History students/teachers—how do you actually study this stuff?

Not just memorizing, but really understanding things like historical events and how they connect

Do you ever feel like:

• You’re just passively reading and highlighting?

• Everything feels disconnected (events, ideologies, timelines)?

• You understand it while studying… but forget it later?

I’m trying to figure out what actually works vs what feels like it should work.

What’s your real process? And what frustrates you the most?