Planning is the thinking skill that helps you to:

• Think about something before doing it.

• Complete a project on time.

• Do things step-by-step.

For example, you use your Planning skills when you figure out a way to get all of your homework done so you’ll have time to go to your friend’s house.

Sammy & Ugene

In this comic strip, Sammy and Ugene are given a project on Monday that is due on Friday. While Sammy makes a plan for how to get the work done, Ugene doesn’t plan at all and barely even manages finish his project.

What can you do?

If you have a hard time figuring out the steps you need to take to complete a school project, or you often get bored because you didn’t think ahead about how you wanted to spend your free time, you might need help improving your Planning skills. The good news is that we can help!

Here are some simple ideas that you can use to plan ahead and figure out the best ways to get your work done:

• Use visual reminders such as taking digital pictures of your morning routine or the different steps you need to take to complete a chore.

• Make lists of the things you need in order to complete a long project and then ask for feedback from your parents or teachers about your list.

• Use technologies such as cell phones, text messaging, voice mail, e-mail, MySpace, Facebook, or Twitter to remind you of something you need to do.