How To Succeed

12 Organizational and Time Management Tips for High School Students

Your success in high school can greatly be improved by being organized and using your

time wisely. Staying organized can help ease the burden of a busy schedule. While you

probably do not have a lot of control over when your classes are scheduled, you do have

control of the rest of your time. Here are some important tips to remember:

1. Use your school planner to stay organized. Fill in things you must do (classes, work,

practice, etc. that you can't change). Write down appointments and class assignments.

Make a daily checklist. Set priorities. Do the most important tasks first.

2. Set achievable goals when you set goal that are unrealistic it sets you up for failure.

You want to aim to set goals that are difficult, yet are achievable.

3. Organize some key areas in your life, for example your bedroom, study area, car and

locker. By organizing these key areas it will improve your ability to stay on schedule

and stay focused during your hectic schedule. You will avoid the must frustrating

situation like looking for an assignment that is due and you have no idea if its in your

locker piled high with papers, the car that hasn’t been cleaned for a who know how long,

or your bedroom that looks like an atomic bomb hit it! Being unorganized will cause

problems in nearly every area of your life and developing the skill of organization will

immensely improve your ability to become successful at whatever you pursue.

4. Schedule the most difficult tasks for times when you are alert. Geometry, for example

may be hard enough when you're fresh. When you're tired, it will be impossible!

5. Establish a regular time and place for study. Utilize this space to study during the day

if possible.

6. If you have a study hall during school utilize it. Focus on your assignments and to do

list in your planner.

7. Use daylight hours to study whenever possible. For most students for every hour of

study done in daylight hours, it will take them one and a half hours to do the same task at

night. Study during the day especially during study halls.

8. By using flash cards, summary sheets or your notes, you can use short periods to study

on your spare time while you're waiting for class to start or for a friend to pick you up.

9. Take study breaks. Do not schedule a night before test cram session. Several short 50

minutes sessions are more effective than one long session.

10. Review Your Notes Every Day. You'll reinforce what you've learned, so you need

less time to study. You'll also be ready if your teacher calls on you or gives a pop quiz.

11. Prepare and organize whatever possible the night before. A few examples would be

to pack your book bag and lay out what you intend to wear the next day.

12. Get a Good Night's Sleep. Running on empty makes your days seem longer and your

tasks seem more difficult.

Reference

http://www.collegeboard.com/student/plan/college-success/116.htmls

6 Ways to Help Your High School Student Get Organized

BY SUE KAY

Updated 06/23/17

Caiaimage/Tom Merton/Getty

https://www.thespruce.com/help-high-school-student-get-organized-3545335

By the time your child reaches high school, you may think it's too late to instill some basic organizational skills. It's not! It's more important than ever now especially if your child plans to attend college. Not to mention that being organized is an important work skill.

Use these tips to help your child get organized for high school.

Sit and Plan Their Week With Them

Gone are the days when your child comes home yelling "Guess what happened to me, Mom!" More likely, they'll walk in the door and head straight to their room without saying much.

If you're like most parents of high school students (especially boys), you probably find out about things either very last-minute or after the fact.

A weekly meeting can get you in the loop without smothering your child. Sunday evenings are a great family meeting time for you to go over things like:

Everyone should bring their planners or calendars. If they don't own one, be sure to get them one. Work your way through each day asking what everyone has scheduled like work, practices, games, and before and after school activities. Next, determine transportation needs. Does your child have a ride to each event on their calendar or will you need to provide transportation on one or more days?

The review school-related things. Are any projects due or big tests scheduled? Does your child have all the necessary tools or supplies?

Lastly, cover their social calendar. Do they want to go to the Friday night football game, go to the movies with friends or have a birthday party to attend?

If so, discuss the needs for each event like transportation, does your child need anything like a special outfit washed or dry cleaned, or a gift. Then fit the preparation items into your calendar.

While these weekly meetings will be important to you as you juggle both work and family responsibilities, their true value is teaching your child to think and plan ahead.

That's a skill that will come in handy for years to come.

Clean Out Your Bags Together

Your child lives out of their backpack all week, just like you do your purse. At the end of your weekly meeting take time to empty out both of your bags together. By doing so you're leading by example that's it good to start the week off with a fresh start.

Just like your purse has many compartments kids backpacks have them, too. Make it a point to clean out every little pocket. Dirty tissues and gum wrappers have a knack for getting stuck in small spaces.

Anticipate They Will Procrastinate

Many teenagers seem predisposed to procrastination. While this will drive some of you Type A parents crazy but resist the urge to micromanage. Here are some ways to encourage your child to stop procrastinating.

Don't try to have a rational conversation about procrastination with your child when they are in the middle of getting something done at the last minute. Tempers will flare and nothing productive will result.

Instead, discuss the situation at a later time. Ask your child to explain the circumstances that led to the last minute crunch. Looking back, is there anything they would have done differently? With that action plan, help them figure out how can they apply it to their next project or test so they'll avoid procrastinating again.

Many children never really learn how to study and it catches up with them in high school. Many schools and tutoring clubs offer study skills classes designed to teach your child how to study efficiently and effectively. Consider enrolling your child in one of these courses. It's an investment with long-term dividends.

Establish Expectations and Consequences

By high school, you should have a clear understanding of your child's capabilities. Clearly tell your child what you expect in terms of grades and test scores based on these capabilities. Some parents even put them in a written academic contract between them and the student.

Whether you communicate your expectations verbally or in writing, you should also include the consequences if expectations are not met. Decide with your children what the consequences will be like eliminating extracurricular activities, no weekend social events, or loss of phone or gaming privileges.

When it comes to time management and organization, one of the best lessons you can teach your child is personal responsibility and the understanding that there are consequences for every decision.

Introduce Them to Organizational Tools

They have a planner but what other organizational needs do they have? Having a different color folder for each subject can help them grab the right paperwork quickly. Sticky notes for quick messages, sticky tabs to mark important reference material in a book, or sticky dots to help prioritize their workload.

If they need to store notes for a long amount of time introduce them to three-ring binders, their own three hole puncher and tabs. Another option is finding an accordion files to organize loose paper.

Also, get them their own timer, watch, or show them how to use the timer on their phone. We know the importance of taking breaks during our work day and the same can be taught to your teenager. Show them how a quick 15 minute break may help them overcome writers block or help solve that hard math problem.

You could also teach them how to use highlighters or colored pens for note taking. Not only is this great for finding information quickly, but adding a bit of creativity to learning is fun!

If you want to get more creative give them their own white board. You probably use one (or two) to keep track of lists so why not give them one to do the same thing!