“Dear Ms. Coffman,

It is the end of quarter one. I am having a hard time keeping my grades up and balancing my social life with my school life. What should I do to better myself for quarter two?”

Sincerely,

Anonymous

Dear Anonymous,

Balancing the demands of social, emotional, and academics can be really challenging.  Try 1 or 2 of these tips through this quarter and see if they make a difference.

1. Use your study hall to …..STUDY!!!!  It is tempting to teacher aid with your favorite teacher, or get lost in youtube videos, but imagine if you actually used study hall to read ahead, review for upcoming tests/Quizzes and get homework done.  That is 50 minutes a day / 4.16 hours each week / 37.5 hours per quarter! That would make a HUGE difference at report card time.
2. Use an app to keep a “To Do” list on your phone or iPad.  List assignments, sporting obligations, tests, project due dates way in advance so that you keep an eye on what is coming up. That way things don’t sneak up on you.
3. Set boundaries at work.  Money is really good, but it shouldn’t be more important that having time to get your homework done. Be clear with your boss about how many hours you can work and still balance school.  
4. Get 8 hours of sleep.  Sleep is when your brain repairs itself and dumps learning to long-term memory.  If you are foggy, forgetful and have trouble with recall, it might not be ADD… It might be sleep deprivation!
5. Turn on the auto-brightness feature (night mode) on your electronics to cut down on bright light that might interfere with your ability to sleep after 8:00 pm.  No screens after 8:00 pm is a better idea, but do what you can.
6. Turn off your notifications on your electronics that wake you up during the night.  I know you use your phone for an alarm. I do too, but I don’t allow text messages and other push notifications to “ding in” and disrupt my sleep.  
7. Turning in homework is key to getting better grades.  Make a pack with a friend to see who can have less missing assignments for the quarter.  Loser has to buy lunch or do push-ups on the Spanish Steps!

If you choose to try any of these things, please let me know how it goes, at [email protected]; I would love to hear from you!