An anecdote is a short little scene or story taken from a personal experience. Anecdotes can be useful for setting the stage for a speech or personal essay. An anecdote often relays a story that can be used as a theme or lesson.

Have you ever argued with a brother or sister vehemently, only to discover that your sibling was right? Or perhaps you've ignored someone's advice and lived to regret it? You could use either of these experiences to set the stage for a speech about listening to others. Any time you've learned a lesson, you have gained life experience that can, in turn, be used in a personal essay or speech.

Why is reading so important? It's simple: books offer lessons about life and about sentence construction at the same time!

Lots of folks offer lists and summaries of classic books that students should read and study as they prepare for college. But reading for joy and sheer interest is another matter, and it is certainly just as important. You can learn a lot from any book that is well-written.

One site that I recommend is Teenreads.com, because there you will find the longest and most inspiring list of quality books written for young adults. You'll find a mix of titles, from true classics to the hottest new reads from every genre. Enjoy!

The best way to ensure a good grade on a paper is to grade it yourself before the teacher looks at it. There are a few ways you could go about it.

First, you could find a study partner who will agree to do a paper exchange with you a few days before the due date. The two of you should agree to exchange and review papers with brutal honesty. Each of you should read, review, and grade your partner's paper, using the assignment as your guideline.

If you don't have a study partner, you can still pre-grade your paper using an assignment checklist. Once you've completed a final draft of your paper, use the checklist to grade yourself on each element of your work.

• Book Report Checklist
• Research Paper Checklist

I have a favorite grade point average calculator that I use when advising students. You can use this tool to figure out exactly what you need to do (grade-wise) to improve your GPA.

This GPA calculator has options such as:

• How many credit hours will it take to raise your GPA to a specific grade.
• What you will need to average on your current courses to reach a specific goal.

Explore this tool to find out where you stand and what you need to do to stay on target with your grades.