Scribba
Monday mornings feel different when you already know what the week holds. You know which day is heavy, when the problem set gets done, and that Thursday night is free. Most of that calm comes from about half an hour on Sunday.
This guide is a full Sunday routine for planning a school week, and how to run it on a Weekly Planner page in Scribba. If you haven't set up a planner for the term yet, start with how to set up an iPad planner for the school year, which covers getting every syllabus deadline down in week one. This routine is what you do with that planner every week after.
Why Sunday, and why a routine
Any day works, but Sunday has two things going for it. The weekend's quieter, so you can think. And the week hasn't started, so you can still change it.
Doing it the same way each week matters more than the day. A routine means you don't have to decide how to plan, you just run the steps. After a few weeks it takes less time and you skip it less often.
Set aside 30 minutes. Make a drink, sit somewhere comfortable, and have your planner, your syllabi and your course sites open.
The routine, step by step
1. Empty your head
Before you look at anything, write down everything on your mind: assignments, errands, emails you owe, things you're worried about, things you're looking forward to. Don't sort it. Getting it out of your head and onto the page is the point. You'll be surprised how much was sitting there.
2. Close out last week
Look at last week's page. What didn't get done? For each unfinished task, decide: does it move to this week, go back on a someday list, or get dropped? Be honest. Carrying the same task forward every week wears down your trust in your own plan.
3. Check every class
Go through your classes one at a time. For each one, check the syllabus and course site for:
- readings due before each lecture,
- problem sets, labs, quizzes and papers due this week,
- anything due next week that needs a start this week.
Going class by class, rather than day by day, is how you avoid missing the reading that's due Wednesday for the class you have on Monday and Wednesday.
4. Write in the fixed things
Put down everything that can't move: classes, labs, work shifts, practice, appointments, club meetings. Now you can see the real shape of each day. A Tuesday with five hours of class is not the day for a big writing session.
5. Spread the work across the days
This is the heart of it. Take the tasks from steps 1 to 3 and place each one on a specific day.
- Put reading before the lecture it's for. Reading the night before class beats reading it the week after.
- Split big work into sessions. A paper due Friday gets "outline" on Monday, "draft" on Tuesday and Wednesday, and "revise" on Thursday, not "paper" on Thursday night.
- Balance heavy and light days. If Wednesday already has two labs, move a task to Tuesday.
- Plan one lighter day. Things will slip. A day with room in it catches them without wrecking the week.
6. Pick the week's goals
Choose one to three goals for the week. Not tasks, outcomes: "finish the econ problem set by Wednesday," "go to office hours for calc," "start reviewing for the midterm." On a busy day, these tell you what to protect.
If an exam is coming up, this is where you plan review into the week. For a day-by-day example, see how to study for a midterm in a week.
7. Check in on Wednesday
Plans drift. Midweek, take five minutes to look at the page again. Move what slipped, cross off what's done, and add anything new from class. It's a small step that keeps the Sunday plan useful through Friday.
Tip: if Sunday planning keeps getting skipped, attach it to something you already do every Sunday, like doing laundry or calling home. A habit tied to an existing routine is easier to keep.
Running the routine in Scribba
Scribba is an iPad notebook app for class. Its paper picker has a Weekly Planner template: a WEEK OF line at the top, a box for each day starting with Monday, and a NOTES box. Here's how the routine maps onto it.
- WEEK OF: write the Monday date.
- Day boxes: fixed commitments from step 4 and the tasks you spread out in step 5.
- NOTES: the week's goals from step 6, plus anything you're waiting on, like a group member's section or a grade.
For step 1, the brain dump, use a blank or ruled page before the week's page so the planner page stays clean. You can change any page's paper from the page sidebar, so one notebook can hold both.
Make tasks you can move
Plans change midweek. Instead of writing a task straight into a day's box, write it on a sticky note. Scribba's sticky notes, from the + menu in the notebook's top bar, can be moved, resized and recolored, so a task that slips from Tuesday can simply be dragged to Thursday.
Color by class
Scribba keeps three to six favorite colors within reach. Give each class its own color and use it for that class's tasks across the week. A glance shows you whether one class is crowding out the others.
Weekly pages, dated or not
A plain Weekly Planner page has a blank WEEK OF line, so you can add one any week. Pull past the last page to add a page, and set its paper. If you want the whole term's weeks already dated, Scribba can generate a dated planner with a month calendar plus weekly spreads; the school-year planner guide shows how that fits together.
For planning each day in more detail, hour by hour, use a Daily Planner page alongside the week. See how to time-block your school day.
Frequently asked questions
How long should weekly planning take?
About 30 minutes for the full routine at first. Once it's a habit, many students get it down to 15 or 20 minutes.
What if I miss my Sunday planning?
Do a short version Monday morning: check every class for what's due, write in fixed commitments, and pick one goal for the week.
Do I need a weekly and a daily planner?
Not always. The weekly page is enough for many weeks. Add daily pages for busy days when you need an hour-by-hour plan.