30 minute massages are available for $6 at Campus Health Services on Mondays and Wednesdays, from 1:30 to 4:00 p.m.  Schedule and pay in advance at the Belknap Campus Health Services Reception desk.

Goal:  After each class this week, make a list of questions that you need to ask your professors.  This is the perfect time to organize the areas on which you need help.  By being ready to ask questions at the beginning of the last week of classes (next week), you will avoid the rush on the very last class days and the difficulty of finding professors over the exam period. 

This week’s tips focus on how you can use your time efficiently and effectively for studying during the Thanksgiving holiday. 

Be alert to your “highs” and “lows” in planning your study schedule.  Do the hardest tasks when you are the most alert.  It often helps to do the most difficult or most unpleasant task first so that it does not hang over you all day.  Do more active tasks when you are feeling more drained:  flashcards, practice questions, making graphics, etc.  Read and review outlines when you are the most focused.  Be aware of when you need a short break to restore your focus. 

This week’s tips focus on how you can use your time efficiently and effectively for studying during the Thanksgiving holiday. 

Realize that it is your responsibility to carve out the time you need for study.  Talk to your family and friends about why it is important for you to have study time during the break period to prepare for exams, to write a paper, or to accomplish whatever tasks you need to do.  If you have always played during undergraduate school on breaks, they may not understand why law study is different.  Even if family and friends do not fully understand, you need to make personal decisions that you will not regret later.  You may need to make some compromises and get up earlier or stay up later.  Do not use your family and friends as an excuse to procrastinate. 

If you are planning to take the July 2010 Kentucky Bar Exam, be sure to stop by the Academic Success Office to pick up a handout explaining the application process.  Also, mark your calendars for a presentation on January 7, 2010, at 1:00 p.m. in Room 275, regarding the Bar application process.  If you have any questions, please contact Kimberly Ballard, Director of Academic Success (Room 212).

Business Organizations is not a prerequisite for the Drafting Seminar being taught by Professor Nicholson (986-08) in spring 2010, but an understanding of business organizations is preferable.

This week’s tips focus on how you can use your time efficiently and effectively for studying during the Thanksgiving holiday.

Once you decide your priorities, plot out on a calendar which tasks you will complete each day.  Be realistic.  Mark down the actual hours you will spend on each task.  Consider the following possibilities:

• Listen to CD’s in the airport, on the plane, or while driving.
• Review outlines while in the airport or on the plane.
• Photocopy the pages you need to read for classes rather than lugging all of your books with you.
• Ask a family member or friend to quiz you with flashcards while you are at home.
• Get up earlier or go to bed later than family so that you can carve out time to study.
• Negotiate time to study when family/friends are doing other activities that do not need to include you.
• Schedule time with family and friends so that you know when you can study and they know when they will see you.
• Consider whether you can study in a different location than home in order to get time, space, and quiet for studying.
• Plan to take Thanksgiving Day off if possible.  If you have too much to do, at least take a portion of the day off and have fun.
• Use the template calendar attached.
  

If you were not able to register for any spring 2010 course because the course had reached maximum enrollment and was closed, then go to the TWEN site titled “2010 Spring - Class Schedule Discussion Forum” and download the Excel spreadsheet.  Follow the instructions you will find when you open the spreadsheet. Tom Blackburn, Associate Dean and Professor of Law,  tblackburn@louisville.edu

This week’s tips focus on how you can use your time efficiently and effectively for studying during the Thanksgiving holiday.

Create a task list for each exam course or paper/project.  Determine which tasks are your priorities to complete over your break period.  Weigh the following factors:

• Are there projects/papers/presentations that will be due before the end of the semester?
• Are your outlines up-to-date for all of your exam courses?
• Are certain courses extremely difficult for you and need additional review time?
• Are you aware that you are behind in certain courses or portions of courses?
• Do you need to make tables, flowcharts, or other graphics if you are a visual learner?
• Are there certain supplemental materials that you want to read and study to clarify certain topics?
• Have you had a chance to do practice questions for your exam courses?
• Do you need to spend more time on memorization of the law?
• Will you be meeting with a study group during the break period?
  

You should complete your registration by 4:00 pm this coming Friday 11/6/2009.  Early next week we will decide which, if any, courses must be cancelled for lack of the required five student enrollment.By postponing your registration beyond 4:00 pm this coming Friday, 11/6/2009, you run the risk that a class you want will have been cancelled.Tom BlackburnAssociate Dean and Professor of Lawtblackburn@louisville.eduMonday, 11/2/2009