<p>I honestly didn’t read the whole thread, so I’m sorry if I’m reposting. </p>
<p>DO: Get everything done well and on time. Put academics and extracurriculars first. Get to know your teachers, and yourself. Be challenged. Know who your friends are. </p>
<p>DON’T: Do anything your parents wouldn’t approve of. Start drama, especially drama regarding upperclassmen. Hate subjects. Be scared of upperclassmen.</p>
<p>Don’t:
Play too many videogames and waste your time.
Study for the sake of the test. As cliche as it is, your classes in the future will be much easier if you have a solid grounding in previous material.</p>
<p>Literally everyone at your school is gonna freshman year doesnt matter and they are all incredibly stupid. If you mess up freshman year (by far the easiest year of high school) then you’re gonna screw yourself over for the rest of high school. </p>
<p>Don’t just join 30 clubs to put on your college app that you were a part of so many clubs, they like to see fewer clubs but higher positions in said clubs.</p>
<p>Don’t brag about how you didn’t study for a test and still got 100. I hated every single person that did that. </p>
<p>Please ask questions if you have any. I remember in my history class freshman year I wouldn’t ask any of the questions I had because I was so nervous and did pretty poorly in the class. The teachers are there to help you. Most of my teachers would stay til 5 or 6 to help out.</p>
<p>Don’t be that loud obnoxious kid. Lots of people hate that.</p>
<p>Play a sport. They’re really fun.</p>
<p>You’ll almost definitely get involved in “high school drama” at some point. Just try to ignore it. It’s so dumb. </p>
<p>And please please please have fun. High school goes by oh so fast and I miss it more and more each day. Off to college tomorrow. Still weird that I’m not going back to high school</p>
<p>If there’s an embarrassing video of you on youtube, take it down!!! It doesn’t matter how, like, unnoticed you’d think it be, it will resurface and you’ll get so embarrassed. But then again it’s kinda cool to have a video of you on youtube get 1600 views.</p>
<p>Academically: If your school gives you a say in what classes you’ll be taking, follow your interests as much as possible. If you’re intensely interested in one or two areas, go with it–don’t succumb to the tyranny of “well-rounded” if it doesn’t suit you. Colleges will see right through it when that time comes, and, in the meantime, you’ll be miserable doing the breadth > depth thing just because it “looks better.” If your high school transcript is a reflection of your authentic self, the right college will appreciate that (and maybe “the right college” is not an Ivy but an itty bitty LAC–who knows?). It sounds cheesy, but be the best you–not the best clone.</p>
<p>Socially: Don’t bother with the status game. I know it’s tempting to wear the trendiest clothes your family can afford to buy you, date/hook up with the best “real estate” you can get as opposed to dating/hooking up with people you genuinely like (or not doing that at all if you aren’t ready), etc., but it’ll come back to bite you. Fitting in is going to seem really really important for the first couple of months–and if you’re like some people I know that feeling may never entirely leave you–but remember that high school as a freestanding experience means almost nothing, it’s where high school propels you to that is important. (I had to come back to that–this is CC, after all.)</p>
<p>Also, try to read at least one non-school book a week. People who don’t read are gross, don’t be one of them.</p>
<p>Oh, also: Keep your cards close to your chest. Quality > quantity when it comes to friendships, and don’t blindly trust everyone. There is no reason for you to tell people you barely know–or anyone, really, if that’s how you roll–what kind of grades you’re getting, how much you weigh, whether you’ve had sex yet, what your thoughts on drinking/drugs are (agree with a lot of other posters–don’t be that freshman!), how much your jeans cost, what your home life is like, what you think of so-and-so, etc. Just find your small core group of friends and confide in them. Be polite to everyone else, but not overly open.</p>
<p>Look into APs early that will be interesting, insightful, and well taught. Don’t over challenge yourself in areas of your weakness; for example, I insisted I could do well in math just as I did in 8th grade, what I ended up with one year of an A (due to an oblivious teacher) and 2 yrs of Cs and ended up struggling in the class that was well taught and challenging (pre calculus). I wish I sought great teachers from the start and switched to regular rather than honors to get the most out of my classes. I believe Colleges want to see that you reviewed your academic weakness and strengths and balanced your schedule wisely- not that you wanted to seem at the top but failed short of it.
Make your presence known in each of your classes by contributing to convos and asking questions. Let your teachers know you because they will be helpful long term as friends and writers for any letters of recommendation. Be friends with the cool teacher who gives insightful lectures!</p>
<p>Get into clubs that interest you and participate as much as you can. I am vice president of the Key Club at my school for two years how have been involved in long term volunteer programs as well as with particular organizations (such as Heal the Bay) for many of their events. Don’t be afraid of volunteering or looking into volunteer work or clubs, great opportunities are at every corner!</p>
<p>Hang with kids that are college bound; though the others may be fun, you want inspiration from your fellow peers and to have a relatable environment. Is includes people with is liar values than you, you don’t want any negative feelings because of a great variation in your values. Don’t be afraid of getting to know people, say “hi” to fellow peers, ask what their hobbies are- you can get great ideas from them and they can lead you to great things!</p>
<p>Have fun and be organized!</p>
<ul>
<li>A college bound Senior</li>
</ul>
<p>Don’t waste your life away on social networking sites and texting! Your friends can wait but your future can’t! You’ll be surprised how thankfully you’ll be once senior year rolls around and you have such a nice rank! Don’t procrastinate either! I can not stress that enough! You’ll regret it every single time so hard! Don’t wait till the last minute to study! Start thinking about college now and sat and all the jazz! Respect upperclassman…for real though, you’re at the bottom of the food chain! The first week is really overwealming but you’ll get through it! Most importantly though have fun and make a bunch of new friends! Although most will leave you after highschool, some will stay and those are the best people ever :)</p>
<p>Also don’t start off academically at a bad start! Your freshman year is your base! You don’t want a bad base! Actually do well now so your harder years have something to fall back on! Also don’t get obsessive with relationships! Trust me you’ll be ok!</p>
<p>Although it is a good thing to make friends with upperclassmen (but only if you would be friends if they were your own age - not for the “benefits” of having older friends), don’t shun your fellow freshmen. They’re in the same boat as you are and will be there with you all four years. While the older kids are graduating, you don’t want to be the only one realizing that you don’t have any friends your age and are suddenly all alone.</p>
<p>Basically, don’t be afraid of being a freshman - I don’t recommend trying to act more mature than you are just so that other students won’t realize your “lowly status” on the high school ladder. You only get to be a freshman once, and looking back at who you were then and realizing how many stupid mistakes you made and how you’ve grown from them will only make the process of coming into your own that much sweeter. Just allow yourself to progress at your own time; everyone has to do it, and everyone will do it differently.</p>
<p>It’s okay, even good, to make mistakes; it’s the only way you’ll truly learn, and those lessons are the ones more valuable in life than the ones you’ll learn in school. (Although trying in school and keeping your grades up is important to colleges, think about who you really are as a person and keep that in mind - it will keep you level-headed and can really curb the stress that school assignments and college applications provide a heavy dosage of.)</p>
<p>Really, all I can say if you found this “tl;dr”, is to let your cards fall where they may and just enjoy the game while you still have a chance to play it.</p>
<p>Get involved early. Seriously pick a club and stick with it for the next 4 years. You’ll be the leader and bam leadership for college apps is done.</p>
<p>Dont think that Honor Program is tough!! it is not…if you are not in the honor program in Freshman, no worries. You can still make it by studying hard and getting all A’s then you can join them in Second Year/Sophomore. IF you want it so badly, you can get it…!! try and try harder…</p>
<p>Absolutely don’t procrastinate!! If possible, get work done as early as possible - the added stress and time you save helps a TON! Learning to manage time wisely is something that helps a LOT throughout all of high school</p>
<p>Do your work! However, don’t do what I did and become obsessed with having the absolute highest grade possible, you will be miserable. Do the best you can without overwhelming yourself.</p>
<p>Also, don’t stand in the middle of the hallways.</p>
<p>This has most likely been mentioned previously but I would like to emphasize on the importance of working hard your freshmen year. This is the year that will kick of your high school life and plays quite a huge role in setting your pace. Build a strong foundation and it will most likely go a long way until the end of senior year.</p>
<p>Don’t fart during assembly.</p>
<p>Don’t forget to get to know your counselor! They will be a huge part in letting you know what you need to do to get ready for college and they write recommendation letters too! You won’t regret becoming a favorite of your counselor. It’s a huge help!</p>
<p>it’s pretty simple: to be tolerated, you have to be tolerable. Don’t walk around the halls like you’re all that, whatever your age. I went into school today and there were 2 incoming freshmen just sitting there staring at people. Like take a picture, it’ll last longer. So to recap: don’t suck, be yourself, have a great time</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Don’t slack off. I’m trying to get into a HYPSM school, and I’m really starting to debate my chances with a 3.7 Freshman GPA (I’m a sophomore). I’ve lost many a nights’ sleep over it, (do your hw, study for tests).</p></li>
<li><p>Utilize your summers. Take a class or some internship or simply volunteer in your area. It will pay off 1000x more than sitting around.</p></li>
<li><p>Do what you LOVE! You’ll be miserable if you join clubs or classes for prestige, and in the end, it doesn’t matter what college you attend if you’ve had a miserable 4 years of HS. </p></li>
<li><p>Don’t do/say dumb stuff, especially things that can be used against you. Period. I’ve seen myself and alot of my peers suffer because of this, if you have a doubt of whether to say something or not, just don’t. Or, say it in a group of tight friends where you feel totally comfortable/safe.</p></li>
<li><p>(The most important one) NOT EVERYONE IS GOING TO LIKE YOU. Okay? Don’t take it personally if someone says/does something mean to you. Just keep doing what makes you happy. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>also, don’t chase after too many girls :P. The media really portrays high-school sweethearts and marrying your HS crush, it RARELY happens. all it does is consume time and cause drama, and freshman are young to understand the implications of what a relationship really entails.</p>
<p>Just do what you want. If you don’t want to take Honors English because you hate English, then don’t. If a college doesn’t accept you for that, then they clearly want to make you miserable anyway so you’re probably not a good fit there.</p>