Steady Study Progress

How are you feeling about your progress with studying? I am hoping that you had a productive weekend getting work accomplished and reviewing your materials... the bitter cold definitely helped make staying inside more desirable.

The reality is that your academic success isn't just about exams, but right now I know a lot of your time and attention has been on exam preparation and that is certainly valuable. Remember, you have been preparing for your exams every day since the start of the semester back in August. So while studying to review the content and make sure that you are confident and prepared is important, it isn't like you are trying to learn information for the first time.

One of the keys for achieving academic success is trying to pace yourself while eliminating distractions so that you can maintain your focus. There are lots of strategies that can be effective to help decrease distractions to help you sustain focus on studying. Turning off the tv, music or your cell phone can be great ideas to start. For many students the distraction is on the computer itself with notifications, messages, and more tempting you to shift to anything other than studying because, sadly, everything else is going to seem more exciting and interesting than studying.

Be patient with yourself if you realize that you got off track and immediately switch back to what you were aiming to be doing in the time given. Don't hesitate to set up blocks or use other tools (including your parents) to help you focus on what you need to be accomplishing. And, of course, remember that 20 minutes of truly focused study time is going to be WAY more valuable than an hour of distracted, half-hearted studying.

Although I fear giving you one more opportunity to distract yourself from actually studying, here is an article on: Training your brain- how to focus better and avoid distractions.

Good luck with studying! Remember, this week is it and then you get a long winter break! You can do this!

**Just a reminder, this post is also being shared on the NEW WKHS Counselor blog. This blog site will no longer be active beyond 2025 so you can transition to receive all blog posts emailed directly to you by subscribing to the new blog site.**