In this day and age, students across the globe are strug­gling with their atten­tion spans. This makes it diffi­cult for them to focus long enough to have a produc­tive study session, espe­cially after a long day of school, work, or sports. As final exams are just around the corner, here are some unique study strate­gies you may not have heard before that focus primar­ily on atten­tion span and efficiency.

Study at Night:

Study­ing at night is known to improve memory consol­i­da­tion. Stud­ies have shown that the brain processes and consol­i­dates infor­ma­tion during sleep, so study­ing before bed helps improve memory reten­tion and recollection.

Classical Music:

Study­ing with clas­si­cal music is a great way to provide a consis­tent back­ground noise that can help drown out distrac­tions. In short, the music enter­tains a part of your brain that needs to fidget. This allows you to devote your primary focus to one specific task as your brain is no longer as suscep­ti­ble to distraction.

Healthy Eating and Physical Activity:

The acad­e­mic bene­fits of healthy eating and regu­lar exer­cise are endless. Some of them include improved concen­tra­tion and focus, increased alert­ness, better mood and energy levels, improved memory reten­tion, and reduced stress and anxi­ety. This is due to a balanced diet send­ing impor­tant nutri­ents to the brain which allows it to func­tion properly.

Games and Competition:

This one’s for you, teach­ers! Every­one loves a good compe­ti­tion and study­ing through such is a great great way to get students involved and engaged. Some easy ways to imple­ment this in the class­room include creat­ing kahoot and quizlet study games where the winners get a small candy prize.

Physical Activity:

Exer­cis­ing before study­ing is known to increase alert­ness, reduce stress and anxi­ety, improve memory and learn­ing capa­bil­i­ties, and increase produc­tiv­ity. These bene­fits primar­ily come from increas­ing blood flow and oxygen to the brain which improves mental clar­ity and “resets” the brain.