Students all around the world struggle with the same problem: what should they do with the 24 hours they are given each day? How much time should they allot to academics, sports, extracurriculars, sleep, family time and fun?
The school aims to help students address this problem by building a strong time management foundation from a young age.
“Time management is a skill that is super important to learn and build, starting as early as middle school,” Director of Academic Success Julie Pechersky said. “I think that students need to have some of those skills, so that when they move into Upper School and they’re more focused on the grade itself, they already have those skills.”
In an age where it is incredibly easy to get distracted, giving students the right resources to manage their time and stress is increasingly important and something the school continues to prioritize.
“It’s about building the habits (for the) long term more than the immediate right now,” Pechersky said. “An organizational system is critical in that it usually has some way of managing your time from a short-term perspective and a long-term perspective.”
Time management can be hard, and it becomes even harder when students can grab a device and get a quick dopamine hit from Instagram, video games or talking to friends. That is part of the reason building consistent habits is difficult, but Pechersky assures students that pushing past the discomfort is worth it.
“If you practice good habits long enough consistently, you’re going to see positive outcomes from it,” Pechersky said. “The reward is being able to say, ‘Okay, I changed something that wasn’t fun or comfortable, but look at what it did for me.’”
Pechersky recognizes that many middle and high school students tend to procrastinate. Part of her role is helping students see why planning ahead matters, especially for those who struggle with putting things off.
“Some of us tend to procrastinate, and a lot of times those people think that works better because there’s a sense of urgency,” Pechersky said. “They think ‘I know I’ll get it done,’ but then they learn long-term that it can lead to a more stressful day-to-day life because you’re constantly trying to keep your head above water.”
The message is clear: with the right strategies, steady support and consistent habits, students who struggle with time management can still make meaningful progress if they want to.
