Separating School and Home Life

By: Ragan Love

Remote Learning has been a learning curve for all of us, but now that half of the quarter is over, we all feel like experts. I am always looking for new ways to make remote learning easier, and I know other people are, too. Here are seven tips that have helped me be successful this Spring quarter. 

1. Have a specific space to do your work. If you were on campus you would have your favorite study space: a coffee shop, the library, or your desk. When learning at home, it is important to separate your learning and chill spaces. I don’t have a personal desk at home, but my dining room table is working great for me. It gives me lots of space, and it’s located in an open area where I can look outside.
2. Look at your word choice. I discovered the past few weeks that I call everything homework, and it makes my workload seem overwhelming. I have tried to separate what would be my classwork and my homework. The simple word change has helped me feel less overwhelmed with school work.
3. Have your set “school day.” This will seem kind of high school but you should have a set school day. If you have a class from 10 a.m.to 11:30 a.m., work on that class during that time. I generally work at school from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. After 5 p.m. I will only work on loose ends and homework. It makes me feel like there is an end to the day if I have a clock out card for school.
4. Once you are done,  stay done. It seems simple but we are all guilty of breaking this! Even though I say I am done, I will still respond to emails and check notifications on D2L. I have been trying to change that by putting down my phone and computer and spending some time with my family and animals.
5. Remember to take a break. This is the most important tip I can give –  to others and myself. Burnout is a real thing for college students, and we are facing it more while at home. I feel like I have to be working on school all day so I write “take a break” in my calendar, forcing myself to have a little fun just for me. Some of my break activities have included napping, watching a show, taking a walk, or playing a game with my brother.
6. Set daily goals. I am a very organized person but my organizational style has changed a lot during remote learning. I have found a system that works well for me, but I am still trying new things to see what I like. At the beginning of the school week I write a list of what needs to get done for every class. Every morning I look at my weekly list and put what I will specifically work on in my bullet journal.
7. Set more specific goals. It is helpful to turn my goals into smaller, specific goals. Instead of working until I burn out, I set a goal of working on the online part of the unit or the chapter reading. This takes more planning to make sure you don’t fall behind, but it’s actually helped me get ahead in some of my classes!