How to survive a boring assignment

by Emma Lyden

Sometimes it feels like a chore for students to merely put their name on an assignment, let alone complete it.

Not every class or subject is going to interest you, but there are ways to make the work you are assigned in those classes feel more enjoyable. Finding and sticking to an effective routine when completing these boring assignments can help kick-start a new and stimulating perspective on your educational journey. Here are six tips to help you get through a boring assignment.

1. Establish a workspace

A key start to completing a boring assignment is finding an adequate workspace. This space should be comfortable, clean and should make you feel calm and focused. According to the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service at ucas.com, “Students who study in a positive learning environment have been shown to be more motivated, engaged, and have a higher overall learning ability.”

Even surrounding yourself with items related to the subject can help keep you focused on the task at hand.

2. Create a plan

Having a plan of action can make completing a boring assignment not feel so impossible. Assistant Director of the Pirate Academic Success Center at East Carolina University, Amber Arnold, speaks on the importance of not only having a plan of action, but ensuring it is a plan you will stick with.

Arnold explains that it is helpful to break up your plan into small steps, using every milestone reached as a motivator to continue. She described the sense of accomplishment after each milestone being a key factor to getting through any assignment.

3. Use fun task tools

Make sure to have everything you need for the assignment in your workspace. That way, you won’t have to interrupt your work to search for something.

Also, use tools that work best for your style of learning. Options include using a whiteboard, a chalkboard, sticky notes, colorful pens, and your computer or tablet. Many computers and tablets have features like speech annotation or programs that let you draw your notes with a stylus. These can be very helpful if used correctly.

4. Reward yourself

Besides the satisfaction of finishing an assignment weighing on your mind, there are many different rewards that can motivate you to complete a boring assignment.

Danbury, Connecticut public school teacher Alexandra Grant explains how she takes part in this reward system to entice her students into completing assignments.

“We have a snack bin, so for not-soexciting tasks, they [the students] pick a snack while completing,” said