Tips for planning your assignment and managing your time Study Skills Workshops 2016 Tips for planning your assignment and managing your time

By the end of the workshop you will… Have some strategies for managing your time effectively. Know how to plan study schedules for your assignment Have some techniques for initial planning of your assignment Be ready to start writing

Activity In pairs, Introduce yourself. Share difficulties in time management – rating yourself out of 10 for your time management performance Give the other person one tip that you have found useful to keep on top of things 2 mins for this activity

Digi Swap https://www.dnamatters.co.uk/resources/ Share an app, software or website that is useful for studying https://www.dnamatters.co.uk/resources/ Digital technology can enhance learning, studying, organisation and communication. Ask each student to tell the group about their app, software or website, if not already mentioned - how they use it and why it is helpful. Create a Digi App list/mindmap on white board to be added to during session.

Planning Choosing the right planning tools for the job – diary, calendar, list, planner, phone apps Work your way backwards from key dates Create ‘milestones’ as you go Break tasks down into smaller parts Get into regular habits to check your plans When choosing tools, it may be best to have 1 place to record all important information e.g. Academic survival kit for breaking down essay writing into chunks

When is the best time to study? Consider when you are the most alert Factor in other commitments Be realistic about how much time any task will take Look at the time available – what could you do in 5 minutes? 30 minutes? 3 hours? When will you have a break? *could use mobile phone timer function for this! Each individual will have different preferences. Ask for a show of hands of those people who think they study best early morning/ lunchtime/afternoon/ evening/ nighttime - is best study time related to the studying environment – could the environment be altered rather than adjusting study time?

Sticking to a timetable Use assignment planning worksheet again- working backwards from deadline Use the Assignment Survival Kit on ASK website – demo Can use short-term (daily) lists/long term lists – colour code for priorities – traffic light system Sticking to a timetable How long is it going to take? Estimate and allocate time needed for: - Analysing brief and planning the content - Research Tasks - Revising your plan - Selecting and organising notes - Producing the draft - Revising and editing the draft

Initial Planning Read the title / brief Use mind mapping handout Try doing this with a fellow-student Initial Planning Read the title / brief ‘Brainstorm’ what you think should go into the assignment? List, Post-it, mind-map … What do I already know? What have I read? What ideas / questions do I need to research? Which sources might be interesting or valuable?

And finally…. Beware Procrastination! Talking about your work instead of doing it! Writers’ block… Checking texts and emails *Forest App blocks phone activity Spending too long neatly presenting things Switching high/low activities Recognise your tactics and give yourself targets or rewards

Advantages of being organised Meet deadlines Reduce stress! – feel in control More possibility to fulfil your potential Builds confidence and ability to cope Avoids too much multi-tasking More of a social life!!?

Structuring, referencing and writing assignments 7th November Session title Week commencing Structuring, referencing and writing assignments 7th November Critical thinking for assignments to get a better grade 14th November Next sessions