At this point in the semester, you've probably realized you don't really understand a topic as great as you thought you did. BUT, that's perfectly fine. It's better to have realized it now than in the middle of your final exam. Hornbooks are perfect life hacks to help get your understanding back on track. Here are a few hacks for hornbooks if you're struggling in a class.
- First, hornbooks that are specifically recommended by your professors would be a great place to start! Some of your professors have not only read the hornbooks they're suggesting but have written them as well! What better way to better understand a course topic than from the words and hypotheticals of the professor writing the exam!! Also, the hornbooks that are recommended tend to follow the course and the way the professor is going to teach it.
- Now, after buying textbooks, paying your bills, and eating out, your pockets may look a little.. FLAT! If it's not financially feasible for you to buy a hornbook, the law library is another great resource to find some! The law library has a wide variety of hornbooks including the understanding series and the examples and explanations (both series I recommend for any law course). These books are available for checkout for 3 hours at a time. There are also old and new versions editions of most hornbooks, just ask your law librarian on the 3rd floor of the law school.
- And finally, the most important hack that hornbooks serve (right after your understanding of course), HELP FOR YOUR OUTLINES! Hornbooks not only explain the law but somealso give you example hypotheticals, multiple choice examples, and mnemonic devices to help you remember a rule statement better. One of my favorite mnemonic devices came from a torts hornbook: "D may have a duty to P depending on whether P was LIT!" I was able to remember licensee, invitee, and trespasser on my final when the time came!
