A student paces back and forth with ruffled papers in hand, reciting the information that is new to him. Muttering the words of his vocabulary sheet in front of him, he looks back up at the clock and back down again. It is half past 11. As the bell rings and all the students get up for their next class, he stays still. It is test day; and he has not studied.

With the return to of in-school learning, students wonder how they can be most productive to achieve the grades they want. There are different ways that students in school have been productive this school year.

The single most important part of being a productive student is getting work done. Students tend to leave their work until the last minute, causing significant levels of stress. Students say the most efficient way to tackle work is to space it out and not procrastinate. “I do my homework right as I get home. This keeps me on task and makes sure that my work gets finished,” junior Kettie John said.

On top of doing work, finding a place where a student can work with limited distractions is important for getting work done. By doing this students can get their work done more efficiently as the only item in front of them is their work. “The place that I am most comfortable to do my work is my bedroom because if I am anywhere else I will be distracted,” junior Zoe Heller said.

Sometimes students forget to complete assignments. A way to prevent this is to write out a plan for how to tackle the homework assigned. By doing this, students will never forget when an assignment is due, allowing them to be submitted on time. “It is important because it helps me get my work done faster and helps me keep track of what I’m doing,” John said.

Another large factor in being a productive student is sleep. The recommended amount of sleep that students in high school should get per night is nine hours. When students get enough sleep nightly they become more productive as they are not drowsy and tired throughout the day. “It is important because if I don’t sleep enough I will not be able to pay attention in class and will do poorly on quizzes,” junior Ethan Wong said.

Another large part of school is taking tests. Countless students tend to save all of their studying for the night before a test. This method is unproductive as it puts a lot of stress on students, leaving them with a lot of information to learn in a short amount of time. The correct way to study is to practice small amounts of information over the week of the test, which leaves little information to learn on test day. “I look over all my notes and find and make Quizlets. Once I feel I know the information then I am ready for the test,” John said.