Olympia High School is filled up with nearly 3,000 students, divided among four grades. Seniors have had three years of prior high school experience, unlike the freshmen who are right out of middle school. At very different stages along their high school careers, their viewpoints may differ greatly. That leads to the big question: how do freshmen view high school compared to their senior counterparts?
Four of the most significant years of your life begin the moment you walk through those doors entering your high school for the first time. Did middle school prepare incoming freshmen for the journey ahead of them?
“Having an older sister who went through the high school system gave me great advice on what path I should go down and what I should stay away from,” freshman Alexandra Scott said.
Middle school teachers can repeat over and over again the importance of choosing their version of the right path, but advice from someone who went through it more recently is going to be more reliable. After three full years of experience, seniors have a pretty good understanding of the path they’re going down. Senior Madden Bourst described his previous experiences as an underclassman to be most beneficial to the success he’s come upon.
“The struggle of waking up early and getting accommodated to that sleep schedule shaped me into a more prepared student mentally and physically,” Bourst said. Bourst’s ability to stay on track with his goals has been no easy feat. As he got more experience with the flow of high school, he was able to adjust and stay focused. With the guidance of seniors and past graduates, freshmen are going to improve and succeed in their goals more often than not. Bourst added that “surrounding myself with the right crowd of people helped me stay on track and continue to perform at my best.” Bourst uses fellow classmates’ success to keep him pushing for high academic achievements as he is currently ranked number 1 in his class.
As you get older and classes get harder, the workload increases with each and every year. How you handle the mental side of it plays a huge role in the success of a teenager’s academics. In middle school, many teachers warned their students about the workload that comes with being in high school. How do these freshmen stay motivated throughout the process of increasing academics? “If I do well in high school it will set my future up nicely,” freshman Mia Diouff said. Diouff’s motivation comes from striving for future success as she continues to push herself to reach those goals.
Being a senior can make it hard to stay motivated because you feel like you are so close to the end, finishing all the hard work you’ve put in over the past few years. “Taking various challenging courses throughout high school can be very discouraging as you can imagine, but the reminder that I’m putting in all of the hard work to reach my goals is very motivating,” senior Fiona Foley said. Staying motivated throughout the duration of high school can be a real challenge, but if you are willing to put in the time and keep a good mindset, you can achieve your goals. Fiona also dedicates her outside success to her enthusiastic attitude. “Being on the cheer team for 3 years made me look forward to doing well in school [so] I can be around my teammates and push them and myself to perform.” Foley is a leader even without her uniform on, keeping her head up and pushing her teammates in their academics as well.
High school is all about finding your path and interests to prepare you for the future. Great advice from mentors who have already been through high school and a sharp mindset of reaching the goals they lay out for themselves can help freshmen succeed as they begin their high school journey. Meanwhile, the seniors are so close to the finish line. Seniors rely on that extra bit of motivation and previous experience from their time at Olympia. Freshmen and seniors can come together through their experiences and motivate each other to get them to where they want to be.
