Article: Gather everything you need, then pick a spot to do your homework. Ideally, you'll want a solid surface (like a table, desk, or hardwood floor) to write on, and a comfortable seat. Check the lights, too. You won't be able to do your best if you can't see the numbers. Your supplies might include: a calculator, pencils, a compass, a protractor, a straightedge, scratch paper, graph paper, lined paper, your textbook, the assignment. If you'll need water or snacks, set those out as well. This way, you won't be tempted to use a trip to the kitchen as procrastination. Remember that there is such a thing as too comfortable when you're doing homework! If you're in bed or curled up in an armchair, it's all too easy to doze off. The only way to get your homework done quickly is to get down to work especially if you do not want to do your homework. Get rid of anything that's going to tempt you to waste time and drag out the homework process longer. This might include TV, your phone, or your computer or tablet. If you're working at home, your parents will probably be thrilled to hang on to your phone for you until you're done. If you're in a public place, try stashing your phone in a hard-to-reach spot, like an inside pocket of your backpack. If it's not easily accessible, you'll be less likely to mindlessly grab it. Homework is often stressful, and math can be frustrating if you don't feel like you know what you're doing. Before you put pencil to paper, tell yourself that you're capable, plan to work hard, and will finish the assignment, no matter what. (And keep reminding yourself of that if you need to.) You're trying to get your homework done quickly, but making sure that you know what you're doing beforehand can help prevent careless errors. This is especially important for word problems and story problems. If you tend to get bogged down with a single problem, just skip it (for now). Finish the problems you know how to do, and return to the tricky question with a fresh set of eyes later. You might have new ideas on how to deal with it, and even if you don't, at least you're much closer to being done with your homework than you were before. Some teachers require you to do this. Even if yours doesn't, pretend it's extra credit and write down the steps you use to solve each problem on scratch paper. This takes a little extra time, but it's so useful that it's worth it. If you're not feeling confident about an answer, or you've checked it and know you got it wrong, having your work in front of you is really useful--you can go through each step and see where you went wrong. Showing your work for a correct answer can save you time as well! If you have another problem that uses a similar process, you can refer to your previous work to check it. Scan your work to make sure that you've solved every problem and recorded it correctly. Try running through a couple of the problems you struggled with to see if you get the same answers. If everything is neatly written down, and you feel like you could confidently explain any of your answers, then you're all done!

What is a summary?
Set up a solid workspace. Eliminate all distractions. Psych yourself up, not out. Read through each problem before starting to work on it. Skip the hard stuff. Show your work for every problem. When you're finished, double-check.