3 Lies You Are Told About Highschool

From the desk of Katie…

I am finishing my first quarter of highschool in Winston-Salem, NC.  Before I came to highschool, I was told lots of things about what highschool would be like.  People made me kind of nervous with the things they said and the way they described it.  Now that I am in highschool, I have been able to see what was true and what was not.  Here are 3 things that were totally off:

1. Highschool will be harder than middle school.

I was always told that highschool would be nothing but homework and lots to do in class.  I was told that there would be more to keep up with when I got to highschool.  Instead, there has not been too much homework at all. I normally have no more than an hour and a half of homework (on average) each day.  If we have a sub, the homework amount increases by about 3 times because our teachers give more work on sub days and want it done in the same amount of time.  My classes are easy to keep up with as long as I am there and pay attention.  My teachers allow us freedom as long as we maintain our work so it’s not very hard to stay motivated to get things done when they are due.  We are assigned projects but none of it is too difficult because the teachers tell us what we are supposed to do, when we are supposed to do it and I can pace myself the right way.

2.  Adjusting will be difficult.

My middle school was a small, magnet school.  I thought for sure it would be really hard to figure things out and find things in highschool.  Instead, I adjusted quickly.  It helped to know some people there and after the first few days, I didn’t get lost at all.  The teachers are really nice- they actually tell you where to go and how to get there so you can find your way.  Basically if you can be nice and make some friends then you will be fine.  Its easier to make friends with one person and then get to know their friends instead of trying to get to know a lot of new people at once.

It also helped me to be on a team.  I started playing field hockey and met new people the weekend before school started.  There were girls in the upper grades that could give me advice and help me know how to do things.  They were really inviting and helped me get involved and feel like I belonged. Even if you are not on a team, take advantage of the people at freshman orientation.  They were really friendly and can help.

3.  People won’t be friendly.

I was told that most people in highschool wouldn’t be friendly and I would have to do things on my own and since I came from a small school I would be doing things alone for a while.  That’s just not true.  Everyone is friendly.  Aside from the regular random bad moods, everyone is nice.  Even if people look scary, they are really nice.  I was also told seniors don’t really talk to freshman.  In my art class, they do.  If you act mature and not like a bratty freshman, they will talk to you.

So my advice for people who are going to highschool next year is don’t listen to everything people say.  Ignore all the negative stuff because the experience is going to be different for everyone.  The best thing is to ignore the stereotypes and just be yourself.

Katie M. is a guest blogger from Winston-Salem, NC.  She is currently in the 9th grade at Mt. Tabor Highschool where she spends her time enjoying #TaborCity, improving at field hockey, going to art class, and perfecting the art of learning.