The COVID-19 pandemic has made many areas of life difficult. Today I am going to explain a few things that helped me succeed during remote learning. Even if your school is adopting a hybrid or completely in-person model, these tips still apply.

Have a daily routine.

• Come up with a time to wake up every day to make school feel more normal. I recommend using an alarm clock so you wake up on time.
• Having set times when you work on homework and set times when you relax will prevent you from feeling fatigue. These times don’t have to be exact since some days you’ll get more homework than others.

Create a set workspace.

• This will help you focus more on your schoolwork while you are working.
• Try to find a workspace without too many distractions so that you are not tempted to do something else while you learn.
• If you do remote learning, I would recommend finding a room with a door so that you can listen to your teacher while they’re teaching without any distractions from your siblings, parents, or pets. I would recommend finding a room other than your bedroom if you can so you don’t have to stare at your books before you go to sleep.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help.

• If you have any questions while doing your homework, don’t hesitate to ask people around you. You can email your teachers, text your friends, or ask your parents if they know the subject that you’re learning.
• Form a study group. Forming a study group can help you by bouncing ideas off of your friends and learning more about your subjects. Meeting at set times such as once a week can also add a level of predictability in your studying.

Give yourself time to relax.

• Something that I try to do is finish all of my weekend homework Friday evening or Saturday morning so that I have 1 ½ or 2 days on the weekend just to relax.
• Another method of studying on the weekend that I sometimes do is getting all of my assignments done on Friday and picking 1-2 hours each on Saturday and Sunday to study for any tests that I might have coming up.

You don’t have to do every assignment every day.

• Prioritize your assignments based on how long you think they will take and when the due dates are (do assignments that are due earlier first).

Use a planner or whatever method works for you to keep track of homework.

• I use a paper planner and write down any assignments that I am given that day in addition to more long-term assignments. If I find out that I have a test, quiz, or major assignment due, I’ll usually write it in the front of my planner where I have a calendar. This enables me to check the front of my planner later for a quick view of my major assessments and projects.

Don’t procrastinate!

• If you have a long-term project due, figure out roughly how much time it will take you in total and how long you have to complete it; start doing about 30 minutes of the project a day after you finish your other short-term assignments so that you don’t end up leaving it all for the night before.
• Take at least 10 minutes each day to review your notes from each class; this will help you remember the information so that you’re prepared whenever your teacher announces a test.
• Typically once you start an assignment you will realize that it is easier than you thought – you can’t finish an assignment unless you start it!