The first quarter of my freshman life just ended Thursday and it wasn’t all smooth sailing. As my Living Environment teacher would say though, “ A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.”

The majority of my teachers decided that many projects and tests needed to be added to the gradebooks by the end of the week, so all of the students were frazzled by Veteran’s Day*. SchoolTool was abuzz with inputs of grades and calculations and traffic of worried students awaiting a grade that could make or break them.

I know many students make agreements with their parents; grades below certain percentages result in privileges taken away, grades above and beyond result in brand new rights. My parents always push me to do better than the year before and do the best that I can, even if I’m not a perfect student. I have had the nearly the same grades for the past three years, only fluctuating within four percent, so even a tenth of a point is a big deal for me and my family.  If I do better, I am rewarded with a smile and a tack through the report card onto our kitchen bulletin board, but a decrease leads to silent disappointment, that gnaws on my insides, and my father saying, “You still have room to improve here and here.” My motivation for my educational betterment is my parents’ expressions and what I want my future to look like. Even a day of slacking off can snowball into something that can affect your life permanently. Everyday we need to go one step at a time, enjoying the view as we go, but keeping our goals in mind.

One thing that affects students’ report cards a lot is homework.

For the students reading this–I know homework seems hard, tedious, and monotonous right now. Don’t worry.  I have it too. Don’t forget that your teachers give you it for a reason. They want you to do well in their classes and succeed in their subjects.  A great way to practice and get better in these areas is through worksheets and projects and yes, homework.

To the parents and teachers reading this–homework is hard and stressful for your children and sometimes we need help, but other times we need space to think. School has changed a lot in the past few years, especially with the introduction of Common Core (I started Common Core in fourth grade, so this is brand new for this generation). We learn new topics in new ways, and although it is confusing to you at times, it probably is even more confusing to your child. The benefits of learning in these ways though are enlightening and over joying. Just last week, I was struggling with a geometry problem and I had the key to check it right next to me. Instead of giving up and looking at the answer, I worked my way through it and was jumping up and down when I realized I had gotten it right!

Also, because this is a column based on freshmen, you may be wondering why I haven’t addressed my grade’s specific amount of homework. This is because your child has most likely been through the worst loads of it so far. A family member of mine that had went to Galway claimed fourth, seventh, and eleventh were the years they were given the most. I agree with this logic, but I also want to reinforce the fact that even though I broke my back lugging work back and forth to school, I learned the most those years. Ninth grade isn’t as much focused around this as much as it is long term projects, time management, and smooth social transitions.

Overall, I want to wish my fellow classmates the best of luck with their report cards being sent out in the next two weeks. If you have any suggestions for upcoming articles please comment below. Thank you so much for reading this edition of “Freshman Fears” and stay tuned every two weeks for new articles on Holidays, Lockers, and After School Activities.

*Veteran’s Day is a holiday in which I want to acknowledge and say thank you to all those who have put your lives on the line in order to keep their families and friends free. Thank you to all these courageous men and women.