Over the years Dr. Davenport has known many students who struggle to use a standard store-bought or school-provided planner.  Some go so far as to say that they “hate the planner!”  Using a combination of the following tools to keep track of, prioritize, and complete their tasks, they are now experiencing success.  Your student can experience success too!

This is a sample of what your student can learn in Student Success!

Try a Simplified Alternative

Encourage your student to consider using a simplified planner alternative that allows her to keep track of assignments to complete, project due dates, and upcoming tests and quizzes.

• Keep a running list of assignments and their due dates. During the time she has set aside for completing assignments and studying, your student should look at her list and then prioritize based on the due date of the task.

• Use either a monthly wall or desk calendar, a whiteboard, or a one-page school calendar to keep track of test dates and due dates for projects. It will be important to update and check this tool daily.

• A more creative planner alternative to consider is called “rapid logging” and is described in detail on the Bullet Journal website.

Identify When You Will Complete Assignments

Most school planners don’t identify when students will complete their assignments.

Help your student identify when she will study and complete assignments each day by encouraging her to schedule both a beginning and an ending time for completing assigned tasks, as well as, free time to do whatever she wants to do afterward.

As much as possible, she should try to schedule a time to complete these tasks in the afternoon or early evening, leaving her later evening open for other activities. If your student has trouble identifying the time she has available to study and complete assignments, consider putting together a weekly block schedule.

For more suggestions about structuring homework time, go to my article on actively completing homework.

Try a Weekly Preview

High school and college students can especially benefit from scheduling time to preview the upcoming week either on Sunday evening or Monday morning.

• First, look at the past week and see if any tasks that need to be completed that did not get done. Record these and make a plan to get them completed as soon as possible this week.

• Next, look ahead to see what assignments, tests, quizzes, and projects are due this week and record them in her planner of choice.

• Finally, add other tasks (extracurricular, etc.) and assignments to be completed this week.

This process allows your student to be better prepared for the amount of work she has each week.

Prioritize!

Many students with executive functioning problems struggle to prioritize their tasks. They often tell me that they think that either “everything is important” or “nothing is important.” Help your student by teaching her to complete a simplified Priority To-Do List based on the types of tasks she has and when those tasks are due.

Set Reminders and Timers

As she is previewing her week, encourage her to set reminders on her phone or other electronic tools for appointments, classes, time to study for tests or complete assignments, and anything else she tends to forget to do during the day. She should add new reminders for activities as soon as she learns of them.

It can be helpful to use an interval timer that beeps or buzzes every 10 to 15 minutes when she is studying, completing assignments, or doing other tasks to be completed promptly: this can serve as a cue for her to get back on task if she has become distracted. Interval timer applications can be easily customized for this use.

Suggested time and task management applications and software are listed at https://www.drmontedavenport.com/apps/.

Evaluate Progress Weekly

Once every week, your student should take time to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of her plans and strategies. If suggested strategies don’t work, she should “problem-solve” to identify and create new ones based on her strengths and abilities. She is encouraged to remember to always celebrate her successes to energize her effort and expectations.

Need Help Applying These Concepts?

Contact us to make an appointment. Dr. Davenport is happy to help your student improve his or her executive functioning skills.

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(c) 2010-2019, Monte W. Davenport, Ph.D.