Throughout the United States, universities have been shutting their doors as a direct result of the Coronavirus pandemic. Urging students to either remain at home or to return home, in-person student instruction has been suspended in favor of online alternatives due to recommendations from the CDC on social distancing. But just because we're not in class doesn't mean our grades also have to fall prey to COVID-19.

Here's five tips on how you can keep your grades from slipping during online instruction:

Create a schedule

Work that Google Calendar, babe!

Keeping to a schedule is going to be the most important thing we can do for ourselves during online instruction. Although a lot of us probably already skip out on our classes, being farther away from campus will only make staying motivated to keep up with lecture materials, homework, and quizzes that much harder. Using a calendar of some sort to carve out specific study and break times can help you get back into that winning, straight-As mindset.

Take frequent breaks

TBH this would be a recommendation even without the virus outbreak.

Taking breaks is good for your sanity, and don't let anyone ever tell you otherwise. If you think about the fact that you're locked up back home with nothing to do except homework, you'll drive yourself insane. Taking some time off to listen to some music, watch an episode of that show you're binging on Netflix, or texting your friends isn't just good for your mental health right now, but your physical health too! Drink tons of water while you're at it and keep yourself on track with your schedule using timed breaks. For example, you could study for an hour and then give yourself twenty minutes off to clear your mind and regroup your thoughts.

Get by with a little help from your friends

You'd have definitely flunked out without them at some point.

Your study buddies aren't just your classmates — they're your friends! Just because you won't be seeing each other face-to-face for a while doesn't mean you can't Skype or text. Keeping in contact with your friends doesn't just award you relief from your biology homework, but also provides you with the best sort of accountability partner. If you're honest about struggling to stay motivated to your friend, then you know that they've always got your back and won't let you fall behind the herd.

Family boundaries are a must

Little siblings pop up like the Walking Dead.

A silver lining to staying home means some more time with our families before we have to go off adulting all on our own. Unfortunately, that can also mean major distractions in the way of interacting with our families, sitting in for meals, and any spontaneous family movie nights. But, setting boundaries with your family doesn't have to be so cut-and-dry. Find a happy medium that works for both of you, and if you fall behind on any work, just make sure you set aside time to make it up later. Create a space for yourself to get your work done so you're in a stable, quiet environment away from all major distractions. Just lightly remind your younger sibling that you're busy if they try to get into your space.

Take advantage of this time

David is my IRL Spirit Animal.

Finally, take this time to work towards getting healthy again. Whether it's emotionally, mentally, physically, or even spiritually. If you've been eating granola bars for your meals three times a day or are getting five hours of sleep a night, then take this time to get yourself back on a good schedule. This is just another silver lining to social distancing — an opportunity for all of us to cash in on our sleep debt and work on ourselves, for once. Although a pandemic might be happening right outside of our doors, getting and keeping ourselves nice and healthy never seemed so doable.

Good luck out there, classmates!