12 Tips for Staying Productive When Studying at Home
If you’re struggling to get into the studying at-home routine, there are a few simple tips that you can follow to make sure you stay motivated and productive throughout the day.
22/01/2022
It’s hard to study from home – what with all the distractions, noises and disturbances that you wouldn’t normally get in the classroom.
Since more schools have switched to home learning, many students have had to get into a new routine and find ways to motivate themselves without a teacher telling them what to do.
If you’re only used to studying in a classroom environment, this can be a really hard switch to get used to.
If you’re struggling to get into the studying at-home routine, there are a few simple tips that you can follow to make sure you stay motivated and productive throughout the day.
Whether you need help with assignments that are more academic, writing advice or assignment help online, these tips should all work great for you.
1. Create a distraction-free study environment
When you’re just studying in your room, surrounded by all your things, it can be hard to get yourself in the right headspace to study.
It will be all too easy to get distracted from an assignment and spend your day playing games, messaging your friends or reading your favorite books.
The most important thing is to create
a space where you want to study. Get a desk for
your room, or find a table in your house that
you’ll only use for studying. This way, when you
sit down at the desk/table every day, you know
you’re there to study.
Having a space to
study outside of your bedroom is ideal – so
you’re not tempted to nap throughout the day –
but not everyone has the space, so just work
with what you’ve got!
2. Stick to a schedule
When studying from home, try your best to stick to the same schedule you were used to at school. If you have online lessons this will be easier than if you have a lot of independent work where no one is checking up on you.
Try and wake up at the same time you normally would, follow your usual school morning routine, and keep a schedule that works for you and your studies.
It may be hard to stick to the routine at first, but after a few days, you’ll quickly start to settle into it and find it much easier.
3. Don’t forget to get up and ready
Just because you’re working from home doesn’t mean that you can spend the whole day in your pajamas. Although it may be comfy, it can be one of the main reasons you’re feeling demotivated with school or college.
In the mornings try to get up, brush your teeth, shower, and change your clothes. This will make you feel refreshed, and motivated for the day of studying ahead.
4. Don’t study from your bed
When you’re studying, your bed can be a sneaky trap. Working at a desk is nowhere near as comfy as working from your bed, but try and avoid it at all costs.
Studying from your bed can quickly turn into a nap, which can then lead to you spending the whole day snoozing rather than studying. Your bed will make you feel sleepier and a lot less productive, so try and sit at your desk all day – with breaks!
You should also see if you can get yourself a comfy desk chair that makes you sit upright and encourages you to pay attention better.
5. Get out of the house if you need to
Whether you feel like you’re not as productive as you could be, or just need a change of scenery, sometimes getting out of the house can be just what you need to refresh and revive your productivity.
Take your laptop or book and go to a local coffee shop, cafe or library for the day. The change in environment – and being around other people who are also studying – can be great to keep you feeling productive and free of distractions.
6. Get your favorite snacks ready
Studying doesn’t have to be boring, there are plenty of ways that you can make it more fun. Stock up on some of your favorite healthy snacks and sweet treats to have throughout the day.
You could even use some of your snacks as rewards, to give you something to look forward to as you study. For example, once you finish a certain chapter, or a number of questions, you could reward yourself with one of your snacks.
7. Have a virtual study group
Studying from home can feel quite isolating when you’re used to a whole classroom of students, but remember that all of your friends are probably all feeling the exact same as you.
Host a virtual study group between you and your friends on platforms like Zoom or Google Meet where you can chat, get assignment help, and have study buddies to motivate you to continue working.
8. Take regular breaks
At school, you’ll normally get small breaks as you move between classrooms and longer breaks for lunch, and just because you’re working from home doesn’t mean you have to do without them.
Try and take the same breaks as you normally would at school, giving yourself time for lunch and making yourself a drink or snack throughout the day.
Studies have shown that the human brain can only really focus for around 20 minutes at a time, so don’t feel like you have to keep pushing yourself to study if it’s been too long. Take a break and when you come back you’ll be feeling ready to continue.
9. Create a study playlist
One of the benefits of working from home rather than at school is that you can sit and listen to your own music all day, so make sure to have a killer study playlist to keep you powering through the day.
You may like calm, ambient sounds to study to, or you might just want to put on the newest album from your favorite artist. Whatever works for you, go for it!
10. Keep active
You don’t realise how much activity you do on a normal day at school, with walking around campus, to and from lessons, and around your classrooms, you rack up quite a good amount of steps.
At home it can be easy to stay in your house all day and not be active at all, so give yourself time to walk around your house, take a stroll around your local area, or go for a run if you feel like it.
Keeping active is important for both our minds and bodies, so don’t let yourself forget about this while studying from home.
11. Set boundaries for yourself
It can be tempting to work long hours, or on the weekends when you’re studying from home and you don’t have a teacher managing your time for you, so it’s important to set boundaries.
Create a few rules for yourself to keep happy and focused. These rules could be things like not working after 4 pm, not studying on weekends, only studying from your desk, or not going on your laptop before 9 am.
12. Use all the study resources available to you
Chances are, your school and teachers have created a bunch of resources to help you get the most out of studying from home, so make sure you’re using them as best as you can.
If you need a little extra assignment help to stay productive, you could try using online writing apps and software that can kickstart your studying and keep you on track.
Final thoughts
Studying from home can be hard, we know! Hopefully, by following these 12 tips you’ll be able to find a productive and motivating routine that will help you to power through your study sessions and get the top grades you deserve.
What’s the best study tip that you’ve ever been given?