What Every MHS Student Needs To Know

While this year’s senior class may be moving onto college, the Montclair High School experience is just beginning for the incoming freshmen class. On September 6, the class of 2016 will enter the George Inness Freshmen Annex and will officially be MHS freshmen.

It’s a big step, going from middle school into the high school. And incoming eighth graders are feeling the pressure.

“I’m so scared for high school,” confesses one future freshman, “I’m worried for the amount of work I’m going to get, whether or not the teachers will like me, and if I’ll stay close with the friends I have now!”

Transitioning to high school is a scary thing. Those with older siblings are able to assimilate comfortably because they’ve watched their older brother or sister and learned the ropes, but for those who don’t have that privilege, no fear, because other upper classmen are here!

MHS sophomores, juniors, and seniors are more than willing to give advice to these nervous freshmen because they know all too well how daunting the academic and social aspects of freshman year can seem.  

Lots of incoming freshmen fear the impending doom of homework. They assume that the second they step over the threshold of the Annex they are going to be bombarded with projects, tests, quizzes, and impossible assignments. While this fear is common, it’s quite unrealistic.

“Freshman year is actually really easy,” says rising sophomore Hanna Giordano. “I was afraid it was going to be a lot of work and that I’d have a really hard time, but it wasn’t bad at all.”

“I was challenged of course,” she concedes. “But not to the point where I was going crazy!”

While freshman year isn’t the most difficult year you’ll encounter as a high school student, upperclassmen still warn incoming freshmen to work hard. Just because it’s not the billions of essays and tests that haunt your nightmares doesn’t mean it’s okay to not do any work at all.

“Hit the ground running,” advises rising senior Haley Magee. “Don’t use this year to slack off, because if you slack off you’ll fall behind and it will be really hard to catch up.”

Those who take freshmen year academics seriously will benefit in the long run. Take this chance to pull out the straight A’s you’ve always desired. Use freshmen year to boost, not drag down, your GPA.

Even more horrifying than the idea of timed in-class essays and pop tests is the social aspect of entering the high school. With the combining of three different middle schools, numerous incoming freshmen fear they’ll struggle socially. While some publicize their fears more than others it’s quite obvious that all incoming freshmen are thinking the same thing:

Will I have friends?

Navigating the turbulent social waters of high school can be extremely difficult. It’s not a fun ride either, but it’s a rite of passage for all teenagers.

“I was really scared for freshman year, socially,” admits rising senior Piper Rosenberg. “I think everyone was.”

Coming from Renaissances, the smallest middle school, and not really knowing anyone from Glenfield or Mount Hebron, I was socially terrified for high school. I worried about who I would eat lunch with and who I would hang out with on the weekends. It was tough the first couple of months, making friends, but I persevered and now find myself comfortably situated with lots of different people whose company I enjoy.

The key to social success is really simple.

“Don’t be afraid to hang out with different kinds of people,” advises Rosenberg. “I thought I had to just hang out with my same group of friends from middle school and that just wasn’t fun. I wish I’d really tried to hang out with different kinds of kids.”

Expanding your social horizons is a must. If you only hang out with your close group of friends from middle school then your high school experience will be very narrow and small. Meeting different people will create the ideal experience and make you a well-rounded person.

“Get involved!” exclaims rising senior Emily Halpin. “Getting involved in clubs, sports, and other extracurriculars will help you meet and make friends.”

Giordano echoes Halpin’s suggestion.

“I know playing a fall sport really helped me,” says Giordano, who played field hockey in the fall. “I met lots of kids during preseason and by the first day of school I felt like I knew people and already had some good friends.”

High school can seem like a very scary thing. It’s a big step and is vastly different from middle school socially and academically. But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. Freshman year can seem daunting and scary, but when approached the right way- with an optimistic and open-minded attitude- it can become an easy and quite enjoyable feat to conquer.