Have anyone of you registered that it is already a new year? I know for sure I haven’t!

As a habit, I try to keep a journal to record thoughts, things I’ve done in the day. So, I would write the date down before I begin. Well, for the first day of the year, I wrote down 1/1/2020. Huge facepalm isn’t it??? Yes. I time-travelled hehe.

A New Year naturally also signifies the end of the Winter holidays 😢 Which means back to school. Boooooo. Don’t worry I’m with you. My school semester has already started in fact. Yikes.

To make things better, I’m here to help you make sure that you have a great start to the new school semester!!! 🎆

This semester is going to be somewhat a bittersweet one as it is my graduating semester. The 3 years in University flew by way too quickly! It’s insane. So my dear freshmen, do treasure your university life. Its gonna pass by within a blink of an eye 👀

This semester, I’ve curated some spreads over here which will be helping me to cope with the semester (It is so very important to make sure that I know when everything is due. Otherwise, I’ll just go nuts. Does anyone else relate?)

1. TIMETABLE

The first thing that I do every semester is to either note down the timetable or print it out. That way, I know when my classes are, where the class is, and who my professors are. I also like to take the opportunity to also do time blocking as I plan each week. You can find out how I use 15 minutes daily to plan my day in this post here. Without some form of structure, it is so easy to go off track and before you know it, so many things pile up. Been there, done that.

Why I feel that it is so so important to go to your classes and then schedule your time around is because physical classes are so much better at keeping yourself disciplined. Do check out this post here, to find out how to choose the classes to skip and which ones you should not.

2. GRADES TRACKER

Similar to what I’ve always done, I would use the course syllables to record down the weightage of each assignment in the module. This includes final exams, class participation. Yes! This means that even that 5% quiz which seems like it is not worth studying for, should be recorded! Throughout the semester, as I complete each assignment, I will note every grade which I receive.

Note: Typically, professors are only allowed to release up to 80% (depending on the university) of the grades for the module. So, you may need to estimate some of these grades.

Towards the end of the semester, it will help a lot in deciding how much you need to get that ideal GPA! Or, if you have a system of S/U (Satisfactory or Unsatisfactory) where you choose whether the subject is counted into your GPA, this tracker will definitely come in handy!

3. EXAM DATES

This is such an important page because most of the module weightage comes from actually turning up for my finals. Over here, I’ve chosen to note down the exam dates, corresponding to the modules (DUH am I right?). And I’ve also included the list of topics to check off after I’ve done the revision for them. So you just need 2 things.

1. Modules Exam Dates
2. List of topics which is tested

Complete all of these topics to strike a chance for Ace-ing that exam. You’ve got this, you’re already halfway to success! You may also want to head to class to listen to those hints that the professor may or may not drop and record them down 😉

4. COURSE PROJECT GUIDELINE

This guideline is split into two parts, the top is the timeline and the bottom is to note a more detailed list of tasks for each phase in the timeline.

TOP:

This project timeline is meant to be a reminder of the list of things you need to do leading to the final presentation of the project. The timeline is used to annotate the important dates for your project. You’ll probably want to include the due dates after every group meeting.

For example, your team decides to split up the research before regrouping the following Monday. In that case, you’ll want to write that Monday as your due date onto your timeline.

BOTTOM:

This part of the page should more be detailed. Use this to drill down on what you need to do specifically for the next meeting.

For example, under “What I need to do”, you may want to include things like research on Wildlife and break that down further into something like Research on types of wildlife categories, then choose to focus on which parts. This will guide your thinking and help you kickstart your research.

5. SEMESTER AT A GLANCE

This is, by all means, the most essential thing that you MUST include in your spread. I swear to you, it will help you so much during your semester. After this spread, you won’t have random pesky assignments due the next day and you don’t know anything about it. It’s magic really.

How does this work?

Simple.

All you have to do is count the number of weeks in which you will have school. From the First Day of School until the last exam date you have. The dot grid spaces here is 2×3 for the header and 5×3 for the actual days.

The next thing is to take your module syllabus which is typically given in the first lesson. Annotate the important dates into the calendar. Yes. This means putting in the exams dates, project and assignment due dates. It’s up to you if you want to incorporate this with your everyday calendar but it’s very useful to have.

BONUS: LANGUAGE LEARNING

I picked this up on Pinterest, crediting the owner @ashtyn_plans.

This semester, I decided to continue with my journey of learning Spanish. I swear picking up a whole new language is so difficult. If anyone has any tips, do comment down below!

For now, I will be using these methods which I think might help me “up my game” with the Spanish language. using alternative methods which are more fun than just memorizing Spanish vocabulary (Which I totally suck at by the way).

On the right will be a Spanish series tracker to expand on the “Watch a movie/series” on the left side of the spread. The two series I am going to delve into is Money Heist (aka “La Casa de Papel”) and Elite. Anyone has more Spanish series or even movie recommendations, do comment down below!

So, are you ready to kick this semester’s ass? Let me know if this spread had been useful! If you want to look for more Back to School inspiration, do check out this post over here!