I remember how fun and easy freshmen year was like the back of my hand. My only worry in the world was to finish coloring Thomas Jefferson for Mr. Bulebosh’s history assignment. When I was a freshman I had a boyfriend, 45-minute classes, an hour-long lunch where we were allowed to walk around and have fun, and even get help from teachers.
Fast forward to sophomore year, everything was just different. 1 hour and 20-minute classes, no boyfriend, and challenging classes (especially chemistry). Sophomore year felt different yet still, I did not take the year as seriously I should of. Yes, I did get good grades but they could have been better. As a sophomore, I always looked for advice or anything that could help me because graduating high school is such a big milestone for a person, but the thought scares me. Looking back at it all now I hate how different freshman year was from my sophomore year, and even now my junior year.
Starting my junior year I had a scary feeling almost like being 7 years old and being scared of the dark. During the first two weeks, I realized that a year from now I’d be deciding, applying, and getting accepted to colleges. This also meant now was the time to make those “game plans” to fulfill the future that I want.
Growing up is scary. The thought of failure is always in the back of my mind, which sometimes is a good thing but it also makes me anxious. I am, as of right now, a 16-year-old who is shaping her future. It is all up to me, but I still feel like a kid navigating through the halls, meeting new teachers, and learning all my responsibilities. My youth is slipping away and it’s almost gone.
When scheduling my classes for my junior year I chose classes focused on my future career. I knew I needed this class, multimedia journalism. I want to be a sideline reporter catching all the action. I have been in broadcasting for 3 years and love it, but sometimes I need another perspective on it. Sometimes you don’t get to pick the projects you want to do but that’s also how it is in the reporting field. I will not get to ask the questions I want to, yes off camera maybe… but sometimes there are things you can’t share with the world.
Starting my junior year I wanted to be better than the previous years, well everyone does. I’ve always cared about my grades, but I felt I needed to care more intensely. My mindset during my sophomore year was “As long as my overall grade percentage is good I’ll be fine.” After the second week of school, I realized I wanted individual grades to be perfect. Even missing one point on an assignment makes me upset. A 42/48 on my AP human quiz made me realize I needed to work harder, so my grades reflect me as a person.
We all started as kindergarteners, it was scary and nerve-racking, went to junior high, a huge change, and then high school, an exciting new experience. All these years we’ve had some type of consistency, and that was school. College is also a part of that but after that, it’s a whole new life, a new viewpoint, but the stress will always be there.
“There’s a lot of pressure to do good on every assignment and go above and beyond to get a good grade because of college. People tell me that junior year is the most important year of high school and colleges mostly look at this year”
Avery Federico ‘26
“I dislike it very much. I feel stressed more than I ever have. Just to even get help. I also feel like I can’t socialize because I don’t get to see anyone. Lunch is also terrible. I think most of it is because of the schedule.”
Juliana Mattis ‘26
“I don’t really like it because I don’t get to see any of my friends. There’s barely any time to do clubs or seek help for classes.”
Gabriella Simone-Lurito ‘26
