By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. I don’t recommend that anyone – no matter age or experience – study or work intensely for more than 90 minutes without taking a break. And that’s on the longer side. For most people, I recommend doing homework or studying for …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. Multiple studies like this one and this one suggest that our working memory can only hold small chunks of information at a time. Exactly how much information our working memories can hold varies with which study you read, but it’s universally …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. Let me start with this: The absolute worst way to study is to re-read your notes or your textbook. Re-reading is not studying. Re-reading is not learning. Re-reading is just your eyeballs moving over the same stuff it already moved over. …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. “I don’t like my teacher.” I hear this all the time, and I get it. My favorite teacher in the whole world was my second grade teacher because she took me to the fifth grade classroom to borrow cool books. Somehow, …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. For many students and working professionals, starting projects and assignments is the hardest part of getting things done. But for others, starting isn’t the hard part; for these students, finishing projects and assignments is the problem. Here’s a scenario you might …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. This is part two of a two-part series about what to do when you’re absent from class. Part one outlined strategies for high school students, while this post is more appropriate for students in college or graduate school. As I wrote …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. Absences happen. In most cases, an occasional absence from school is not a big deal – as long as you do the right things when you return. On the flip-side, if you don’t know what to do when you’re absent from …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. In most situations requiring you to communicate with your teacher, it is best to talk in person. I advise face-to-face meetings when possible because this reduces the chance of miscommunication. In-person meetings also give us the chance to communicate via body …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. If you’re already getting the grades you want, then you likely already know how to set goals and meet them. Good job. If you are not happy with your grades or with how you (don’t) accomplish things in general, then it’s …
By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed. One of the most helpful mental and productivity strategies I have ever learned is how to do a Brain Dump. I did not invent this strategy, or its name, but there’s no doubt I use it more than anyone. On top …