Woodward Academy obviously welcomes new freshmen to the school each year. While they are the main focus at the beginning of the year, no one really talks about how freshmen feel going through the first semester as high schoolers. The focus often shifts over to the seniors as senioritis kicks in and college admissions are happening. So, how do freshmen feel months after they completed their first semester of high school?
Sophia Whitfield ‘29’s first semester in the ninth grade was really good for her. She learned how to be herself and branch out instead of being shy. She came out of her shell quickly, even though this was her first year at Woodward, on top of her going into high school. She became less shy and way more gregarious. Nothing about high school scares her. As a matter of fact, she finds high school easy.
“My first semester was amazing,” Sophia said. “I made a bunch of new friends, met a lot of great people and I’m excelling in all my classes. I love it here.”
Everyone faces challenges throughout school. It can be academic, or like Sophia, non-academic.
“My biggest challenge was finding the correct group of people to surround myself with,” Sophia said. “I’ve gone through some ups and downs with people.”
Nervousness is a collective feeling among freshmen. Jumping into high school can be scary, especially as a new student. With Woodward’s college-like environment, it can be even more nerve-wracking.
“High school isn’t even that bad and going in wasn’t terrible either,” Sophia said. “I was just kinda nervous.”
When going through high school, some people may need motivation to keep them going. Sophia’s isn’t what you would think, though.
“My Gov. [&] Econ [teacher], Mrs. [Malia] Myers, has been a big help, too, because she’s really helpful,” Sophia said.
But motivation obviously differs between people. Tati Stith ‘29 motivates herself, as she believes that her work ethic is better when she pushes herself.
“I feel like what motivates me to the max is myself,” Tati said. “I feel like I push myself way harder when I try to do my work.”
Sometimes all you really need is yourself to reach your full potential. Tati’s first semester was just alright, but better than last year, and she feels the biggest difference from middle school is the size and the people.
“Middle school was smaller, so you’re forced to be around people you don’t want to be around,” Tati said. But with high school, I can branch out and be with the people I like.”
She was able to find people she liked and spend most of her time with, but that didn’t come easily. “I wanted to surround myself with the best people possible who would lift me up and not break me down,” Tati said.
Tati was hopeful but also nervous for high school. She was excited for new opportunities in high school and wanted to make great memories. She feels like starting high school helped her become a better person and understand herself better.
“High school is helping me find myself and know my personality. I feel like I’m growing as a person and becoming more mature,” Tati said.
For the rest of her high school years, she looks forward to accomplishing all of her goals.
“So I have this bucket list… some things are like having all A’s or improving my time management and stop procrastinating,” Tati said.
Although Reign Cowthorn ‘29’s first semester was stressful, she enjoyed it.
“As a new Woodward student I had to get used to a lot of different things and adapt, but I made a lot of friends and did really well in my classes, so I really enjoyed my first semester,” Reign said.
Reign’s first semester treated her well, serving as a challenge for her and helping her put in hard work and grow as a student and a person. Reign feels like high school is really different from middle school, but one difference stands out to her more.
“[The biggest difference is] The work,” Reign said. “I feel like middle school was way more lenient with homework and work overall in class, but in high school, there’s no one holding your hand, so you have to do all the work by yourself, whether it’s in class or out of class.”
The easiest part of high school for Reign is making friends, as everyone at Woodward is friendly, and she didn’t have any trouble making friends or establishing her friend group. Reign looks forward to growing these friendships and making more in the future.
Nerves are normal when starting something new, especially something as big as high school. Atticus Wesley ‘29 said his nerves were off the roof back in August.
“My first semester was alright,” Atticus said. “It was nerve-wracking at the start but it became better. High school was and still is pretty stressful.”
Atticus’ friends are his biggest motivation for high school and they’re also what he looks forward to into the upcoming years in high school.
“My biggest help has been my friends because if I don’t have good enough grades I can’t really hang out with them,” Atticus said. “I’ll get grounded and won’t be able to go out, which I obviously wouldn’t really like.”
Of course, high school doesn’t have the easiest classes. For Atticus, the hardest class is Government & Economics. Not only are classes different, but relationships can be different too.
“I think it’s the freedom that’s the most different… and social groups,” Atticus said. “My social groups have definitely changed a lot.”
But what if you think about the work and classes? Well, Logan Coble ‘29 says that with classes in mind, high school is very difficult.
“…I don’t know, probably the harder classes like HP ones are definitely the worst,” Logan said. “I take a few HP classes and they’re really hard.”
People can mature in many ways; they can change their humor, or grow physically or mentally. However, Logan’s maturity shows through her work. Her work ethic is what changed the most from middle school to high school.
“Although my mindset has changed, the biggest thing for me is my work ethic,” Logan said. “I’m taking things so much more seriously and I’m really proud of myself for working so hard.”
Everyone needs some motivation in order to get comfortable in new environments. For freshmen, it could be a senior or a parent. However, some students, such as Reign, believe that motivation stems from your mindset.
“For high school you just need to push yourself,” Reign said. “Tell yourself you can do it, and you’ll be able to make it.”
