In the video we mention being able to block out distracting apps. Follow these links to see some of the tools we recommend for doing this…
Google chrome extensions to increase productivity
Forest: Liberate yourself from your smartphone
Thanks,
The post Video Blog #13 – 5 Productivity Tips For Students appeared first on A2B Assessments DSA Needs Assessment Centre.
Some good news for those with learning disabilities. The government has announced that everyone on the learning disability register will now be prioritised for a COVID-19 vaccination.
There were around 150,000 people who were not eligible for the vaccine, but who are at higher risk due to their disabilities. These people will now be prioritised as part of group six, regardless of how severe their disability is.
The update comes after an analysis of date that shows those with a learning disability tend to suffer more severe symptoms of COVID-19.
It is advised that those with a learning disability should ensure they are on the learning disability register by ringing their GP.
The data shows that only 1 in 4 people with a learning disability are actually on their GP’s learning disability register. With 1.2 million people in the UK with a learning disability, this means that there are 900,000 people who aren’t registered. To help with this fallout, the NHS has also asked local authorities to identify any other adults severely affected by a learning disability.
Read the full Gov.uk Announcement.
Learn more about the DSA
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Wim Hof is an extreme athlete who holds 26 official Guinness World Records, most of which are beyond comprehension to most. These include climbing 22,000 ft up Mount Everest in only shorts and shoes, remaining submerged in an ice bath for over 2 hours and running a marathon without training, in the Namibian desert; where temperatures reached 40°C; without touching a drop of water for the whole run.
Born on the 20th of April 1959, the Dutchman is also known for his remarkable ability to withstand the cold, thereby earning him the title The Iceman.
But where does he draw his energy, resilience and inspiration to complete feats that most of us would hardly even try? He attributes it to the Wim Hof Method.
Wim Hof came up with this method after his wife committed suicide in 1995. Falling into a deep depression he found that the only thing that helped him clear his mind of negative thoughts was submerging himself in the cold.
You might be wondering why are we talking about this on the A2B blog?
Well According to The Iceman, this method can help those suffering from problems with sleep, stress, sports performance, depression and auto-immune diseases. From practicing parts of the method myself I can confidently state that a cold shower is definitely a mood booster!
The Wim-Hof method is essentially a regimen that entails frequent exposure of the body to cold, coupled with meditation and specialised breathing techniques.
This video explains it better that I can…
Firstly the breathing part of the method is similar to meditation. Once you are focused on your breathing you will find yourself in the present moment and less stressed about things outside of your control.
The next part of the method is getting in cold water. This increases mental resilience, thereby enabling you to withstand rather unpleasant situations longer than the average person would. Additionally, with cold therapy, your focus, willpower and concentration are also greatly increased. When you come out of a cold shower you can’t help but feel extremely positive and elevated which is due to the endorphins released by your body.
Cold showers also improve your physical health, improving your cardiovascular system and increasing your muscle endurance.
The Wim Hof method has lots of heavy research and scientific backing behind it.
For full details of the studies visit – https://www.wimhofmethod.com/science
Or for the easiest way to experience the method follow along with the guided breathing below…
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Microsoft Office Lens is a free mobile scanning app. As a student you can use it to create scanned copies of photos, documents, text books, whiteboards, posters, business cards and other content. It is available on both iOS and Android devices. Microsoft Lens allows users to further edit the file after scanning, convert them to other formats, and share them with other users. You do not need an Office 365 subscription or any other subscription package to assess the Microsoft Office Lens app. As long as you have a free Microsoft account, you can access this app for free.
Office Lens makes use of Optical Character Recognition (OCR) which even allows the source document to be converted into editable Word document.
When you open the Microsoft Office Lens app, your device’s back camera opens with a full-screen view and four content type options. You can swipe through these content options to choose your preference for the content you’re about to scan. Though the on-screen display of each content quality differs, all you have to do is press the white button in the centre of the screen, and your scanned file will be ready in a moment.
You can use the document option to create scanned copies of paper pages, large amounts of texts, books and posters. Using the built-in cropping tool, you can crop out other items in the background to achieve a clear image of the target document. You can also convert the scans to editable Word documents using OCR.
Teachers and students can use the whiteboard option to create scanned copies of dry-erase or large boards. This option comes with an automated lightening for improved contrast, and the OCR feature comes in handy to make it possible for a screen reader to read the text and use the file on another application.
The Photo function is useful for taking pictures of other pictures. You may use it to create scanned copies of printed pictures, or even take new pictures. The front or selfie camera works in this mode, but it does not support the automatic cropping feature.
This function is suitable for taking pictures of business cards or contact information and turning them into scanned copies. It is ideal for businesses and corporate individuals.
If you have a visually impairment you can also make use of office lens as the app supports screen reader functionality. In this screen shot above you can see the Android reader is called immersive reader. So you can scan handouts, text books or whiteboards using the app and then have this content read back to you. Alternatively, if you prefer to read yourself you could zoom in on the content to increase the font size.
Microsoft Office Lens is an excellent free tool and we would definitely recommended it to make your life easier when at University.
Download on the Apple App Store
Download on the Google Play Store
Visit the A2B Blog for more apps and software.
Thanks for reading,
A2B Assessments DSA Assessment Centre
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21-year-old Chris Nikic has made it into the Guinness World Record book as the first person with Down’s syndrome to complete an entire Ironman Triathlon event. According to Guinness World Records, Chris’s achievement is ‘awe-inspiring.’
The tri-athlete who hails from Florida swam 2.4 miles, cycled 112 miles, and ran a 26.2-mile marathon on the same day to complete the Ironman event. The event organised by the World Triathlon Corporation is one of the most taxing single-day sporting events in the world.
The Ironman event has been ongoing for the past 42 years, but Chris is the first athlete with Down’s syndrome to attempt and finish the event and go on to earn global recognition for his performance.
The race wasn’t all smooth sailing for Chris, who injured his knees and blood was shed when he got involved in a bike crash during his cycling. However, he didn’t let this stop him and through grit and determination he persisted on.
Chris successfully crossed the finish line after 16 hours, 46 minutes, and nine seconds, arriving 14 minutes under the official cut-off time, which was an outstanding performance.
If you are struggling to get motivated to exercise in lockdown, Chris’s moto is 1% better. Where each day he just tries to be 1% better than the last. Something most can manage. Check out his website where he has an awesome 1% better 30 day challenge you can get involved with.
Below is an emotional clip of Chris and his father discussing his journey on Theo Von’s podcast “This Past Weekend”… the full episode is also a great listen.
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Managing time effectively is important when at university, whether it’s studying, completing coursework or exam revision. It is easy to quickly become overwhelmed and feel that there is just not enough time to fit everything in. Making lists of your tasks each day is a great way to keep on top of your work and life.
Todoist is one of the best to-do list apps available. All your information and data is stored and synced in the cloud, which means you can access your lists on any device at any time. If you need some help with organising your life and becoming more productive then Todoist is a good place to start.
Organising your tasks in a list that you can tick off as you complete them can also be beneficial for your mental health. Firstly, knowing you have all of your jobs in a list can give you mental space and stop you worrying or feeling like you have forgotten tasks. Secondly, looking back at your list at the end of the day can really give you a sense of accomplishment. Especially with the current lockdown, it can feel like days are blending into one, but if you can look back at your lists and see that you have actually done quite a lot.
Todoist can give you a sense of confidence from knowing that all your tasks are organised and accounted for. It gives you a clear overview of your day and the tasks you need to accomplish. Some of the key features include…
The Quick Add feature allows you to add your tasks in seconds. You can then easily view all your tasks for the day and mark them as complete as you go along.
This feature helps you commemorate the deadlines and build habits.
You can let go of all the clutter and only focus your energy on the important things by easily organising and prioritising your projects and tasks on Todoist. You can plan out your schedules according to what’s most important first and needs immediate attention. The favourite tab helps you do this.
You can also share the workload by delegating tasks to your teammates on Todoist. It’s very efficient and productive for students while working on group projects. The notifications segment in this feature keeps you updated whenever someone completes the task, or post comments. With this feature, you can make all the important information accessible to all the involved members.
Todoist boards let you easily organise different areas of your life. You could have a board for your studies, a board for your exercise, a board for your social life etc.
Karma gives you a broad view of your total progress with using the app. Set weekly or daily goals and foresee your work rate trends. Students can use this feature to keep track of how much preparation they’re doing before the exam.
Todoist is an excellent tool that you can use in all areas of your life to help keep yourself productive and motivated. It’s free to get started and to use the basic features however there is a pro option which costs around £30.00 per year, however students can get 70% off at this link.
Download on the mobile app on the App Store and Google Play store.
Or, get the desktop version from Todoist Website.
Learn about other useful apps on our blog.
Thanks for reading, A2B Assessments DSA Needs Assessment Centre
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Lockdown is back upon us, we are again restricted from doing things we enjoy, seeing our friends, going to the gym, going to the cinema etc. The current situation can easily have a negative impact on our mental well-being, resulting in feelings of anxiety and depression.
One thing you can do from the comfort of your home is practice meditation and mindfulness. This study from Science Daily found that just one session of mindfulness meditation can reduce anxiety.
If you would like to reap some of the benefits of meditation but don’t know where to begin we have put together a list of the most-effective mindfulness smartphone apps for you. These apps are easy to navigate and are readily available in your app stores.
These aren’t ranked in any particular order…
Calm teaches mindfulness and offers daily meditation practices in a simple manner that everyone can understand.
The calm app contains guided meditations, including a 7-days-of-calm series. It also has a body scan and meditation that eases tension.
You will also enjoy timed meditation sessions, over 20 visual and audio nature backgrounds. Calm is free to use but you can unlock more features by purchasing one of their subscriptions.
Get on the App Store or Google Play Store.
The headspace app is a creation of a famous meditation teacher, Andy Puddicombe, who describes it as a gym membership for the mind.
This application has a free and paid variant, and users can opt for either option depending on their preferences.
After downloading the headspace app, begin with the ten-day mindfulness and meditation program that helps users to improve their health.
The headspace app has brain development as its focus, and it entails a list of special meditations in areas like a relationship, health, and general performance.
You can also explore tons of quick, one-time guided meditations to redirect and calm the mind quickly when you need a fix.
One of the more unique features of headspace compared to the other apps in this list is that you can connect with your friends on the app and meditate together.
Get on the App Store or Google Play Store.
The Insight Timer app has a huge amount of free content available to consume and experience. To explore the free content, scroll past the button that asks you to begin a free trial and you will then have access to the free library.
Insight Timer boasts over 6 million active users and is like a huge community with thousands of guided meditations from tons of teachers who add new material daily. The app houses guided meditations across fields like creativity, stress, and relationships. Another cool feature is that on the app you can see how many people are meditating in real-time, and how many meditations are active on that day.
You can also browse through the list of teachers on the app to find out what teacher you prefer and follow their profile. Some popular teachers on the app are Tara Brach, Sharon Salzberg, and Jack Kornfield. Follow any teacher you love and keep tabs on their content to help you through your meditation journey.
Get on the App Store or Google Play Store.
As the name suggests, this app is a simple and straightforward meditation guide created by Richard and Mary Maddux, a couple who make up the Meditation Oasis team.
Richard is a music composer, while Mary is a healing arts practitioner and counselor. The duo created this simple and appealing app that users can download after paying a one-time fee.
Once you download the app, you can listen to several timed and guided meditations with or without sounds of nature and background music.
If you thrive on simple meditative processes, then Simply Being is a useful app of guided meditations.
This app doesn’t have a free version but costs £1.99. Get on the App Store or Google Play Store.
In essence, mindfulness is all about stopping, breathing, and managing your thoughts. This is why this mindfulness app has a name that instills the essence and awareness of mindfulness.
A cool feature of this application is that you can enter your current mood it will direct you to the best meditations for your day.
My Life Meditation is a completely free app created by ‘Tools for Peace,” a non-profit organisation for effective meditation.
Get it on the App Store or Google Play Store.
Mindfulness meditation offers many health benefits, but like many good things, it needs constant practice. If you are feeling particularly anxious try and follow along with a guided meditation and see how you feel afterwards. You have nothing to lose.
For further reading on meditation check out our previous blog post Meditation For Stress And Anxiety.
Thanks for Reading, A2B DSA Assessment Centre.
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