I am taking an insurance education course to get my Associates degree in Information Technology. I am currently taking AIT 131 and have to take three more courses after that for the certificate of completion. My work is paying for my courses and all of the fees. I have to pass or I have 60 days to pay them back. I scheduled my test for December 9th at 2:30 pm, but I have to be there at 2 for check in. It is at a business center that is certified to give the test, which is 84 multiple choice questions that you answer on the computer. This is my first test that won’t be on pen and paper.
My plan is to do at least a chapter a week. So, that gives me 11 weeks for going through the book and study guide and about 3 weeks of studying for the test. Before I get into my books and materials, I wanted to make a little announcement. Working full time, taking an insurance course, and raising an almost nine month old full time is no joke. These are my priorities in order to make a better life for my family. This means that my blog will be on the back burner for when I have time for it. I’m not going to sacrifice my studies for my blog. If I have time, I’ll blog. I’ll have a post up tomorrow as well. Next week? I might just have one. It depends on how much of my work on Chapter 2 that I get done. I hope you guys understand.
This is my textbook Using Information Technology by The Institutes. The Institutes is my Insurance Education college. As you can see, the book is thick, but there is another chapter missing from it. It’s missing chapter 11, which I was sent as a separate little blue book. What I like to do, is read a two page spread and highlight as I go along: pink for title headers, blue for the text underneath of what the section is about, orange for any vocab that is bold and underlined, and yellow for any important information in the sections.
After reading, I’ll take notes in my Hot Chocolate notebook. I love the gold accents! I’ll just write down whatever I highlighted in different colors. I like to color code and it helps me to recognize different sections of my notes. Every chapter is a different set of pen colors, so I can also recognize when I flip into a different chapter.
I love the Papermate Ink Joy pens. They write the smoothest and really are effortless. I also bought some new Sharpie highlighters. I already had an assortment of page flags and sticky pads. I like using the sticky ads to write down what I want to get accomplished that day. There is a certain satisfaction to completing it and throwing it out.
Above is the extra chapter that I was taking about. I haven’t looked at this yet, since I am not there yet. At least, it isn’t an actual “assignment”. lol
This is the workbook that came with my textbook. I don’t have to hand this in or anything, but it is a great study aid to do after reading the chapter and taking notes. It comes with an outline for each chapter that I record in a separate Kate Spade notebook. I answer all the questions and do the vocab in the book. I check my answers with the answers page to make sure I understand the material. If I get it wrong, I highlight the answer, so I know that I need to work on it. This even comes with a practice exam for when the time comes.
I love the gold accents and it matches my other notebook perfectly! I love the saying on the front and it perfect for what I wanted it for. I used up my remaining Birchbox points for this guy and I love it!
I got the hair tie as a freebie from Birchbox. I wanted to compare my two notebooks for you and I had to stick that sticker on my planner spread. So cute. Until next time!
With Love,
Home Sweet Phoenix Cove 
I love the kate spade notebook! That is cute. I find paper mate pens in general to be the best ball point pens. They just came out with the ink joy pens in gel form. I bought a 3 pack but haven’t tried yet. I usually use colors for headings and black or blue for regular text when taking notes. I hope your textbook has lots of photos and is interesting. Mine have almost none and are really dull.
They have a lot of pictures and diagrams. I love the Kate Spade too! I want to get more. I need to get some of those gel pens! I love gel pens. I’m finally really using my planner, but I don’t have the time for over the top decorating. I need to buy a monthly planner kit to make it easy for me. Lol.
I haven’t decorated mine at all. It’s too time consuming, and it’s time I would usually spend on something else. I have been using it again though. I basically went the whole summer without using it. I won’t be buying one as expensive again. The one I bought for next year is about half the price.
Lol. I my work bought my next planner or about 10 dollars. I also bought a big desk calander that you lay on your desk or 3 USD. I’m so happy that my work pays for planner supplies. lol.
That is nice! Is it fancy at all or plain? I don’t see myself ever spending over $30 on a planner again. I forget about it too much. Lol.
It’s plan, but it’s an appointment planners you have the times to plan to. I do better with that anyway. Yeah I forget to do my planner a lot too. Lol.
I understand. My dad usually gets a similar one every year. I barely used
Mine after school ended in May, which was almost 4 months and just seemed wasteful to spend a lot again knowing the same thing could happen.
Same. I actually just got my planner stuff today from work. I haven’t had a chance to look at them yet though.
Yay! It will be fun when you do. I love office supplies. Lol.
Me too. Lol. I want to buy some. I think Ill make a wish list post.
You should. That reminds me I should move my stapler to my desk. It’s finally cleaned off. It was piled with stuff all summer.
Lol. I need a desk.
I needed one for a very long time. I finally bought one because doing school work in my bed without a surface to work at left me with a very sore neck and back.
I know what you mean. I’m doing homework on the couch now.
You could use your dining table? I can’t do that at my house, too noisy. Lol. I finished all of mine yesterday, but I spent all afternoon Monday and all day Tuesday and Wednesday on it. I finished after 9 last night. I just finished working for the day.
I’m doing a chapter a week and am about twenty pages from being done with the chapter and I have to do the workbook section on it.Hopefully, I get most of it done today and tomorrow, which I’m going to Boston for my dad’s test, so I should be able to squeeze in a bit on the ride there and waiting around. I’m trying to get ahead in it, but its hard. I work on it an hour in the morning, 30 minutes during lunch, and whenever I can in the evenings. I have seriously cut down on my internet usage. Speaking of which, I’m just writing a quick post for Saturday and going back to working on that homework. I’m writing a sponsored post too that I want to get done by Sunday to submit for review on BB. So, hopefully, that will post sometime this week.
Are the chapters usually long???
Yes. The book is over 500 pages with 10 chapters. The first chapter was 60 pages long and the next one I think is more like 80. Then my work book questions which are 30 to 40. I have to keep up. I don’t want to fall behind and not have enough time to study for the test.
That sounds pretty similar to the size of my textbooks for this semester. Last year my two text combined lead to me reading nearly 2000 pages. Is the material difficult?
Not so far, but I assume as it goes on it gets more specialized. I already learned how to build my own computer and how the internet is just a lot of computers linked together. When you Google search, it searches in for on millions or billions of computers. It’s not really a cloud of info, but a lot of computers. I never really understood the web until I started this course.
That actually sounds a little similar to what I was learning last semester, though that focused solely on searching with library catalogs and online databases. This semester is focusing on the process behind that some. It is really strange when you start thinking about it, because the Internet is far more massive than you first realize.
Exactly! I’m glad you know what I’m talking about. Lol. It takes about blogs too and how they are for people with no life. Lol.
It is nice that there is some overlap in our fields of study. I try explaining this to other people and no one understands. Lol. Rude!!! Lol.
Yes! It’s like they don’t understand that the internet is just a bunch of computers. It’s not really a cloud or a web of wires. It’s just computers that are always pulled into the internet so information can always be accessible.
I think it makes a lot more sense that way, because without a computer, a cloud would not exist!!
Yes! Because the computer is the cloud. Finally someone who understands. 🙂
I think our generation will probably need to know this as time goes on, and older people are only slightly starting to understand. And I don’t think they care. My parents and grandparents are all online now and I would just confuse them by mentioning this.
Lol.
Am leaving now! Running behind.
Alright.