Together
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Is it harder for you to estimate how long it will take to do a task or to manage your time appropriately while doing the task?
Time Management for Kids: Simple Tips to Help Students Stay on Track
As mentioned in a previous post on executive function, time management for kids is the ability to estimate how much time a task will take and manage time appropriately. In school, this can look like completing work within a deadline, knowing how long to study for an upcoming quiz or test, and budgeting time for other daily tasks and breaks. Common struggles students face are procrastination or underestimating how long a task will take. Here are tips and tools to help improve and reinforce time management for kids.
Why time matters
Part of school education is learning how to manage time and finish assignments within a deadline. Younger grades typically have one assignment at a time, whereas older grades have assignments for each class and further out deadlines. The benefits of time management are reduced stress, improved academic performance, and increased confidence and independence. Teaching students the benefits is as important as the skill itself. Knowing the why encourages independence as they learn to manage their workload effectively.
Common challenges for students
When students struggle with time management at school, it can look like procrastination. It can feel like not knowing where to start, feeling overwhelmed by tasks, and getting distracted easily. This can lead to frustrations for both the student and the teacher. At home, it might cause friction between parents and children, with neither knowing the next steps.
Simple time management strategies
Here are 5 time management strategies to try. Parents can work on any of these at home. Teachers and tutors can weave them into lessons. Help students create a schedule, block time, and pace out work. Teach them to prioritize tasks by importance and deadline to manage their workload effectively. This is an ongoing practice of modeling and reinforcing executive function skills.
Use Visual Timers: Encourage students to see time passing to stay focused.
Create a Daily Schedule: Help students plan their day, balancing homework and downtime.
Break It Down: Teach them to divide tasks into smaller, actionable steps.
Prioritize Tasks: Use a simple system like “Must Do, Should Do, Could Do.”
Set Clear Deadlines: Encourage realistic time limits for each task.
Tools and resources for time management
Highlight helpful tools:
Digital apps like Google Calendar, Asana, or task/homework apps. https://tailorjoy.com/10-tips-for-using-google-tasks-and-google-calendar-as-a-student-agenda/
Physical tools like planners or sticky notes. https://tailorjoy.com/free-printable-agenda-page/
Tips for parents and tutors
Modeling and reinforcing time management skills at home and at school can boost a student’s success. Students will see the benefits of time management well beyond the school doors or the school years. Here are some tips for parents and tutors.
Be a Role Model: Show how you manage your time. Talk through an upcoming project and chunk it into doable steps. Point out the benefits of time management in your life.
Set Small Goals: Help students achieve success in manageable steps.
Praise Effort: Celebrate progress to keep them motivated. Make a point to notice their improvements, not just point out the weaknesses.
Conclusion
Time management is a skill that takes practice but leads to long-term success in school and beyond. Homework time will be calmer. Assignments will get done on time. Future employers will be thankful. The benefits of time management for kids are reduced stress, improved academic performance, and increased confidence and independence. Try some of these practical activities today.
Table Talk
What’s your best tip for teaching kids time management? Is it harder for you to estimate how long it will take to do a task or to manage your time appropriately while doing the task?
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Jennifer
Monthly Product Spotlight: College Planner tool
Gather, Organize, and Prioritize college information in a sharable spreadsheet.
Lots of research can go into choosing which colleges to apply to, and it's often hard to keep track of which school offers what. This College Planner tool will help organize all the information gathered, even suggesting categories you may not have thought about. Customizable and sharable, you can edit the form to fit your needs and share it between parents and students. This information organizer will be helpful when visiting colleges, narrowing down which ones to apply to, preparing for applications and interviews, and making final decisions. Once you gather plenty of information, there are directions for color-coding the schools based on your preference for application and helping to narrow your choices. This works for undergrad or grad school.
Along with the College Research gathering spreadsheet, there is a To Do spreadsheet that has been started for you and an Apply spreadsheet that will help you organize your application process. As a BONUS, there is a Scholarship spreadsheet that will help you organize information about scholarships and set goals for application.
Organization is the necessary skill for college comparison whether it's undergrad or grad school. This collaborative tool makes the research and comparisons easy to see. Purchase this tool for only $5 and get right to work.
Downloaded on a PDF that contains the link, this tool is a Google Sheet that can also be converted to an Excel file by the user.
What will you get with this inexpensive time-saving tool?
✔️ How to use this College Planner tool instruction sheet
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✔️ To Do spreadsheet
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Buy now for only $5.00: https://www.tailorjoy.com/product/college-planner-tool/
Note: If you are one of my current tutoring clients, you can email me to get this resource free of charge.
Tip: Share this link with a friend who has high schoolers. https://www.tailorjoy.com/product/college-planner-tool/
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More Resources
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Teacher. Tutor. Traveler. Tailor of joy.
Meet Jennifer Donaldson.
"I’m a wife, mom, grandma, and certified teacher offering private tutoring, business coaching, educational resources, useful printables, online courses, practical advice, and joy!"
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#tailorjoy = intentionally seeing the joy in everyday life
