By Emma Szabo and Diego Hernandez
Welcome back Panthers from your 2020-21 Co-Editors-in-Chief of the campus newspaper, juniors Emma Szabo and Diego Hernandez. As juniors we’ve had our fair share of experience around campus, but this year is going to be a new experience for us all. Although the kick off to the 2020 school year will be a challenge, we’d like to give you a few tips on how to experience a less frightening and joyful learning experience both inside the classroom and in your homes if you’re doing virtual.
First off, assignments can be daunting and take up a large amount of time if you don’t manage the work. Keep track of deadlines. Most of your classes are going to give you homework, so it’s important to turn it all in on time. Some teachers take off points for late assignments while others won’t accept the work past a certain day. Try to get a planner or use a digital calendar to remind yourself of when different assignments are due. Procrastination is a big issue for many teens in school, so it’s best to try and keep track of all your work to stay organized.
Keeping up with your work is a great thing, but if there’s an assignment that looks hard or you’re taking what seems a longer time period to do so, you can find help. Take advantage of school resources including tutoring time. Upon returning to campus the library is a great place to study or to work on homework before and after school and during lunch; they provide computers for you to use and both ink and color printers you can use anytime. The library is also home to the tutoring center room where you can get help for almost any subject during lunch with tutors in the room. It also provides a quiet place to work that you can go to even if you don’t need any help. In a home environment, find an area that’s clear of distractions. Put down your phone to avoid alarms and steer clear of noises around the house. Utilize these resources to get your schoolwork done and get any help you may need to make the school year better.
One other thing we’d like to mention is your effort is by definition what work you put into something. Don’t cheat on your assignments. Teacher’s look over assignments and projects evaluating and comparing papers to other students. If there is a pattern present they will see it and your paper may either be re-assigned or revoked entirely without a chance to make up the grade. Daily assignments make up forty percent of your grade in the class wall tests make up sixty percent weighing heavier. If you’re caught cheating on a test, the results to your average in the class could greatly suffer. There may be days where you get home late from hanging with your friends or have practice and there’s a pile of homework in your backpack, but cheating is never worth it.
Lastly, your high school experience is never fun without making some memories or interaction. Join some clubs. There are many clubs offered that take place all throughout the week, and some even provide opportunities for community service, so try finding one that fits your schedule and interests. Clubs are a great way to meet new friends and get involved with the school. Colleges also like to see extracurriculars like clubs on applications, so joining a club now can help out in the future. Some of these clubs can include: Acts of Kindness, Spanish, French or language clubs, and not to toot our own horns but Yearbook and Newspaper clubs. You’ll find a new adventure awaiting you.
With the responsibility of a new learning environment, if you’re a freshman or needing a rebriefing as a returning upperclassman, we hope this story will find you well and assist you in the new school year that is to come. Although we may not have included each minor detail or lesson, know that your teachers and families are there to help you as the school year progresses. Together we will learn how the effects of the coronavirus can challenge us in our school, and for some of our homes, but we will get through this. Panthers let’s have ourselves a great school year.