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Create a System Using a Monthly and Daily Calendar

Tags

Study Skills & Tools Social-Emotional Learning All Ages Strategy

Skills

Organization Working Memory Attention Verbal Memory

Create a System Using a Monthly and Daily Calendar

If your student struggles to complete and hand in assignments on time

Teach It!

  1. Objective: Students will create an organizational system that helps them have a clear and visible plan of work assignments they need to accomplish on both a daily and a long-term basis.
  2. Teacher Takeaways: Work with students to figure out what works best for each of them in planning and managing their assignments and studying. (See next slide for considerations.) Using paper planners, agendas and calendars is often more effective and flexible, so students can mark up and cross off items. Monitor students' use over time and help them reflect on what is working or what they might need to adapt to make it successful.

*students* What To Consider When Creating Your Daily Planner

  1. Purchase or choose a daily planner at the start of the semester or year.
  2. Immediately add in key dates, holidays, and recurring activities (after school classes, sports schedule, etc.) so you can view your full day at a glance and plan ahead based on time constraints.
  3. Write important phone numbers, websites or reminders at the front of your planner so you always have everything you need in one place.
  4. Create a method for easily identifying items at a glance, without reading a lot. For example, use abbreviations for each subject and color code with highlighters or color pens by subject, length of assignment, tests/quizzes, etc.
  5. Plan to add in EVERY assignment so you never forget. Check off assignments as you complete them.
  6. Use a binder clip to mark the current day, so you easily flip to the right spot. (Post-it notes and paper clips might work, but they tend to fall off.)
  7. Attach a pen to your planner so it's there when you need it.
  8. If you choose a digital calendar, pick a color-coded option that makes it easy to see everything you need for the day, week or month. Set digital reminders. And it will be even more important to have an abbreviation strategy to minimize reading
  9. Mark long-term assignments on the monthly view (if your planner has one) or use a wall calendar. This is a way to help you see how many days you have in one view.

Why It Works (the Science Of Learning)!

Every student needs an organizational strategy. Paper planners tend to be better, because the physical act of writing helps you remember better. By keeping a physical organizer, the student is also creating a structure that works best for him rather than following a strategy created by someone else. However, there are benefits to digital planners in that a student might be more likely to carry it with them, and they can set reminders. Students should find the strategy that works best for them.