JUNIOR YEAR
Warning: Stressful YearBY CAMERON TEANEY ON OCTOBER 18, 2013
The alarm clock blares its obnoxiously loud and familiar sound, one that many high schoolers know all too well. While the task of waking up is not one that most students enjoy, it often advances to a whole new level of difficulty for those who are enduring their junior year. Many juniors agree that this year is definitely their hardest year of high school. With the introduction of a more rigorous workload, a busier social calendar and just the responsibilities that come with being an upper classman, junior year can be full of challenges but also excitement.
“[Junior year] is a little harder because freshmen and sophomore year I was in some honors classes, but this is the first time I’m taking on a whole lot more honors classes than I usually would so it is more difficult than usual,” junior Kiara Gardner said. Junior Emily Downs can relate to Gardner’s stress about school, for she too has a schedule that is much more difficult than in years past. Taking four AP courses, Downs said that her junior year has been nothing short of busy. “It’s really crazy and busy all of the time- lots of work,” Downs said. “With all the classes I’m taking, I do homework from the time I get home until the time I go to sleep.” For some, this year is also somewhat of a turning point, or a chance for students like junior Josh Smith to achieve personal academic goals. “This year has been really different [because of] the fact that this year I’m striving for straight A’s so I’ve been trying a lot harder and it’s been a lot more stressful on me,” Smith said. “Junior year is such a transition especially with all the academic classes.” Fortunately, Smith’s hard work is paying off despite the more challenging course load; he is making good grades and so far succeeding with his goal. However, the craziness of being a junior is not confined to the classroom. Higher level sports, honor societies, volunteer opportunities, clubs and other extra-curricular activities also add to the busyness of many juniors’ lives. “Basketball [makes this year busier],” junior Simone Stroud said. “I played basketball last year but I’m on varsity this year and have three workouts a day.” In addition to playing varsity basketball, Stroud participates in ROTC, which requires more time and involves more responsibilities than in previous years. Downs too is taking on more activities outside of her studies by joining several honors societies and Gardner also said that she wants to be more involved with extracurriculars this year. “I’m planning on joining track,” Gardner said. “I’m trying to go out for more clubs and sports this year to make it more special than my freshman and sophomore year.” Most juniors agree that SMART Block is a useful tool in helping students (such as themselves), who are inundated with so much work and other commitments, better manage their time. Now that SMART Block is gone, these juniors are back to the stress of the normal school day schedule. “The removal of SMART block makes it hard for me to have study sessions for classes that I might be struggling in,” Gardner said. “Since I’m in all honors classes, the work can be overloading to me sometimes.” Regardless of the challenges, extensive work load and busy schedules that junior year presents, there are some highlights to the year that marks the halfway point to graduation. “I know it’s going to pay off,” Downs said. “It’s nice being an upper classman now.” The alarm clock blares its obnoxiously loud and all too familiar sound. While the task of waking up is not one that most students enjoy, it often advances to a new level of difficulty for those who are enduring their junior year. With the introduction of a more rigorous workload, a busier social calendar and just the responsibilities that come with being an upper classman, junior year can be full of challenges but also excitement. “[Junior year] is harder because freshmen and sophomore year I was in some honors classes, but this is the first time I’m taking on a whole lot more honors classes than I usually would,” junior Kiara Gardner said. Junior Emily Downs can relate to Gardner’s stress., for she too has a more difficult schedule than in years past. Taking four AP courses, Downs said that this year has been nothing short of busy. “It’s really crazy and busy all of the time,” Downs said. “I do homework from the time I get home until the time I go to bed.” For some, this year is also somewhat of a turning point, or a chance for students like junior Josh Smith to achieve personal academic goals. “This year has been really different [because of] the fact that this year I’m striving for straight A’s so I’ve been trying a lot harder and it’s been a lot more stressful on me,” Smith said. “Junior year is such a transition especially with all the classes.” Fortunately, Smith’s hard work is paying off despite the more challenging course load; for he is so far succeeding with his goal. However, the craziness of being a junior is not confined to the classroom. Higher level sports, honor societies, volunteer opportunities and clubs add to the busyness. “Basketball [makes this year busier],” junior Simone Stroud said. “I played basketball last year but I’m on varsity this year and have three workouts a day.” In addition to playing varsity basketball, Stroud participates in ROTC, which requires more time and involves more responsibilities than in previous years. Downs too is taking on more activities outside of her studies by joining several honors societies and Gardner also said that she wants to be more involved with extracurriculars this year. “I’m trying to go out for more clubs and sports this year to make it more special than my freshman and sophomore year,” Gardner said. SMART Block helped ease the workload of many of juniors. Howver, now that SMART Block is gone, juniors are back to the stress of the regular schedule. “The removal of SMART block makes it hard for me to have study sessions for classes that I might be struggling in,” Gardner said. “The work is overloading sometimes.” Regardless of the challenges, extensive work load and busy schedules that junior year presents, there are some highlights to the year that marks the halfway point to graduation. “I know it’s going to pay off,” Downs said. “It’s nice being an upper classman now.” HTML Comment Box is loading comments...
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