The end of the warm summer weather can only mean one thing. It’s time to head back to school. Here’s our top tips for students and parents to make the 2018-19 the best one ever.
Set Goals
It’s always important to have a goal to aim towards. This could be exam results, time spent on homework or revision or perhaps an extra curricular goal like learning a musical instrument or joining a sports team. Having a clear goal to aim towards really helps students put in that extra 5 or 10% effort which is very often the difference between success and failure. Goals help to clarify focus, increase accountability and give students a great sense of satisfaction when they are achieved.
Understand your Why
As well as understanding what you’re learning at school, it’s vital to understand your why. Our why is what drives us forward and helps us to achieve. A student who understands their own personal reason for completing school work will always achieve far more then one who just does the work because they have to. A student’s why might be to help secure a place at university or a great college or even just to feel proud of their own achievement. This why creates a sense of purpose and helps them to keep focused when the going gets tough.
Be sure to eat Breakfast!
School mornings can very easily descend into mayhem. That being said, it’s crucial to eat a good breakfast. A recent study by the University of Leeds found that children who skip breakfast were had more difficulty focusing on classroom tasks and concentrating throughout the day. Need a little inspiration? Here’s a fantastic article on how to make your child a healthy breakfast that they’ll actually like.
Get a Good Night's Sleep
As teenagers bodies and minds are developing rapidly, they need more sleep than adults. It’s recommended that teens get 8-10 hours of sleep per night. Unfortunately, the average teen manages only 7 hours. This lack of sleep can have a negative effect on memory, concentration and decision making. Consider implementing a “screen free” time an hour before bed to help teens fall asleep quicker.
Pulverise Procrastination
Procrastination is the No.1 enemy of good exam results and school success. Procrastination is a bad habit we are all guilty of from time to time. It can feel good to put off important tasks. That is until the night before they’re due when all the stress rains down upon us. Completing work proactively and ahead of time is a great habit for young learners to adopt. If they can be taught that the short term pleasure that comes from putting something off leads to much larger long term pain and short term pain in getting something completed straight away leads to long term pleasure this skill will serve them well throughout their life. A great way way to overcome procrastination is to ask “Is what I’m doing now a way of distracting myself from what I really need to do?”
I hope you find these tips helpful. Please feel free to share them with anyone you think would benefit from reading them. As ever, we’re here to help you with any of your education needs. Feel free to be in touch any time.