How to Excel at Doing Homework: 5 Useful Tips for Dummies


If you want to become better at homework but have no idea what to begin with, these tips can help you make the first steps to improvement.

  • Start as early as you can.
  • When you have no assignments for tomorrow, do those due in two or three days. If everything goes smoothly, you will have more spare time on next days; and if you run into any problems, there will be enough time to solve them.

  • Organize a comfortable working spot.
  • It is difficult to focus on homework when your working place is noisy or inconvenient. You should have a desk that matches your height, a comfortable chair, and good light, preferably natural. If nothing of that is to be found at your home, consider doing your homework in a public library. Determine what items and tools you need for this assignment (for example, a textbook, a copybook, a calculator, a pencil, and a rubber for geometry problems). Get them to your desk before you start.

  • Eliminate distractions.
  • Before starting on your homework, have a snack. Drink a glass of water or juice. Staying sated and hydrated will help you concentrate. Ask your siblings and friends not to disturb you while you study. Turn off your mobile phone. If you are working on the computer, do not check your email or open social networks in your browser. Snapchat or Instagram can devour most of your time without you even realizing it until it is too late. Promise yourself that you will check the news and recent photos by friends once done with your homework; it will be yet another incentive to move on.

  • Consider doing your homework on the computer.
  • If your teacher often lowers the mark because your handwriting is difficult to read, or your diagrams are not neat enough, a computer can help you out. Typing in a word processor, you can correct any mistakes right away without making your page a mess. You can proofread before you print, and submit an error-free paper. You do not have to worry of how straight your lines are – the computer will do the job. Moreover, typing is much faster than handwriting.

  • Study at the right time.
  • The best time to do your assignments is right after you’ve had a meal, a walk, or a brief rest – that’s when your mind is fresh and your blood rich with oxygen. On the other hand, it is better not to do homework late in the evening, just before you go to bed; your mind is already preparing for sleep and won’t be productive.