Dear incoming freshman, eighth grade was probably one of your favorite years of school yet. You have your core friend group, and it’s your last year of middle school. You’re probably excited and maybe a little nervous for your first year of high school. But don’t worry, because I have plenty of advice for you.
At this point in your life, your main, or maybe your only, focus is your friends. In high school, your friendships with a lot of your middle school friends will fizzle out. Don’t worry! In your freshman year, you’ll make plenty of new friends. This school is huge, so you’re bound to have classes with people who share your interests. You’ll be able to connect with people of all grades. But this isn’t always a good thing
As a freshman, there’s a good chance an upperclassman (Junior/Senior) will try to go after you. DO NOT date an upperclassman!! There’s a reason why they’re not going for someone their age. And it’s definitely not for a good reason. They probably had a reputation within their grade, so they go for someone younger. Someone more gullible and vulnerable. I promise you that that upperclassman is not the love of your life and you do NOT have to date them. A very wise senior told me once: “If the grades don’t touch, then neither should you,” and I would like to say that that is amazing advice. (If you’re reading this, Natalie, I love you!!)
Throughout middle school, you might’ve achieved very good grades, or it might’ve been the opposite. Either way, it’s important to know that your grades matter in high school. If you didn’t try throughout middle school, you should start trying now. Your freshman year will be your easiest year of high school. It might feel like a “prep year” for what’s to come. But this isn’t an excuse not to try. It’s important to pay attention and turn in your work. And especially, TRY ON YOUR TESTS! Try! And if you’re not confident, then study. It hurts me to see really smart people not try on tests when they’re perfectly capable of doing so. You should always set big goals for yourself academically. But not goals that will overwhelm and stress you out. For my example, my goal for my freshman year was to retake any test I got less than an 85 on.
Good grades don’t always come easy. Especially in AP/honors classes. Sometimes you won’t get an ideal score on the first try. Retake any tests that you’re not happy with your score on! So many times, I’d see my friends or myself accept a poor grade (that they could’ve definitely fixed) because they were too lazy to retake. This is never a good idea. You should always retake if you’re not happy with your grade. Because your grade reflects how you do.
Another thing that’s important to remember is that friends will come and go. Drama is bound to happen at some point, especially if this is a friend you just made this year. When things are fresh, tension can build faster. A question you should seriously ask yourself when in an argument with friends is: Is it really worth it to argue with someone I’m close to? I would advise you to try to avoid conflict with someone you want to be in your life for a while. Obviously, it’s going to happen at some point, but I’m talking about little things that could be resolved easily. This is something else to consider as well. Do you really see this person being in your life long-term? If the answer is yes, then genuinely try to keep this person around and compromise on small disagreements. If the answer is no, then I advise you to keep this person on an acquaintance level.
All in all, your freshman year will be your funnest year but most mentally difficult year. With battling conflicts with new friends or academic struggles, its impoetant to have good advice to follow going into your first year of high school.
With love, Emma Sandoval.