Middle School vs. High School

Waking up on the morning of the first day of high school felt like butterflies took over my stomach. I had to put together an impressing outfit, fix my hair, and put on appealing makeup. Knowing that in about an hour I would be entering a totally different school environment than what I’m used to frightened me. Within every period of the school day, the butterflies started to flutter out of my stomach and into my new learning atmosphere. Although students tend to fear high school and think it is a nightmare to transition from middle school to the next level, attending high school is not much of a dramatic change. Before beginning high school, you are required to pick levels that you feel comfortable with that correspond with the school-picked courses. You also have to choose three elective classes. Any of these classes could include Art, Chorus, Intro to Family and Consumer Science, Accounting, Graphic Presentations, and many more. All of your chosen classes receive a letter grade, just like middle school, but the required classes are picked according to your academic capability. For example, if you are the type of student that does not do well scholarly, you would choose a level three class. This option is a great way to do better in school. Also in high school, there are more extracurricular options. High school offers a numerous amount of clubs and sports. From soccer and swimming to ping pong club and French club. If any of the extracurricular activities don’t interest you, you even have the opportunity to create your own club with the help of a teacher. In middle school, your classes are already selected and you cannot change them. These classes are mandatory, just like high school, but everyone learns at the same level. This can be a disadvantage for students who take longer to process than others. Also, in middle school, you cannot create your own clubs. The sports and clubs the school provides are your only selections. Transitioning to high school is a big eye opener especially because of the people. Guys have facial hair and girls are more matured. High school goes hand in hand with many different kinds of people and different types of cliques as well. Some examples are jocks, nerds, populars, druggies, and gays. In middle school, there were less people making everyone familiar with each other. Some being naïve and inexperienced, they are not used to seeing different types of people. Overall, high school is a lot bigger. Not only is there a downstairs, but an upstairs as well and there are many more hallways. Even though classes are farther apart, there is more time in between classes. In fact, three minutes more than middle school. This allows time to go to your locker before a class and you can even stop to talk in the hallways. Since middle school allowed only two minutes in between classes, you had to be quick with exchanging books. In high school, you can take your time and arrive to class on time. The transition to high school is a big step in education, but it does not have to be a feared one. A new environment brings with it new challenges and worries, however, after awhile you will realize it wasn’t much of a striking change as you thought.