Hey students! Y’all are gonna need to step up more than you’re used to if you want to get the most out of your online learning and hybrid classes. Faculty won’t be able to help police your attention anymore so you’re gonna have to handle it all yourself. Here’s a few tips...

1. Get out of bed. That’s where you sleep, not work. If you attend class from the comfort of your bed, you’ll be training your body to stay awake while in the bed. Trouble sleeping will follow. Sitting up in bed doesn’t count. Get off the bed entirely.

2. Find a workspace. I know not everyone has an extra room or enough space for a desk. One of my students built a small office with bookshelves and a comfy floor pillow in their closet for class. Make it wherever works for you. But not on your bed. Floor against bed? Fine.

3. Rituals rule. They help you sink into specific mental, physical, and emotional spaces efficiently. Build patterns of activity for yourself. Do some yoga, shower, get dressed, make a smoothie, “go to class”. Again, whatever works for you, but make it repeatable.

4. Focus. I love my phone too. But seriously, if you actually want to learn during a virtual class, you can’t do that if you’re distracted and mentally somewhere else. Again, I get it. It’s easier said than done. Still, don’t silence your phone. Turn it off. *gasp*

5. And lastly, more than ever, this. Print it out. Hang it in your workspace.

I include “10 Rules for Teachers and Students” (previous tweet) in all my syllabi. Popularized (see: stolen) by John Cage, they were created by teacher/artist, Sister Corita Kent for a class project at Immaculate Heart Convent in 1967/8. More on that here: https://www.brainpickings.org/2012/08/10/10-rules-for-students-and-teachers-john-cage-corita-kent

6. Relax differently. We used to be able to hop on social media, netflix, whatever. Now, class? Screen. Homework? Screen. Chatting w/ friends? Screen. Make sure "relaxing" has some non-screen time too. Walk. Work on your flying crow pose. Build a desk. Something w/out a screen.