It is a whole new school year and I am having so much fun watching and hearing all the stories from the first day of school and looking at the photos of the students going back to school. And while the first days of school are always fun and exciting for both students and parents, it’s important to start with what’s important.
I must warn you, that just like that you will look up and half the year will be gone. It is around this time that my training and mentoring line begins to explode. The first semester is usually fine. The second is where the struggles begin. Time management can make the difference in a successful or unsuccessful year for a student. Here are some time management tips that are critical to passing classes and being promoted to the next grade or level.
Make a to-do list-I encourage my high school students to buy and use a programmer. It is important to know where it is supposed to be and when. It’s also important to make a schedule and see what tasks need to be completed on a daily basis. Checking off these tasks on the fly helps you see how productive your day is.
To do the list evaluation-Students who are old enough and responsible enough to go through their homework list can do it on their own at the end of the day. However, it is important to be very honest and make sure that all tasks get done and not just ticked off. For younger children, parents should be a part of evaluating their daily to-do list; This helps teach them responsibility and accountability. It’s also a great time to chat and catch up with your little one while going through the to-do list. I encourage parents to make sure to start with a to-do list with their middle school and higher students, but some parents have helped their children use daily planners in elementary school with great success.
Use your time wisely-Most people would be surprised at how much time is wasted throughout the day. One way to understand how much you are missing is to keep track of your time. There are many distractions to choose from, including social media, texting, video games, and more. The unfortunate part is that we now have these distractions close at hand. Gone are the days when you had to wait to get home and watch TV or call your best boyfriend or girlfriend. Our phones and tablets are connected to us and they are present everywhere. Makes it easy to check your phone 100 times a day. The problem is that every time the phone is pulled out, the clock is ticking and time is wasted. The first time I did this exercise I was amazed at how many times I looked at my phone during work hours.
If you have not already done so, parents should consider limiting the time they spend watching television and cell phones. While there are many valid arguments for bringing a phone to school these days, there are also valid questions about how much of a distraction a phone is. Gone are the days when half of lunch was spent reading or catching up on the next day’s homework. Make sure your student is using their time wisely. Talk about censoring themselves to spend less time on their cell phone and more time on school work.
Communicate your schedule to others– make sure your friends and family know your study hours. Phone calls and text messages can be very distracting when doing school work and are a huge waste of time. Simply letting your friends know that you are unavailable for a period of time would go a long way. Being able to do homework for a full two hours instead of 30 minutes can greatly improve grades.
Your time— My last time management tip that is great for all ages is the kitchen timer. There’s a true story behind the Pomodoro (where this method originated from) that I’m not going to get into right now, but I generally encourage my students to get a simple kitchen timer to use as a time management tool. It is used the same way your mother or grandmother uses it in the kitchen. You set a time preferably 25 minutes to fully concentrate on your school work and when the time is up, you stop. You will be amazed at what can be done in 25 minutes of concentrated time.
Without a doubt, these time management tips are beneficial for all ages. However, it is especially gratifying to see young students learn these habits at an early age. Personally, I have seen great success with students of all ages when using these time management skills.
Learning these good time management habits are life skills that are beneficial in college, career, and beyond. Some argue in favor of letting children be children, but I firmly believe that since parents are given the responsibility to educate our children along the way, they must go on. We are given a unique opportunity to teach them life skills. When we start certain methods it is an individual choice. However, research has shown that those things learned in our formative years will likely stick around for a lifetime.
