<p>I love the generous spirit of cc. I a teacher/case manager for a group of middle school GT students--cc's future. I'm seeking wisdom from the battle weary. As I send these very bright and accomplished young people off into the morass of high school, what advice should I give them? What do you know now that you needed to have known the summer before 9th grade?</p>
<p>1) That the coolest kids in your middle-school aren't, or certainly aren't for that much longer.
2) Stretch yourself, Gumby-you can do it.
3) Learn to laugh at yourself. Sometimes it's pretty funny stuff.
4) Today. Not tomorrow.Today.</p>
<p>That pretty much sums it up. I'm sure others will fill in the holes with specifics but I'll bet most will fit one of these four. JMO.</p>
<p>Join anything you think you might be interested in. (Like French Club or somehting) </p>
<p>Do not procrastinate </p>
<p>Dont be afraid to speak you mind </p>
<p>Relax.....</p>
<p>No one worth their salt peaks in high school.</p>
<p>Also - high school ends and the world changes a lot afterwards. For me, h.s. was miserable - geeky overachieving girl who never had a boyfriend - it was pure hell. The one thing I wish I had known is how much my life would change once I left. Some of the misery was because I really, truly thought that things would never get better.</p>
<p>Do at least one thing where the common denominator is creativity--not GPA. eg; drama, art, Odyssey of the Mind, a sport that challenges you personally.</p>
<p>You need a place to rest and recharge from academic pressures or inanely rigid systems--and you need a place to be with people who are not academic fast-tracking all the time.</p>
<p>And it can also be a great balancing factor to find a group of kids with whom you have a common interest who do NOT go to your high school (eg: youth group from church/temple, political or social action group.....Some days/weeks it is nice to be reminded that there is a world of friends not in the social domain of your school...</p>
<p>Thank you, all of you.</p>
<p>My nerdlets need this advice.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that a lot of those "popular" people peak in high school. Sadly, they'll always believe that high school was the high point in their life. </p>
<p>There's a place for everyone. You may have to extend yourself a little, but keep looking and you'll find people who understand, appreciate and like you.</p>
<p>Participate in class. This will be hard at first for those who are shy, but the dividends are great.</p>
<p>(Can you tell I have a nerdlet?)</p>
<p>I use nerdlet as a term of endearment. I'm trying to ooch them through nerdiness to nerdvana. They just need to hang in there until nerdiness begins to be rewarding--study abroad, internships, scholarships etc.</p>
<p>I'm a Junior right now and I wish I had known this...
START EARLY! As soon as you hit 9th grade you NEED to get involved in something -- be it clubs, ASB, band, academic olympiads, volunteering, etc. It's better to try something and not like it and quit then it is to not try at all and wonder if you could have done well in it.
Also -- the sooner, the better! That way you have a whole 4 years to do what you like to do, and you can work your way up. This especially helps if you want leadership positions in the future.</p>
<p>Also...
Become friends with your guidance counselor. They can seriously help you by nominating you for different things, by fixing/working out your schedule, or by letting you know about extra opportunities.</p>
<p>Join CC. Fast. :P</p>
<p>In all reality, though, asking a teacher or two to become your mentor might help. It'll come in handy, esp. for the recommendation, as it allows for the recommendation to be much more personal.</p>
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<p>I wish you well in what you are doing. Just how gifted are we talking about? Looking back on my elementary school, and junior high, and senior high experience would lead me to advise eighth graders to figure out a strategy to get OUT of high school as soon as possible. In my state, and now some other states, that is possible through a Post-Secondary Enrollment Options (PSEO</a>) program. (In WA state, the term is "Running Start.") Even if your state doesn't have a statutory program for getting bright kids into college while they are of high school age, for "high school credit," that is one of the best things kids in that situation can do for themselves. That gets them into a better social environment much sooner, and better prepares them for the top echelon of colleges--which may be where they would feel happiest during college. </p>
<p>The sad alternative is dropping out without making preparations for college entrance. Two of the smartest kids I knew in my school district dropped out, and I have read that as many as 20 percent of high school dropouts can fairly be categorized as "gifted," which is a pretty astounding figure if true. If high school doesn't support their dreams, find them a place that can. Oh, and have the young people in your care read Paul Graham's essay "What</a> You'll Wish You'd Known," which I learned about from another CC participant.</p>
<p>Have them realize that high school is a means to the end, not the end. Since they are truly smart and creative, they may not like the contraints of the rules, curriculum, etc., but that we sometimes need to do what we have to, in order to stay on the road to what we want - the college of our choice, the career we want, etc.</p>
<p>Good advice re the popular kids peaking early, and seeing HS as their pinnacle. I had a neighbor once who was like that, and when she went to her HS reunion she took her old cheerleading outfit, because she just knew they would want her to do a cheer - this fell apart when she broke her ankle, and asked the doctor not to remove it until after the reunion because she didn't want anyone to think she was a "gimp." (Her word, not mine.) How sad is this? She never even saw or spoke to those people anymore, yet she still had to keep up appearances.</p>
<p>If you could do it over, would you visit colleges sooner or later?</p>
<p>I'd visit colleges much sooner, and I would get to know adults employed in occupations other than K-12 schoolteaching much sooner. All in all, I advise young people to get to know the world outside their school as much as possible as soon as possible.</p>
<p>Do you think it was worth it to go to that college prep school, or do you wish you would have gone to that college prep school? Does it make any difference as to which track or college you get into?</p>
<p>My advice is don't stereotype yourself or others - it limits possibilities. I know that is difficult to do in high school but it's not impossible. </p>
<p>Find an Extra Curricular you love and you will find like minded people and friends.</p>
<p>Getting out of high school might work for SOME but it is not what I would counsel to the majority of students. There is great maturity and character to be built by dealing with people who are not like yourself. Finding your place in a challenging social environment can give you the confidence to find your place anywhere.</p>
<p>From my experience with two high schools in Minnesota, I don't think there is as much polarization of social groups in high school as there was 30 years ago. There are many more opportunities to get involved without being popular, athletic, or even talented. Heck, chess club was absolutely cool at my son's elementary school. And this is in a sports centric school district.</p>
<p>Thanks, all responses are helpful.</p>
<p>If I could do things over, I would do all of my homework. I missed the National Merit Semi line by one point. It seems, from an adult perspective, that if I had actually done my homework, I would have learned one more thing. Sigh.</p>
<p>Visiting - DD did not even begin thinking about colleges until fall of junior year, did not visit until spring junior year, and found herself wanting to go to an Ivy. With her younger brother, we will start visiting earlier, but in a much more low key fashion. That's the secret, waiting til junior year put a lot of pressure on the visits, we could have gotten by with fewer had they been spaced out farther.</p>
<p>The other big do over as a parent is, I would not have sent her to take the NMSQT sick - she also missed by 2 points, and her SAT scores were about 100 points higher just a few months later.</p>