Whether you are still finishing your first grading period or have started your second one, you may be wondering what comes next. In this post, I will again discuss the importance of knowing your grading periods. My last post focused on how to make the best of how your grading periods end. In this post, I will focus on how to make the best of how your grading periods begin. Whether you need to build on grades you’re happy with, improve grades you wish were better, or a combination of both, it is important to remember that new grading periods provide a fresh start, and that you should take the best possible advantage of it that you can.
In my last post, I mentioned that grades often close a few days to a week before the end of a grading period, so that teachers have time to grade your work and post your grades before you see the grade on your report card. If that is the case, then the new grading period will begin before you see your report card. While there may not be many tests and quizzes at the beginning of a new grading period if there were a lot of tests and quizzes at the end of the old one, there will be other things that factor in to your grades – assignments, projects, class participation, etc. This means that in order to have the best start possible in the new grading period, you should resist the temptation to give yourself a break when the old grading period ends. Instead, you should approach each class period ready to give your very best effort, no matter what is taking place. That way, when new grades start to be posted and there start to be more tests and quizzes again, you will be off to a good start, and will have something to build on for the remainder of the grading period.
Starting a new grading period on the best possible note also means finding ways to improve your homework and study time. Think again about how you answered the questions I posed in my last post. If you know which subjects you need to make improvements in, or whether you faltered more with tests, with assignments, or with how prepared you were to participate in class, start to make needed improvements as soon as you possibly can. If tests were your biggest challenge, find ways to study ahead for upcoming tests. If you struggled more to complete assignments on time, start any new assignments as soon as you receive them. If coming prepared to class tripped you up, make time to read assigned sections or chapters and prepare answers to questions. Write down answers to what you might be asked in class even if you are not assigned to do so. Write or type reminders to yourself to bring needed materials. Clean out and/or reorganize your folders, backpack, locker, laptop carry case, etc., so that you will be able to find what you need when you need it. I could go on, but I think you get my point. Whatever you most need to do to make the best possible start to your new grading period, take the time to do it as soon as you can. Before you know it, it won’t be the beginning of the new grading period anymore, and the busier the grading period becomes, the harder making improvements will be.
If you find you need to improve in many subjects, or in all or most of the ways I listed above, don’t panic! Just start with one subject at a time, or one skill at a time, but take the time each day, and then each week, to check how you’re doing and see what else you might be able to add to your new routine. As your new grades are posted, use them to see where else you can improve. You won’t be able change everything at once, and that’s okay. Just as with what you did well in your first grading period, so too with what you found more challenging – the most important thing to remember is that you want to build on what you’ve done, so you can make it better. In future posts, I will go into more detail about some of the suggestions I made here, so you will have a better idea how to make each of these improvements, and on my strategies page, you will find even more specific suggestions and examples. The most important thing to remember is that improving your study skills can’t be rushed. Just take it step-by-step and day-by-day and keep building your skills, and over time, you will be amazed by the progress you will make.