BAK2SKOOL

Gearin' up for back to school! This is my fourth (unfortunately not final) year of undergrad study! I'm excited because I'm taking 3 English classes! 3! I'm going to be so overwhelmed and riddled with bookish knowledge I might throw up! Every sentence in this paragraph ended in an exclamation point! Hooray!

BUT there's a bit of a drawback; all 3 are online. Ew. Let this stock photo of a business woman express my distaste. Trust me, I'm disappointed in my school, too. But! I learned a lot from the first online english class I took last summer, if only from a ton of studying I did on my own. Granted, it was summer and I had a lot more free time, but I hope I'll be able to do something of a similar caliber this time around.

The hardest thing about online classes is sliding into a routine that is practical and effective. My first online class, that one I learned ~so much~ from? I wasn't exactly diligent. I think we had a couple responses due a week from the reading, alongside 2 papers. While the papers were turned in on time, I think 80% of the responses were late. I had an awesome professor who let it slide because I was obviously doing the work, but. You know. That's not exactly how I want to get into it for three separate ones.

So!

1. Figure out when things are due. Since most normal classes meet twice a week, I've noticed professors have 2 weekly due dates. Figure out when those are! 
2. Get all work done before the weekend! One of the things that's hardest is realizing I can do the work whenever I want to so long as it's in by the due date. I hate not having ONE day off from the grind, even if that doesn't line up with a day I have off from work. 
3. KEEP MY DESK CLEAN. The fact I managed to cram a desk into my puny ass bedroom is a miracle in itself. Keep it functional. Right now I've got a bowl of green beans, some birthday cards, an old USA Today, and a copy of Mrs. Dalloway I haven't even started on here. Whoops. 
4. Have a schedule! Work a certain amount of hours, between a certain set of hours, and stop by a certain time. But again, I won't know what exactly is efficient before pounding it into a routine and working at it for a while. Guess we'll see! 
5. Get a lamp. 
6. Get out! If I have a gap in my schedule (specifically: my two normal classes are afternoon/evenings on Tues/Thurs, and I usually work before that, BUT if I don't work. . . ) go to a coffee shop or the library to study! Don't make it a habit to do homework out in and about, but do it now and again.
7. DON'T PROCRASTINATE. This is a hard one, because it's hard for me to produce quality work unless the assignment is due in 5 hours. I can easily skim over things and say "eh I'll edit this on my next round". 

Okay so! I've talked up some interesting points if only to clear the air from my depressing "I'm going to die alone" posts. Well wishes to anyone who has the unfortunate amount of free time to read this!