Hi Sophomores!
If you feel like you’re going to struggle this year, or you feel like deciding on those AICE classes last year was the wrong decision, here are 10 tips and tricks for your upcoming school year!
- Talk to your guidance counselors in advance. They’re always ready to help you navigate through your high school journey. Now that you’re a sophomore, your counselor will be based on your last name. So, if you don’t know who your counselor is… FIGURE IT OUT!! It helps, even when you don’t need them, you know you’ll have them by your side.
- Check SIS every week to keep up with your grades. Let’s say you had an assignment that week and you turned it in,but your teacher put on a 0% for it. That’s frustrating and definitely not a good look for you. If you don’t look at SIS, you’ll never know about that 0% and, by the time you figure it out, it’ll be too late for your teacher to change it.
- This year is an easy year, so don’t stress yourself out too much. Although sophomore year is very important as well, it is a year where you can chill and not worry about a lot. Instead of stressing yourself out and overwhelming yourself with work, listen to some music; it helps! Using music as a way to focus isn’t something you can always do at school but, if you get the opportunity, do it!
- STUDY!!!! People say studying is pointless but, if you study the correct way, it’ll actually help you. Let’s say you have a test in a week. Take 20 minutes out of each day up until the test to study the material. Talk to your teachers to see if there is review material and use that. Studying makes your brain recognize the problem much easier.
- Have fun! High school isn’t just about work work work. Our wonderful SGA department does well in ensuring that we have fun school activities such as pep rallies, homecoming, and spirit weeks. So, instead of thinking these activities are “lame,” try them out and you’ll see how much fun they are. Make your high school experience memorable.
- Have a planner. This will allow you to easily keep up with your work as well as plan out your days. If you’re in a sport or multiple clubs, this will help twice as much. Planners are sold everywhere, even at the dollar store. So go get yourself one!
- Keep yourself out of the drama. Associating yourself with unneeded drama is so useless and not something you have time for. Drama can be distracting and overbearing. It can cause you to slack off in school and worry more about what your friend said about you last week, than about your schoolwork.
- Take end of the year exams seriously. There are 3 state tests that are a graduation requirement. These tests are Geometry, PM3, and Biology. Pay extra attention in these classes so you can pass with a level 3 or higher. You don’t want to spend your Junior or Senior year playing catch up and not being able to have time for other activities. Use senior privilege as an inspiration, it helps!
- Create a routine for yourself after school. This helps in terms of time management. If you have a routine it will give you time to do everything you need to do like sports practice, homework, and getting to sleep. Doing all these things and still having time for yourself in the end can help you feel accomplished and relaxed.
- If you have AICE classes, don’t stress too much about them. While it is true that passing an AICE class gives you college credit, and it is a graduation requirement to pass an accelerated course, don’t stress about them until you’ve met you graduation requirements for this year. Study more for your Biology EOC, rather than your AICE General Papers test. You still have two more years to pass that accelerated course.
A special tip from Ms.Simms, our behavior specialist!
- Stay focused and believe that you can do anything you want to accomplish. Be kind, patient, and understanding.
