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    Each student has faced the textbook dilemma. While studying for a class, attempting to become deeply immersed within the reading materials, no matter the initial determination, there will come a point where the words on the page turn illegible. Attempting to cram knowledge into one’s brain can be detrimental, as there comes a point where human comprehension stops and autopilot cements. Jolted back into reality, the individual realizes absolutely nothing has been absorbed. Although academic obligations undoubtedly rank highly amongst the 老司机传媒 students, a lack of variance can have negative effects on studying.

    The phrase “take a break” has been repeated on numerous occasions, yet to a student that has an avalanche’s worth of work, that is the furthest concern on the ever-growing list.  Nonetheless, constant, well-timed breaks have been proven to increase the rate of retention. Each student should build in breaks within their study schedules to allow themselves to focus more during the blocks that are purely devoted to studying.

    The notion of study breaks does present a query: What should one do within a study break? Since a standard study break may last ten or fifteen minutes, this leaves room for few options. Usually, this is an opportunity to catch up on texts or to scroll through the social media feed, in hopes that some novel, interesting happening has occurred. Unfortunately, these breaks can altogether easily feel like a monotonous loop. Personally, within my breaks, I have found myself scrolling through the same three apps akin to a large cat pacing a very small enclosure. Although students may not necessarily be searching for a cerebrally engaging activity during their study breaks, many simply want something interesting to focalize on for a few minutes.

    I prefer activities that will, hopefully, motivate me after my next study block. As browsing through social media becomes repetitive, I usually spend my breaks doing incremental developments  of a larger activity. The following are a few activities that I would recommend.

    Watching cooking shows. I greatly enjoy watching cooking shows, especially competition-based ones. The plus of starting a season of a cooking competition is that one can pause at any moment. The self-discipline of watching ten minutes of a certain show is much more difficult when watching a plot-driven series, so I find cooking shows to be an entertaining use of my time, yet not as inextricable as watching a series.

    Playing turn-based games. Social distancing has fueled a resurgence of online, multiplayer games, and during a break, an individual can reply to moves at their own time. Instead of playing a co-op game, turn-based games allow the player to make their move, then to return at their own leisure. These games include chess, checkers, and even iPhone games such as one that involves sliding penguins around on ice. An app I would highly recommend is Polytopia, which is a strategy game that involves building your own empire and capturing your friends’ cities.

    Working on a personal project. This can vary from a range of activities, depending on one’s own personal interest. I have recently taken up oil painting, which allows me to study in between without fear that the paint will dry down immediately. Other activities can also involve writing, composing, doing calisthenics, playing instruments, and so on. As long as the activity does not necessitate time that exceeds the allotted break, personal projects and endeavors can be a great way to motivate oneself to studying.

    In essence, study break ventures can range from a variety of activities. Depending on each individual’s interest, one can easily pursue a hobby or a pleasant distraction within the given time. Even so, self-discipline is key to properly enjoying a study break, and remembering that the utmost priority is to study. Although these activities should be enjoyable, they should not be distracting enough that all hopes of knowledge attainment are lost in the late hours of the night.