<p>Knowing how a teacher works is a must. For each teacher, you'll have to push different buttons (not literally). This year, doing the homework in physics barely kept my grade from falling to a B+ (I scraped by with an A- ...hardest A- earned ever), but for math, he never checked, so I slacked off towards the end of the year.</p>
<p>Get used to the tests in each class, too. I always reread chapters for APUSH because all the tests consisted of MC questions based on the reading.</p>
<p>Have a study plan. If you have a big assignment assigned ahead of time, spread it out so that you're not stuck working on it 'til 2 AM the day it's due. If you have sports and ECs, I know you'll have even less time, but if you get assignments ahead of time, you can get ahead by waking up earlier on weekends or skimping on homework that you know won't be checked.</p>
<p>I'm not one of those people who doesn't put in any effort but can still get A's, so I sacrifice a lot during the school year to keep my grades up.</p>
<p>Eat well and sleep well (I know the latter's hard). Keep your body healthy so that it won't crash too often. I can't help you with the being sick issue. I'm lucky in that I only get sick a few times a year (I get really sick, though), and by sheer luck, those times are usually around vacations.</p>
<p>I agree. I'm still not in top 10% because I decided to be honest. The top kids in my school cheat like ******* and don't think it is bad. In fact they cheat cooperatively.</p>
<p>It's possible to get straight A's and maintain a level of morality at the same time. Don't feel like cheating is a valid option--an honest B is better than a cheated A, hands down, no matter what any college admissions officer or cheating friend or anyone tells you.</p>
<p>Like a lot of people have said, make a study plan. Or, an easier way to do this, have a notebook where you write down daily assignments, things you need to do, etc. Prioritize. Get weekend homework done either friday afternoon or sunday evening...take Saturday off.</p>
<p>Don't lost confidence, and don't resort to cheating because others are telling you it's no big deal. It is a big deal, even if you don't get caught, even if no one cares. You don't have to sacrifice your personal integrity to be a good student.</p>
<p>I've never cheated on anything, save the rare minor homework assignment. Though I'm going into sophomore year, I'm valedictorian (tied six ways/~670). Ethics and A's are compatible. I would never cheat. </p>
<p>What's it take to get straight A's? A winning genetic lottery ticket. It sucks, but it's the only conclusion I can come to.</p>
<p>I don't think it's genetics--at least not all of it. There are plenty of people in my school that I might not call the brightest of the bright, but work hard enough and study enough to get straight A's anyway.</p>
<p>I didn't say it's ALL genetics. If you have a mustang, you won't win any races without hit the accelerator. However, you're not winning any races with a minivan. Period.</p>
<p>Who cares? After you finish high school, nobody will care whether you were an A student or B student. As I've written in my "Being a class brain isn't all it's cracked up to be! " threads, the extra effort required to get a perfect 4.0 unweighted as opposed to a 3.5 unweighted just isn't worth it. You don't have to take Honors/AP classes to the hilt. If you're a math/science person and can't hack torrential reading, writing, and memorization assignments, don't take AP US History. If you're an aspiring writer who finds math impossible to learn well, don't take AP Calculus. If you're an aspiring artist who can't hack it in science, don't take AP Biology, Chemistry, and Physics.</p>
<p>I used to drink the Academic Performance Cult Kool-Aid myself. Many of you are far bigger drinkers of the Kool-Aid than I ever was, and I was more than obsessive enough.</p>
<p>Many ways to get straight A's in high school, but here are the main ones.</p>
<ol>
<li>You're smart and you study a bit</li>
<li>You try hard / study a lot</li>
<li>You kiss the teacher's ass and pretend like you care</li>
<li>You cheat</li>
</ol>
<p>Either way is fine, #4 requirest he least amount of effort but poses the most risk</p>
<p>Do what I do and learn the material over the summer when your bored. You can find out what this is by maintaining good relations with upperclassmen.</p>
<p>Even just the basics can go a long way. And when they teach stuff again in class, it will stay in your head, because it will be review and you'll never need to study!</p>
<p>I study my freakin butt off!! Getting straight A's seems to be easy for some people, but for others, it's quite a feat. I made sure I understood everything I needed to know by the time of the test, and if I didn't, I came in before and after school. My downfall, however, are my test scores. I was only able to pull off a 25 on the ACT, but I am going to retake it.</p>
<p>
[quote]
well, my school is very competitive and it's somewhat hard to get an A in an AP/honors class, or even a regular class</p>
<p>you still have to work hard. but still i don't get how there is kids who don't try and still get 95%+ in all their classes
[/quote]
</p>
<p>That is because they are smart and have a good memory.</p>
<p>Not everybody has the same ability when it comes to this area. Some can do it without any effort while others struggle for the same result.</p>
<p>EDIT:</p>
<p>That guy with the Mustang analogy is right. You can't win any races period if you are a minivan. Genetics and parental upbringing determine your priorities, morals, desires, and learning potential. A brain regardless of what anyone wants to believe needs to be open to learning. The more open and interested it is the easier it will be for it to absorb information. If educational values were not a big thing by the parents when growing up the is no reason in my mind why you aren't a mustang but instead you are a minivan.</p>
<p>In the stages where the vehicle is being produced are important. By the time you graduate elementary school the vehicle is 95% complete. You can't simply decide you want to design it all over again to be a mustang after its almost a complete minivan. You can definitely put in some nitrous on the minivan. However you have to remember the original design of the racing minivan will never be the same as the mustang no matter how much we attempt to modify it.</p>
<p>Now, I don't know if my minivan theory there is completely right. I would really need to do some research to see what findings I could come up with to prove it but from my general perspective of life that holds pretty much completely true.</p>
<p>My friend gets straight A's from her constant motivation, telling herself that if she doesn't study, she won't go to Harvard, and therefore MUST STUDY.</p>
<p>And her mother puts a lot of pressure on her.</p>
<p>Some people do this. Some people are just smarter/more skilled at school stuff. One kid in my grade just mindblew me every freaking day in school. I wondered how the hell he got a 4.0, but a combination of cheating, hard work, excellent memorization/study skills and some brilliance (also sacrificed a crapload of sleep). And then some people just worked their asses off. </p>
<p>It takes a combination of skill, luck, and work ethic to get a 4.0. IMHO, it's not worth it, but if it is to you, so be it. Look at the people who do get 4.0's.. I, personally, just don't want to be one of those people. Life ownz too much to worry about that much about that crap. Once you start taking the harder courses at your school, that 4.0 is a lot more skill-based than work-based, and pulling that A in English or Math or Science when you're really not that good at it is insanely difficult. But then, a B in the hardest course is better than an A in a normal course, so you'd really rather take that harder course (unless the easier course appeals to you in some way).</p>