After years of being conditioned to traditional classroom style learning, a sudden change to self directed learning can be challenging to adjust to. There are many benefits of self directed learning including working at your own pace, setting up a personal work space, and being able to do things you wouldn't normally be able to do in a classroom such as eating loud snacks.
Here are some tips to successful self-directed learning aimed primarily at math and sciences.Find an area where you will not get distracted easily. If you are at home, try to work in a room all to yourself and keep your phone out of reach. Either find a space with no distractions or clear out any distractions from the work space. Try to spend roughly the same amount of time on school as you would normally.
Stay organized, make a study plan, and try to stick to it but be flexible to make changes to the plan. Scheduling particular time slots during the day for school work can help stay on track. Don't leave things to the last minute. Long term deadlines can seem far away and it's easy to lose focus. Setting little goals can help stay on track. For example "If I finish this lesson by this time, then I can spend the rest of the day doing my hobby."
Follow along and actually work through the example problems instead of just watching the video or reading the lesson. If you feel confident, attempt the example questions before looking at the worked out solutions. If a problem involves several steps, try to think about why the steps are being performed as opposed to simply memorizing the steps.
Practice what you have just learned by doing the homework. Try a few questions immediately after the lesson while it is fresh. Try a few more questions the next day before moving on the the next lesson. Check your answers if they are available. If you've made a mistake, try to look over the question and figure out where and why there was a mistake. If you run out of questions, it is helpful to re-attempt the example problems in the lesson without looking at the solution and seeing if you can get the answer. If you get stuck, the worked out solutions are right there for reference.
You are not alone and have many resources available. Teachers are still available, feel free to ask them questions. You can still study together with your peers, perhaps set up a web conference with your friends and work through lessons together. Online notes, textbooks, and the internet are all valuable resources. Be careful with information found on the internet but information provided by credible websites is generally good.Remember to take breaks particularly if you start having trouble focusing, drink plenty of water, and remember to eat as well. Have fun with it!
