Hey Parents,
My freshman is having a lot of trouble managing her time. feeling nervous and staying up late every night. I saw that she spends a lot of time on a single assignment and is unable to manage her time effectively.
She hasn’t yet joined any clubs. Do you have any suggestions for improvement??
Try this book. It’s all about time management. It’s a quick read. Have her use these strategies. She can use her phone calendar instead of writing things down since it has reminders etct. It’s also similar to some strategies that are used for ADHD. Also have her forget about the title. The author has some more recent books but this one is stellar.
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/how-to-become-a-straight-a-student-cal-newport/1102561432
I would recommend making an appointment with her doctor to understand if there are any underlying issues both around anxiety and potential learning differences. Another step is having your daughter work with a tutor to assist with executive functioning skills.
I agree with having her evaluated also if this isn’t her norm. Maybe the school can help but also approaching her teacher’s. They are there to help.
Break down large tasks into smaller tasks to start. Take breaks. Eat. This doesn’t get said enough. You need to feed the brain power.
Have a meeting with her school so it doesn’t get out of control or she doesn’t get to far behind. Lots of times it’s simple things that can be corrected.
I agree if anxiety seems to be a major contributor, it is well worth working with a professional who is an expert in teen anxiety. Super common issue, and they know all sorts of different things to check, all sorts of different techniques to try, just a real obvious step to take.
And I don’t want to act like a substitute for a real professional, but I will just note that for me, both personally and as a parent and really just in general, one of the most helpful things was to learn about what is sometimes called the stress cycle, and the importance of completing it rather than getting stuck in a stressed state.
Here is a nice summary article from Stanford:
I like this visual too:
So a lot of what you can try is basically just different ways of manipulating your own brain chemistry to help you complete the cycle. And once you figure out what works for you, you can end up seeing stress as something productive, a tool that improves focus and efficiency when needed, and then can be put away when not needed.
Very cool. And the basic point here is this is not about some sort of failing which you have to overcome. This is just about learning how to help make your brain chemistry consistently work for you, not against you.
You might want to look into an executive function coach. They can help her estimate how long assignments will take, figure out a plan of attack, and create a schedule that addresses time for academics, self-care, and extra circulars.
Another book that’s helpful is “That Crumpled Piece of Paper was due last week”. Both you and your D could read it and see what she identifies with, reasons for making a change in approach, and useful strategies. I can’t imagine anyone following this whole book to a tee, but I also can’t imagine reading it without finding something of value in it. My kid is now more than 4 years out of college and still uses a few things to manage his workload.
I recognized myself and some of my coworkers in it too.
Editing because I missed it was HS, but the idea of study hall applies.
Finally, create set “study hall” periods built into the schedule. Same time and place (like a library) every week. And treat is as another commitment/class.
My high schooler keeps a running to do list not a dated planner. Like a bullet journal. She can look at it and prioritize as needed. She also adds several more granular/smaller checkboxes to break down larger assignments and commits to checking at least one box each day. Sometimes that is just 15 minutes but moved that project along.
The title of this thread says “high schooler”. As such I believe OP is talking about their HS freshman, not college freshman. In most states they would be too young to work.
Oops. Missed that.
I would start with eliminating the distractions - primarily the phone - from the study environment. We had one of our kids leave the phone to charge outside their study area. I would also have the study area closer to your main living area (i.e. not in the bedroom). Another recommendation is to get into the habit of using Google calendar for school deadlines and other important dates.
@TonyGrace , I think based on title that this is a high school freshman.
Yes. I missed that.
I teach computer programming in a Texas public high school. Many of my students say they spend a lot of time doing the homework I give them. I tell them that’s not the proper way.
My suggestion to my students in handling multiple assignments is to first do the easy ones, short ones, the ones they like, or the ones they certainly know how to do. This gives them a sense of accomplishment and more confidence. Then tackle one of the harder ones, followed by another easy/short one.
The hard ones like mine can be dealt with in small sections between the short/easy ones. Don’t leave it to the last because it’ll likely become dreadful by then, which makes the work seem much harder and more time-consuming. If the only work they have are all hard ones, break them into smaller portions, and set up a reward system for completing each portion - play a quick game, chat/text with friends, watch 5 minutes funny video, etc. This technique worked for my own children as well as some of my students. Freshmen may need a study buddy or an adult to help them getting into a homework routine before they can self-regulate.
Many, many HS kids end up spending 4 hours on a one hour task.
Between the pinging of the phone and the “oh, just one more cute kitten playing with a tiger” video, hours go by without actual work getting done.
Agree with the suggestion- no phone while doing homework.
My kids’ school had a mandatory time management course at 6th grade. They were taught how to organize their notes, do research and presentations. Students who enter their school later on who didn’t take such course had a harder time adjusting to the rigor of high school.
Later on when D1 was doing some tutoring, she spent most of the time showing kids how to organize and prioritize their work. D1 also didn’t allow the students to use their cell phones when she was working with them. D1 was often able to bring her students’ performances up by a whole grade.
I think some students who are perfectionists have a hard time with what is “good enough.” They need to learn that they do not infinite amount of time, and know how to work backwards (if a project is due 2 weeks from now, what do you need to accomplish along the way to ensure the project can be finished in 2 weeks).
I would recommend a time management coach/tutor.
Thanks. I will definitely try.
Nice suggestion. I will plan some session in coming Holidays…Appreciate your reply!!
yes, High school freshman
Thanks for the reply. Do you have any recommendation for executive functional coach ?
