For me, junior year was one of the hardest school years I’ve ever had in my life. ACT, SAT, and several AP and Honors classes made this year’s work load much larger than before. Yet, junior year also taught me certain things essential for growing up and transitioning from a child to a young adult.

1.) Do Not Procrastinate 

I know many of you have either heard this from your parents or your teachers, but in all seriousness, do not procrastinate. You will fall behind if you leave everything for last minute. There isn’t enough time to finish all your homework the night before, and staying up past 3 a.m. isn’t really helpful, because you will forget everything the next day. So take heed and do your homework throughout the week, and not the night before. Your future self will thank you.

2.) Set Up a Schedule 

There is so much that goes on during junior year that you will forget when your homework is due and when your tests are happening. Setting up a daily or weekly schedule will help you stay on top of things and know whats going on. Also, it helps keep you more organized, a much needed trait of junior year. Finally, checking off things you’ve finished feels good, and surprisingly motivates you to do more.

3.) Talk With Your Teachers

Your teachers are here to help you, not to fail you, so ask them for help. Do not be afraid to approach a teacher with any questions you have; they will most likely have an answer to your question. In addition, talking with teacher will usually lower your stress levels, as their clam and cool nature is reassuring.

4.) Be Involved

Junior year also taught me that being involved and participating in class activities is a must need for success. Participating in class gets your head working. It helps you develop your own ideas, and it helps with learning that courses material. So don’t be afraid to raise your hand and answer a question, you’ll be surprised how helpful this really is.

5.) Do Not Miss School

I know that many high schoolers tend to take days off after a certain number of weeks to rest their minds, catch up on work, or simply because they don’t want to go. Although it sounds nice to take a day off once in a while, it’s actually quite detrimental. Not only are you skipping school, you are also missing a full day of learning/opportunities.

6.) Sleep is Essential 

To get the best scores, you must sleep. I’ve noticed a correlation between the number of hours I sleep, and the scores I get on my tests. It shows that as I get more sleep, my scores on my tests improve. So get your sleep, and start your homework early, so that you can succeed this year.

7.) Don’t Be Afraid to Try

Finally, junior year is full of opportunities awaiting to be found. You have to step out of your comfort zone to find what you like. Don’t worry if that class is hard, just try it. Always keep your head up, and positive thoughts, and you will be just fine.

Junior year was also one of the best school year I’ve ever had. I made new friends, learned new things, and started to prioritize the things that matter.

If you stay on top of things, and keep your grades up, this year will be one to remember.