Through the elongated, never-ending countdown to the end of the school year, students of all ages power through seven classes, five days a week in hopes of making the days pass by faster than humanly possible. High school students are responsible for retaining 180 days worth of knowledge in 50 minute classes, ten months out of the year. Students’ abilities to retain excessive amounts of topics formerly are considered more important than mental health, and the grades all determine what will happen next in their beginning lives. Will you excel to the next grade or wallow in the same classes you walked in with in the first place?

Grades are what make or break you. They alternatively determine your future in ways you never would have thought imaginable before, and it can be stressful. School is not made to be easy, but you can make it easier for yourself in a few simple steps.

It is scientifically proven that staring at a page for hours on end does not help you in the slightest, but the way you approach your study habits can excessively improve your brain power. Ask others around you to form a study group, or ask your teacher for help. That is what they are there for!

“The best advice I can give is the simplest. If a student is struggling with their grades, the first step in fixing that is communicating with the teacher,” explained senior guidance counselor Lindsey Ruggles. “Teachers notice when students are putting in the effort to do the work.”

Nobody gets a step-to-step guide on how to survive high school their freshman year, so students are having to get creative when it comes to successfully achieving the grades they once had before.

Tactics are everything and time really does matter. Studying outside or in a room you rarely find yourself in any other time, rather than in your bedroom, has been proven to stimulate more brain cells; hence, enhancing one’s ability to retain more information in a shorter period of time.

“Put your mind to it, focus on your goals, and work as hard as you can,” commented Desiree’ DeLorenzo, a junior. “Being focused is key.”

However, how do you know what you should be focusing on first? That is where the deadline comes in. It is not just a warning that your assignment better be finished soon, but it also expresses your priorities. Sooner the due date, the sooner that project should be put into your attention. Organize your work in a way you can personally understand with some dividers, and uncompleted work will be the last thing you will be stressing over.

“The most sure-fire way for me to feel like I am keeping my head above water is to make a list of all the things that need to be done,” Ruggles expresses with full relief. “I am lost without my planner! If it was not for these organizational strategies, I would not make it in the real world.”

If you just can not possibly find yourself concerned enough with your grades to care about them, at least make sure enough daily grades have been entered into your PowerSchool before you bomb your next test. Therefore, it will not kill your overall grade. You can thank me later.