Transitions are a part of life – we transitioned from elementary to middle school and now have made the biggest transition of our lives by becoming high school freshmen. This is a much higher-stakes transition and many might suggest freshman year is the make-it-or-break-it year.
Transitioning to high school can be intimidating. Not knowing where to go or what to expect is what makes it so scary, but freshman year is really the year to get out there. Getting a good start to high school is the most important thing. High school is when everything starts to matter. Your GPA starts to be permanently recorded. Your attendance is very important for graduation, and that all starts your freshman year.
Although joining clubs and sports may be scary, it’s a great way to fit in, get comfortable, and get to know more people. This year, I joined journalism, student council, mountain biking, volleyball, and basketball. Being involved in all of that, I have met a lot of new people and feel more comfortable.
Freshman year can also be very stressful, trying to keep up with all of your classes and trying to juggle after school clubs and sports. Being able to juggle everything might be hard, but remember to put your responsibilities first.
You just want to make sure you save time for yourself too. Be sure you don’t feel like you’re constantly doing things and drowning in it all. Your mental health should come first.
Some advice would be to not focus on the little things. You will get an A in almost every class by paying attention and doing your work. Teachers will help you, but you have to ask for it. Being lazy and not doing your work won’t get you an A. You have to try, it does not just come easy.
In high school, the environment is much different than middle school. You are much more independent and on your own. In middle school it feels more hand held. I feel that middle school did not prepare me for high school. I feel that COVID also could have been a factor to that.
There are many differences with my freshman year compared to freshman year a few years ago. COVID has put a big strain on things. Instead of everyone eating in the lunchroom we are split up between the classroom and lunchroom. School dances are outside compared to a few years ago when dances were held in the cafeteria. Students are expected to social distance throughout the day.
Due to COVID my middle school years were spent wondering if we would have to quarantine or not. My seventh grade year we went into online school for three months and my eighth grade year we wore masks all year. We didn’t know if we were going to get shut down again. I feel that my freshman class was not prepared for how high school actually is due to the strain that COVID put on our school.
With all that being said, always make sure you’re on track . Don’t give up, you will make it through high school if you try.