Question

Greg is struggling on a portfolio for Science. It is a large project. What could he do?
*
Skip it
Power through it
Ask his teacher to help chunk it in small, manageable chunks.

Answer 1

Best choice: Ask his teacher to help chunk it into small, manageable pieces — then work those pieces one at a time.

Why not the others
- Skip it: risks a zero or big penalty and doesn’t solve the problem.
- Power through it: can be overwhelming, increases mistakes and burnout.

Practical plan Greg can use
1. Ask the teacher for clarification and a rubric, and request the project broken into checkpoints or milestones (what “done” looks like for each part).
2. Make a task list for the whole portfolio (examples below).
3. Estimate time for each task and put those tasks on a calendar with deadlines and short daily goals.
4. Use focused work sessions (e.g., Pomodoro: 25–50 minutes focused, 5–10 minute break).
5. Get feedback at each checkpoint from the teacher or a classmate, then revise.
6. Use resources: library, online research, lab hours, classmates, or a tutor.
7. Build in a final review day and time to format and submit.

Example task breakdown for a science portfolio
- Read rubric & collect required documents/materials (1–2 hours)
- Choose topics/experiments and gather sources (2–4 hours)
- Do any experiments / collect data (1–3 sessions depending on work)
- Analyze data and make charts/figures (2–4 hours)
- Draft write-ups for each section (2–6 hours)
- Compile portfolio, add citations and reflections (2–3 hours)
- Review, edit, teacher check-in, final formatting and submit (2–4 hours)

Sample short message to the teacher
“Hi [Teacher], I’m feeling overwhelmed by the science portfolio. Could we meet (or could you outline) a few smaller milestones or checkpoints and the most important things you’re looking for? That would help me plan and make steady progress. Thanks!”

If Greg follows this approach he’ll reduce stress, make steady progress, and improve the final product.