Freshman year is one that often marks a new chapter in a person’s life: the start of the dreaded four years of high school.
Coming from the Middle School at KO, one has some sense of security due to the fact that they’ve already become acclimated to the ways of the school.
As a veteran of the Middle School, moving up to the Upper School was still very intimidating.
By the first month, it was already quicker paced, more difficult, and I had a heavier workload. However, in most ways it was actually better than the Middle School.
As a member of the high school community, one finally gets to chew gum without being yelled at by a teacher and told to spit it out so that it wouldn’t end up on the underside of a table.
That, personally, was my favourite part. It was extremely nice to not have to sacrifice good smelling breath in favor of the tables.
I think my peers appreciate the notion as well, as they wouldn’t have to smell whatever I ate for lunch that day.
Another thing I appreciated was being able to hold my phone in my hand without being reprimanded.
I was finally able to communicate with not only my friends, but also my parents throughout the day.
The only major change however, was the amount of work we were given. In Middle School I had, at most, an hour of homework each night.
But in freshman year I had, at most, about two and a half hours.
As a freshman one is also required to stay in study hall for the first semester during their free periods.
If they get honor roll at the end of the first semester, then the study halls turn into free periods.
Going into high school,I was very excited about the promise of free periods, only to learn that I had to sit in a room with a bunch of people I hadn’t seen for three months and a teacher I didn’t know and be quiet for an hour. It wasn’t very tempting.
By the end of the semester, however, I was extremely grateful for the requirement of study hall.
It helped me get my homework done and learn how to adjust to high school without much trouble.
So by the time the first semester ended, I was free from study hall, and I learned how to manage my free time (relatively) wisely.
Another major difference between Middle School at KO and high school at KO is that in Middle School we had to play sports in the middle of the day.
This resulted in every athlete returning to their next class still sweaty and smelling like trash.
In freshman year, students finally get to wait until after classes have finished to get to work on the field.
This was an amazing change, especially for returners at KO, because after sports had ended we didn’t have to sit through a science or math class when all we really wanted to do was go home.
Freshman year does come with higher expectations and a lot more freedom.
But even though I had more responsibility, more work, and harder classes, freshman year was certainly one of my favorite years so far.
