5 Tips for Preparing for a(nother) Shutdown
As many schools are starting to shut their doors again, whether for a scheduled two-week break or indefinitely, there is a lot of uncertainty and stress. While you can’t control anyone else’s actions or predict the future, you can prepare yourself for a surprise vacation from school. Follow these tips to make sure you’re not caught off guard…like we all were last time.
Write down deadlines. Whether you are in school or on Zoom, deadlines often still hold. It is a lot harder to keep track of dates when your plans are changing, so make sure your assignments and deadlines are written down somewhere you’ll remember. Use a planner like this one or an organizer app like this one.
Bring home materials. While it might seem like a pain to carry textbooks back and forth to school, it will be an even bigger pain if the school closes suddenly and you don’t have your books. Keep your textbooks, binders, notebooks, and calculators at home as much as possible.
Check in with test prep. School looks a lot different this year, but the standardized tests are all the same. If you are hoping to take an SAT, ACT, SAT Subject Test, or AP Exam this year, flip through your review book every once in awhile to make sure you’re still on track to be prepared for the exam.
Exchange contact info. If you don’t have it already, make sure you get the email address (and phone number, if possible) for each of your teachers and at least one classmate in each class.
Be flexible. It might happen and it might not. There’s no way to know ahead of time. Take a deep breath and roll with it.