One of the most difficult results of the COVID-19 quarantine, especially for students, has been the transition to online classes. While at first you might like attending all your lectures in pajamas, the fun quickly wears off as monotony sets in. For many students, this is an outcome of going from days filled with structure and routine to days where the only thing on your to-do list is wake up and log into Zoom. Lots of free time is not necessarily a good thing, so in times when your built-in structure is absent, it’s important to create your own.
If you’re someone who likes to have a consistent day to day routine, consider making a schedule with one or two hour blocks for what you need to get done (I suggest using Google Sheets or Excel). Be sure to allot time for your classes, homework, due dates, meals, and free time to do something fun. A consistent schedule will help you stay on track for each class and avoid forgetting important due dates. If you feel like you need a little less rigidity in your schedule, you can make a list of goals you want to accomplish each day, or even each week instead. Make sure the goals are something you can reasonably achieve so you don’t feel overwhelmed, even if it’s something like “write one page of history paper per day.” Whether you’re used to planning out your day hour by hour, or just used to your class schedule, make sure to take some time and build a little structure back into your day!