End of the Year Assessments by: Christian Sporre

As the school year winds down, the usual bombardment of end of the year projects and test slam all students across the nation. I now have a lot of time on my hands to get all of these things done since my track season has just ended. It is a huge change to go from working out for two hours and getting home late, to not having anything to do but school work. I find that even with the extra amount of time I have, it is even harder to get things done. When I come home now I have several hours to get all of my work done, so naturally I will procrastinate. This is leading to a big problem given the fact that I have twice as many things to work on. My stress levels are through the roof because of the insane amount of things that are due in the next two weeks. In fact, after I am done with this bowtieboys meeting, I will have to go home and study for my history SOL, which is tomorrow. On that same day I will have a spanish quiz, and I will have to turn in my results paragraph for my biology project which I am doing alone. The next day I will have my biology SOL so I will have to find time to study for that as well. The thought of just walking out of school on the last day has single handedly drove me to work my hardest. Junior year will definitely be the hardest year of all from what I have heard. I have no doubt about that. I have not taken an AP course yet but I will be taking two next year. On top of that, The rest of my classes will be at honors level with the exception of one elective. I think it is really important for me and all students to prepare for the next year during the summer so we are ready to be hit with tons of work at the beginning of the school year. I have been thinking of a good and effective way of doing this. I need to keep my brain academically active, while still not throwing away my summer. I spend most of my summer with my friends, so I think that is a good way to prepare for the next school year, while still having fun and chilling out. One of my friends has offered to help me prepare for my AP US history class with small review sessions with other friends. It will not be the most fun during these sessions but I know that it will make my transition from summer to school ten times easier. When I think back to the beginning of the school year, I remember my transition being anything but smooth. On the first day I was already given material to study, due dates, upcoming projects. I think teacher should  try their best to do what they can to ease their students transitions. Instead of grades right off the bat, it would be good to do some light review mixed in with fun activities. As the days go on, keep increasing the amount of things you are learning until eventually you are in a traditional class. This would help students slowly gain their school work mindset back, leading to good work in the classroom. It is a good idea to suggest the summer review with friends to your class. I can guarantee that it will help all students who try it out. I am nervous yet excited for this upcoming year. It may be my hardest year, but I will be prepared and ready to take on the new challenges I am faced with.