High school is a magical place that lets you explore who you are and test the limits of how long you can go without sleep. Although high school may be one of the most stress filled things you have ever done, it is also one of the best and most exciting things you will ever do. In order to make your experience in high school better, here are a few things you should know:

Do your homework the first day you get it-

Yes, I recognize that this seems like a daunting task. And most, if not all, humans in the world naturally procrastinate until the last minute, but it alleviates stress to have your homework done the first day. This also allows you to ask questions about the homework to your teachers rather than do it five minutes before class and not have any time to ask questions that you may have.

Grades don’t matter-

Of course, grades do matter in general, but one bad grade isn’t going to kill you. As your classes increase in difficulty, you may find that you get the occasional 75 on an assignment, but just know that as long as you’re doing your best and communicating with your teacher if you need help, your grade will improve. This goes especially for Biology students. If you start the year off with a 65 or a 70, if you work hard at it, your grade could go all the way up to a high 90. Don’t blame your grades on a “bad teacher that has it out for you.” You control how well you do.

For language students-

If you’re having trouble in your language, it helps A LOT to study vocabulary and grammar for only five minutes a night. This can be done while watching TV, watching Youtube, eating breakfast, or listening to music. It takes little effort and little time out of your day but it really makes a difference. This has helped me personally more than homework has.

Hallway Etiquette

I can not express enough how essential this is for the prevention of hallway traffic jams. It’s not that difficult. If you need help determining which side is the right side, it’s the direction that English writing goes. Now that you have been educated, I expect you to always walk on the right side and walk quickly. Thank you.

For reading complicated books in class-

You may not always like a book that the class is reading, but if your complaints are based on the length of the book or the difficulty of the text, please don’t voice those complaints unless you’re having a very difficult time and need actual help. It makes the reading experience much less enjoyable for those students who actually like the book. If you at least pretend to enjoy the book in class, you’ll get more out of the book and might actually start to like it, but if you’re prejudiced against the book from the beginning, chances are you won’t like it. Helpful hint, teachers like students who don’t complain a lot better than students who do. There are, of course, exceptions to this rule. For example, if the complaint is about The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens by Sean Covey, you are more than welcome to voice those complaints because together we might be able to rid the Freshman curriculum of it forever.

Freshmen-

Freshman year is one of the most difficult years of your education because everything is new and interesting, and even though you may feel old and mature, you’re still the youngest people in the school. During big assemblies, you have to sit on the floor and get pummeled by dodgeballs and life seems generally horrible. Don’t worry, it gets better. You’ll figure out how the school works and by the end of the year, you’ll feel ready to graduate up to being a sophomore. You’ll find new friends and new interests and become an entirely different person from who you were in middle school.

Clubs!-

Clubs are a great way of discovering new interests or passions, and it’s never too late in the year to join. If you’re feeling more relaxed after your first semester of the year, join a few clubs, see if you like them, and if you don’t, at least you tried them. Some clubs meet in the mornings before school and some meet after school. Some of the clubs here at GHS include:

• Art Club
• Culinary Club
• FBLA
• Gender/Sexuality Alliance (GSA)
• GHS Fandom Club
• LARP Club
• Newspaper Club (Paw Print)
• Pokemon Club
• Yale Model Congress
• Mountain Biking club

And that’s not all. For a complete list of clubs and their meeting times, check the guidance office.

Don’t stress-

If you ever have an embarrassing moment or a stupid regret, it doesn’t matter. It’ll pass and then suddenly you’ll look back on it and laugh. That’s what high school is about; making mistakes, learning from them, and moving on. If you need to step back, drink a cup of tea and look at your life for a minute, do that. Think about a few things that make you stressed, and change them. Your life will be infinitely better.

This has been How To Survive High School. I hope this helps.