High school has been known to be stressful, especially freshman year, trying to adapt to the ever changing system. A few seniors have been kind enough to offer up some advice to freshmen to help them have a successful transition to a very different environment.

Now over a month into school, juggling countless assignments and after school life has been tough for senior Sarah Young.

“I rely on my planner a lot. It helps me because I don’t have to cram all of my information in my head,” Young said.

While learning to balance school work is important, Young made it clear it’s just as important to have fun and not worry about what people think. Young also touched on not being, as the saying goes, “too cool for school.” 

“I feel like a lot of people come into high school and they’re just like I don’t want to do that, I don’t want to participate,” Young said. “But as you get further into high school you realize that stuff is fun and that it’s OK to be weird and silly.”

Seniors, after going through four years of high school, are known to have mastered the dos and don’ts, and senior Issac Lacroix said there are a few things to avoid.

“Don’t limit yourself in any activities you do,” LaCroix said. “And if you ever feel like you’re not interested in a specific activity don’t be afraid to move on to other things.”

LaCroix said he wished he knew to take his more difficult classes as an underclassman, instead of cramming them all in senior year.

“Don’t be afraid to try hard and put in the effort necessary to complete all the class work and ace all your tests,” LaCroix said.

Despite how fun senior Connor Falkner’s freshman year was, he said he wishes he knew better note taking skills.

“[My advice to freshmen is to] stay off your phone and try to pay attention in class,” Falkner said.

While everyone’s freshman year is different, these seniors said they all struggled in a way, including Young.

“I realized that we’re gonna go our separate ways, but that’s OK because you’ll find people that have similar interests as you,” Young said.

As a competitive dancer, Young learned to neatly organize her time, as well as acknowledging things are going to change.

“[Make] sure you do leave time for, not only your homework, but for yourself to recover, to sleep, to do things you like to do and that make you happy,” Young said.

Just like Young, LaCroix is also involved in extracurricular activities.

“The best way to handle [extracurricular activities] is to talk with the leaders of [those] extracurriculars and make sure you can schedule yourself around that,” LaCroix said.

LaCroix said the key to having a good high school experience is to not just survive, but thrive.

“Keep your options open as a whole as you’re going through your high school career,” LaCroix said. “Because you don’t know when you’d end up in a situation you can’t get out of.”