Throughout history, students have always had a mixed relationship with homework. No student has ever thought, oh wow, can't wait to get started on the seven-hundred-word essay Mrs. Smith set me!. We get it, you go home to reset and recharge, not to do more schoolwork outside of school.

However, homework does indeed have a purpose… four of them, in fact: to practice what has been taught in class, to prepare you for a new topic, to help revise for tests or to elaborate on completing projects. Each piece of work your teacher gives you targets at least one of these areas.

Now, homework also has proven benefits, believe it or not. In many courses, up to a third of your grades can be based on your homework assignments, so it’s well worth putting the time in! Even in exam-based subjects, successfully completing homework has been associated with gains of up to 15% in exam grades.

Now that we’ve explained just how excellent homework is, let us show you can tackle it effectively, so you don’t need to spend all your time outside of school buried in piles of books!

Have a homework diary!

Student life is busy! From sports training to dance practices to the choir, everyone has plenty of things to do. Due to this fast-paced lifestyle, it's easy to forget things – especially homework! So go to your nearest Warehouse Stationery and grab yourself a small diary. 

Usually, you're going to be in a rush to get to your next class and so you’ll leave it up to the brain to remember what the homework was. But now that you've got a diary, take just a minute to write it down; the more complex the task, the more detail you should put in. 

Handy tip! Write down the date on the top of the page and write down all your homework underneath, with the due date next to each assignment. It's an easy and effective way to stay organised and on track.

Start right away.

You’re entirely correct: time at home should be your time to game, annoy your siblings or whatever you do to relax! So if you get the opportunity, don't let your homework wait until after school. If you've finished classwork early and have an extra ten minutes, get started on it then and there! Doing it while you’re still ‘in the zone’ will cut down your time spent after school by a tonne. 

Of course, much of the time you will still need to complete it at home (it’s in the name, after all). If that’s the case, it’s still a good idea to get started on it sooner rather than later. Don’t leave your massive essay to the last minute!

Time slots, people!

Setting aside a few regular time slots for homework in each subject can be a lifesaver. turn  Figure out how much time you will need to spend on homework from each subject and allocate time slots to it accordingly. The more complex the work (or the more work) for one subject, the more time you give it. 

Order it whichever way suits you, but we recommend going through the harder ones first. This way, the easier ones feel like a breeze, and before you know it, you're all done.

Find yourself a suitable workspace.

Distractions are your worst enemy while doing homework. Distractions include your mum washing dishes in the kitchen while you work on the dining table, or maybe your brother playing the latest Halo game while you're writing an essay on the sofa. A task that should only take twenty minutes ends up taking an hour. 

Try and find a quiet place in the house, away from the TV and noise. If you need to use a device for your work, put it on silent mode; this way, no Insta messages from your friends can ruin your focus. 

Avoid studying on the bed; before you know it, you are lying down, eyes closed and snoring. We all get tired after a long day of school and sports, so make sure you still get some rest… just after doing your homework.

Things to do while you are working:

Firstly, remember to move on if you are stuck on a problem for too long. Don't know what to write for an essay? Can't figure out the quadratic equations? No worries, come back to it later. Move on to something else, but make sure to come back to it - don't leave it hanging! This way, you don't waste all your time on one problem, and your brain can subconsciously think it over while solving another problem.

We all need help from time to time; we don't know everything, which is what makes us learners! So, if you can't seem to figure something out, never hesitate to reach out and ask, whether it be your mum or dad (whichever is the smarter one, no matter what they claim to have got in exams back in the day) or even phoning a friend. 

Now, this one you’ll probably like a lot… take breaks! We would recommend a five-minute break every half-hour – stand up, do your stretches, annoy your sibling and get moving. Then get back to work. Let your brain recharge from all those equations and big words.

And… possibly the most critical point of all!

Never forget to put your homework in your bag! It doesn't matter how much blood, sweat and tears you put into that assignment if you don't end up handing it in on time. One of the worst things for a student is to put so much effort into their work… only to tell their teacher that they forgot it. So please, just take that last step, open your bag and place your homework inside.

Remember these points of homework wisdom – they’ll save you time whilst improving your grades. Homework is there to help you improve, so stick at it!

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