By Isabel Najjar '19 Transitioning from high school to college can be a big step for future freshmen. If you’re stressing over this new chapter of life this upcoming fall, here are a few ways you can prepare before even stepping foot in a university or dorm.
Read as Much as Possible Most college courses consist of a lot more reading than high school requires. Students should start to get used to college workload by reading various books during the summer before college. Getting a Job Freshman Year College is very expensive, and the costs go way beyond just tuition. There are various day expenses such as eating out, commuting from place to place, and also weekend entertainment. These expenses are very significant to a student’s college budget. Managing a part-time job can definitely help budget money for college expensive. However, it may take time away from your studies. This is way before making the decision to work as a freshman, you should talk with your family about financial expectations. Contact Professors Before Classes Begin By contacting college professors before classes start this will help build a strong relationship and can help students succeed in class. Once you have received your schedule, you should definitely consider emailing professors and see if you can meet up with a few of them during your college orientation. Reach Out for Academic Help Various colleges have offices that are dedicated to help students find majors, write essays, help plan classes, etc. If you’re looking to speak to professors or counselors you should take advantage of open office hours. Research Ways to Get Involved at Your College Colleges provide various opportunities for students to explore interests and find new hobbies. Whether it’s getting involved in social issues, playing sports, or joining a musical ensemble your college definitely has a club for it! You should have a plan for how you will get involved before arriving. This will help you select meaningful activities and make sure you do not miss important sign-up days and meetings. Take advantage of these tips before going to college. These tips will prepare you for a better transition from high school. It’s time for seniors to start thinking about their future at their dream university!
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By Isabel Najjar ‘19 Having healthy sleep habits can make a major impact on your quality of life. According to the National Issues of Health (NIH), each adult needs 7-8 hours of sleep each night to be well-rested, however, most people get less than that. Here are four tips for achieving a good night’s sleep every night.
1. Stick to a Sleep Schedule This would include the same bedtime and wake-up time during both the week and weekends. Sticking to a consistent sleep schedule will make your body start to feel more tired around bedtime and more alert in the morning, rather than feeling drowsy. This is all due to your body getting used to falling asleep and waking up at a certain time. 2. Avoid Naps If you have a difficult time sleeping, avoid napping in the afternoon. Although napping during the day may make you feel better rested, however, this can make you feel too rested, making it harder to fall asleep at night time. Napping can also interfere with your internal ‘clock,’ making it a struggle to sleep during the night. Longtime day naps may also impair your sleep quality, therefore, if you have a difficulty sleeping at night, take power naps instead or stop napping. 3. Sleep on a Comfortable Mattress Make sure that your mattress is supportive and comfortable. The mattress that you may have been using for years may have exceeded its life expectancy. Mattresses last about 9-10 years, so if you’ve had your mattress for much longer than 10 years, it might be the reason as to why you are having trouble sleeping. 4. Relax and Clear Your Mind Before Sleeping Feeling relaxed before bed will improve your sleep quality and make it relatively easier to fall asleep. Relaxation techniques that could help you sleep better at night include taking a hot shower, reading a book, listening to music, and meditating. Try to keep your mind clear of the things that may be stressing you out. Instead, try out the best methods that you find may work for you to be more relaxed. Having a good night’s sleep plays a key role in your health and your day-to-day life. These tips are good recommendations for achieving better sleep during the night. If you are interested in having good health and well-being, then you should consider making your sleep a top priority and incorporate the tips stated above in your sleep routine. By Isabel Najjar '19 If you’re hoping to score high on the SATs and improve your chances of getting accepted into your dream school, you will need to know the best ways to study for the exam. However, without a study plan and study techniques to study for the SATs effectively, you won’t be able to score your best even with tons of prep time. In this article, I will provide you with the four ultimate tips that are essential to your SAT prep.
#1: Set a Target Score Before beginning your prep, you’ll need to figure out what score you’re trying to get on the SAT. Having a target score will get you motivated and ready to begin studying. The easiest way to find your target score is to look up the 75th percentile of SAT scores for the schools you are planning on applying to. If you achieve an SAT score equal or above the 75th percentile, then you have a great chance into getting into those schools! #2: Know Your SAT Scores Early on Take a practice SAT test around six months prior to taking the exam. By doing this, you will have a good sense of how close you are to your SAT goal. If you still feel like you can improve, that may mean that you need to study earlier than you expected. Taking a full-length practice test will give you an idea of how long the test will last and demonstrate what parts of the test you are struggling with. #3: Review Your Mistakes and Focus on Your Weaknesses The most important studying method you can do for studying the SAT is to determine why you made a certain mistake and focus on the parts of the test in which you feel the weakest. That will help ensure that you will not make the same mistake in the future. It doesn’t matter if you feel like the mistake you made was silly or if you were just confused. All mistakes you made should be analyzed and recorded. #4: Take a Break the Night Before the Test It’s hard for many students to take a break the night before the test. Some will think that the night before the exam is a crucial time to study for the SAT. Most times, students will wait to prepare for the exam until the night before. However, it is very important to make sure you are well rested and relaxed when you wake up to take the exam. Studying last minute could cause stress and lower your confidence. Therefore, the day before the test you should do something that you enjoy. By Isabel Najjar '19 To succeed in high school, you have to do your best at all times. However, sometimes it’s hard to stay motivated even when you care about what you are doing. Here are five tips to stay on the right track in school.
1. Change up your schedule If you are trying to finish school work after a full day of classes and extracurriculars, you might need to change up your schedule so you can work on homework and studying during a time where you could focus and concentrate. The trick to figuring out your schedule is to find out which part of the day you are the most productive with your schoolwork and begin to revolve your day around that. It will definitely take some time to adjust to your studying schedule, so don’t expect it to happen overnight. We are all different, therefore, your most productive times of the day may not be what you expect. But once you figure out your studying schedule studying will become a bit easier. 2. Change up your learning styles At some point in high school, you may get a little too comfortable with your learning techniques or style. If you begin struggling with your homework, it may be because you’re either procrastinating or simply not making your work worth your time. For example, if you need to write an essay, choose a topic that interests you. And if this topic isn’t really working for you, don’t be afraid to ditch it and try something new. By doing this, you can stay focused and motivated. Once you know exactly how you learn, this could help you find new methods that motivate yourself. You can change your learning style based upon your class, subject, or even your assignments. 3. Reward Yourself! Once you have completed one or two of your homework assignments, reward yourself with a short period of relaxation time. It could be fifteen minutes of a power nap, checking social media, eating a snack, watching Netflix, or whatever makes you relaxed! 4. Get rid of distractions This may seem pretty obvious, but many students nowadays try to study with one eye on their school work and the other eye on their social media. In order to keep away from all distractions, you can turn off your cell phones, mute text messages, and delete all games from your computer. 5. Set Goals Setting goals will remind you of what you are striving towards and why. For example, if you are not doing well in a class, set a goal to remind yourself that you want to do better. If you set goals, you will constantly be reminded of what you need to achieve and why you need to work harder. By Niamh McCarthy '22 Getting a bad grade can really ruin your day. Almost always, bad scores are caused by ineffective studying. So what are some effective study methods that will boost your grades?
Of course, if there’s ever material that you simply do not understand, you may have to contact your teacher for extra help. The teachers here at Fontbonne are, for the most part, more than willing to set up a time to meet with you and help you understand anything they presented that confuses you. |