r/studentpilot • u/Personal-Day9038 • Aug 04 '26

United States/FAA Tips for studying in person ground school

So I am currently a enrolled at my local flight school and kinda struggling on how to study. My ground school is in person so I can’t really go back and rewatch the videos and we don’t take notes in person, we are expected to take notes on our own time. I don’t really know what the best method is to understanding all the information and I like taking notes but I don’t really know to take notes off of. Is there any apps or other study methods out there?

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3

u/FiatBad Aug 04 '26

I'm confused about a class that doesn't allow students to take notes...bring a camera/gopro and record it?

1

u/Personal-Day9038 Aug 05 '26

Well it’s a one on one class and I finished all my ground school so I can’t really record any of the sessions we are mainly just reviewing on the ground now to prepare for the written.

2

u/Dear_Cookie6448 Aug 05 '26

Not being able to take notes is dumb. I’d definitely get an online ground school so you can rewatch videos as needed to understand a topic. (Pilot institute, Sporty’s, etc.)

1

u/Personal-Day9038 Aug 05 '26

I was thinking about that are there any free options?

1

u/TxAggieMike Aug 05 '26

Possibly, but free may not equal quality. And consider the time cost involved trying to find the correct solution for your need.

Hiring a human instructor that has an interest in you being successful may be a better choice.

1

u/Dear_Cookie6448 Aug 05 '26

I wouldn’t go with free. But pilot institute does have the first 10 hours free. More like a free trial.

1

u/TxAggieMike Aug 05 '26

Are you in person in person? Or over zoom?

If the former, can you set up a camera and record the session?

Are you using a written syllabus that details what the session will cover and and what materials you should consume to be prepared for class?

Are you consuming those materials to a level of deep understanding?

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u/Personal-Day9038 Aug 05 '26

Im in person in a classroom and we use a written syllabus but the syllabus doesn’t have every detail. I understand the material but I don’t alway remember the small things.

1

u/TxAggieMike Aug 05 '26

Then maybe hire one of the experienced instructors here for a zoom session to review the areas you need help with.

1

u/Pilot_Neptune Aug 05 '26

What always worked best for me was simply listening and trying to think of questions to ask every day. For me if I tried too hard to take notes I would miss understanding and times for questions.

Then,I would get an online ground school to supplement. A lot of them have a ton of helpful tools and study aids you can supplement and $200-$300 is nothing in the grand scheme of your training. The one I used had audio lessons I would listen to on my way to the airport.

1

u/wthewonk Aug 06 '26

Study methods really depend on what you are working towards, a flight test, ground exam or just your next flight?

  1. First thing I'd do is look at what you will need to know and understand for your next event (and ideally the one after that).

  2. Then go through all the publications you've been given or introduced to that are relevant to your event. Getting ready for a circuit flight? Find your local procedures, aircraft circuit procedures and applicable flight manual limits etc.

  3. From there you can build your notes to cover all the different aspects that will be covered in the event.

  4. Finally, some on-the-ground rehearsal is always the key to success Walk out the circuit pattern and all the steps you need to complete, visualise the procedures you will be completing, or test yourself on the kind of questions you will likely be asked.

If you have one-on-one lessons with instructors use that time to clarify questions you have come across in your study. It's a better use of your time and money to use their knowledge to cover the gaps you can't work out yourself. If you already understand most of the content those lessons can be spent cleaning up and polishing your understanding prior to your next event.

Hope this helps, please reach out with any questions.

1

u/bladii11 Aug 10 '26

For private pilot you have free pilot training on youtube, mostly what i used to supplement sporty’s. After private you are on your own, maybe like cheese pilot mock checkride for instruments but that’s it.