Where do you fit study time into your day?

[wabbit]

At the moment I can't keep abreast of assignments, I have a diary style teaching log to submit for review on the 6th of March... I just have lots of bits and pieces that need filing, re-writing, illustrating

I've just been diagnosed dyslexic and the uni have not yet been in touch about helping me prioritise and sytematise my work ... it's processing that i have severe difficulty with.

Is there a student mum out there that has any hints and tips about getting through a huge backlog of work... in a month??

I feel your pain, I graduated in June thank god so it is all behind me!

I think it is all about getting going and not stopping. I used to make sure I was in a good routine of cleaning so housework didn't get too bad (as in quick wipes on a regular basis take up much less time than letting it pile up all week and having to clean properly). What is your timetable like compared to your childcare? I used to put ds in one day a week when I didn't have any classes and I bloody well used it, it was worth the expense. In the evenings ds was thrown at dh the instant he came home from work, even if half way through his dinner or something and I went upstairs to work. I found if I didn't go right away I would get pulled into doing something else. Dh would sort ds out, do the whole bedtime thing, cook and call me down. I'd eat and head right back up again until he came to get me and make me chill for half an hour before bed.

It is just relentless until it is over I think basically!

Hi! im currently studying, final year now. My DS is 2 and attends nursery full time. i have the biggest schedual in the world, i also have dyslexia, only diagnosed in the summer of last year.

My son is ill at the moment, so i understand what you mean about back log, i too have a mountian of work to get through.
i would say priorotise according to what comes first, call your welfare/diabilities team and get them to speed things up, they will in the mean time help you get things ordered.

have you had your needs asessment yet? if so take everything they offer and really explain to the person that does it.

othe than that i would spaek to tutors and explain, i understand that this alone takes time, but should be worth it.

i try and schedual everything, including cleaning, voluntery work, bathtime, bedtime etc, and try my best to stick to it. Also get a diary and a calander and mark assignment deadlines down in weeks to go, it givws you that bit more motivation.

hope any of that helps.

I drop DD off at breakfast club at 8am, get into class for half nine, finish class at 1pm, work in library for between 2 and 5 hours depending on what time I need to pick up DD after school.

Then, home, dinner, domestic duties etc and back to the books from around half eight to midnight. Plus I utilise my mother for childcare when I can so that I can sit in the library at weekends!

When I was doing my undergraduate degree I used to drop DD at nursery around 9am, go back to bed, sleep until around 2pm, do a bit of work in the afternoon but do the main lot all night when she was asleep, starting around 10pm and finishing around 4am! I'm naturally nocturnal!

At the moment though I'm trying to keep to normal daylight hours! Damn the GDL and its relentless workload !

Thanks for sharing your schedules - yes, does seem like it's going to be long hours into the night for me too RSB. I work full time running my own tiny kindergarten - my teen takes up my evening hours and ds is a difficult one to get to bed before 8.30pm.

Dp's studying in London at the moment so we only see eachother every other weekend or so.

I'm going to write a schedule for study and try to stick to it - everything else will have to hang until I've reached my target for next month.

Your determination really stands out - I'm just not good at driving myself so hard when it all seems pretty interminable. Just a never ending slog - I need to bite the bullet methinks

Littlemissflylady - not had needs assessed yet, hoping there will be some tutorials to help with processing the knowledge that I've accumulated!! It can take me hours to write a paragraph that I'm happy with - grrrrr. I end up having to wander around faffing whilst my head works out just what it is i want to say and what terms I want to couch it in...

right now though I'm off to bed - with reading material!

Thanks for your tips too

The thought of a study to work in
I just need to get into the same zone I was in when i took my first degree - never have seemed to regain the focus.

Age i reckon

giggling at tent in the garden... I could set up a teepee (sp) in the summer! that would be cool!

right - Sally Goddard Blythe calling from my bedside so I must go and read her!

night night

Hi I am studying with Ds (2yrs) and started when he was 4months. I have a tight schedule that works very well (very clean house)until the end of session when I start trying to shave time off the housework for my study. At that point house looks like a bomb and I make no apologies for it. Different things work for different people, I am not a night owl, I do my best work in the morning but I still stay up late to study (not 4am late though!). An example of a day when Ds and I are at home is
5:30 study
7am Dh wakes I put washing on then get Ds breakfast ready
7:30 Ds awake by now everyone having breakfast
8am Breakfast dishes, make beds, vacuum.
8:30 hang washing out then one larger job for the day eg clean bathroom, wash floors, shopping.
9:30 park or some activity with Ds. Before coming home make sure I have everything for dinner
11:30 Lunch Dh comes home for hour
12:30 story then bed for Ds
1pm study
3pm Snack for Ds and he watches 1/2 hr of tv while I prepare things for dinner
4pm Dh home - activity and dinner then all dishes done, lunches packed (if uni tomorrow) clothes laid out by 7pm when Ds goes to bed.
7:30 study until 10pm.

Sometimes I get to go to library to study from 4pm until 7pm If that is the case I have a break when I get home and do the dishes and preparation then.
Ds really likes to help with the housework so I use that to my advantage. He goes to nursery 2 days a week when I have class.
This seems to work very well, my marks are excellent (if I do say so myself!) but it is very important to look into what is the most efficient way to study (type of room, desk, writing notes, ways to memorise things. This means that you will be utilising every second not sitting there for an hour and only taking in a few pieces of information. I am lucky that this info is part of my degree but it is VERY worthwhile looking into it especially if you have a lot of work to catch up on.

Roselle - you sound fabulously organised.

All of the posts have made me feel better about putting a strategy into place for study time, my method will have to be less timetabled and more making sure i get a set amount of work completed in a day - with study time dotted around the 'rest of the stuff' that has to be done.

My home has to be very tidy as Kindergarten is run from here - it has suddenly become full time since new year and I'm looking to set up in new premises in September!

(at least the business is going well! )

i have been following this thread wth interest, it has confirmed what i suspected i need to be more organised
my lectures finish at 4 twice a week so have started going straight into library when they finish and spending an hour there before i have to start the childcare collections.
i also have a monday morning there for a couple of hours.
my biggest challenge the past couple of weeks is i found a little hole in the library where i was undiscovered and could work, but some of my friends have discovered me there and come to sit with me, prob is whilst obviously this is lovely they chat to me so i dont get as much done.
do you think it would be really rude if i deliberately sat somewhere else now. don't get me wrong they are lovely people and i'm quite happy to chat and socilaise but i NEED this study time.
i also have a tendency when i sit down of an evenning to be on msn etc so need to stop signing in there too.
some of you sound so effecient and organised its brilliant. i must try to be more so.
love littlemissflyladys idea of marking in weeks to go in my diary- will try that
and also the getting up before the children. i have done that today and think it may work well for me.
actually reminds me i must go get dd up and get her ready for nursery..............

Not rude at all. You need to find serious study friends I would never be offended if one of my friends did this to me and have done it to others before. I also take earplugs to the library, it cuts out the noise.
Don't let anyone waste any of your precious time.

thanks roselle i do sometimes worry about seeming rude to people.
i do have 2 serious study friends and have spent today with them and no others, and have got loads done. i have almost finished a whole essay in one day. so very pleased with myself.
my dd has vomitted a few times this evening before finally falling asleep ten mins ago so i am going to take this chance to save what i have done and grab some sleep as no doubt i'll be up in the night with her.
earplugs are a good idea as i was working well til 4 pm when loads of people come in and were chatting loudly right behind me so i gave up and come home. i had been planning to stay til 5, so not cut drastically short but if i hadn't been interrupted i may have actually finished this essay.
but hey ho i will get there am quite pleased its not due for a fortnight, its the first time i have been ahead of scedule usually finish a few days before they are due.

Have you got something like Centre for Academic Practice at your Uni? If so, they will be really able to help you with study skills etc...

My problem is procrastinating...I am terrible for it...sigh...which is stupid and rubbish...

I am doing a foundation degree and work full time. I am too knackered to do any studying or housework in the week, my housework piles up, then at the weekend I feel guilty for doing studying when I could be doing housework but then I feel guilty if I keave the studying to do the housework.

need to get organised I think!!!!

I do tend to get up early at the weekend so normally fit in a couple of hours before anyone else gets up

This getting up early before children sounds good . Didn't realise there were people in the world who got up before little children did .

I am terrible at getting up only do it because worry children may not manage to fend for themselves at 6,3 and 13 months.

I am in my first year and finding it hard. Hve ended up having to up the time the kids are in nursery as just wasn't managing. Now feel totally guilty as kids have had loads of extra days in nursery, after school this week and to top it dh taking them to his parents this weekend 250 miles away and I have to stay here to catch up on the work.

The ear plugs to library is a good idea.I will try that tomorrow morning.

This msnetting when I am suppose to be studying is not very productive either.

I will need to change for the second year otherwise will never get this degree.