The main purpose of honing notes is to refine them and make them your own. There are many ways to hone your in class notes. Sometimes honing your notes makes them longer, sometimes it makes them shorter. They should NOT be a neater recopied version of the in-class notes. The key is to learn how you want to sharpen your notes in a variety of classes because not all classes are the same. Building intuition around in class and honed…
When I work with college students I notice that a lot of the stuff getting in the way is the small life stuff. These tasks have very little to do with direct school achievement, but they dramatically reduce their ability to be productive. Here is a video explaining the small skills that every college freshman should know before they leave home. Like 0
Do you feel stressed when your teacher announces a test? Do you have a hard time figuring out how to use your worksheets, textbooks, online activities, and class notes? Graphic Organizers are a great way for students to organize all of the information they get from each class. This general format students can use to help them organize their materials in any class or subject. Graphic Organizers help students take materials that are given or assigned to them and allow…
Do you want to know how to take notes with less stress? Students are often not taught how to take notes that will help them study effectively. Note Taking helps students stay active during lectures or videos. It is very easy to zone out when others are talking. This template is a variation on the Cornell Note-taking method. My students often complain that notes feel very time-consuming and useless. I have found that this method allows students to take effective…
I have created a note-taking template that students can use to help guide their literature reading so they can write a thoughtful and polished essay with less stress. Using this template as students read will help them avoid time-consuming strategies such as re-reading to find relevant quotes or flipping through a mountain of sticky notes throughout the book. I have included additional lists and reflective questions to help students jump-start their reading and writing process Using a template can help students…
Getting Things Done for Teens is the newest GTD book by David Allen, Mike Williams, and Mark Wallace. The book’s message is essential: teens need a strategy to address their complex world. The book is intended to help teens and tweens avoid many of the common pitfalls that happen when we enter adulthood without tangible organizational skills. While there are many positives parts of this book, it, unfortunately, falls into the trap of trying to adjust an adult level organization system…
As I work with students, I have noticed that the use of planners has started to become less frequent. When I was young planners were the go-to organization tool for students. I think that the shift away from paper planners is a result of more assignments being put online. Online systems are a great way for students to track their homework, but they have limitations. There is a strategic advantage to using a planner in conjunction with online systems. Planners…
We are in the middle of understanding how to use technology effectively in education. Integrating technology into teaching is a complex negotiation process because there are so many moving parts and individual needs that must be taken into consideration. Many adults assume that students can navigate all types of technology and platforms with ease. While younger generations may be more comfortable with devices, they do not know how to translate them into effective study strategies. Often developmental milestones and limits to…
Do you ever feel like you have trouble keeping your family calendar current? Family calendars help make time visible for the whole family. They are also an excellent way to model organization. Family Calendars as the most useful when they are as accurate as possible. To maintain accuracy they should be updated on a regular basis. These meetings do not need to take more than 5-10 minutes and can be apart of other gatherings such as before or after dinner. The frequency…
A shared calendar is a keystone to family and student organization. As children grow their schedules often become more complicated at the same time they are trying to establish their independence. Family calendars help make time visible for the whole family highlighting how all activities fit together and help families identify conflicts or extraordinarily busy days. Like 0
Two years ago I listened to a podcast, where they discussed the US Congressional Award. Although the award started in the 1970s, I was unfamiliar with the program. The description peaked my interest, and I decided to research it in more detail. A quick overview: The Congressional Award is the United States Congress’ award for young Americans. It is non-partisan, voluntary, and non-competitive. The program is open to all youth regardless of ability, circumstance, or socioeconomic status. It accommodates young people with…
The unique organizational needs of students often go unnoticed. The underlying complexity can go undetected because the school day provides a consistent structure. From the outside, a typical weekly student schedule often looks very standard with only a small amount of variation. However, on closer inspection, our modern school structure is very intricate and require a considerable amount of navigation and customization. For all intents and purposes, students have a collection of bosses; one for each class. They must learn how…
Are you stressed about college the college admissions process? There is understandably a lot of excitement stress around preparing for college. The process can feel overwhelming. I have found that the key to successfully navigating this process is to start early and to keep track of the awards, accomplishments, and events along the way. This approach can help students and parents be less anxious about because there are concrete steps they can take to shape their future proactively and will be…
Do you ever feel like you have so much homework? Do you ever wonder how you will get it all done? Do you ever wonder why you feel so stressed out about how you will get all of your stuff done and keep your stress in check? There are a lot of things that cause stress for students. Often the stress is drastically increased because we do not teach organizational skills. I think of organizational skills and homework like a train.…