Tips for Transitioning

There is nothing more exciting and scary for teenagers than going to high school. It is often a bigger school filled with a lot more students than elementary and middle school. If you think about switching classrooms, it can be even more daunting.

However, it doesn't have to be. Here are some tips to help with the transition to high school.

Take a tour of the facility. Part of the fear of high school is the sheer size of it. There are many different classrooms and hallways, and it is easy to feel like you will never be able to know where to go.

However, if you are able to take a tour of the school, you can see where everything is. Make sure you know where the bathrooms, cafeteria, and some of your classrooms are, so you can feel more prepared to go to high school.

If you are able to, you may also want to find your locker so you can practice opening it up. If you have your schedule, you can even plan when you will have time to stop by it daily.

If you aren't able to do so (or you might feel better with both), get a map of the high school. Many students feel better with a map. They can look at the route they will need to go to get from one classroom to the next (and when they should visit their locker). A map can alleviate anxiety and first-day jitters.

Join clubs and other after-school activities. Joining after-school activities and clubs are a great way to meet some new people with the same interests as you. If you have some friends, high school can be a much better place to be!

You can also use this time to try new things, which can be an eye-opener. For this reason, if you see something you would like to try, go for it. It can only help make your whole high-school experience that much better.

Make sure your expectations are realistic. Many teenagers have unrealistic expectations going into high school. They may expect everything will go perfectly and struggle when it doesn't. They may think they are going to have more friends than ever. When that doesn't happen, they get depressed.

You aren't going to change just because you are going to high school. Your grades aren't suddenly going to improve unless you work hard at it. You aren't going to suddenly be friends with everyone if you weren't popular in middle school.

However, that doesn't mean you can't change. High school can be a chance to start over. There are many new experiences just waiting for you - if you allow them! You have the opportunity to make many new friends and try a lot of new things.

You need to embrace this time and all of the new experiences you can. You won't get to do it over again. Even if you weren't the best student in middle school, you can work harder to improve your grades in high school.

No matter how scary high school feels, it is a great time for you. You are going to be able to experience a lot of new things and meet a lot of new people. You need to embrace this time and get everything out of it you can!

It helps to take a tour of the facility, so you know where you are going on your first day of school. This (and a map) can help you when you step through the front doors of your new school. You may also want to join some new after-school activities to make some new friends and experiences.