The new year has not only brought new 2024 goals, but with it, the beginning of a new semester. Having just come back from winter break, many students have experienced changes in schedule and routine. The first week is always a little difficult for everyone, so how exactly are students coping with these changes?
Having come from the two week break, students have both slept in or had some sleepless nights. With the lack of a schedule, waking up late and going to sleep later has become routine for many. This week, however, students have had to completely change their schedules to go to school. Student Natalie Velasco states that she slowly adjusted to the change by ¨sleeping earlier and not using [her] phone before [she goes to] sleep.¨ Student Savanni Alcaraz describes her experience differently in that she ¨just suffered after the first day of school and was tired until [she] could go to sleep early.¨ Similarly, Student Naomie Avila reveals that she had trouble waking up in the morning of the first week. The change students must make can not happen overnight, but students have continued to go to school with their own way of adjusting.
Aside from the schedule changes, students have communicated other changes they have experienced coming back to school. Student Eric Gonzalez expresses that the biggest change was ¨having to eat school food¨ after eating the meals at home. Velasco says that the workload of the new semester is also heavier compared to the last. Still, one big change many do not consider concerns the people students interact with. Student Naomie Avila states that the most important change she experienced was going from interacting with family at home to being with a lot of people at school as it became nerve wracking.
But coming back to school is not all bad as there is still a lot to look forward to! Many students interviewed affirmed that they were looking forward to playing sports like tennis, wrestling, and track as they have just entered their season. Avila also reveals that she is excited to go on school trips just as Alcaraz is looking forward to the upcoming Prom. For seniors, like Velasco, she is looking forward to the end of her senior year and becoming an adult along with graduation. So despite the many challenges and changes students face, school also allows for other opportunities that will make the year go by in a flash.
It was revealed that most students are feeling good about 2024 and many have their own tips that they say have helped them in coming back to school. Avila states that her ¨number one tip for coming back to school is to prioritize sleep!¨ Gonzalez says that his advice is to ¨have a schedule and stick to it.¨ Though simple, Alcaraz and velasco say that simply paying attention and doing your best, respectively, are one of the best ways to do well in the new semester.
