How to Get Straight A's Without Much Work

Co-authored by Alexander Ruiz, M.Ed.

Last Updated: March 20, 2023 References Approved

Everyone wants to have a 4.0 GPA, but most people also think that doing well requires a lot of work. Whether you are in high school or college, working hard is the best way to an "A." Fortunately, though, there are several strategies that will help to inflate your grades with minimal effort.

Part 1

Part 1 of 4:

Strategizing for Better Grades

1
Have a strategy. Get ahead now, so you won't have to dig yourself out of a hole later. Aim to get a solid foundation in all of your classes during the first week, and don't spend too much time in one class, keeping your grades around the B+ or A- range. Then begin working hard on the classes with the lowest grades, bringing all of them to a comfortable position at around 95%.^{[1]
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- Take part in all extra credit activities whenever possible and increase your scores to the A+ range so during the last few weeks you can focus mainly on projects and maybe even skip a few homework assignments, if your scores are really high.
2
Understand your school's grading policies. Find out how your school calculates GPAs, if there are weighted grades for honors classes, which grades actually show up on your transcript, the cutoff percentages for each letter grade, and anything else that might affect your final grades. Grades are a game that all students play, and the more you familiarize yourself with the rules, the better you'll do.

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3
Make the first week of school count. First impressions are everything with teachers, so make sure they have a positive reason for knowing who you are.^{[2]
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- If your teacher starts off the year thinking that you are polite, respectful, and hard-working, they will be nicer to you and will grade your works more easily. It is much easier to have a good first impression than to fix a bad one.
4
Ask questions and volunteer to answer your teacher's questions. You may have to learn the art of faking intelligence and preparedness. It's always easier to appear smart and prepared than to actually be smart and prepared. Try to recall something that you think has some relevance to the topic at hand. Usually the teacher will say something about how good your point was and then give you clues to the answer she was looking for.
- This method has two benefits. First, the teacher thinks you are paying attention in class, and second, they will think you are capable of independent thought and will be more likely to grade your papers easier.
- Teachers love students who participate, and will sometimes boost their grades by whole letters.^{[3]
  X
  Trustworthy Source
  Edutopia
  Educational nonprofit organization focused on encouraging and celebrating classroom innovation
  Go to source}Grades aren't rigid; teachers can manipulate an F to an A or the other way around, and although their changes are rarely that drastic, everything helps.
5
Don't be afraid to collaborate or ask for help. Ask teachers, parents, and classmates to explain things that you have missed. It is easier to ask then to take more time to discover the answer for yourself.
- Come in before school for help. If your teacher offers to give help outside of school, accept. Even if you are struggling with the material in the class, if you show your teacher you are dedicated, s/he will be more likely to give you a good grade.
6
Recognize busy work.^{[4]
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Research source} In order to truly understand, you have to think in terms of the teacher. Teachers are people too. They are just as busy outside of school as you are, if not more so. Also remember that for every homework page you do, the teacher has to grade it, and since she might have over 100 students, that's a lot of papers. There's no way to grade all of them in depth. If you follow the above two steps, your teacher will probably think pretty highly of you and won't be checking your work too closely. You can be pretty sure an assignment is busy work if:
- The assignment is a worksheet.
- You see the teacher grading the exact same papers and spending less than a minute on each before entering a grade.
7
Get organized and use your time efficiently.^{[5]
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Research source} Organize your work in your mind and in a calendar. Don't miss deadlines as late assignments often come with point deductions.^{[6]
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Expert Source

Alexander Ruiz, M.Ed.
Educational Consultant
Expert Interview. 18 June 2020.} Don't lose points because you could not keep up with assignments.
- Tackle busy work efficiently. Busy work should take as much time to do as your teacher will spend grading it! If there is an article with questions, oftentimes the answers can be found in order in the article. Read each question then skim the article for the answer. In opinion questions, you don't need to put thought into your answer. Just make something up that sounds good. Many students already have a knack for how to handle busywork, but for others it takes practice. It's a huge time saver once you get the hang of it.
8
Revamp your handwriting.^{[7]
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Research source}This step is optional, although it will dramatically reduce your workload. Try for a style that is legible, but quick. Your teacher isn't grading you on your penmanship and neat handwriting takes valuable time, especially when doing busy work.
- Handwriting that is ideal for this is quick yet legible - put down words on the page fast, but at the same time aim to make each word readable without too much effort. You may also have to consider using a different type of pen for this - 0.7mm pens best suit this purpose. The Sarasa Clip 0.7 and Pilot Juice 0.7 come to mind, however the Pilot V5 Hi-Tecpoint (0.5), or the Faber-Castell CX Plus 0.5 also work well, since they all have little friction on the nib, allowing you to dramatically increase the speed at which you write (the Sarasa Clip 0.7 is especially good for this, though the lack of friction may also take some getting used to.
9
Consider taking challenging classes if possible. It may seem counter-intuitive if you are trying to get high grades with minimal effort, but learning how to do well in difficult classes will teach you how to excel in easy classes.^{[8]
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Trustworthy Source
American Psychological Association
Leading scientific and professional organization of licensed psychologists
Go to source}
- A difficult schedule will look great on college applications, and after a while you will enjoy the challenge. Remember that these strategies work in almost every class, including the challenging ones.

Part 2

Part 2 of 4:

Doing Homework and Writing Papers

1
Pay attention in class. Even though it's tempting to text or sleep during class, especially when there's a lecture, don't do it. There are two benefits to this: first, you'll eliminate time spent at home learning the information from scratch and you'll do better on tests because you'll know exactly what the teacher wants you to know. Paying attention is key.^{[9]
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Trustworthy Source
Edutopia
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Go to source}
2
Take notes actively.^{[10]
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Research source}As you're writing, actually think about what your teacher is saying and put your notes in your own words. If you can, think of something funny to remember them (called a mnemonic).^{[11]
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Expert Source

Alexander Ruiz, M.Ed.
Educational Consultant
Expert Interview. 18 June 2020.}
3
Do your homework.^{[12]
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Research source}Homework will likely make up the easiest points you will earn all year. That doesn't mean you need to spend hours every night; try utilizing the time at the end of classes.
- Tackle one assignment at a time. Your first section should be worksheets as they take the least amount of time. Then you should do any homework that is broken down into independent parts, such as math. That way you can work for a few minutes at the end of various classes without wasting time finding your place.
- Eliminate distractions. When you really don't feel like doing homework, but need to, get rid of things that normally divide your attention. Turn off the TV. Put your phone in another room. Log off your social media. Lock yourself in a room.^{[13]
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4
Prioritize the bulk of your work based on how hard your teacher grades. Do the work that you know will be read in depth first, and do a good job so you can build trust with that teacher. Then do all of the work that might not be checked so closely and don't worry so much about the quality; just make sure your writing is on topic and looks lengthy and detailed. If you begin to run out of time with just a few unimportant assignments to do, work quickly through them all making sure to complete them all. Teachers value effort greatly and will appreciate it if you do your homework and the easiest way to an A is to make your teacher happy.
5
Know how to write papers. Compartmentalize the tasks needed to complete the assignment. Read the assignment. Conduct the necessary research. Outline your paper. Write your paper. Edit your paper.^{[14]
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- Don't spend too much time thinking about what you are going to write and just start writing. Do any pre-writing work you have to turn in after you write the paper to save time. If you make your paper long enough, chances are that the teacher will only read halfway through, so you have two options. You could either make it really short and good, or really long with several mistakes. After the first few times you try, you'll realize how easy and quick it is to write perfect papers with half of the rewriting you used to do.
- Use a thesaurus to avoid redundancy and vary your sentence structure.

Part 3

Part 3 of 4:

Studying For Tests

1
Don't study until your homework is done. As stressed as you may be about the test, think about the differences between studying and doing homework.
- Use your homework to study for the test. Most of the time, the key points needed for the test are discussed in the homework.
- When your teacher assigns homework, s/he also assigns a certain point value to the assignment. If you do the work, you get the points, if you don't, those points are lost. Your teacher doesn't give you points for studying, just for the test. If the test is hard, no matter how much studying you do, you might still get a bad grade. Then you'll want the cushion homework points will give you.
2
Study over time. Don't cram! Your brain will retain the information a lot better if you gradually memorize information.^{[15]
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Expert Source

Alexander Ruiz, M.Ed.
Educational Consultant
Expert Interview. 18 June 2020.} Cramming helps in the short term, but if you hope to retain the information for the entire semester, it is best to study over a longer period of time.^{[16]
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3
Don't cheat. The risks far outweigh the rewards.^{[17]
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Trustworthy Source
Edutopia
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Go to source}
4
Relax before tests. Nap, exercise, listen to music... etc. Calm yourself. The last thing you want to do is freak out right before an exam. You won't be able to concentrate. Even if you haven't studied at all, if you paid attention in class, chances are you will do fine. If you stress too much, you will blank out and end up with a worse grade.^{[18]
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Eat a peppermint during a test. Studies have shown that peppermint improves memory and recall.^{[19]
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Part 4

Part 4 of 4:

Developing a Winning Lifestyle

1
Find a way to motivate yourself. Give yourself permission to do something fun when you have completed an assignment, done well on a test, or written an excellent paper.^{[20]
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Expert Source

Alexander Ruiz, M.Ed.
Educational Consultant
Expert Interview. 18 June 2020.} If you have the motivation to work, you will be able to concentrate more.^{[21]
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2
Have a good breakfast. If you are not hungry at the start of the day, you will be able to concentrate better in classes and on your work.^{[22]
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Trustworthy Source
US Department of Education
Federal government agency in charge of U.S. education law and policy
Go to source}
3
Get a good night's sleep.^{[23]
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Research source} It is tempting to stay up late to watch TV, play video games, or talk on the phone. Sleep deprivation can seriously affect your ability to succeed.
4
Take practical measures to avoid missing school. These might include:
- Getting annual check-ups with your doctor.
- Getting a flu shot.^{[24]
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- Having alternate ways of getting to school in case you miss your bus or normal ride.

Expert Q&A

Question

What do top students do to get straight As?

Alexander Ruiz, M.Ed.
Educational Consultant
Alexander Ruiz is an Educational Consultant and the Educational Director of Link Educational Institute, a tutoring business based in Claremont, California that provides customizable educational plans, subject and test prep tutoring, and college application consulting. With over a decade and a half of experience in the education industry, Alexander coaches students to increase their self-awareness and emotional intelligence while achieving skills and the goal of achieving skills and higher education. He holds a BA in Psychology from Florida International University and an MA in Education from Georgia Southern University.

Alexander Ruiz, M.Ed.

Educational Consultant

Expert Answer

They will find a study space that complements their learning style so they're able to absorb the information better. For example, an auditory learner would study somewhere they can listen to recorded lessons.
Question

How do I take notes?

Community Answer

Before class starts, get out a pen or pencil, and a pad of paper. Copy down whatever the teacher writes down on the board. Listen carefully to the teacher; if she repeats something several times, that something is very important and should go into your notes too. You may find this article helpful.
Question

What is the earliest time that I can go to bed for this to be effective?

Community Answer

How early you go to bed depends on how early you have to wake up in the morning. You should plan on getting about 8 hours of sleep. Keep in mind that going too early to bed can be just as bad as going too late to bed.