With the first day of classes being cancelled, it’s definitely a great way for you to get prepped for the semester (if you haven’t done so already). Being prepared for classes is not only a great feeling, but your professors will be super impressed – and a good impression means that it might be easier to get an A. Read on to find out some of the best ways to get prepared for the first day of classes!
Put all your classes into your Google Calendar
I actually prefer to use a paper planner, but using Google Calendar is so much faster some days. Whenever I’m at the doctor’s office or somewhere that I might not have access to my planner (which is huge, btw, and I never really take it anywhere with me), it’s super easy to use my phone calendar. The best part about Google Calendar is that you can personalize it; you can make each class a specific color, make it repeat every week on the same days, have it stop on a specific date, and more. Make sure you include the room number, and have it alert you 15 minutes before class is supposed to start so that you know where you’re going!
Pick out your clothes in advance
Remember in elementary school when your mom used to make you pick out your clothes and show her so that she could approve? And then, when you thought she wasn’t looking, you’d stuff your favorite shirt and pants into your bookbag and change once you got to school? Well, Mom had a pretty good idea: picking out your clothes the night before will not only save time in the morning (because, if you’re anything like me, you’ll oversleep), but you can make sure that your clothes actually look good on you.
Check the weather the night before and as soon as you wake up
This is a no brainer for me, but I’ve realized – after living with 8 different people within the past year – that not everyone checks the weather before they leave the room or pick out their clothes. Make sure you download a weather app (sometimes the app that comes on your phone isn’t very extensive) that includes the “feel like” temperature so that way you know what you’re getting into. I just downloaded the Sunshine App, which is free, and it is personalized to you and leaves you cute messages in the morning so that you know what the forecast will be. It’s super cute and super functional – something that I can always approve of.
Read the first chapter of your books (if you know what to read)
Sometimes, your professors will preload the syllabus on Scholar, so be sure to open it and check to see if you have any reading that should be done by that time. If you’re like me, you literally have nothing to do on snow days, so reading your books will be welcome distraction to seeing the same four walls all the time. Then, you also get an idea of the content of your textbook and whether or not it’s going to take a bit more time for you to digest the content. You also have time to jot in questions or start to take some notes.
Fill out a planner/calendar with important dates
I love doing this. If you know me, you know I love planning. After you check about what chapters you need to read, then check and see when assignments are due. Write them into a planner, whether it’s paper or electronic, and make sure to have a coding system, whether it’s different colors or symbols, so that you know what each thing means at a glance. You won’t always have time to dissect your planner word by word. Also, having all those dates written in advance means that – if your professor isn’t one to remind you/mention when something is due or hasn’t handed out the assignment yet – you can easily ask before or after class about a week away from the due date if the assignment is still due then.
Label all your notebooks
This is super important. There’s nothing worse than grabbing the wrong notebook for a class (trust me, I’ve done it. Not fun.). Every semester, I always take a post-it note, put the course number, title, professor, days of the week, time, and location of each individual course. I also don’t use those notebooks on the days I have class because I write all of my class notes into a 5 subject notebook and then rewrite them to be more organized and colorful later. But, I take them with me on test or quiz days so that I have all of my notes accessible to me.
It’s always important to be prepared for classes, no matter if it’s the first day or the last. But, usually if you’re prepared on the first day, then you’ll be prepared more often throughout the semester. You know what they say: first impressions matter. Make sure you give a great first impression and have a super successful start to your semester!