose at least seven minutes in this process. That may seem like a small amount of time, but it's actually more than 10% of the period. If you were a boss would you be okay with your employees consistently arriving almost an hour late?
It's just plain silly to think that you are in no way losing anything if you're late to class. At a minimum you're losing valuable time while you're arguing with yourself in your head about how it's not your fault, you couldn't help it, lots of other people have been late before... Just plain silly.