Super Studying with the Pomodoro Method

 

Studying and time management are two things high schoolers are just the worst at. When it’s an option we choose procrastination over productivity. However, studies show prolonged periods of work are counter intuitive to your goals, so how can we study and be successful? Pomodoro. 

The Pomodoro (pronounced: Pom-o-door-o) method was created in 1980 by Francesco Cirillo. It was a way to “…work with time instead of struggling against it. The basic idea is this: one pomodoro is 25 minutes of uninterrupted work. After that 25 minutes is up, one simply takes a short break, around five minutes, then goes back to their next cycle of Pomodoros. After four cycles of Pomodoros (100 minutes of working time) you take a 15-30-minute break. You continue to do this until you finish all your tasks. 

So, does this really work? 

Personally, I think so. As a person with a bad track record of waiting until the last minute to do work and then stressing out over it Pomodoro helps me feel productive but not over exhausting myself.  The short breaks in between also help my mind go over all the new information Ive just digested.  

During my five minutes “intermissions” I like to read, take a walk, grab a snack, or play with my dog, but personally I try to not look at my phone, in efforts to not be sucked into the vortex of TikTok and Instagram. When there’s about 1 minute left I sit down and get ready to work again.  

Pomodoro can be done every day for all your work or just for times when doing a monotonous project. You can set your timer and do it all on your own, but I prefer to look up “Study with Me” videos on Youtube as they stop me from making the timer longer than it needs to.  Pomodoro isn’t just for high schoolers but anyone who wants to be productive. I highly suggest anyone who wants to do more try this because it has really helped me manage my time better.  

 

Here are some Pomodoro videos I liked: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmDbesougG0 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WCGA3ETh_U 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2D470iJU80 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1znjHDiqBk8