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Please spot issues:

1. Push through all the reading for every class in as little time as possible. I feel like I'm extracting what I should (it honestly feels too easy to the point it's sort of discomforting). I'm taking notes that I think are applicable to the exam as I go, and I'm writing maybe a half a page for each case. No IRAC, just big picture stuff.

2. Go through one supplement for each class, and clarify and synthesize using that new information.

3. Inject class notes, professor traits and any other random information into my outlines.

I hope to finish the first two steps by late november so I can crush out practice exams.

That's all pretty spot on. Just don't forget to masturbate.

Pretty solid. I did pretty much that and I felt like it worked relatively well. I did not make my own outlines and used past ones. I injected class notes and lectures into the outlines as class went on.

Try different things and don't be married to any one system or way of thinking through a class. Every class and professor is different and should require a different approach. There isn't a "right" way to do any of this, and I would advise against forcing yourself into a rigid, one size fits all system, because that will entail a lot of unnecessary/comparatively unproductive work, and you don't want to waste time that could be spent doing fun shit/avoiding the 1L blues.

For example, in some classes it's going to make sense to painstakingly outline (e.g. collecting half a dozen and merging them into one), and in some it's going to make sense not to outline at all and instead carefully reread the syllabus leading up to exam day. For some classes, attending class/participating in discussion will be useless (and maybe even detrimental) for your exam performance, and for some it will be crucial. Same goes for practice tests. Just do what feels right and makes you confident in your abilities, and don't worry about what anyone else is doing.

Thanks, homies. I feel way less stressed than many of my classmates seem to be. I'm enjoying the reading. Now if I can just focus for more than an hour at a time I'll be set.

I just started and I'm pretty much doing the exact same thing you're doing. I feel bad because I'm not doing nearly as much work so far as anyone else or don't seem to be going as hard as them

I never figured out what my classmates were doing. I felt like I worked about 40% as many hours as they did.

..

I'm putting in about as much time as everyone else right now, but I'm already two weeks ahead in some classes. I'll look like a moron in class when I haven't read the case in question in weeks, but that's what I've been preparing for I guess. Good luck!

Traynor Brah wrote:Try different things and don't be married to any one system or way of thinking through a class. Every class and professor is different and should require a different approach. There isn't a "right" way to do any of this, and I would advise against forcing yourself into a rigid, one size fits all system, because that will entail a lot of unnecessary/comparatively unproductive work, and you don't want to waste time that could be spent doing fun shit/avoiding the 1L blues.

For example, in some classes it's going to make sense to painstakingly outline (e.g. collecting half a dozen and merging them into one), and in some it's going to make sense not to outline at all and instead carefully reread the syllabus leading up to exam day. For some classes, attending class/participating in discussion will be useless (and maybe even detrimental) for your exam performance, and for some it will be crucial. Same goes for practice tests. Just do what feels right and makes you confident in your abilities, and don't worry about what anyone else is doing.

Yeah, and all of this should be tailored to how you learn/memorize. I outlined everything way late because I memorize by internalizing and typing shit out. So it made sense for me to wait. That's also why I never used supps or other people's outlines (except maybe as a spot-check that I didn't miss anything re: others' outlines). I'd say at mid point you should try to find a practice exam question or two for the materials you've already covered and try to answer or at least outline it and then check it with a friend or against a model answer or something else besides your own knowledge. That's decent feedback for how you are performing, and with enough time to make changes and keep up if you find out you aren't capturing information as well as you should.

BNA wrote:I'm putting in about as much time as everyone else right now, but I'm already two weeks ahead in some classes. I'll look like a moron in class when I haven't read the case in question in weeks, but that's what I've been preparing for I guess. Good luck!

Eh. Your basic plan seems fine, but I wouldn't be reading two weeks ahead at this point.

BNA wrote:Please spot issues:

1. Push through all the reading for every class in as little time as possible. I feel like I'm extracting what I should (it honestly feels too easy to the point it's sort of discomforting). I'm taking notes that I think are applicable to the exam as I go, and I'm writing maybe a half a page for each case. No IRAC, just big picture stuff.

2. Go through one supplement for each class, and clarify and synthesize using that new information.

3. Inject class notes, professor traits and any other random information into my outlines.

I hope to finish the first two steps by late november so I can crush out practice exams.

1.

You aren't that far in. They're easing you in so your comfort probably will not last long. Basically, you're in the slowest part right now

2.

ok

3.

Don't inject class notes. That's far more important than supplements. Your professor's view is all that matters. You should be injecting supplements

Injecting seems good there

seespotrun wrote:That's all pretty spot on. Just don't forget to masturbate.

LOL

Would people generally recommending keeping about a week ahead of the readings through the semester? It seems like a good way to give yourself some more time during that last week of classes, but maybe that doesn't hold up in real life. Trying to weight the benefits of pushing ahead over the next week or so...

CaptainJapan wrote:Would people generally recommending keeping about a week ahead of the readings through the semester? It seems like a good way to give yourself some more time during that last week of classes, but maybe that doesn't hold up in real life. Trying to weight the benefits of pushing ahead over the next week or so...

I wouldn't generally recommend it. If it works for you, do it, but it's not a prerequisite to success. In my three years of law school, I don't think I ever read more than a day or two ahead.

The important thing is that you understand the material. Don't just "push ahead" to get a week ahead for its own sake, particularly if that push comes at the expense of understanding what you're covering in class right now.

CaptainJapan wrote:Would people generally recommending keeping about a week ahead of the readings through the semester? It seems like a good way to give yourself some more time during that last week of classes, but maybe that doesn't hold up in real life. Trying to weight the benefits of pushing ahead over the next week or so...

I had a hard enough time remembering what I'd read the night before. If ever I got a couple days ahead, I was lost when class rolled around.

You're right to think that keeping up at the end of the semester can be hard (mainly due to finishing up your memo or your brief), but I just skipped the readings I didn't get done so that I could stay on schedule with readings after handing those in, took good notes, and went back to the readings for anything I didn't understand from that week's classes.

Pretty close to what I'm doing. Not sure if I would try to push two weeks ahead but that's mostly because I'll start to lose focus on cases we're talking about now if I get that far ahead.

.

If making your own outline, use class notes as base (not supplement or your reading notes), trim the fat, add rules pulled from cases that you have in your reading notes that the professor touched on but are better explained using wording in case and use supplement if feel unclear or unsure about a particular area.

I think pushing ahead hurts more than it helps. Should only really be max 1 class ahead. A lot of material builds off previous readings so should wait for the professor's take before getting too far ahead of yourself. I know you've heard this before but it's your professor's class and you are trying to get an A in your professor's version of the class. If you're gunning for that top grade, you really need to learn professor's view of the subject.

I would add:

4. Talk to 2Ls and 3Ls who had your professors and suss out any exam/grading quirks.

Reading cases is pointless, unless you'll need to cite to them in finals (almost never), or need to know them for multiple-choice questions. Time is better spent reading supplements and prior outlines, and doing practice exams. The only consequence of not reading cases is occasionally looking like an idiot in class, which has almost zero grade consequences, and even that isn't really the case if you have prior outlines or look up case summaries before class.

1L isn't that hard. Most people in law school suck at taking law exams. Just be better than them, and don't worry about looking smart in class or whatever the fuck law students care about.

I did so much better in classes where I read the cases. I ranked classes where I relied on supplements.

A. Nony Mouse wrote:I did so much better in classes where I read the cases. I ranked classes where I relied on supplements.

ranked classes?

TetrisBlock wrote:

A. Nony Mouse wrote:I did so much better in classes where I read the cases. I ranked classes where I relied on supplements.

ranked classes?

I assume Nony meant "tanked." In any event, I also fall in the "you should read the cases" camp. In my experience, many profs based their exam fact patterns on actual cases we read for class. If you had read and thought about the case that the question was based on, you were in a stronger position to write a good answer.