December Deadlines: How to Keep Calm and Get a 1st!

So you’re stressed to the max, you’ve never had to deal with this much work before and you feel like hiding in your cupboard until January. Sound familiar? That, my friends, is the beauty of December Deadlines! Now, you haven’t got to be stressed – it’s not healthy. I know it’s difficult not to stress over this but I’ve come up with a few remedies to help you relax!

• First up, a bubble bath. These bad boys will leave you feeling so humble and tranquil it’s unreal. You can even light a few candles to create a nice relaxing atmosphere. Grab a bottle of Radox Stress Relief (£1) and pour some in to have a stress-free bath.

• Plan. There’s no going about this, you need to plan your essays. If you do an essay outline of what you’re going to put into your essay then a huge weight will lift off your shoulders. It’s easier and quicker to write an essay with an essay plan. It doesn’t need to be long, but once you know briefly what you’re going to talk about in each paragraph, writing it will be so easy!

• Get a good night’s sleep. There are so many remedies out now for a good night’s sleep. This Works has a pillow spray that you spray on before you go to sleep to sleep all the way through. They also have a balm which you rub on your wrists to inhale the scent for a Stress Free night. I don’t know about you but whenever I’m stressed about something. I wake up about 3 times throughout the night where I’m so worried. If you’re not sure about the price of the Pillow Spray then you can always buy herbal night tablets (Boots.com do some Nytol Herbal tablets for only £3.79).

• Spend time with family/friends. This never fails to cheer me up. If you live in halls then plan a night in with movies and food to cheer yourself up a bit. Even better than this, you could plan an essay planning night with people from the same course as you. This is a perfect opportunity to find out your fellow classmates ideas and this builds on a better essay and also team bonding.

So those are just a few tips to help you get through December Deadlines. Just keep thinking that it’s almost Christmas soon and you can stuff your face full of Quality Street and turkey and spend loads of time with your families! Hope everyone has a great Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Christmas Presents for a student under £10!

Being a student isn’t easy. We don’t have a lot of money, and to get money we have to work basically every hour of every day. And don’t even get me started about the amount of time we spend in the library just to find a book to get one quote from for an essay! As Christmas is fast approaching, we daydream about the days of lounging around in our festive PJ’s and eating as much as we can. May as well make the most of it!

So here’s a cheap Christmas gift guide, from everyone to your little brother to your girlfriend! Hope this helps…

Mum:

If she loves lounging:

• Primark do a great selection of PJ’s and slippers that Mum would love.
• How about a snuggie? They’re super cosy and you have access to your arms! (via eBay: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/200668739424?limghlpsr=true&lpid=102&device=c&adtype=pla&crdt=0&ff3=1&ff11=ICEP3.0.0&ff12=67&ff13=80&ff14=102&ff19=0)

If she loves cooking:

• Dunelm Mill offer tons and tons of cheap essentials which are the perfect pressie (http://www.dunelm-mill.com/shop/cook/kitchen-utensils/)

Dad:

If he loves lounging:

• You guessed it; Primark once again has hit the nail on the head and have tons to offer!

If he loves football:

• A shirt of his favourite team
• A calender of his favourite team

Boyfriend/Girlfriend:

• Nothing shows that you love them more than a handmade gift. Get crafty!
• A cute teddy
• A picture of the two of you together (cringy but sweet!)

Sister:

If she loves makeup:

• MUA have extremely cheap make-up (all around the £1 mark!!!)
• Make-up brushes (these can be found anywhere, Superdrug, Poundland, Boots - etc)

If she loves Justin Bieber or One Direction:

• A poster
• Calenders of their favourite artist/band

Brother:

If he loves Games:

• CEX sell second hand games all at reasonable prices
• Check eBay to see if they have any cheaper games!

If he loves football:

• Same as Dad’s above!

Assignments

Assignments have never really bothered me, maybe it’s because I enjoy the course I’m doing so much I’m eager to learn more, but this year, I feel the work is getting a little harder (but hey, what else do you expect?). 

I know some people feel that Film Studies is an easy subject, but there is so much to learn. All the shot types, angles, genres, mise-en-scene, the reasons behind filming (the list just goes on and on!). The difference between last year and this year, is that this year really means something. 

I’m so eager to do really well, trying my hardest with my assignments (my last one got a high 2:1 (yesssss!) I’m just hoping to keep this up!). I’ve just finished creating my own storyboard and have two more essays due in before we pack up for the Christmas holidays! But like I said, I enjoy Film Studies so much that I enjoy watching the films and testing my knowledge.

If you’re ever stuck during an assignment, never be too scared to ask your lecturer or personal tutor for help. They will look over your work and point you in the right direction. In the second year, you can also go to someone to help get work on your essays. They will also look over your work and help you with any issues that you might have with it.

I wouldn’t say that the work is extremely hard, it’s all about if you’re enjoying the course and whether you initially want to know more. I can safely say I’m not one of those people that don’t enjoy their course. Film studies is so much fun, I recommend this course!

Right, I’m going to stop rambling now and get back to my essays! Until next time, bye! :)

CHEERLEADING

Cheerleading for some reason, was something I always wanted to do. Whenever you see them in the movies they look amazing and it looks like so much fun. So, this year I decided to pluck up the courage and finally join after a year of debating!

Now, cheerleading is not as easy as it looks. You have to put hard work in regardless of what you’re doing. There are competitions and everyone wants to do well! However, having said that.. I absolutely love it. I was a bit iffy at first because I can’t do any tumbling (cartwheels, handstands etc) but after being reassured by the head coach that it wasn’t all about that, I quickly put my name down.

The first taster session was so much fun, learning all about the cheerleading jumps and how to do stunts (I’m base which means another person and I lift up the flyer). I’m enjoying it so much and our first competition is on December 8th. Unfortunately, us newbies aren’t in this one as there is still so much to learn, but I can’t wait to go and watch the returners do their thang! They’re so good, they will definitely (touch wood) bring home a trophy!!

At the last training session, we got together in our newly formed stunt groups and started learning new stunts to perform. I have some amazing people in my stunt group, they’re all so lovely! That was another thing I was nervous about starting cheerleading, meeting all the new people (there are over 50 of us!!). However, they are all such amazing, lovely people. They are the nicest girls you can think of. I’m gutted I didn’t join a year ago!

I would definitely recommend joining the cheerleading group (hello, why would you not want to own pom-poms!?), you get your uniform (which I cannot wait for, I have just been measured!) and matching jackets with your names on and you get to cheer on the American Football team at games (which is a perfect opportunity to get to know everyone!). Besides that there are loads of socials which is again the perfect opportunity to get to know everyone. Cheerleading isn’t all girls either, our team is slowly getting new guys to join the team (which is good because they’re stronger bases!)

So if you’re starting uni at Greenwich in September then definitely come along and join! You won’t regret it!