Take Control of Homework, So It Doesn't Control You: Part 1

Take Control of Homework

So It Doesn’t Control You

Part 1

http://collegeboard.com/student/plan/boost-your-skills/121.html

Although very few students love homework, it does serve a purpose. Homework helps you:

        ·       Reinforce what you’ve learned during the day.

        ·       Build study habits that are essential in college.

        ·       Prepare for your classes.

        ·       Get a sense of progress.

Here are some tips to help you deal with homework more efficiently and effectively.

Set the Mood

Create a good study area with everything you need (for example, a calculator). If you don’t have a quiet place at home, try your school or local library.

Know Where to Begin

Make a list of everything you need to do, and note all deadlines. Do the more difficult assignments first, so you don’t have to face them at the end.

Study at the Same Time Every Day

Even if you don’t have homework every night, use the time to review notes. If sitting down to do homework is part of your normal routine, you’ll approach it with less dread. Also, you’ll become a pro at using time productively.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

How to Take on College Studying: Part 1

How to Take on College Studying

http://www.collegeboard.com/student/plan/college-success/961.html

Part 1

Develop Good Study Habits

In college, you’ll need to build on the study skills that you learned in high school. The demands of a college class are probably more rigorous than those you are used to.

You can succeed by knowing what to expect and how to handle it. Think of college as a full-time job, in which you spend 40 hours a week on class, labs, study groups and doing homework.

Being organized and using your time well are essential. Learn more about time management, and use the guidelines below to develop your study skills.

Decide When to Study

Work out about how many hours you need to study every day. Then make a schedule.

        ·       Figure out what blocks of time you have available throughout the day, in the evenings and on weekends.

        ·       Consider what time of day you are the most alert – there are morning people and night owls – and try to schedule your studying accordingly.

        ·       Think about whether you do better studying for a few hours at a time or sitting down for marathon sessions.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens: Habit 7: Part 2

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens

Habit 7

Part 2

Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw

3)  Heart: Always do what is right so your heart, your conscience, will feel peaceful. When you do wrong, your conscience will prick you create regretful sensations within your heart. When you do what you honestly feel, you won’t have any regrets. Your heart is your internal compass—it gives you direction and discernment. Just like a magnetic compass gives direction, even true north, your personal compass, your heart, will point you in the true north, the exact directions and paths you need to trod.

4)  Soul: Study scriptures and other sacred literature daily. In other words, feed your spirit because your spirit needs spiritual food just like your physical body needs temporal food to survive. Pondering, meditating, and reflecting are excellent Soul-sharpening activities. Try writing your thoughts, feelings, aspirations, concerns, and decisions in a diary or journal. Writing helps you focus and make good decisions.

Get into the habit of daily improving your body (physical fitness), you mind, your heart, and your soul.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens: Habit 7: Part 1

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens

Habit 7

Part 1

Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw

Teens should never get too busy living to take time to renew themselves. When teens “sharpen the saw” they are keeping their personal self sharp so that they can better deal with life. It means regularly renewing and strengthening the four key dimensions of life—body, mind, heart, and soul 

    1)   Body. Eat wholesome foods, fruits, vegetables, legumes. Avoid illegal drugs, smoking, alcohol, tobacco products, tattooing. Exercise regularly and effectively. Get plenty of rest at night. Get to bed early at night and get up early each morning. “Early to bed to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.”

    2)   Mind. Think positively. Read. Study. Think. Analyze. Seek to read a good book each month. Then each week. Ask intelligent questions. Observe. Develop your mind through “self-talk.”

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens: Habit 6

7 Habits of Highly Successful People

Habit 6

Habit 6: Synergize

Synergy is achieved when two or more people work together to create something better than either could alone. Through this habit, teens learn it doesn't have to be “your way” or “my way” but rather a better way, a higher way. Synergy allows teens to value differences and better appreciate others. Synergy is the reward, the delicious fruit you’ll taste as you get better at living the other habits, especially at thinking Win-Win and seeking first to understand. Learning to synergize is like learning to form V formations with others instead of trying to fly through life solo. You’ll be amazed at how much faster and farther you’ll go. Synergy doesn't just happen. It’s a process. You have to get there. And the foundation of getting there is this: Learn to celebrate differences.

A good band is a great example of synergy. It’s not just the drums, or the guitar, or the sax, or the vocalist, it’s all of them together that make up the “sound.” Each band member brings his or her strengths to the table to create something better than each could alone. No instrument is more important than another, just different.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens: Habit 5

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens

Habit 5

5. Seek First to Understand, and then to be Understood

Because most people don’t listen very well, one of the great frustrations in life is that many don’t feel understood. This habit will ensure your teen learns the most important communication skill there is: active listening.

Why is this habit the key to communication? It’s because the deepest need of the human heart is to be understood. Everyone wants to be respected and valued for who they are—a unique, one-of-a-kind, never-to-be-cloned individual. People won’t expose their soft middles unless they feel genuine love and understanding. Once they feel it, however, they will tell you more than you may want to hear. People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.

Listen with your eyes, heart, and ears. 7 percent of communication is contained in the words we use. The rest comes from body language (53 percent) and how we say words, or the tone and feeling reflected in our voice (40 percent).

Most people are eager to talk and had rather talk than listen. We have one mouth and two ears. This means we should listen twice as much as we talk. Learn to listen and listen to learn.

Listen, really listen, for understanding.

Seek first to understand then to be understood—LISTEN.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens: Habit 4

7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens

Habit 4

4. Think Win-Win

Teens can learn to foster the belief that it is possible to create an atmosphere of Win-Win in every relationship. This habit encourages the idea that in any given discussion or situation both parties can arrive at a mutually beneficial solution. Your teen will learn to celebrate the accomplishments of others instead of being threatened by them. Win-Win is a belief that everyone can win. It’s both nice and tough all at once. I won’t step on you, but I won’t be your doormat either. You care about other people and you want them to succeed. But you also care about yourself, and you want to succeed as well. Win-Win is abundant. It is the belief that there’s plenty of success to go around. It’s not either you or me. It’s both of us. It’s not a matter of who gets the biggest piece of the pie. There’s more than enough food for everyone. It’s an all-you-can-eat buffet.

Win-win always creates more. Perhaps the most surprising benefit of thinking Win-Win is the good feelings it brings on. The trust test of whether or not you are thinking Win-Win or one of the alternatives is how you feel. Win-Lose and Lose-Win thinking will cloud your judgment and fill you with negative feelings.

Win-Win will fill your heart with happy and serene thoughts. It will give you confidence. Even fill you with lights. Think Win-Win or no deal.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens: Habit 3

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens

Habit 3

Habits 3: Put First Things First

Habit three is about Will and Will Not power. This helps teens prioritize and manage their time so that they focus and complete the most important things in their lives. Putting first things first also means learning to overcome fears and being strong during difficult times. It’s living life according to what matters most. Putting first things first deals with things that are:

Important or not important, urgent or not urgent. Let’s look at the four quadrants of time management.

Quadrant 1: Things that are Important and Urgent

Quadrant 2: Things that are Important but not Urgent

Quadrant 3: Things that are Not Important but are urgent

Quadrant 4: Things that are not Important and Not Urgent

1.Important & Urgent	2. Important but not Urgent
3. Not Important but are Urgent	4. Not Important and Not Urgent

Quadrant 2 is the ideal place to spend our time, doing things that are important but not urgent. Here’s where priorities come into play. The results for living Quadrant 2 are:

    1.    Control of your life

    2.    Balance

    3.    High Performance

So, in what quadrant are you spending most of your time? The key is to shift as much time as possible into Quadrant 2 and this is accomplished by planning. Spend more time planning and incorporating the most important things first, things that matter most. Keep your eyes on the prize and reach for it.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

Student Success Statement by Og Mandino

Student Success Statement

"The only difference between those who have failed and those who have succeeded lies in the difference of their habits. Good habits are the key to all success. Bad habits are the unlocked door to failure. Thus, the first law I will obey, which precedeth all others is--'I will form good habits and become their slaves.' "

Og Mandino

Reflection:

People have different habits that make them the person that they are. For some, successful habits are what have made them good people, even though they might have failed in the beginning. But others have used their bad habits to try to cheat their way through life without suffering the hard tasks of work. These people have made a big mistake by cheating their way through life because unlike successful people, people with bad habits are people that choose the wrong. For example, people cheat on tests so they can get good grades without failing and pass school without doing any type of hard work. Peole with good habits are people that know what CTR stands for. So, even though you might fail at first, continue to choose hte right and you will live a life with no regret.

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens: Habit 2

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens

Habit 2

Habit 2: Begin With the End in Mind

If teens aren’t clear about where they want to end up in life, about their values, goals, and what they stand for, they will wander, waste time, and be tossed to and fro by the opinions of others. Help your teen create a personal mission statement which will act as a road map and direct and guide his decision-making process.

“Keep your eyes on the prize.” Determine your desired prize and don’t quit until you have realized the achievement of your prize. Then set another prize, another goal or desire that you would really like to achieve. Begin with the achievement of your prize in mind. Visualize and then realize. Start by having a target in mind; know where you are going.

One prize or goal you definitely need to establish for yourself is the prize of an honorable graduation from high school-that you will receive your diploma honestly and with integrity—that you earned it with perfect honesty.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens: Habit 1

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens

Habit 1

(by Sean Covey but modified)

Habit 1: Be Proactive.

Being proactive is the key to unlocking the other habits. Help your teen take control and responsibility for her life. Proactive people understand that they are responsible for their own happiness or unhappiness. They don’t blame others for their own actions or feelings. Proactive people realize that the ball is in their court, that they are the captain of their own; that they are in control, control of their decisions, thoughts, choices, decisions, goals, actions, and priorities. Proactive people are self-starters; they don’t wait to be told what to do, they press forward with enthusiasm toward the achievement of their assignment, their duties, their responsibilities, their obligations. Choosing to do what is right is a proactive decision. Obey the rules. Obey the law. Obey the coach. Obey the school policies. Obey your parents. Obey with exactness, and great things will come to you. Be Proactive and take the initiative.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

Student Success Statement by ANON

Student Success Statement

"You make your habits and your habits make you."

ANON

Reflection:

If we have habits in our life, it's because we have made them our habits. Whatever we do, it's because we have made those things part of our life. But not all of our habits are good. For example, a bad habit could be choosing the wrong. Our habits make us what we are, and if we have bad habits, those bad habits make us bad people. On the other hand, if we have good habits, are habits make us good people. The decision is clear, have good habits, and you are a good person.

7 Habits of a Highly Successful Teens: Part 1

7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens

By Sean Covey

For teens, life is not a playground, it’s a jungle. And, being the parent of a teenager isn’t any walk in the park, either. In this book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens, author Sean Covey attempts to provide “a compass to help teens and their parents navigate the problems they encounter daily.”

How will they deal with peer pressure? Motivation? Success or lack thereof? The life of a teenager is full of tough issues and life-changing decisions. As a parent, you are responsible to help them learn the principles and ethics that will help them to reach their goals and live a successful life.

While it’s all well and good to tell kids how to live their lives, “teens watch what you do more than they listen to what you say,” Covey says. So practice what you preach. Your example can be very influential.

Covey himself has done well by following a parent’s example. His dad, Stephen Covey, wrote the book The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People, which sold over 15 million copies. Sean’s a chip off the old block, and no slacker. His own book has rung in a more than respectable 2 million copies sold. Here are seven habits, and some ideas for helping your teen and apply them.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!