How-To Saturday: How To Keep Up With Reading During School // Last How-To Saturday of the summer!

Hello everyone! I hope everyone is doing well! I know I kind of took a break from posting this week, as I’ve been getting ready for school and scheduling posts for the next few weeks! I’ve also been kind of taking a break from reading (at least at the pace that I have been in the during the summer). But today, it’s time again for How-To Saturday, a weekly feature where I share various bookish tips and tricks. Today I’ll be talking about keeping up with reading during the school year.

A lot of people are starting school soon (including me!) and I know that I always have a dip in reading when school starts up. I take advanced classes, and I’m on a couple of academic competition teams, so I spend a lot of my time studying when I’m not at school. When I was younger, I was able to read when I got home from school, but as I’ve gotten more homework and have had more extracurricular activities, that time has diminished over the years. Yet I’ve still managed to largely keep up with my reading goals, and even before the pandemic, I was ahead of my reading goals.

Before I get into the tips, I just wanted to say that this is the last How-To Saturday post of this summer and probably the year. I want to thank everyone who has been so supportive of this feature, and I can’t wait to do it again in the future!

And now, the tips…

Carry a book around everywhere- This is hard because it is very easy to damage or lose a book at school. I no longer carry paperbacks with me, and if I have a hardcover, I always leave the jacket at home. The most useful thing to carry around are hardcover library books because they have all of those protective coverings on them.
Try to read in your spare time, within reason- Whenever I have spare time in any of my classes, I try to read. However, if I only have five or so minutes, I don’t because I know I won’t be able to retain the information in the book and would have to reread whatever I had read in class. This is the within reason part. If I have twenty minutes of class, I can usually get through a couple of chapters, but if I have less time, I usually won’t try to read.
Reading after homework- Usually I use reading as a way to unwind from my day. I typically read lighter books during the week, after I finish homework and studying and I save heavier and darker books for the weekend when I have more time to be emotionally invested in them.
Carry a notebook around- This tip is aimed for book bloggers. I always keep a small notebook in my backpack that I can use to jot down post ideas and begin writing reviews.
Allow yourself time to relax- Remember that it’s okay if you have to take a break from reading! There’s nothing wrong with not having the time to read or blog!

I hope these tips are helpful! What do you do to keep up with your reading during school? Let me know in the comments!