Philosophy is challenging, but that's not a bad thing. But philosophy is also unnecessarily hard, and that is a bad thing. Students are often surprised to learn that  philosophy isn't just waxing lyrical about the meaning of life after a few beers (though it can be that too!). Philosophical arguments can be good or bad, cogent or illogical, subtle or brazenly fallacious.
Philosophy is a thoroughly academic discipline: It has a vocabulary and standards all its own. Philosophers have developed (and internalized) tools for evaluating arguments and ideas, and they deploy those tools without preamble or fanfare. When philosophers are debating the ethics of assisted suicide, don't expect them to drop everything and define ipso facto or intuition or counterexample for any spectators. That's where these resources come in. They are designed to provide you with the background you need to eavesdrop on any philosophical debate and understand it. The main document is called GUTS: Getting Up To Speed (in Philosophy). I strongly encourage you to download and use it, but especially if this is only your first or second philosophy class. The document is also of significant value to philosophy majors.

To download it, click here.

Here is the Table of Contents:

Ch. 1 What Philosophy Is (and Isn't)
Ch. 2 The Philosophical Mindset
Ch. 3 Essential Skills for Philosophy Students
Ch. 4 Philosophical Argumentation
Ch. 5 Writing Philosophy Papers
Ch. 6 Key Distinctions
Ch. 7 Common Philosophical Moves
Ch. 8 A Quick Tour of Philosophy

Appendix A: Glossary of Philosophical Terms
Appendix B: Common Latin Phrases
Appendix C: Guide to Citing in Philosophy