Time Management Tips

1. Estimate – Figure out realistic times for how long things take you and allow yourself enough time to complete them. If you find that one assignment or task takes you a long time – stop and move on to something else. Make yourself a note to come back to the unfinished assignment. Maybe after being away from it for a while you will do better.

2. Schedule - Make a schedule that works for you and your family and try to stick with it. Having a routine helps you to remember things so much better. For example: have a set study time every day. Try and study and complete your homework at the same time every day.

3. Use a calendar – Keep a monthly calendar so you can make long range plans. Include all academic, extracurricular and family activities. Post the calendar in a place where you will see it daily. One idea is to have a dry erase board as a calendar. You can list things on it easier and re-use it monthly.

4. Look over your schedule regularly and note the areas where you are successful and those areas you need to work on.

5. Time for you – Be sure to include leisure time activities (reading for pleasure; watching TV; listening to music; talking on the telephone) in your daily schedule.

6. Map it out – Some kids dont realize how much more time they add to a task by putting it off, which explains why a 15 minute assignment can end up taking hours to complete.

7. Avoid Diversions – Sometimes when you set out to complete an assignment certain diversions come up and these can prolong the amount of time you spend on the assignment. Examples of diversions are stopping to get a snack, doing Web research (which can turn into prolong surfing), or calling a friend about the assignment.

8. During the day when making notes in your agenda for what to do for homework try and be specific. This helps because later on when you get home you may forget exactly how to complete the assignments you write down in your agenda or the specifics of the assignment. The more notes you write down the more time you will save when you get ready to complete your homework at home.

9. Dont go to your locker between every class change. Instead during homeroom get your books for 1st, 2nd, 3rd periods. Go to your locker after 3rd period and get books for 4th and 5th. Lastly go to your last locker break after 5th period.

10. The last locker break is the busiest one. To save time know ahead of time what all you need to get from your locker. A way to do that is to keep a sticky note in your agenda and throughout the day list the books you will need from your locker for that nights homework. When you go to your locker at the end of the day take the sticky note with you and you have your list of what to take home.

11. Post in your locker a schedule of what books to get at each locker break so that you dont have to think about it and waste time at your locker.

12. Cover your books with different colored book covers. Then for your posted schedule in your locker instead of saying Homeroom – get Science, Math and RICA your schedule can say Homeroom – get Blue, Red, and Yellow. You can also color code the notebooks so that they match the subject textbook.

13. After you complete your homework at home go ahead and pack up your book bag and have it beside the door ready to go in the morning.

Agenda Tips Using your agenda should be a part of your daily routine. It should be the first thing you look at when you get home from school and the first thing you get out and look at during the beginning of each class period If you are having trouble turning in work on the day it is due try writing yourself a note in your agenda (on the next days space) the day before. Then when you get to class you will see the reminder note to turn in the assignment

Agenda Tips Use sticky notes in your agenda. When a teacher announces an upcoming test, write the test day in your agenda then write study for science test on a small sticky and stick in your agenda a week before the test to remind yourself to study that night. Then move the sticky note to the next day – study and move it to the next day and so on. This will help you to remember to study every night.

14. Pick out your clothes the night before and have them laying out ready for the morning.