The most daunting part of being a freshman is undoubtedly the beginning of the year. One must adjust to new classes, teachers, and friends as well as try out new sports and activities. However, once freshmen adjust to high school there are still so many parts of high school that they haven’t yet had the opportunity to experience, mainly finals and winter/spring sports and events.

Most freshman have at least heard about finals in one way or another by the time they get to high school. Whether it’s from older siblings, teachers, or friends, freshman have some idea of what they are in for. However, there are a lot of misconceptions, some freshman were under the impression that finals took place on the computer, or were standardized tests similar to the ISATs. In reality, they are tests specialized for each class that test the student on the information taught over the course of the semester.

As a freshman, it is difficult to predict how much you will need to study for finals  and what ways will work best for you. In my experience it’s better to study more than less for finals. It can be hard to find the motivation at times, but once finals are all said and done it’s definitely worth it. Also, once you find out how you did on your finals you can adjust how you study for next time.

The beginning of the year is a blast between the football games, Homecoming, fall sports, and so much more. However, once winter sets in there are even more activities to fill your spare time. Some of the most well known winter/spring sports are basketball, wrestling, gymnastics, track, among many others. Many freshman choose to participate in these regardless as to whether they played a fall sport or not. Even if a sport is not for you, it’s still fun to go to these sporting events to support friends or for merely entertainment.

This year a new tradition began at GHS called The Clash of the Vikings, which is a “talent show” for different teams and clubs around the school. Different teams and clubs are nominated and must perform an act in a competition. This event is just one of many at GHS to keep you busy in the cold weather.

After the initial rush of the beginning of the year, freshman still must face finals for the first time and find what strategies work best for them. Once they do, they can enjoy all of the sports, activities, and events GHS has to offer.