By: Laura Kyrkos
As we approach the school year, I see more and more youth booking in their appointments to talk about their anxiety. Anxiously awaiting the school year, worried they may struggle academically. Unsure of how to study or what their learning strategies may be.
I’m going to reintroduce one of the learning strategies. It’s called the traffic light learning strategy.
Picture the colours of a traffic light vertically from top to bottom.
Red
Yellow
Green
Now picture your areas of study in the same format.
Red - the concepts or material I don’t know
Yellow - the concepts or material I somewhat know
Green - the concepts or material I do know.
Before we review what we already know in the green section, it’s important to use energy towards the red zone. By tackling the first part of the red section of what we don’t know, our brain has the energy to be able to tackle that material. So on and so forth for the yellow zone and following into the green zone.
It is often times helpful to set a timer for your section of the red zone. Example: 20 minutes then take a water or walking break to avoid frustration of the materials or concepts.
*Disclaimer, this material is provided as a guide or tool for continued wellness. It is not a substitute for mental health care*