Keeping up with your high school checklist

Time management and organization are the keys to success

By Macy Hernandez

Reporter

School can be overwhelming at times and this year is no exception. Because of COVID-19, students are to stay home and attend school through virtual learning.

For every class, there is a synchronous time period where the teacher will lecture and go over assignments. After, is an asynchronous time where the student is expected to complete the assignments assigned for that day. This can be a slippery slope to go down because it is easy to put off an assignment and before they know it the student has fallen behind.

Students like Izavella Jimenez combat this by creating a checklist to keep track of her assignments.

“ [I keep] a checklist on my notes app and I set reminders on my phone for when things are due," said Jimenez.

Nakia Piceno keeps track of all her assignments.

“I make a reminder on my phone for each assignment and when it’s due,” said Piceno.

Keeping the time and date of when things are due is very important to turn in assignments without late penalties.

Another tip from Jimenez is to not procrastinate.

“Do not procrastinate and wait until the last minute. Just get it over with so you won’t have to worry about the assignment later and it piles up," said Jimenez.

When work is assigned it is more convenient to do it straight away. Even if class ends before it is finished, there will still be less work to do afterwards.

“It helps with not doing homework during the afternoon and I have more free time," said Natali Vilchis.

The point of having asynchronous time is to get work done. Though it is tempting to push work off for later, it is much more effective to finish it during the time teachers give you.

“I like to do it in each time period between classes because we have that time for a reason, I'd rather get the assignment over with during that time then use my free time after school to do all my work at once. It takes longer and is more stressful to have it all piled up," said Jimenez.

If it is difficult to do work during asynchronous time, setting up a certain time afterschool is another way to get work done.

“I can sit down and do everything at one time, it honestly depends on the person and how they work best,” said Vilchis.

If she can not do everything during the asynch time Piceno will, “do what I can during asynchronous time if not I will do it after school”.

Another struggle is being distracted by other things. The biggest distraction being the phone.

“Having my phone on me and it being accessible during my classes can be a distraction to myself and others,” said Vilchis.

To stay off your phone is when you're in class to put your phone on do not disturb. This way you are not distracted by the notifications and tempted to go on your phone.

This has been a year of many different things and school has been different. These are some ways and advice to take. Apply it to the daily school life to help you stay caught up.