Week 1 - UCB Food Pantry, Wellness Apparel Project, Berkeley Student Food Collective

- UC Berkeley Food Pantry:

The UCB Food Pantry works to eliminate food insecurity on campus by providing core grocery items to students. The Pantry’s website also provides information on additional resources, such as the Food Assistance Program, Bear Pantry, Tang Center - Nutrition Resources, CalFresh Clinics, Basic Needs Security, and low-budget meal prep recipes. Visit their website for eligibility and more details: https://pantry.berkeley.edu/

- Wellness Apparel Project:

The Wellness Apparel Project is partnered with Berkeley Rec Sports to provide EOP students with donated wellness apparel from the Cal community. Please see their website for additional information on eligibility and more details: https://eop.berkeley.edu/wellness/

- Berkeley Student Food Collective:

The Berkeley Student Food Collective is dedicated to providing fresh food at affordable prices to the Berkeley community while educating students about nutrition and food systems. They also have a “Sliding Scale Program” where people can choose the price they pay for pre-made dishes, and a “Pay It Forward Program” where anyone can use pre-purchased vouchers to get discounts on groceries in the store. See their website for additional information: http://www.foodcollective.org/ (Links to an external site.)

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Week 2 - Forest App

This week's resource spotlight features an app called Forest. It's available for free on Google Play and $1.99 in the App Store. This is a focus/productivity app aimed to help people avoid unproductive phone usage by allowing users to plant virtual trees for a set amount of time. The tree will grow in this time, and if the user exits the app during this time (i.e., to get on social media, respond to a text) it will cause the tree to wither.

Forest is sponsored by an organization called Trees For The Future. Currently, Trees For The Future is working with over 3,000 farming families across six countries in Sub-Saharan Africa to end hunger, poverty, and deforestation. If you purchase premium for $1.99 on Google Play or download it in the App Store, you can use the virtual trees you plant in Forest to plant real trees through their sponsor. See the sponsor's website below for more information:

Forest Download: https://www.forestapp.cc/ (Links to an external site.)

Trees For The Future: https://trees.org/sponsor/forest-app/

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Week 3 - The College Info Geek

This week's resource spotlight is the "College Info Geek" website. Their goal is to help users become better students by developing more efficient study and productivity habits. Their website features articles on various topics, including studying & learning, productivity, career skills, and life skills. They also offer a free studying book and a free productivity course. Among all these great resources they also post podcasts on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, and Youtube that "feature in-depth, actionable advice for boosting your productivity, earning better grades, paying off your student loans, and more" according to their website. For more information visit https://collegeinfogeek.com/ (Links to an external site.)

Note that some of their videos have been embedded directly in the "PDP Study Method" module of our bCourses for tutors.

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Week 4 - Headspace

This week's resource spotlight is Headspace. Headspace is an online healthcare company committed to "advancing the field of mindfulness meditation through clinically-validated research," according to their website. There is a Headspace app that you can download on both Apple and Android devices for a free trial, or you can purchase premium for $9.99/year (select student discount).

The app offers "hundreds of themed sessions on everything from stress and sleep to focus and anxiety" along with "SOS exercises in case of sudden meltdowns" according to their website. These guided meditation sessions can be done in 10, 15, or 20-minute sessions depending on your schedule that day. You can set reminders to use the app daily, or whenever you feel you need to meditate. For more information, visit their website https://www.headspace.com/

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Week 5 - Todoist

This week's resource spotlight is Todoist. This app is available on web browser, Android, and Apple devices for free. You can purchase premium for $3/mo.

Todoist is a virtual to-do list that allows you to categorize your tasks by projects and subdivisions within those projects. You can mark tasks as top, medium, or low priorities, and even set due dates. This app notifies you when you have an overdue task with both an email and a notification icon. Not only can this app be used for your personal lists, but it can also be used to collaborate on projects with others. For each task, you can "assign" a person to it via their email. Furthermore, you can track your weekly and daily productivity with their unique Karma feature. To learn more, visit https://todoist.com/?lang=en (Links to an external site.)

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Week 6 - Academic Bulletin Board

This week's resource spotlight is the ASC's "Academic Resources" bulletin board, located on the wall to your right just before you enter the computer lab.

This board features six different wall files of resources, specifically: exam preparation/note-taking tips, time management/semester planning, initial sessions (tutor/student resources), writing tips, reading methods, and success in STEM. Within each file there are folders that divide the resources further. The materials present on this board can also be found on our bCourses site.

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Week 7 - Professor Communication Template

This week's resource spotlight is a template made by one of our learning specialists, Christine Ho. With midterm season upon us, it is especially important to utilize GSI/Professor office hours. If you need to schedule an appointment outside of their office hour time slot, missed class due to an illness, need clarification for an exam or have any other questions/comments, it is crucial to email your GSI/Professor with the appropriate format. Christine's template provides a clear, concise, and efficient method of communication with GSIs/Professors.

See attachment below for template.

Template Resource

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Week 8 - StudyBlue

This week's resource spotlight is StudyBlue - A Chegg service.

StudyBlue allows you to create a variety of flashcard sets and organize those sets by class. When making the flashcards, StudyBlue provides suggestions for definitions and images. You can also join a class (i.e. Biology 1A at UC Berkeley) and see flashcard sets created by others in your class. Furthermore, StudyBlue allows you to ask questions on the "Homework Help" tab, to which you can "star" a particular response and create a study set from your starred responses.

StudyBlue is available for free on Android, Apple, and web browsers.

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Week 9 - Quizlet and Finals Planning Template

We have two resource spotlights this week: Quizlet and a finals planning template made by our learning specialist Christine Ho.

Quizlet is a great flashcard making tool that allows users to study from their phone or website. You can add pictures or diagrams to make more in-depth flashcards or study flashcards from a particular topic that have already been posted by other users. Quizlet also creates tests and games from your flashcards to give a variety of learning/memorizing methods.

The finals planning template is a great way to organize your RRR and finals week. Please make a copy of this template in order to use it. The template can be found under the "Exam Preparation and Exam Taking" tab of the "General Tutorial Resources" module. Thank you to Christine for this useful template!

Please feel free to share these resources. Note that UC Berkeley and the ASC do not endorse these resources unless specifically stated.