Many of us can not wait for it to be summer. We wait the entire week just for the weekend, for freedom to go anywhere and everywhere. However, once the weekend approaches, it seems to end minutes later. Quickly, I find myself stressing over school once again. However, I check my phone to find many of my friends in the same position as myself. Because of this bond over homework stress, my friends and I have been able to share some tips that have personally helped me to have a well balanced weekend. Here are some tips that have worked for me:

1. Plan for your weekend on Thursday night! Weekends can be very stressful when so many events are occurring, so make sure to plan around these events. Not everyone is able to have a completely free weekend, and there is no harm in this, but the preplanned events should be made priorities. From there, you can find what time is best to hang out with friends, do chores, relax, etc. No time will be wasted!
2. Take advantage of Friday nights. After the long week of school, it is quite easy to be extremely tired come any given Friday night. Friday nights, though, are great nights to hang out with friends.There is no need to worry about one’s sleep schedule on Fridays, so staying up later than normal (not because of homework) is acceptable! Doing something on Friday nights will also remind you that the time after school has so much more potential when there is no homework to do. Wouldn’t that be nice if every weekday could be homework free?
3. Do not stay up extremely late on Saturday nights. Saturday nights can be very exciting, but they are also unfortunately, very close to Monday mornings. Therefore, if you stay up late on Saturday nights, your sleep schedule may be messed up for the upcoming week of school. Additionally, if you are tired all day Sunday because you stayed up late on Saturday, you might not be able to finish up all of your homework. Save those late nights for the summertime, where no sleep schedule is necessary!
4. Do not save all of your homework for Sunday night. We have all heard this phrase multiple times and consequently, have ignored this phrase multiple times. However, this concept can easily be made more practical. By just doing one homework assignment on Saturday morning or Saturday night, I find myself feeling less stressed on Sunday night. It is surprisingly nice to do this, as it forces me to be aware of my weekend homework, and adjust my Sunday schedule if necessary. When Sunday afternoon comes around, I do not feel surprised by the amount of weekend homework I have. I also feel a sense of pride for having done some homework on Saturday which gives myself more time to relax or do other homework on Sunday.
5. Find time to relax. Weekends should not require you to always be on the go. It is important to find some time to relax with a movie or T.V. show. However, you should not spend the whole day relaxing. For instance, if there is a certain T.V. show that you desperately want to watch, it might help to wake up earlier so that you have time to get everything done but also take a well-deserved break.

While these tips require dedication to follow, they definitely have paid off, at least for me. Try using some of these tips to make the most of your remaining weekends of the school year, and in the end, remember that it is all about balance.

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Do you have any tips for making the most of your weekend? Let us know in the comments below!

Creative Commons photo source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/polardivide