School Study and Organization Tips

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Here's too my second semester in college! I thought I'd share with you some tips on studying and being organized for school. High School and College is much easier when you are organized and if you study the material you need too. I love finding new ways to study and organize so hopefully you'll find the tips I've acquired over the years helpful.
Here we go!

1. Find A Quiet Work Space
• Bedroom/Dorm Room
• Kitchen
• Library
• Living Room

I find my bedroom to be the perfect place to study and do homework. I have a big desk that is nice and organized. I also don't have a TV in my room so I wont be tempted to watch and distract myself from my work. It is also best to not do homework/study on a bed or couch because they could possibly make you too comfy and you'll end up wanting to take a nap instead.

     2.   Have Everything You Need Right By You

• Textbooks            
• Pens/Pencils
• Sharpener
• Paper
• Notebook
• Binders

Since you have everything by your side you wont need to take time out to find something. I have all my stuff at my desk. I keep my bag for school near my desk. I also have a designated book shelve for my textbooks which is near my desk.

     3.  No Distractions!

• No phone
• No TV
• No lyrical music
• No social media

While doing your work shut everything off so you wont be distracted. Getting distracted will make it harder to grasp what you are learning.

     4. Take Breaks
Taking breaks is much better for your brain than cramming a lot information for a long period of time. Our minds tend to wander when it needs a break. So when you notice yourself not focusing as well...take a break! Go get a healthy snack, take a minute to text, go for a walk, go online, play a quick game. Make sure you set a timer so you don't go overboard with your breaks. I usually study a subject for a half hour (30 mins) then take a 5 to 10 minute break then go study a different subject so that your more interested in doing your work and you also get more done.

     5. Keep An Agenda

• Test
• Assignments
• Final Exams
• Social
• Appointments
• Work
• To do lists

I can't stress enough on how important an agenda is! Knowing when everything is makes life SO much easier. You also are less likely to miss an assignment/test. I have this huge problem with agendas...I can't find one that makes me happy. I've had only small ones so I'm going to pick up a bigger one within the next couple of days to see if that works. There's just always something I dislike. To small, no lines, bad set up, to chunky. I guess I am a very picky agenda person...anyone else? If you have an agenda spice it up a bit. On the month at a glace color code different categories such as:

• Purple-School
• Green-Assignments
• Pink-Social
• Blue-Work 
• Orange-Appointments

This way you are able to distinguish what is coming up. Sticky notes are useful as well. They can be used for reminders, to do lists, and shopping lists which I usually use them for. You could also do the day by day section of your agenda for To Do lists, scheduling, or homework. When I am in school I use the day by day section for homework and when I'm not I switch to To Do lists.
 

       6. Organization System

• Color Coded: Pick a different solid color folder for each subject along with matching notebooks.
• Binder System 1: Put a different solid color folder or tab dividers for each subject in a binder and some paper between each folder.
• Binder System 2: Use different binders for each subject.
• 5 Subject Notebook: Find a 5 subject notebook that you like and designate a section to each subject.

If you don't have a system choose one! I find following a system helps a lot. These few are very easy to follow. I tend to color code and use folders for my classes. It is much easier to carry around especially on a campus. I also have a note book specifically for math class then one notebook for paper for class notes for my other courses.

       7.  Type Notes From Class

Once you take notes in class take time to type them up. They are much easier to read, neat, and you can add nice pictures. Add and clarify anything while you type them up. Save the notes from class and file them away. Once they are typed put them in a folder or where ever you choose to put them. I'd suggest to put the most recent notes on top of other notes so they are ready when you need to study. Make sure you keep all notes for once subject together so they are ready for you when finals come! Make sure to not mix notes with other subjects it becomes harder to study because you can't find them.

        8.  File Notes For Final Exams

Get into the habit of not throwing any work away until the end of the semester. Keep all the notes, papers, assignments, tests in a safe place. I have a binder with tab dividers for each class and I hold all the papers I don't need in it. When we finish a section in class I put all of the assignment associated to that section into the binder. When final exams come I pull out the binder and look through all the papers I have. You could also use an accordion file, a file box, or folders.

        9.  Highlighters, Sticky Notes, Tabs, and Colored Pens

I'm a sucker for all of these! They help with studying and organizing. While reading papers that were handed out and textbooks highlight things you find important. I'd suggest making sure the highlighter doesn't bleed through the page first. If it does opt for underlining with a pen/pencil. I use sticky notes to mark pages, write down questions, and words I don't know. Tabs are great for marking the page your on or something you want to put attention towards such as a graph or picture. Last but not least colored pens are great for color coding as well as making your notes look nice to look at and easier to read.

        10. Cut Your Index Cards In Half!

In school we go through so much index cards. I like to cut my card in half so I have twice as much and I still have plenty of room to write down what I need to but this may depend on how big your handwriting is. Also cut a piece of paper the same size as the index card to label what the cards are for such as: Science Section 1.

         11. Create A Study Binder
I have a small binder that I put useful school papers in such as:

• Multiplication Chart
• Roman Numeral Chart
• Formula Sheet
• Punctuation Chart
• Periodic Table
• Conversion Chart
• Maps
• and more!

I've acquired these papers over the years. I find this helpful to have at your desk so if you need to know something you can just flip open the binder.

Disclaimer:
All opinions are my own.

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College Budget $$

Now that I am 18 years old...almost 19. I've become very cautious of what I buy. I was reading some of the blogs I follow and stumbled upon A Bowl Full of Lemons Budget Binder. After reading through the post I decided to make my own! Our binders are very different from each other because of our age difference and she owns a home + she's a mother. So with hers in mind I created my Budget Binder to my needs.
What you'll need to create a budget binder:

• 1" Binder (or whatever you prefer)
• Binder dividers (I used 5)
• A poly envelope
• Labeler or something to label the tabs
• Something to label the binder (I used stickers!)

For my budget binder I used a black 1" binder which I purchased at a Dollar Tree. The only downside to this binder is that it has no pockets. Still does the job though! I have a lot of binders in my room so I labeled my binder with stickers so I know what binder it is. My mom had these stickers with all of her craft stuff so I'm not sure where they are from. My best guess would be Micheal's Craft Store.

I decided to use 5 binder dividers. You can use as much as you need but 5 works best for me. I labeled them 1. Accounts, 2. Income, 3. Spending, 4. Monthly Budget, 5. Annual Expenses. 

The first tab, Accounts, has all my information for my bank and other money related accounts. The Income tab has all my hour logs which tells me how much I made that week. In spending I have a paper for each month. Every time I purchase something I write it down (the date, how I purchased it, what store, how much). The monthly budget tab doesn't have anything in their since I don't have any bills to pay for at the moment. But I would have a calender to mark when a bill would be due and when I paid it. The last tab has all of my loan information. Keeping that information handy really helps so I don't forget about it. 

Behind the tabs I have a poly envelope where I put deposit slips and things of that sort so they don't get lost. You can purchase a ploy envelope at the Container Store for only $4. I'm not sure if the Dollar Tree still sells them but you can always go check though they are not as nice as the Container Store brand. 

For receipts I use a plastic filing coupon organizer which I think purchased at Walmart. You can probably find one where office supplies are sold. I file my receipts by month and then once the new year comes around I go through and discard the ones that don't need to be saved. I keep the majority of receipts I receive just in case. 

Back To School! (Supplies)

What supplies should you use for college? 
   Well I'm no longer in elementary or high school. Though some of the supplies used in elementary and high school come in handy! I did some thinking over the summer about what supplies would be best to use for college. The most important thing is to pack light because your bag can easily get heavy. Textbooks and if you have a laptop will be the key things that will make you bag heavy.
   Speaking of bags, I decided to go with a backpack instead of a tote which I used in high school because I purchased a laptop. I specifically got a laptop backpack so I know it will be safe. The backpack I purchased was Ogio's Soho Woman's Laptop Backpack. It originally runs for $80 on the website but I ordered it through amazon and got it for around $60. I can't tell you how much I love this backpack!

Picture found: Ogio

  The laptop I purchased was a macbook pro 13". I treat this like a newborn baby! I was to afraid to use it before I got a case for it. I think a laptop is crucial for college for all the papers, homework, studying, and emailing you'll be doing. 

Now onto the real school supplies! 

I got go two notebooks, one for math notes (the composition notebook), and one for textbook notes (the striped one). The striped notebook is kind of heavy but since I'm only using two notebooks I'm sure the weight won't be to bad. I can always use another one. The composition is one of my favorite items. Not only is it cute but its bendable! Some people may not enjoy this but I love it more than the hard covered ones. 

There are two popular methods to organize school work. There is the binder method and the folder method. I kinda went for both. I got a 1" binder and a pack 5 tab dividers because I have five classes this semester. So every class has its own spot where I can put exams, homework, classwork, and essays. I also have a "folder notebook"...yes that's right a "folder notebook"...well that's what I call it anyway. It is like a spiral notebook but it has three "pages" that have pockets on each side.

Last but not least we have the small supplies.

I picked up a pack of four highlighters (and added a green highlighter that I had), some colored pens, and a pencil case. I am a highlighter fanatic! I am always highlight things so when classes start i'll be using them for textbooks and notes. I enjoy using colored pens for my agenda (if you haven't seen that post check it out!) also using colored pens for notes makes it easier to read just like highlighting. I grabbed some things around my room that I already had to put in my bag. Such as a mini stapler (don't even know how many time people used mine in high school!), pencil sharpener, eraser (I know its old and beat up...but still capable of working), and pens and pencils. 

That's all I have in my bag at the moment. If I add/ change anything I'll be sure to update everyone. 

All photo's are taken with my Iphone (can't afford a camera at the moment...speaking of college!)

Striped notebook, colored pens, binder and dividers, and pencil case where purchased at Walmart.

Highlighters where purchased at Dollar Tree.

Notebook folder, mini stapler, pencil sharpener, eraser, pens and pencil were found around my house.

Macbook pro was purchased online at Apple