Preparing for Finals Week: How to Avoid the Overwhelm

By SOS4Students Coach Cat Crawford

Heads up, parents! The school year is winding down, and finals are looming on the horizon. For many students, finals may seem like insurmountable mountains. However, with the right preparation and a growth mindset, you can help your student forge a path to success.

Break Down Assignments: Avoid Project Overwhelm

End-of-year projects can be daunting for students, but we can offer support by helping them manage their workload and overcome procrastination. Here are some practical steps:

Break assignments into smaller, manageable parts.

Start by dividing a project into its basic parts (e.g. an essay has an introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion).
Next, make a checklist to keep track of progress (and take a short break).
Re-read instructions and highlight specific actions required (e.g. “analyze,” “argue,” “synthesize,” “prove”).
Work through the checklist one item at a time, referring to notes and class texts.

Incorporate timed movement breaks

Take short, timed movement breaks between tasks to maintain energy levels and avoid burnout.

Missing or Late Work: Communication is Key!

When students are working to make up missing or late assignments, it’s important for them to communicate with their teachers and develop a clear plan of action. Help them take a proactive approach by:

Email teachers to prioritize assignments and determine which assignments will have the greatest impact on grades or learning outcomes.
Creating an assignment checklist ranked from most pressing to least pressing.
Break assignments into manageable steps and complete them one step at a time.
Use timers to structure work periods and breaks. Taking timed breaks helps maintain focus and prevent burnout.
Set SMART goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. For example, “I will complete the introduction to my project by 8pm tonight.”

High School Finals: Create a Study Plan

Studying for finals can be more effective and enjoyable with the right strategies and support systems. Encourage your student to form study groups with friends who can help foster focus and provide assistance with challenging topics.

Here are some great study strategies your student can try:

Flash cards (either hard-copy or created on Quizzlet).
Color-coded notes to organize important information with a key labeling what each color stands for.
Practice taking tests by inputting class materials into an AI engine.
Partner study (one person asks questions, the other answers).

Try to answer without looking at notes first.
Tossing a soft (or paper) ball back and forth adds kinesthetic engagement that can help strengthen memory retention.

Study-games where class materials can be used to create trivia-style play (such as Heads Up, Jeopardy, Kahoot, Kupiter, etc.).
Creating stories or mnemonics also helps with the memorization of facts, formulas, and chronological events.

Pro-tip: Take note of any and all positive progress, no matter how incremental, and celebrate the movement forward. Recognizing successes builds up our sense of self-efficacy and can offer a boost of energy for task initiation and engagement.

Finishing Strong

Finals can be an immensely stressful time for all students, and pushing to meet demands can create a lot of hard feelings that interfere with focus. Using the steps outlined here, you can help your student push through inner struggle by accomplishing one thing at a time. Recognizing progress will build up a sense of success and self-efficacy, and help your student maintain momentum for finishing strong.

SOS4Students Can Help

⏬ Here is a free printable download for your student to use to create a study plan.

Need Extra Support? More Ways We Can Help

SOS4Students helps families and students navigate executive function issues, test prep, and more, enabling them to reach their full potential. If you have questions about coaching, advocacy, or other ways in which we can help, contact us today at (510) 531-4767 or .