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Photo Credit: Yasmin Akbari
Junior Anjelo Tulio works on his homework.
November 18, 2011
Yasmin Akbari
“Junior year.” Until last year, those words gave me chills. As the stories go, junior year is the worst year of high school. It is the year which college admissions officers are rumored to look at most intensely, and for every college-bound student, that means churning out an impressive transcript. To meet the requirements of each individual’s dream school, they often overload on higher level classes and extra-curricular activities.
Sleep deprivation, stress, and a severe lack of free time are common symptoms of junioritis. There is a distinct jump in the amount of work between sophomore and junior years. Students dedicate their days and nights to doing homework, taking notes, and studying for tests. Those students who really want to achieve don’t stop at AP and honors classes; many actively participate in clubs, community service, or hold jobs. Coupled with the mounting pressure to impress others, it’s not hard to see how the stress level can hit the roof.
I have the utmost admiration for my fellow classmates who stepped up to challenge themselves, as I myself have not filled up my schedule with all higher level classes. An increasing number of juniors are minimizing their number of difficult classes. Personally, I feel that dedicating myself to each subject and getting decent grades will be more beneficial than stretching myself too thin and struggling in every class. Rumor has it that colleges look for well-rounded students: those who challenge themselves intellectually and are active outside of school. After witnessing my peers stress about their classes, I am confident that I have made the right decision for me; I value my time and my life outside of my classes. It is important to remember that while education is absolutely a priority, school should not consume every aspect of your life, juniors. Make time for yourself and don’t get overwhelmed.
A favorite chemistry teacher of mine always reminds students that, “in ten years, you won’t care about your grades in high school.” If you work hard and dedicate yourself, you will achieve great things.
Photo Credit: Heather Wicks
The juniors dance during their skit, "The Spirit Factory".
November 6, 2011
Heather Wicks
To start off Spirit Week, Class of 2013 performed their skit, ‘The Spirit Factory’. The Juniors put time and effort into the story, decorations, and uniform tie-dye shirts, but what took up most of the rehearsal and preparations was practicing the dances. The Juniors performed to Couples Dance, Daft Punk, Hoedown Throwdown, and the final dance, Celebrate, and learning the dances took a lot of hard work and practice. Choreographer Rebekah Weintraub comes up with the dances by listening to the music and making up the moves. Since she was a dancer already, creating the dances wasn’t difficult. Teaching the dances, however, proved to be more challenging. “Teaching the dances got frustrating at times. People would sometimes show up at the last minute, and we’d have to teach the same dance over and over. The Juniors spent time after school to learn the dances around two or three times a week, until eventually they had the moves down.” Rebekah said, and added that, in the end, it was rewarding. “I got a lot of compliments, especially with the Daft Punk dance. I was proud to see how far we’ve come in the end.”
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January 13, 2011
Osika Tripathi
The week before the finals, which is a four day week , ASB is putting on “Relaxation Week”. Each day of the week, one of Washington’s four classes is going to be hosting a noon-time activity to help students relax and not stress too much about their upcoming exams. This event is going to be held at amphitheatre at lunch time, so be sure to drop in!
Senior class officers are hosting on Tuesday, Juniors on Wednesday, Sophomores on Thursday, and Rally commissioners are hosting on Friday.
Student and Staff appreciation, which is a new commission in leadership also liked the concept of “relaxation week” and have decided to take part in it. But, instead of focusing their attention on the students, they have set their sights on making the teachers at Washington feel appreciated. They will be giving out gifts to all the teachers, in recognition of their hard work this past semester and to give thanks for all they have done.
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November 16, 2009
Michaela Go
Many students wonder what the difference is between the ACT and SAT. Most colleges accept both ACT and SAT scores and view them as equals; the trickier part is deciding which test to take.
The SAT is more based on critical thinking and reasoning. The ACT is more curriculum-based, measuring what the student has learned in school.
The SAT includes three categories, critical reading, writing, and math, which are broken into 10 smaller sections. The ACT includes English, math, reading, science and an optional writing test. The test is broken up into five sections corresponding to the categories. For some, switching from math to reading to writing every 25 minutes or so seems distracting, while to others, it may seem refreshing.
According to college counselors, for high achievers, the ACT might be easier, since it more closely resembles a school-given test. Bright, but not necessarily hard working students may do better on the SAT since it relies more on reasoning.
If you’re still unsure about which test to take, free practice tests can be found on test-prep school websites such as theprincetonreview.com. Concordance tables, which show SAT and ACT equivalent scores can be found online.
Photo Credit: Jimmy Young
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November 13, 2009
The amphitheater is a popular place to rally.
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