With about 2 months left of school, it is almost summer break for our Gateway Gators. It is now May and students need to make sure all work is done, handle extra activities, as well as their social life. High school or middle school, all students should know how they can make the most of the end of their year.
Good grades and staying on track in school opens the doors for future opportunities. Keeping that mentality in mind throughout the whole year can help you be more successful. At the end of the year students can start to slack off or not take things as seriously as they did before. High expectations are common especially during high school, and there are many simple things that can make everyone have a good end of the year.
Something that can really help is staying organized, which can allow students to get things done more on time so they have more time to themselves. Another thing is to set obtainable goals that you can reach. Motivation will come from you accomplishing a goal and setting small ones can help you accomplish more. It can also be useful to give yourself a break. Work hard when you can so when you need a break you can take one. Overall, May is a hard month and students should make sure they are always giving their best efforts to stay focused.
Mr. D’Alessandro, one of Gateways math teachers, weighed in on this topic. When asked about how to relieve stress, he said, “I think relieving stress at the end of the year starts at the beginning of the year. If you are a student who put in the work and did everything to the best of your ability throughout the year, then you shouldn’t be stressed. If you didn’t consistently work hard throughout the year, then you will naturally feel stressed because you aren’t prepared.”
He also had a couple tips on how to be less stressed in math, saying “Math is like anything that you want to do your best at. If you put in the practice you will do well. It doesn’t mean there won’t be struggles and frustration during the learning process, but in the end the practice will pay off.”
The last thing I asked was, “What is something you don’t see students do that they should at the end of the year?” “Consistent effort is something that can hinder a student’s performance. If all students could put forth consistent effort to close out a year they could avoid a possible dip in their performance,” he shared.
I also interviewed Ela Tok, a three sport athlete and Gateway student. When asked what students can do to help at the end of the year she said, “Just focus and don’t get distracted, keep your head in it…It is almost the end of the year.”
I asked, “What is something you should have done that would have helped you this school year?” “Well… staying off of my phone would have helped more. It was a big problem for me this year and caused problems during my classes,” responded Tok.
Being a 3 sports athlete can be challenging as she said, “Sports keep me busy after school, especially doing one every season which takes time away from my friends and family on weekdays and even weekends. School work was also hard to balance because we had sports everyday and there would not be a break. There would be little time to do it after school and extracurriculars so it was harder to manage.”
Balancing school, social life, sports, and extracurriculars will be hard no matter what. It is important to think about the future and what you want–that can help you find out what’s worth it to you.
The end of the year typically feels like a break for students, but there is also a reminder to keep things in perspective. High school is the start of your adult life and hopefully all students will make the most of their year and stick with what’s important to them even through the end. Everyone deserves a successful and stress free end to school to kick off the summer.
