<p>I've never been a top student, but never in my high school career have I failed a class, and I haven't gotten below a 3.0 in any semester besides the first semester of my freshman year.</p>
<p>Well, I'm a junior now, and I'm a total theater kid so I decided to do the musical this year. This has made my grades suffer A LOT since I always used to do my homework at the school building after school got out and daily rehearsals made this impossible, especially since I am playing a big role. I now have a C in AP Lang, a D- in AP Euro, and I'm failing Algebra and Chem. I don't know what to do. After this week I'll have tons more free time to go see teachers, but I feel helpless right now. AP Lang is a super hard class for me and my teacher dislikes me quite a bit. Algebra is an easy class but I'm the opposite of math minded so simple concepts become near impossible for me to understand. AP Euro I'm alright at, I'm sure with some more hard work I can achieve a good grade in that class. Chem is almost hopeless to me...my teacher is awful, confusing, lazy, and doesn't care about students.</p>
<p>I honestly don't know how I'm going to get these grades up to a B by the end of the semester. I might be overreacting but I can see my future slipping away from me every time I check the gradebook. Is it too late to salvage my grades by the end of the year (an 82 in each class is all I need), and if not, how?</p>
<p>Hey, you’ve still got time. I brought a D in AP Spanish Lang up to an A (granted, my teacher put in 0’s as placeholders for several projects that I was absent for but I was definitely still in the C+ range for a good chunk of the semester). I’d try to set slightly smaller goals for the time being because I feel like it would be pretty overwhelming to think about raising a class grade by three letters or more. Why don’t you first do some damage control with your Algebra and Chem classes for the next two weeks or so? Once you bring them up to a certain point, I’d then tackle EHAP and and Lang. </p>
<p>Can you maybe take a break from theater after the musical? I’d really focus on grades right now if I were you. At least try to bring your grades up to C’s, which won’t necessarily look good for colleges, but it won’t be a black mark the way a D/F would be. If you don’t think you’re able to do so, could you look into the drop policy for your school? If it’s not too late to drop and you don’t need, say, EHAP for graduation (I’m assuming that Algebra and Chem are required) then maybe you could let it go and focus on your other classes. </p>
<p>It’s definitely not too late. I don’t know when your semester started, but chances are there aren’t too many things entered in the gradebook right now. Try to get B’s or above on the rest of your tests if possible and communicate with your teachers; let them know you’ve been trying! </p>
<p>Good luck! 
</p>
<p>Thanks Coriander. Some of my grades (especially in AP Euro) are also 0s as placeholders. Damage control sounds like a good idea, especially since Euro and Lang are weighted and won’t do quite as much damage to my GPA as Alg and Chem will. I’ll hopefully be doing other things in the theater department later this year but they shouldn’t be nearly as time consuming as the musical was - it was insane how much time it took, near daily rehearsals from the getgo, and as of about 3 weeks ago, rehearsal every single day until 6 pm - at least…hell week rehearsals went til 10.</p>
<p>I don’t want to drop Euro because my teacher is an amazing guy who’s been totally understanding about my schedule. He’s seriously been so nice about it, there are assignments he’s given me several weeks of extensions on, and one assignment took me so long that he just exempted me from turning it in. I don’t plan on dropping Lang either since I’m taking AP Lit next year, and I can’t drop Alg or Chem if I want to graduate. My semester started in early January and my classes actually do have quite a few things entered - that’s what worries me, I have no idea how I’m going to get my Algebra grade up since there’s no system in that class for certain things affecting your grades more than others (In Chem, 60% of your grade is what you get on exams, and there’s only 1 or 2 a month). Algebra is based on your completion percentages in each unit, and the last unit I had 58% completion, this current one I have about 30%…it’s bad. Chem and Algebra are ironically the ones I’m most worried about, I think I can handle Lang and Euro, but it would look awful if my grades were subpar in “easy” classes, neither of them are honors. And I got a C+ in Algebra and a C in Chem last semester, which has already gone on my transcript, and even though I had As and Bs in everything else…I really can’t risk not having an upward trend.</p>
<p>Maybe in the future, you should think about trying to get ahead in some of your classes before these drama productions get started. Might help ease some of the pressure.<br>
Talk to your teachers, explain how busy you’ve been with the musical and how determined you are to bring up your grades. Ask them if there’s any way you can make up some assignments or earn any extra credit. Some may not allow it but some may. </p>
<p>Ok, I’ve been trying to get back on a better schedule now that the show is over – STILL failing Algebra and Chem. My dad went to talk to the teachers I’ve been struggling with at a recent Parent-Teacher Night, most of my teachers are puzzled at my grades since they see me as being a good student, but my Chem teacher WILL NOT BUDGE and says it will take a “miracle” for me to get a B in his class by the time the semester ends. I don’t know what I’m going to do, but I’m freaking out - a lot. I know that I can get my Euro grade up if I put my mind to it. My Lang grade went up 5 points because I did well on a few assignments recently. But Algebra is steadily sinking further and further - I now have a 45 in that class, and I feel hopeless, because I had a B to a B+ all of last semester except for the end of it…my dad is looking into getting me a tutor for both classes, but what if it doesn’t work? What if I’m stuck with these Fs and end up getting rejected from my dream schools because of them?</p>
<p>I did have to give up another theater production to focus on grades. I feel like I’ve given up my whole social life for a lost cause.</p>
<p>EDIT: Spoke slightly too soon…I just checked my grades online and good news, my Algebra grade went up a WHOLE 20 POINTS! I have a 64 in that class. If I stay on the right track I think raising that grade will be a possibility. Euro raised 5 points, taking it from a D- to a D, which I’ve already discussed with my teacher and I just need to turn in these 2 late packets to get that back up to C+/B range. I think what I really need to focus on the most is Chem…I still have no idea how to raise that grade…30 points in 2 months, is that even possible?</p>