Question: I will be starting the 11th grade in September and I'm concerned that I am so disorganized. I have a hard time remembering what I'm supposed to do for homework each night, I don't turn assignments in on time, and my desk at home is always messy. My grades are slipping because of this and I want to do better next year. What can I do to become more organized?
Answer: It sounds like you have problems with executive function, which has to do with essential mental tasks, including planning, organizing and managing time and space. You should definitely use visual organizational aids such as a large wall calendar and a day planner for school where you can write down all of your daily and long term assignments as they are given to you. Break the long−term assignments into smaller chunks so you can work on them a little each day.
You may want to create checklists as well to keep track of completed tasks. You can organize your messy desk by evaluating what the essentials are that you need. You should have a separate file for lined paper, completed work, and work in progress. Every desk should also have a place to hold all supplies such as pens and pencils. Set aside a weekly time to clean and organize your desk. You can manage your work by setting up weekly meetings with a teacher to review your work to ensure that you are on track. All of these effective strategies are sure to help you.
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