GET YOUR BRAIN THINKING ABOUT THE TOPIC:
Even if your assignment is not due for weeks, start thinking about it immediately. At the very least, make sure you review and understand the requirements the day you get your assignment. Even if you are not thinking about it directly, your subconscious will be hard at work.

FIND LIBRARY AND ONLINE RESOURCES:
Although the College or local library may not be your main source of reference, you should drop in soon after receiving the assignment. Your teacher will have alerted the library to the assignment, and a Libguide may have been created and some relevant books may have been put aside. If the whole class/yeargroup has the same assignment, any relevant books will be on "Assessment" and not for loan. This ensures the material is available for everyone equally. Your library staff can also guide you to online journals or databases that may be useful.

STARTING EARLY MEANS MORE TIME TO EXPLORE & ASK FOR HELP IF NEEDED: 
If you do some initial research on the assignment, you could find yourself needing more direction in your next step of the research. For example: perhaps there isn’t enough information, or you find you don’t understand important concepts, or that you need to speak to your teacher to get further clarity. If you discover this early, you will still have plenty of time to plan, research, write and present your assignment. Imagine if you didn’t start your assignment for a week or so, and then discovered you needed more guidance. You could easily run out of time. Starting early also gives you a longer time to think through and develop your ideas.

CREATE A SAFETY NET:
Starting your assignment immediately will give you a safety net in case you get sick or something unexpected happens. Assignments are usually given over a period of time because they require more time. Students must plan a strategy or schedule to ensure they are completed. 

So get started today and remember that your teachers and the library are here to help!

The College Library