Hello everyone:

Spring break! How wonderful! A great time is to be had by all, right? Well maybe it shouldn’t be.

There was a gal in my Spanish class at UMD who talked about her spring break at length when she returned from a holiday. She had gotten SO drunk in Mexico that she…. but, no, this is a family-oriented blog posting. I won’t tell you what she did but she could have been seriously harmed by her actions. Fortunately, she was found by her female friends before she ran into anyone else. It could have been very unfortunate. Sadly, she did not appear to have learned anything from her experience.

Instead of hoping off to some wild and crazy place, irritating all the locals even as you boost their economy, how about using your spring break in a more productive way? I know, I can hear you saying “it sounds boring,” but how would you like to work ahead a little and end up being at the top of the class for the rest of the term?

Here’s what you do: Look over the syllabus and work ahead on your assignments, if possible. If there is an area where you are struggling, this is the time to do a little additional research on that topic (or get some additional help) so that you aren’t so clueless when classes resume.

Put study notes on note cards and read over them as you exercise, dry your hair, or wait in a line. It’s amazing how much studying you can get done during otherwise unproductive time.

What tips would you like to share on getting ahead, rather than staying behind?

Best,

Dr. Sheri