20 Tips To Create An Effective Study Environment At Home
After a busy day at school, you crashed into your bed with loads of books in your arms while thinking of how to dedicate your whole day to reading.
“I have two books to read but, first, let me check for updates on my social media page”
Two hours later… ” OMG, I’ve read nothing! Let me have a quick 30-minute nap and after that, I’ll read my books”
3 hours later… You suddenly woke up and nothing’s been done!
While studying at home may sound like a great idea, it is something that is nearly impossible for many students. Of course, there are many benefits to studying at home but there are also twice as many challenges.
The reason for this is because home isn’t the ideal place for studying just as a club isn’t the suitable place to seek a quiet time.
Home is like a zone where you seek refuge from the problems faced at school. It’s that one place you are free to watch movies, scroll through the internet, and have fun without distractions.
Faced with reality, taking a task meant to be done in a classroom or a library to your home is sure to end in disaster if you don’t convert your home properly to a study environment.
As a matter of fact, the standard hours per week for learning aren’t enough to accomplish a lot of tasks as a student. Hence, it’s only reasonable that you bring some homework home.
Whether you are trying to boost your career with new skills or you are concerned about passing that competitive exam, studying is no walk in the park. To pursue education goals further, a student requires a peaceful and quiet space where they don’t risk being interrupted.
Now that you have brought the tasks home, you must feel frustrated by how much you struggle to study. Fortunately, there are a few tips you can adopt to create a stable study environment at home that will get you positive, focused, and productive.
1. Find The Perfect Location
“Anywhere isn’t the perfect spot for studying”. Know this and know peace! To create an environment at home that will enable you to concentrate on your studies, you must find the ideal study location and establish a mini library there.
The reason you have a hard time studying at home is that you have been careless about your study location. The sitting room, dining table, and balcony are the wrong places to study in as much as they are the areas that bring distraction.
If you are planning to have a study session at home, you first need to stay in a place far from distractions such as staying close to a bed, spots with nice external views, and noisy places like the sitting room. They’ll keep your mind distracted.
2. Set Goals
A study environment at home can only achieve its aim when goals are set out. What’s the reason you’re studying at home? Is it to meet up deadline for a project?
Are you aiming to catch up with your peers? Are you preparing for university life? Or do you look forward to performing better than your last result? Whatever it is, set goals.
Set goals and the measures that can be taken to accomplish them. This is the best guide to keep track of your success rate. One of your goals could be to finish as the best graduating student or get some scholarships abroad. Whichever the case is, this video below will give you some insights.
3. Be Organized
Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you are about to study but then you get up to fetch something and the next moment you find yourself entangled with something unrelated to your studies?
If yes, you should consider keeping things organised. Ensure all your reading supplies are ready and in place before you begin any study session at home.
Home isn’t the ideal place to study as every area in it lures and traps you into a world of distraction so if you are going to study at home, you must ensure that your habit of roaming about is put in check.
The only way to do this and achieve your academic goals is by having everything ready.
4. Focus on one thing at a time
To achieve a productive study atmosphere at home, everything capable of taking away your attention should be eliminated. If you need to get the dishes or laundry done, then do it before settling down to read. This will keep your mind from wandering off.
You may also need to switch to airplane mode on your phone before starting anything. If this doesn’t work for you, you might want to try out the little trick I use whenever I have a task at hand.
My phone is the biggest distraction I have as I use it to check what’s going on in the world but whenever I have a task to complete at home, I drop the phone in the room.
As long as it’s not in sight, I get so much work done. So, whatever your distraction is at home, find a trick to eliminate it.
5. Keep Things Tidy
I get it, it’s your house and you owe no one perfect cleanliness! Well, no one is forcing you to do a full house clean-up.
It’s your choice to decide how you want your room to look but if you have any plans to take your studies home, then it’s time you begin to keep things around your study location tidy.
If you are finding it hard to connect the dots between what cleanliness has to do with an effective study environment, then take a moment to be educated.
Research has shown that the brain can be affected by clutter and that the constant visual suggestion of disorganization can impede cognition, focus ability, and memory retainment.
An effective study environment can never be achieved with an untidy setting. So, to attain the best results from your study session at home, keep your home tidy.
6. Inform Your Family about Your Plan
Believe it or not, if you don’t get on the good side of your family members you will never be able to create an effective study environment at home.
Have a discussion with your parents or siblings and inform them of the struggles you go through while studying. Educate them on how their effort will go a long way in helping you focus.
If you have the support of your family, you will get a lot of tasks accomplished as unnecessary distractions will be prevented. A family’s support can also be the motivation you need to perform better.
My sister had a habit of playing loud music whenever she is home but after I let her know my difficulties in concentrating on my work, she stopped. To even prevent her further from going back to her habit, my mum got her a headphone so that I could have a peaceful study session.
7. Keep A Good Attitude
If your brother doesn’t get on your nerves, then it could be your neighbour nagging. In one way or the other, someone is bound to get you upset at home. A troubled mind can never focus on study.
Your study period at home won’t be productive if you don’t train your mind to stay positive at all times. So, if you have any intention of achieving the best during a study period at home, you need to work on your attitude.
Your brain thrives in positivity says research, and a positive mind is a fertile ground that cultivates creativity, enhances focus ability, and processes incoming knowledge. Want to create an effective study environment at home? Stay positive!
8. Make An Effective Study Schedule
A mistake lots of students make when studying at home is not creating a study schedule. If you are looking forward to having a productive home study, create a study timetable now!
Specify the time of the day that needs to be dedicated to studying and allocate subjects to them. Make sure you abide by this rule, if not, you will find yourself racing against time to complete a task.
When planning a study timetable, try not to ignore any activity that may interfere with your study period. Instead, assign your tasks to your free periods.
Following this tip will enable you to accomplish the best results from your study sessions which is your aim of creating an effective study environment at home.
9. Make Sure Your Study Location Is Comfortable
There was a time I had to take a major project home from school. After stumbling on the perfect spot, I settled down to begin my project but I realized how difficult it was for me to be productive at home.
I struggled with the project for some minutes before I discovered that finding the right location wasn’t all it takes to create an effective study environment. Feeling comfortable in that spot also plays a huge role.
Find the right setting that defines the word comfortable for you and adopt it. You may feel comfortable in a library setting or on the ground. Whatever it is, prioritize being comfortable.
10. Have a proper sleep
Proper sleep will improve your ability to focus and retain memory.
So, before you consider home studying, sleep well and early to wake up early. This will give you an effective outcome.
11. Eat
An effective study environment at home won’t be attainable if you put your health on the line. So, if you want some tips for a productive study session at home, you must eat some good foods first.
There have been lots of times I felt irritated by my surrounding. I thought the problem was because I hadn’t put in more effort in creating a good study environment but it turned out it was because I was starving.
A perfect study environment can never be effective if you don’t eat!
12. Avoid Multi-tasking
Stop it! It won’t do you any good! I find it puzzling when students engage in multiple tasks while studying.
You can’t expect good results that way. That study atmosphere of yours at home will never be effective if you have different tasks spread out on your table.
Take it slowly and a step at a time. You will see yourself engaging more effort into your studies. I repeat, don’t leave your food on the gas while searching for the next formula to use for that calculation.
13. Have A Good Lighting At Home
The effect of proper lighting when studying has always been under-emphasized. Studies have shown that a major factor that influences the brain’s ability to focus is lighting.
The main reason you think you need to create an effective study environment at home is because you lack focus in your previous environment or maybe your previous option is no longer available.
Have you ever considered using a naturally lit-up place to study? If not, put it to work using some lighting design ideas. Whenever you are at home, take advantage of the daytime or bright lights to study and you will see a positive effect.
14. Get some stationery and memorization tools
Some students use spaced repetition, others prefer flashcards or even a digital equivalent to the cards. Yet, to be effective, these methods need the proper equipment.
Spaced repetition, for instance, is the process of frequently coming back to books and lessons to multiply exposure to the same information. You need to forget first to anchor the memory into your long-term knowledge.
This could be helped with a dictaphone, for instance, to test oneself. Flashcards can be colour-coded or you could use different types of pens. In short, your workspace needs to provide the tools you need to test your knowledge.
15. Invest In Background Music
Calm and soothing music is the last tip you might need to build the perfect study environment at home. When studying, try listening to slow and cool music as it is a great therapy to ease a troubled mind.
Music is one of the ways to get motivated when depressed. It will drain out the thoughts in your head and act as a force that pulls you to focus on the task at hand.
16. Set the optimal temperature for your brain
Is there an ideal temperature for studying? 💡
According to studies, a moderate temperature of 70 to 78 degrees Fahrenheit is best to facilitate brain work.
Individual preferences may vary but ultimately, studying in an environment that is either too hot or too cold will dramatically reduce brain activities.
Therefore, it is a good idea to make sure the study room is equipped with a heater or an AC unit. Needless to say, malfunctioning heating or cooling devices are inadequate.
Thankfully, there are enough 24 hour AC repair services available to ensure the workspace remains comfortable at all times.
17. Have A Break Session
Taking a break from time to time when studying at home can do a lot of good to your brain.
The aim of creating an effective study environment at home is to achieve productive results after studying. However, setting a time to rest after reading is the tip you need to earn that result you need.
The break period you take may be used for enjoy the benefits of exercising by taking a stroll with your pet or family members. Whatever you do, never stay hours on your desk studying as this may not be a beneficial study setting.
18. Select good room colours for mental focus
Colours play a significant role in the learning environment. They, of course, need to match your needs as you prefer.
Yet, the psychology of colour can be detrimental to your studies if misused. Indeed, colours affect neurological pathways in the brain, which means they create a reaction that can transform your behaviour and mood.
Green is a great choice for someone who struggles to stay focused. Orange is a natural mood-lifting colour, making it an ideal choice for tough studies.
Blue, on the other hand, can improve comprehension and productivity in situations that tend to be challenging.
For instance, if you’re juggling many tasks, you could perform better in a blue study environment.
19. Have a designated desk for studying
Specialists agree that a positive learning environment at home needs to provide isolation from other members of the household.
This could be an improvised desk inside the bedroom.
But it is fair to say that the ideal workstation needs to go above and beyond to establish a productive and effective space.
20. Inspire Yourself
Yeah, I understand your point, home study can be very boring and distracting. I’m human, so I have a lot of stories to tell on how boring studying at home can be but here’s a tip to improve your study session at home.
Paste a lot of stickers with encouraging words within your view when studying. This tip has helped me a lot when I feel discouraged and it’s sure to lend a helping hand to you too. Also ensure you deal with any anxiety before attempting to study.
Bottom Line
Indeed, learning is an active behaviour, therefore, it makes sense to create a workspace that is specifically designed to meet the requirements of this behaviour.
Studying is a process and contrary to what most movies depict, studying isn’t reduced to the reading of books. Comprehension is the first step in studying and acquiring new skills.
Understanding a new concept or an idea is also crucial to its long-term memorization.
Yet, comprehension itself isn’t sufficient to memorize. Memorizing requires effort and strategy. In reality, you will need to develop a strategy to understand and memorize new knowledge.
Whether you are going back to your studies as an adult, or you are worried about your child’s education, a study room that is fit for this purpose and can make a great deal of difference.
It’s fair to say that creating the right study environment at home can only help you so much. It doesn’t replace the act of learning but it makes it easier.
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