Reflection

My Junior year was one of the most fun years of school I have ever had. My classes were generally interesting, and many a laughs were shared in them. My teachers were excellent this year which has not been the case in the past unfortunately. I really pushed myself hard to do well and this year will be the first in which i have gotten straight A's both semesters (hopefully). I never felt over worked during the year but I was definitely engaged all year. This year feels a lot longer and much more memorable than my other two years of high-school which i guess is a good thing. I'm excited to be finished with the year though and move on to the illustrious senior year (especially since  don't have to write a 10 page paper for english anymore). I became more involved in Henry Clay which is something I am surprised I liked. Joining EAP really broadened my horizons in terms school awareness. I hope to continue this trend next year by getting even more involved in eap as well as nhs. This is supposed to be the hardest year of High School so I'm glad I got it over with and I cannot wait to see what lies in store for me next year.

Not bad.

I started off Junior terrified of how difficult it would be. I had heard a lot of awful things about if being the hardest year of high school. You suddenly have a bunch of really hard AP classes and you're an upperclassman, so no funny business. To my surprise, it really hasn't been that bad. I've had a really good year and a lot of fun. I don't know whether it really isn't as bad as everyone says or if my situation just made it better for me specifically. I didn't have Mrs. Dewees, so that was a huge workload off of my back, and AP Calculus 2 was a dream of a class. Another thing that hits most people hard is going from one or two AP classes to three or four. Most Academy kids only had AP World last year, and this year most were upped to four. Personally, I took three AP classes last year and three this year. Because of that I was probably way more acclimated to the workload this year. I have hardly stressed all year and my grades have been as good as always. It's surprising to me.

Dat Reflection

Junior year has been a pretty swell time. As I was first coming back into school from the Summer of  2011, I only heard of the perils that junior year brought about, and how much awful, awful stress it was coupled with. But once I was settled in, I came to realize that the work load was something that I could deal with. The worst of it, I have to say, came in the form of AP Biology, in which I have spent the entire year thoroughly reading the 56 Chapter textbook around three chapters per week or two. Not even that, however, kept me from enjoying my free time, and I surprisingly was able to maintain a decent social life. Sure, every now and then I would reach points where I would have an emotional slump, but don't we all? It's better to look at down times as experiences from which you can learn more, and that's what I plan to do with everything junior year has thrown at me.

Barty Crouch... JUNIOR

Wow.  I can barely remember the first day of school this year.  I can hardly remember those 5 or 6 classmates that always leave in the first week because the workload sucks or something.

Really though, this year has been the best in education since 7th grade for me.  Freshman year and sophomore year were basically a blur of monotone schooling.  Nothing much happened.  But this year, so many things changed.  I actually have a schedule full of teachers I trust, can learn from, and genuinely like, instead of last year when two of my teachers made my day hell.  This year I got my drivers license, which opened so many windows of opportunities that senior year looks so much more appealing.

I also want to thank Mr. Logsdon for the chance to do these PSAs.  It's really given me a chance  to form new bonds with old friends and develop new skills for a future career in cinematography.  It's currently 2:15 am and I've been editing for 12 hours and waiting on the last 3 videos to upload to Youtube.  I've spent all of Friday and Saturday filming not only mine, but 6 other peoples' videos.  I've househopped 5 different times and spent all of Sunday at my computer, helping my friends with their projects.  I just love exercising my skills to the max and seeing the wonderful results.  I can't wait to do this kind of stuff next year for my mentoring project and TV/Radio!

bittersweet?

Oh my goodness, this year passed by so fast. The first day of junior year seems like yesterday. I remember when we all walked in Mr. Logsdon's room and could not keep our eyes off the wall, when Mrs. Dewees' fast talking, teaching, and "Calculus first!" mentality caught us off guard, when Mr. Pope talked about bubbles bursting and we could not help but be engaged to what he says, and when Mrs. Gill decided to spring a test on us on the first day of school. We've come a long way since dissections and Lentz's Star Wars obsession, but I wouldn't say we have changed much. I know I haven't. Our 2013 class is still the same, immature, and hilarious bunch. We've come closer in many ways, but it's sad to think the end is near! At the same time, however, I am super excited for senior year and for college after that. True, we've caught senioritis three years early, but I'm not just going to start slacking off (even more) just because we're at the top of the school and at the end of high school. I'm pumped for college but sad to leave Henry Clay. I will miss the people, not so much the food, the lines, the dirty bathrooms, the trash-filled sinks, and windowless rooms, but the teachers and my friends. I've found a family here. It's bittersweet to know it will all be over soon.

Junior Year

This entire year has gone by so quickly even faster than the last. I feel that high school has most definitely gone by the fastest. I am still unclear of what happened sophomore year and freshman year with them all blending together making me still feel like I am a sophomore instead of an upcoming senior. Its hard to believe there is only one more year of high school and after that everything will change drastically for all of us. Its hard to believe that we are only going to be able to stay here with this same group of people for one more short year.
This year though has been especially memorable though, I feel that I have been able to form more personal relationships with all of my teachers due to the maturity that all of us lacked as underclassmen. This year the teachers were more lenient of rules and seemed more like friends rather than a complete authority figure. Overall I am was very happy with my junior year in high school and I am excited for my classes next year.

Is This It?

Throughout my short lifetime, there have been a number of occurrences in which I have been fascinated by the way life has unfolded. This weekend was one of those times.

In the midst of completing the projects due Monday and volunteering for six hours, I was able to still find time to listen to music. This morning, while reclining in an armchair, I found myself contemplating about life – specifically junior year – while listening to Kid Cudi's station on Pandora. After going through my fondest memories of this year, I found myself asking, "Is this it?" And as fate would have it, the next song that started playing was "Someday" by The Strokes, which is off their album "Is this it?" I was so utterly awed by the coincidence that I truthfully believed it was by divine intervention (Really, how many similarities do Kid Cudi and The Strokes share?), and I used the vestige as an excuse to spend more time thinking about the past year.

I'm not one to deem a year as great or awful. I believe that every year is a learning experience, and that as long as you've gained new knowledge, your year was a success. Junior year was definitely a successful year.

Upon entering this year of school, I expected to barely make it through. I anticipated mountainous amounts of homework and multiple tests each week, topped off with preparation for standardized tests. I was surprised (pleasantly so) to find that most of the information I had received was hyperbole. Yes, junior year was a huge leap in regards to work, but it wasn't some unsurmountable task. I still made it through with a fair amount of success. I feel confident in my abilities as a student and I have learned that natural talent will only get you so far. Hard work and dedication are key for every aspect of life.

I find it very fortunate that English class required a good deal of writing this year. For the most part, the type of writing that Mr. Logsdon assigned us was outside my comfort zone. However, I believe that throughout the course of the year my skills as a writer have improved, which is something I am quite thankful for.

The biggest accomplishment of this year has been my growing maturity. I learned to come out of my shell more and as a result, I have been more active in clubs and have made more friends.