How to focus on schoolwork?

When I was in college, I had the exact same problem. What I ended up doing is getting away from the environment I was in and go somewhere else. I'm not talking about the library. I actually studied for a final exam at a bowling alley and ended up getting a B+ on my final. I would read for a bit and then reward myself by bowling a few frames, and then going back to the books, etc... You may want to try something like that. Even going to a coffee shop or Panera bread. Something to get you out of that routine. Good Luck!

-Music actually helps for me, without it I feel sleepy and out of focus. So try listening to music but maybe songs which you don't really know the words too so it doesn't distract you or you won't be able to sing along.

-Before this, wake yourself up with a shower or wash your face with cold water, or do a 5 minute exercise like some star jumps just to wake you up and make you more focused-nothing too sweaty lol or you'll just feel uncomfortable.

-Make a list so you know what things you need to do, and set yourself a time limit to do each thing in to make you more motivated. Then you can cross things off when you're done.

-Make sure your working space is clean and positive so you get in the mood to do it.

-Have a small bowl of snacks like fruit or dried fruit or whatever so that you have something to keep you going and motivate you a bit more.

-A good way to revise and the best method for me is this: You mentioned that you will just read the pages and turn them without actually taking them in. Try to break the page into sections and then after reading the page, or while you read it, take notes of it and then use these notes and key points to write your own version of the page with things such as subtitles or extra explanations to make it easier for you. Then go through this again by highlighting the main points in your own version of the text. This will help you really remember it.

-If it's something particularly difficult to remember, then add small pictures of the text rather than using text. ..If u get what I mean? Like draw the text out. E.g. 'The plant takes in the sun's rays' or whatever, and then draw the sun with arrows pointing to a flower.

-I don't think your LAZY I just thing you find it hard to focus because there's no PRESSURE. I need pressure to make me go hard core! Pressure for me is the short time I have until the exam comes. So yeah, find something that pressures you. Maybe it could be a parent or friend? Or maybe a red circle on a calender or countdown to serve as a reminder for the exam.

Good luck!

As soon as I read your question I instantly identified! And since I'm an English Literature major and have tons of reading to do, this is a huge problem for me. I find that if a story or a textbook I'm reading is interesting, I tend to focus better on it. It also depends on what you have going on in your life at the time. If you're nervous or excited about something else, it's really hard to focus on your studies. Also, (although you did mention this) sleep is a huge factor. It's really hard to focus when your mind is only half there anyways. From my experiences, caffeine helps, but only for a short while.

I don't have any foolproof methods, but here are a few things that have helped me:

1) Whenever you feel like you are consistently zoning out, leave the reading for a short while and come back to it after you go on a walk or just do something else for a few minutes.

2) It sounds simple, but force yourself to take in one word at a time and think about the sentences as a whole. Try to consistently put yourself back on track whenever you find yourself straying, and eventually it won't be a conscious effort.

3) Allow your mind to stray, but regulate where it strays. I don't know if this seems like an obvious or difficult concept, but it's something that has actually helped me. For example, if I'm reading my psychology text, I allow myself to think about little examples from my own life that apply to the psychology. This gives your mind a bit of room to roam while still keeping you focused on your studies. It's a win-win situation :).

4) As someone else said, location. I've read that psychologically, the human mind works best at one activity if it associates a specific location only to that activity. For example, if you have a room in which all you do is study, then after some time, all you have to do is enter that room for your mind to become more alert and ready for studying. Likewise, if you study, eat, and sleep in the same room, you'll get sleepy and hungry when you're trying to study. I don't know how true this is...but it's worth a try if all else fails. Designate a spot only for studying if you can.

I really wish you all the best!

If you're talking about revision, then try a different way of revising other than just reading a text book, for example, create a coloured mind map of information, divide categories up clearly, draw doodles to represent information, even if they are bad drawings nobody will see it. Look at this mind map every day, after about 4/5days try and draw the mind map again without looking at the first version, you'll then see what's gone in and what hasn't. Repeat this untill you know the stuff. There are plenty of other techniques too, flashcards, sticky notes etc :)