How to Survive High School: GRADES

Welcome to my third installment of my “How to Survive High School” series! Today is my high school friends’ first day back at school! And in honor of another year, I thought I’d post my most import high school advice post: all about getting good grades.

In high school, grades seem to be the only thing that matter. I mean that’s whats going to get you into the college of your dreams, right? Well, kind of. While grades are important, they aren’t the end of the world. I know when I was in high school, that’s all I thought about–I constantly worried. What if I didn’t make an A on that test?! I was going to get a bad final grade in the class! And then I wouldn’t get into college!

And I’d be stuck at home for the rest of my life! And I wouldn’t be successful at all! Ok, yes I know that was a bit exaggerated, but I had thoughts like that in school! I thought that if I bombed a test, my life was over. I survived, and I got into college, so one bad grade isn’t the end of the world. Here are some of my tips for getting good grades in high school!

1. ONE BAD GRADE ISN’T THE END OF THE WORLD!! I can’t stress this enough. Sometimes you just have a bad day or a bad week. It’s ok! It happens! Life happens! There are so many factors that can go into how well you do on a test. Stress at home, at work, with family, with friends, with your boyfriend/girlfriend. Take it from someone who worried about every single test, don’t sweat it. Things will all work out.

2. But, with that said, DON’T SLACK OFF. I know it can be tempting to give up and not care, especially at the end of a semester or near a break, but think of how great you will feel if you prepare yourself for that midterm or final and aren’t spending that break worrying about how you did.

3. DON’T PUT OF TRYING TO PULL YOUR GRADE UP UNTIL THE END OF THE SEMESTER! This is a big one. I did this so many times, and had I just kept up with my grade the entire semester, I would’ve saved myself so many emotional breakdowns. Waiting until the last minute to fix your grade is one of the hardest things to do. It just adds more stress for you because not only do you have the stress of school, you have the stress of having to do well on EVERY assignment to try and raise your grade. Just don’t do it.

4. STUDY. STUDY. STUDY. I’ve never had to study until I got to high school. I think the hardest part about this is learning how to study. You have to find a method that works for you and keeps you interested. For me, I have to write everything down. That means copying my notes two or three times and writing flash cards.

5. FREE YOURSELF FROM DISTRACTIONS WHEN YOU STUDY.  Turn off your computer. Turn off your phone. Turn off anything with internet access. Well, unless you need it to study. For me, the internet is the biggest distraction. Checking Twitter and Instagram is way more fun that American History, but you’re just making more work for yourself by not studying. This also means to study somewhere where you aren’t going to get distracted. If that means you need to go to Starbucks, or Panera, or a library, do it! You’ll save so much time.

6. SET GOALS!! This seems to be relevant for everything. Setting a goal is a way to keep yourself accountable and will hopefully keep you on the right track. I set a goal my freshman and senior year that I wanted to make straight A’s, and I did! Sophomore and junior year were another story, but I set a goal for myself that I only wanted to make A’s and B’s. And guess what. I achieved that goal.

7. THAT ONE TEST ISN’T THE END OF THE WORLD. Yep. I’ve said this before, but I can’t stress this enough. Have I failed tests before? Oh yes. Several. Actually a lot. It happens.

8. LEAVE TIME FOR A SOCIAL LIFE. This is super super super important. It gives you time to not think about school and just relax. And when I say have a social life, that doesn’t mean only hanging out with friends to study. Go to the movies. Go shopping. Go get food.

9. DO YOUR HOMEWORK. Should I even put this in here? I mean this is common sense. Just do your homework.

Well there you go! Those are my tips for making good grades in high school! High school isn’t the end of the world, and it isn’t for everyone. It’s just one part of your life.

Check out my other high school survival posts!

Want to know all about my high school experience, click here! I want to know about your high school experiences! Leave a comment down below about how you make/made good grades in high school. I love to hear from you all!

-Abigail T.