(LED BY GEAR UP MENTORS) Purpose: Students will practice time management skills that are essential to college readiness. Grades: 6-10 WWW.GEARUP4LA.NET @GEARUP4LA
TOPIC SCRIPT/ DIRECTIONS MATERIALS 1 copy of weekly schedule template per student 1 copy of Gary s TO-DO List per student INTRODUCTION (1 minute) DISCUSSION (15 minutes) Introduce yourself to the class: MENTOR 1: Hi, my name is and we are GEAR UP Mentors. We are here today to share with you an important lesson that we have learned through the GEAR UP peer-mentor program. Today s topic will be Time Management. Introduce lesson to entire class: MENTOR 2: Everyone please take out a sheet of paper and a pencil. <<Wait a few seconds until most students are ready.>> We want each of you to list as many reasons you can think of why students might not get good grades in middle school or high school. Please take some time to think about it and then write down as many reasons as you can think of. <<Repeat, if necessary.>> <<Give the class about a minute or until students stop writing.>> Now think about which of your reasons is most important and circle the one that you think can affect your grades the most. <<Give a few seconds to decide and circle.>> MENTOR 3: Now that everyone has their most important reason circled, please take some time to share with your group and choose one that you would like to share with the class. <<All mentors: Stand by a group to make sure everyone is sharing.>> <<After 1 minute, ask each group to share one reason.>> As you can see, there are MANY reasons why students may not be doing their best in school. Some might be out of our control, but reasons such as not writing homework assignments down or not taking notes in class are things that we can all work on. Today we re going to talk more about one of those reasons which we DO have control over, and that s called time management. MENTOR 4: <<Ask the following:>> By show of hands-and no shouting please: Page 1
How many of you have ever missed a homework assignment because you didn t have enough time to do it? How many of you have missed assignments or didn t prepare for a test because you forgot? How many of you have spent more time on the internet, playing video games, sleeping or hanging out with friends than studying or doing homework? I think we ve ALL been guilty of one or more of these at some point or another. So today we want to help you work on that. We know life isn t just study study study but it shouldn t just be play play play either, it s about balance; and the best way to properly manage your time, is by maintaining an agenda. Maintaining a schedule will make your life easier and less stressful because you ll know exactly what needs to be done and by when. Today we are going to do an activity that requires you to do just that. We are going to help our pretend friend GEAR UP GARY set up his entire after-school schedule for the week. ACTIVITY (15-20 min) <<Pass out one schedule and one To Do List to every group. If it is a very large group, you may pass out two to each group.>> MENTOR 5: Please follow along while I read the RULES & DIRECTIONS. <<WAIT>> GEAR UP Gary is a very busy 7th grade student. He wants to do well in school but is having a hard time balancing his fun time with the responsibilities he has at home and at school. It is up to YOU to help Gary plan his schedule for the week. Below you will find a list of activities that need to be added to his schedule. Help Gary do well in school by helping him figure out when he should do each activity. Rules: 1. Each space provided on the schedule is worth 30 minutes. 2. You must plug in ALL of the activities (there should be no activities left over). 3. Gary does NOT have to complete each activity in one day. You can break down the amount of time it takes over a few days. Just remember you MUST meet deadlines! 4. You MAY NOT plan anything in a shaded area. This means an activity is already taking place at that time. 5. Write the name of the activity in the space provided. GU STAFF: Let s do the first example together. Please look at the first activity labeled ART PROJECT. Gary needs 2 hours to complete his project which is due on Friday. Now let s look at our schedule sheet. Can everyone see where the 2 hours for this activity have already been entered? They are under Tuesday and Wednesday from 5:00-6:00 PM. Remember, you CAN break down an activity into 30 minute blocks. Now you are going to enter the rest of the activities with your group. Our mentors will be coming around to help you and answer questions. Page 2
ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS BEFORE WE BEGIN?? <<If students finish early, please ask them to fill out the back side of Gary s Schedule with their own To Do list. Students should figure out at least three things that they need to do by next week and also figure out when they plan to do them by. If students do not get to fill out their own agenda, encourage them to do so on their own time after the lesson.>> CLOSURE (3-5 minutes) MENTOR 6: Wrap up questions & closing: <<Ask the following questions>> <<Call on students who are quietly raising their hand>> Now we re going to ask a few questions to see what we ve learned. Why is time management important? In what ways does having an agenda and planning your schedule ahead of time help? What negative effects can NOT planning your schedule have? We hope all of you will take what you learned today and use it in your everyday lives. You may not need to be as specific as we were with Gary s schedule, but it s definitely good practice to keep a planner of some sort or to at least write down what you need to do each day so you don t forget or get stressed out. It s a habit that will help you stay organized in high school, college, and beyond so if it s not something you already do, you should definitely start now! We hope you enjoyed this activity today! Thank you for giving us your time and attention! <<Thank teacher>> Page 3
GEAR UP Gary s To Do List GEAR UP Gary is a very busy 7 th grade student. He wants to do well in school but is having a hard time balancing his fun time with the responsibilities he has at home and at school. It is up to YOU to help Gary plan his schedule for the week. Below you will find a list of activities that need to be added to his schedule. Help Gary do well in school by helping him figure out when he should do each activity. Rules: 1. Each space provided on Gary s Schedule is worth 30 minutes. 2. You must plug in ALL of the activities (there should be no activities left over). 3. Gary does NOT have to complete each activity in one day. You can break down the amount of time it takes over a few days. Just remember you MUST meet deadlines! 4. You MAY NOT plan anything in a shaded area. This means an activity is already taking place at that time. 5. Write the name of the activity in the space provided. ACTIVITY TIME NEEDED DESCRIPTION ART PROJECT 2 hours Gary has a big art project due on Friday. HISTORY REPORT 3 hours Gary has a three page report due on Friday in history class. The 3 hours needed include the time it takes to research, write it, and type it up. STUDY MATH 2 hours There is a major math test on Wednesday. If he does well it will raise his grade in class. SOCCER PRACTICE 2 hours Gary really wants to be on the soccer team. But he needs time to practice before tryouts on Friday. HANG OUT 2 hours His best friend is having a birthday party on Friday afterschool but Gary has soccer tryouts and then dinner at his aunt s house that evening. So Gary promised he would make time to hang out with his best friend sometime before Friday. MOVIE 2 hours With such a busy schedule, Gary rarely gets to watch TV, but this week he ENGLISH ESSAY has a new DVD that he really wants to watch! After reading The Outsiders, his English teacher is expecting a 5 paragraph essay--due on Thursday! 1 ½ hours WORKSHEETS 2 hours There are 2 test prep worksheets that are due before his math test on Wednesday. RIDE BIKE 1 hour Gary promised his friend he would ride his bike with him sometime this week except Friday.? 1 hour What s an activity that you enjoy doing? Make up your own activity for Gary, but remember you only have one hour! Page 4
TIME MON TUES WED THURS FRI 6:00-7:00 AM 7:00-7:30 AM 8:00 AM-3:30 PM 4:00-4:30 PM MATH TUTORING 4:30-5:00 PM 5:00-5:30 PM 5:30-6:00 PM DENTIST APPT. GEAR UP Gary's Weekly Schedule MATH TUTORING ART PROJECT GET READY FOR SCHOOL BREAKFAST SCHOOL MCDONALD'S WITH FRIENDS ART PROJECT SOCCER TRYOUTS 6:00-6:30 PM DINNER DINNER NAP 6:30-7:00 PM DINNER DINNER 7:00-7:30 PM DINNER @ AUNT'S HOUSE 7:30-8:00 PM BABYSITTING 8:00-8:30 PM NAP 8:30-9:00 PM 9:00-9:30 PM 9:30-10:00 PM 10:00 PM-6 AM SLEEP Page 5
TIME MON TUES WED THURS FRI 6:00-7:00 AM 7:00-7:30 AM 8:00 AM-3:30 PM 4:00-4:30 PM 4:30-5:00 PM 5:00-5:30 PM 5:30-6:00 PM 6:00-6:30 PM 6:30-7:00 PM 7:00-7:30 PM 7:30-8:00 PM 8:00-8:30 PM 8:30-9:00 PM 9:00-9:30 PM 9:30-10:00 PM My Weekly Schedule GET READY FOR SCHOOL BREAKFAST SCHOOL 10:00 PM-6 AM SLEEP Page 6