THE SMART BUT SCATTERED STUDENT
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THE SMART BUT SCATTERED STUDENT
Tips to Increase
Organization & Achievementby Michele Ranard, M.Ed.
710 words
If you are parenting a bright but disorganized student, you
may feel frustrated by this obstacle between your student’s potential and
actual achievement. If you yourself are disorganized, you may even feel hopeless.
But no matter what their age, there is no reason to feel stuck. As organizing expert Donna Goldberg reminds: “If
you and your child invest the time it takes to organize supplies, homework, and
a study schedule, you can create the structure that he needs to succeed.”
Scattered Students
Does your student need help in the area of organization?
Goldberg outlines a snapshot of disorganization in The Organized Student (2007):
1.
Frequently loses papers.
2.
Doesn’t hand in assignments on time or at all.Organization’s Payoff
It’s clear to most parents and students how disorganization
leads to lower achievement and grades, but it is also worth noting what is to
be immediately gained from investing the time to become organized. Author of Where’s My Stuff (2010) Samantha Moss
identifies five important reasons for adolescents to get organized:
1. Score bonus time.
“Getting organized frees you from this frenzy, leaving you more time for the
luxurious things in life. Like sleep.”
3. More chill.
“Being surrounded by turmoil keeps your mind in permanent panic mode, with no
chance to rest.”
4. Improve relationships. “When serenity rules, there’s more time and energy for the people you care about—and when you’re more relaxed, they’re more relaxed too.”
4. Improve relationships. “When serenity rules, there’s more time and energy for the people you care about—and when you’re more relaxed, they’re more relaxed too.”
5. Greater
independence. “Earning your parents trust will mean earning the right to
make more decisions for yourself.”
10 Organization Habits
You know the basics. Your child needs proper school
supplies, a planner, a comfortable place to do work and study at home, and a
consistent study routine. Your student needs plenty of sleep and healthy foods.
Beyond the obvious, educator Grace Fleming advises incorporating these 10 habits
into the daily routine to improve performance:
1.Write down every assignment (due date, test date, and
task).
Smart Studying for
Tests
Fleming also has advice for students to improve study
habits:
1. Don’t take linear notes. Instead, right before every new lecture, review notes from days past and predict the next day’s material. Reflect and make relationships between key concepts before you sit down for a new lecture. Prepare for your exams by creating a fill-in-the-blank test from your notes.
2.Take
Practice Exams. Instead
of re-writing notes, switch your notes with a classmate and create a practice
exam. Exchange practice exams to test each other. Repeat this process a few
times until you are comfortable with the material.
3. Go beyond flash cards. Just memorizing vocabulary words is not enough after
middle school. Learn to memorize a definition, then define the significance of
the new vocabulary terms you encounter.
In Studying Smarter, Not Harder (2009) Kevin Paul discusses the inhibiting role of stress and anxiety upon studying and learning. Since daily life for most students includes stressors and numerable distractions, it is important to learn skills to calm themselves. “Stress is normal but so is the receding of that stress so we can rest, relax, and recover.” He suggests breathing and muscle relaxation to achieve a “relaxed alertness” before attempting to learn anything new.
In Studying Smarter, Not Harder (2009) Kevin Paul discusses the inhibiting role of stress and anxiety upon studying and learning. Since daily life for most students includes stressors and numerable distractions, it is important to learn skills to calm themselves. “Stress is normal but so is the receding of that stress so we can rest, relax, and recover.” He suggests breathing and muscle relaxation to achieve a “relaxed alertness” before attempting to learn anything new.
Michele Ranard has a
husband, two children, and a master’s in counseling. Visit her at http://hellolovelyinc.blogspot.com
and http://hellolovelychild.blogspot.com.
Resources:
Fleming, Grace. “10 Great Study Habits: To Improve Your
Performance.”
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