Planners are a lifeline in college. It’s a vital and important part of keeping track of everything you need to do. Start off the year with a nice organized planner!
The importance of using a planner:
It is easy to forget about dates. You can often find yourself thinking you remember everything but end up forgetting something. You can put in dates that you don’t have class so that you don’t end up walking to a class for no reason. You can also look ahead to see what test dates are in the near future and work ahead!
How to use a planner:
Find a planner that is visually appealing to you so that it makes you want to use it, and also figure out what size you need by getting an idea of how much stuff you want to write in it. Assign different colors to different classes. You could use highlighters or pens. It makes it easier by having each class assigned a color so that everything for one class is the same.
Go through all of your syllabi and list all due dates of all assignments in the weekly layout. I find that for me, putting the information in the weekly layout works better than putting it on the monthly layout. Then go through and put any canceled classes or breaks in the weekly layout as well.
Helpful Tips:
Pick a day of the week, like a Saturday or Sunday, to go through the upcoming week to see what you need to. If you have an assignment due on Wednesday, also put it in the Monday and Tuesday box for a reminder. If you end up getting assignments done ahead of time, cross it off. There is nothing more satisfying then crossing off assignments when done.