As a virtual student, you probably have already discovered that it can be challenging to stay on track when you are studying and going to school from home. The everyday distractions can seem like simple 5-minute breaks here and there to take out the trash, fix a quick snack, check your text messages or social media (you get the idea) but before you know it, hours have flown by and time got away from you and the task at hand. Whether you are in high school for a few more years or are graduating and getting ready to enter the real world, time management is key to success.
Often times our students are faced with challenging home lives including financial hardships. Whether it’s to help support your family or put gas in your tank for running around with friends, our students find themselves juggling both work and school. Juggling work and school can really stress students out and some students start falling behind if they don’t have the tools needed to stay on track. We don’t want that to happen to you, so let’s go over some ways that you can be a successful student while earning a paycheck.
Set up a work station
First of all, in regard to school, are you setup for success? By that we mean do you have an area designated for your schooling that is relatively free from distractions? Do you have the supplies needed to get your work done (pencils, notebooks, computer, etc.)? When you are running around looking for a sharpened pencil so you can take notes or you can’t focus because your work station is in front of the family TV, you’re not really setting yourself up to be successful. Prepare your school space and you’ll save yourself some valuable time and energy.
Consider the time of day you are most focused
Second, take a second to think about your day. Do you tend to be someone who wakes up and gets their day going with a bang or do you pull the sheets over your head and let the snooze go off 5 more times before you wake up? Think about when you feel like you are at your peak performance and make a mental note of those times. Try to do your school work when you’re most alert and motivated. If possible, schedule work hours around your school schedule.
Schedule ahead
Third, let us introduce you to your new best friend: your planner. Whether you have a schedule that changes each week or one that is set in stone, creating a schedule that you can live with and stick to is going to be key in staying sane while tackling both work and school. Hey, when you’re running here and there and trying to get your lessons in, the stress will get high. With a thought-out schedule, things will get easier because you would have made time for everything. The trick is to stick with it.
Listen, no one said this would be easy but by taking some time to carve out your days in the beginning, you will avoid mass chaos at the middle and end. If you feel that your school work is suffering because of your work commitment, see if there are areas that you can reduce your spending so perhaps you don’t 
have to work as often. If you made a schedule thinking that you were really productive in the afternoon, but it turns out that is when you hit a lull in your day, make some tweaks and move your obligations to the earlier hours of the day. We are confident in you and know that after a short time, you will have found the perfect balance and things will fall into place.
Have you checked out all of the entertaining and informative posts on our blog? What are you waiting for? It’s a great resource for those within our MVA family and for those families that are contemplating making the leap to virtual learning. We post on all kinds of topics that will help keep you on the right path and also gives parents some guidance on things they may be dealing with. Click here to check it out! If you or someone you know could benefit from a virtual learning environment please give one of our enrollment specialists a call today at 800-297-2119.