Whether you are a parent trying to support your young person to learn or a teenager trying to recapture the home learning vibe at the end of a long crazy term, this post will help you succeed like the best of the best! 

Hands up if studying is starting to become dull, repetitive and dare I say it, boring?  Do you find any excuse to walk to the kitchen, eat something (anything) or level up on Candy Crush?  Well you are not alone in finding it hard to keep focus and get your work done.

So why is studying such a challenge?

Life is very different right now and we must find new ways of doing things, including how we study to reach our goals.  We can easily read lots of articles about using our time to learn a new skill, language or get fit.  All these are great ideas, but it can be hard to know where to begin.  So if you are feeling as if you need some fresh perspective, here are 5 tips for studying like a pro.

How can I begin?

1. PLAN YOUR TIME

• Set alarms to remind you about your plan to study, it can be easy to get distracted by another activity.
• Think about the time of day that you work best in. Are you a morning person or do you prefer to start later in the day?
• Put things up on your wall to remind you of important dates and deadlines. This can also be useful for key phrases/dates/words that you need to remember.  Post it notes are your friend!
• Learn to love a to-do list! This will help to break things down into manageable chunks and will stop you feeling overwhelmed.
• Set yourself time limits so that you don’t spend too long on one task leaving little time for another.

2. REMOVE DISTRACTIONS

• Change where you study every so often, particularly if you are finding it hard to focus.
• TV, it’s too easy to watch just one more episode and before you know it the day has gone. Instead use it as a reward for your efforts.
• Leave your phone in another room, constant notifications can be very distracting and tempting to reply to.
• People can be a big distraction, share you study plans with the people that are important to you. They will then be able to support you rather than distract you.

3. LEARN, REST, REPEAT

• Start your study session by reviewing what you did previously. Repetition helps to secure memories, helping you to feel confident about moving on to the next task.

4. MOVE AROUND

• Physical exercise can help you to focus and stay on task. It can also improve your Mental Health, even if it’s just a walk around the block regularly.

5. SLEEP

• Sleep gives you energy and boosts your immune system helping your body recover from Illnesses.
• Rest your mind, sleep helps your brain to recover and revive itself, storing your memories and creating new ideas. Important when studying.
• Sleep allows your mind to unwind and de-stress. This allows your mental and emotional wellbeing to be restored.