1. Good Playlists

Before school starts, or on a weekend, sit somewhere comfy (in your room, or even outside in your yard, or deck), and find/create a few back-to-school playlists.  This is one of the simplest, and funnest pieces of back to school advice we have! Find a playlist for studying, motivation, energizing, getting ready for school, unwinding after school, driving/on the bus, and mood boost.  If you’re allowed, listen to music in class.  Overall, having fresh, new, and fun playlists for school will help boost your mood, give you something to look forward to, and re-adjust to the new routine.   You can make your own playlists, or save ready-made ones.  Bonus: create a group playlist with your friends, and add all your favorite songs. 

Check out these links for playlists we’ve created for you!

Back to School

Confidence Boost

Motivation

2. Wear Clothes That Make You Confident

There’s really no reason in wearing clothes that make you feel uncomfortable and self-conscious, even if they are considered ‘in style’ and your friends wear them. Wear clothes that make you feel good, and are practical for school.  If you’re going back-to-school shopping, buy clothes that are not too summery and that you will want to wear in the fall. Remember: although it might feel like everyone’s judging you based on how you look and what you’re wearing, most likely, they are too busy focusing on themselves and being worried about what others are thinking of them.  

3. Don’t Leave Studying Till The Last Minute

Cramming for tests is not effective. Your brain will just not have the time to properly process all the information you’re trying to re-learn.  It can be hard to get back into the usual study routine, but don’t worry, everyone is adjusting to studying, not just you. Our final piece of middle school advice is: instead of leaving studying till the last minute, leave 4-5 days of review before the test. Simply looking over your notes for 10-20 minutes daily will make your brain retain the material for the test.  Since you’re reviewing multiple days in advance, you actually don’t have to study for hours every night, or cram the night before.

For example, if you have a science test on weather coming up, review one major thing you learned from the unit every night.  Review the formation of clouds one night, the water cycle another night,  natural disasters on night three, types of clouds on night four, and do a quick overview of everything on night five, the night before your test.  This is a really good way to break-up your studying, feel less overwhelmed and remember your information better.