Senior Schedule

This is the time of year for juniors to start making schedules for their senior year.  When kids start thinking about the classes they want to take, there are a few factors that come into play:  The rigor of the class, how it will fit into their schedules, and how many off periods they will be able to get.  There are obstacles for seniors now, though.  Seniors are now subjected to double-period AP's, which destroys the schedules of seniors.  Gym does not fit well into seniors schedules anymore, and presents a possible issue for scheduling.  For example, I want to take AP Physics, but that would mean I would have to take it every single day, which is a double period, and then take gym every other day 8th period.  This is an annoyance and ruins seniors day schedules.

February Break

With the second quarter coming to a close, students finally have something to look forward to.  February break is in around three breaks, which seems so quick already.  Recently coming off Christmas break, another break in the horizon seems too good to be true.  Many kids will be pushing through the next few weeks of school in order to grant themselves our next school break.  Midterms act as an incentive to power through school as well; kids generally feel satisfied after taking exams.  Thus, the break will be that much more relieving.

Midterms

This week is a stressful one for a lot of students.  The close of any quarter comes with testing and essays, but the end of the 2nd quarter is particularly stressful.  Midterms come around, however Half Hollow Hills no longer has a midterm week.  We have "cumulative exams" from the first quarter, which practically act exactly like a midterm.  This is the teachers way of making up for a midterm, and giving students another thing to worry about.

Midterms are bitter sweet, though.  Although they are just another exam to worry about, they signify the middle of the school year.  We are now onto the second half of the year, which is somewhat enlightening to many students.

2014 Australian Open

This year, the Australian open was very interesting.  The reigning number 1 Rafa Nadal went up against number 8 Stan Wawrinka in the final.  Despite the unbalance in seeding, the number 8 seed pulled out a win.  This was an amazing match, though some speculate that Nadal was injured.

Even though the final of the Australian open was great, it was somewhat disappointing to see Nadal play under an injury.  He appeared to be not trying, which, as a tennis player, is somewhat disheartening.  Even though I am not a Nadal fan, I would have rather seen him play to his fullest capacity than watch him lose injured.  The 2014 Australian Open was a great tournament, and I look forward to the next grand slam event and next years Aussie Open.

Australian Open

This is one of my favorite times of year.  Being a tennis player and a tennis fan, watching any tennis is a good time.  The Australian Open, however, is different.  It is the first of four grand slam tournaments on the 2014 calendar, and kicks off the season for all of the pros.  One of my favorite parts about the Australian open is the timing; since Australia is halfway across the world, the live coverage of the tournament airs late at night.  January nights for me consist of me finishing my work and getting into bed watching the tournament.  This is a great memory that I have, and I think I will always watch the Australian Open consistently when I'm older.

Senior's Schedules

Senior year is supposed to be a great year for high school students.  College is on the horizon, school is becoming slightly less important, and you are not bogged down with as much work as you had last year.  SAT's and ACT's are a thing of the past, and you are now focusing on newer and more exciting things.  I think that the school should do a better job of giving seniors a preference regarding their schedules.


There are so many downsides to the options seniors can pick regarding their schedules.  If seniors decide to take first and second period off, they are faced with not being able to find a reasonable parking spot in the morning.  This is extremely annoying; I think the school should give seniors permission to utilize spots around the school campus, other than those designated in the senior parking lot.  Schedules are not flexible enough, also, for students to take off in the morning and also in the afternoon.  Guidance should work with the school board to improve conditions for the senior population in High School East.

Time Budgeting

I find that when I have an extremely busy week ahead of me, what helps me the most is to plan out my work schedule.  I think that kids my age often times do not have the ability to prioritize, and end up wasting valuable time doing pointless and useless things.  It is also very difficult for athletes to manage time efficiently; as a tennis player, I do schoolwork around practices and tournaments.  Time management is a huge part of the real world, and I think that kids should start practicing now before it matters.

I also think that high school coaches should be more lenient with practices.  My tennis team has not lost a match in over two years, yet we still have an afternoon practice every single day.  In addition to weekday practices, we often have to wake up early on saturday mornings to practice.  Coaches should take students lives into consideration and work with them and their schedules.