School Hacks: 7 things to do in an intermediate hour

In the list of school hacks, here are some tips to use your time between your lessons good.

I got 6 of them in a week. Scheduled.

6 hours between my classes. Plus the hours I get when a teacher is ill.

So during this year, and last year when I had 7, I learned some things to do during that hour.

• Make homework. The one who will be praised by the teachers. "But you will have so much extra time, you can do so much homework!" It is true. It is good spending of that time.
• Going to the market and buy chips. Just great. Say to your classmates "Let's go to the supermarket" and they will join. Buy chips, eat it outside and feel good the rest of the day.
• Making your callings. If you know you have an intermediate hour, and you know you have to do some phonecalls. Schedule them then.
• Read your reader. This is where I put most of my time in. Read the items on my reader. Read all those blogs!
• Write a blog! I don't do it, but I do write ideas and work them out. But if you have acces to a computer, you can do it.
• Driving lessons. I want to do it in a couple of weeks. I just turned 18 (the age when you may start lessons) so I will try to plan lessons in my intermediate hours.
• Assemble with some persons in whatever kinda project. If all the other projectmembers also have an intermediate hour, it's the perfect time!

So you can use your time usefull in intermediate hours. I think it is a important thing to use your time on school usefull, it is a good way to getting things done!

What do you do in intermediate hours? Share it in the comments!

Quoting: Huxley

Try to learn something about everything and everything about something. -- 

I like this quote, I really do.

Knowing about everything something, that would be great. So if you read a book, and there is some tough material about a tough subject in it, you will understand. You won't understand it completely, but you will understand enough.

And the know everything about something is even better. Don't try to know everything about everything. You will not make it. But know everything about something is good.

I think that highschool is the base of you knowledge. So in highschool, and primary school of course, is where you learn something, about everything. But at the university, there you will learn everything about something.

You will go deeper into the subject. Seek every little piece of information about a subject. You will get to know everything, about that, about something.

I'm looking forward to go to the university, I really do.

iPod Studying

I have read something about recording the stuff you need to learn.

Call it mini-lectures.

After I have read that, I started to think. How can I use this, and how to apply.

I am actually a more visual student, I think. But I will definitly try it.

I have to cycle to the swimming training, every week. Then I have to cycle for a half an hour. So that is the perfect moment to relisten some mini-lectures. The perfect studying.

I will start the recording this evening. Just like the girl in the article did, I will start with biology. Things like math is hard to record, and to understand without any visual support.

How I will do it:

• Make a summary of the text. I will do this for biology. It contains over 90 pages, which I can reduce to less than 20. So that will be a good start.
• Add your notes to the summary. I will add the notes I took during class to it. So it will be complete.
• Record it. Record it in pieces. So you can choose the subject you want to listen, later. I will record it with my mobile phone, that is good enough.
• Play it, and learn. Cause I recorded it on my mobile phone, I will also play it on my phone. That will work. I will play it when I am on my bicycle, cause that is the time I am looking for something to do (without falling).

So, starting this evening! I am curious if it will work.

If it does work, I will defenitly use it with other classes also!

I will write another blog about it, next week I guess, when I have tried it!

I have tried it, and wrote something about it! Here are some pro's and cons

How to stay awake during class

I am a person who can sleep everywhere.

It doesn't matter, a couch, in a car and even in class.

And it did happen, once. Well, it happened once that the class noticed.

It was a really hot day, and the teacher decided to show some dia's about his holiday, with the curtains closed, and I was very tired.

And pretty often I'm between sleeping and not sleeping, so I tested some things, which probably helps you staying awake.

1. Watch the teacher

Watch the teacher, all the time. And with watching I mean watching all his moves. How he walks, how he talks, how he acts. It is really funny, cause every teacher got something strange, and when you notice that strange thing, you can enjoy it.

It starts to get fun when you take notes. One of my teacher is saying 'euh' all the time, so me and a friend start to count how often he says 'euh'.  The outcome: 27 times in 5 minutes.

2. React on the teacher

I'm following bèta classes, so we have to calculate much. And the teacher has to do it also. They are highly trained in it, absurd. But sometimes he can't calculate it in his head, and he needs a calculator. Since teachers are to lazy to grab their calculator they will always ask: "Can anyone calculate this please". That is the moment you come in. Do it! Calculate, as fast as you can. And when are the fastest of the class, be really jubilant. You will enjoy class more, and there are some teachers who likes that behaviour (no garantee).

3. Start your homework

Just start with your homework. No teacher bothers if you are paying attention, or looking in the book all the time. Homework will be the challenge you might actually need to stay awake. Plus the time you save. If you make your homework in class, you don't have to do it at home anymore!

4. Ask questions

Ask something about the content of the lesson. Popping the first question can be really hard, especially if you are really sleepy, but after the first question you will awake. And then comes the next question, and the next and the next.

5. Make up a story

Don't make up a random story. But make up a story about the person you have to look to the whole lesson. The teacher. Think of him when he is at home. What paper does he read? What does he eat? How is his wife/her husband. What will he do when he comes home?

My girlfriend and I tried that with our physics teacher. Instant fun!

6. Learn something

Last but not least. Step into the class with the idea you are going to learn something today. 

When you are standing on the doorstep think 'I AM going to learn something today'.

And when you stand on that doorstep again, but then when you leave class, you will be satisfied, and awake.

So, do you think this works? Do you have other tips for staying awake? Post them, I'm curious!

I'm dutch, so my English is pretty good, but not perfect, please correct me when I'm wrong!