It is important to teach our students ways to study properly, be organized and done their work right on time and skillfully (2). There are three great techniques for them to learn in order to find their best study approach. The first technique is the Pomodoro Technique which is developed by Francesco Cirillo in 1980. It is a time management system where we can break our work into 25 minutes and then have a 5-minute break (3,4). This technique can help us to focus and get things done on time, to improve our attention and minimize distractions (5). First, we get a to-do list and we set a timer for 25 minutes. We predict how many pomodoros we want to use in order to accomplish our assignments. We focus on a single task, away from distractions until the timer rings. Then we mark off a pomodoro and see what we have done. Then we have a 5-minute break. After four or five pomodoros, we take a 20 –30 minutes break (1,6).
The second technique is the Flow Time by Moura Dionatan (2015). There is a time flexibility between 10–90 minutes to do the task with full attention. When this period is over, it depends on us if we want to continue or have a break. So, we can ask ourselves Can I continue to focus? If not, we can have a short or a long break to recover our focus (1,7). If we can continue to work, we can use 15 more minutes and then ask again ourselves if we can continue to stay focused on what we are doing (7).
The third technique is the Tunnel or 90 minutes work cycle by Andrew Huberman (2022, 8). According to Huberman, we should optimize our space work, turn off our phones, and have low level noise such as classical music which increases our focus; dopamine works on our brain to be motivated so we can work for 90 minutes without any distributions. After the time ends, we can have 20 minutes break by doing for example physical exercise (1). Being a systematic unitasker entails to be organized, focused to what you are doing, to be productive and to send away all the distractions.
Thus, it is very important to learn to use the three techniques which are described above to be a successful and systematic unitasker.
Bibliography
1.Warren, E. (2022). Developing Executive Functions and Study Strategies: A Comprehensive Approach. Learning Specialist Courses
2.Scully, Kr. (2016). Executive Functioning Brain Games. Pathway2Success.
- Cirillo, F. (2022). The Pomodoro Technique. Pomodorotechnique.com
4.Boogaard, K. (2022). Take it from someone who hates productivity hacks – The Pomodoro Technique actually works. Themuse Lifehacker.gr
5.Henry, A. (2019). Productivity 101: An Introduction to Pomodoro Technique. Lifehacker.gr
6.Scroggs, L. (2022). The Pomodoro Technique: Why it Works & How to do it? Todoist.com
- Moura D. (2015). Flowtime Technique. Flowtimetechnique.wordpress.com
8.Huberman, An. (2022). You Can Control Yourself Better. Lifehacker.co
Ιωάννα Δημητριάδου
Ψυχολόγος-Ειδική Παιδαγωγός
Εξειδίκευση στη Δυσλεξία και στις Μαθησιακές Δυσκολίες, PgD
Συμβουλευτική Υποστήριξη Γονέων, CBT
Μέλος στο British Psychological Society, GMBPsS, GBC