In these uncertain times, it’s hard to adjust to a new learning environment from home with your family and many distractions. Here are ways for you to make time for you and your schoolwork.
Stay Motivated and Organized
First, learning online requires flexibility, self-motivation, and responsibility. There are plenty of reasons to be successful in school and in life. You might want to learn something related to your future career, and you take pride in your accomplishments. Remember to remind yourself why you want to succeed in school and write it out:
- Have you thought about your reasons for doing well in school?
- Are you ready to excel in high school, college, and beyond?
Set Up A Nice Study Environment
Another important part of school success is a quiet, comfortable study environment.
- Find some peace and quiet. You’ll need a comfortable space to read and study quietly.
- Turn off any games and app notifications on your phone. You can put away your video games somewhere else in your house.
- Silence your phone. Let friends and family members know that you’ll be at “school”.
- Avoid online distractions. When you wander from one website to another, you can lose track of time.
- Adjust your chair, keyboard, and computer height on your desk. Your upper legs and forearms should be flat and parallel to the floor. Your wrists should not bend while typing.
- Use decent lighting. Lighting should be as bright as the computer screen to prevent eye strain.
Explore the Technology First
There’s no worse feeling than being required to do something we are not all used to doing. That can feel scary, particularly when we had a limited time to adjust to new settings and technology. Look for videos or tutorials to help. Take the time to get to know the technology first, so you can get to know everything that needs to be accomplished and be prepared when your teacher assigns classwork online.
Work Carefully Through Your Assignments
Although you save time going to your real school, try to not rush through your work and pace yourself. Remote learning can be challenging, especially if you learn better with your classmates. Talk with your teachers. If you run into a challenge, keep trying and ask for help. Your teacher can work with you to better understand the lessons and answer questions.
You Can Adjust and Succeed!
Set up a reasonable study schedule and stick with it. Students who do well can work through technical difficulties, to seek support when needed, to work on their assignments, and are ready to face challenges. Students who excel are the ones who log in and make progress every day. This is particularly important after getting used to going online for school. With guidance and support, we all can work together to make the rest of the school year successful.
