Growing Up – The High School Experience

Growing+Up+-+The+High+School+Experience

Janni Rumsfeld, Staff Writer

Four years of high school is not only a long time for the students, parents and everyone involved, it is also a really important time. The changes that are experienced by the students growing from child to adult are at their peak during high school. High school is a good place to learn how to build friendships, learn about yourself and about life.  A lot is going on during that time and high school has a big influence in all that. “High school is definitely a growing experience. Some students take it for granted and don’t like it, but it is a great opportunity. Not everybody gets the chance to go to a high school and to get education, so we should think about that a little bit more,” Chris Welch, a junior at Lake Shore High School says. 

“As a freshman I wasn’t a very caring student . It was probably also the hardest year yet. A whole different environment, new people and of course, new teachers. I failed a lot of classes but I realized how important it is to keep up in school, so I eventually picked those classes up,” Welch says.

In life, there are a lot of ups and downs. The high school years are also a good opportunity to see what life is like and if you are stuck on one path, there are people that can pick you up. You can make mistakes that you can’t do in life later on. 

“You won’t have a helping hand all the time in your life, so you have to learn how to handle things on your own and how to learn from mistakes. You can not sit around and just wait for an opportunity to come to you but you have to look for them and take them,” Welch adds.

“Meeting new people and teachers that teach you different things about life can help you a lot. Seeing bullies shows you also the other side of life and just from seeing them, you learn a lot.”

What is about the dreams of the future? What impact does attending high school have on the students? “As a freshman, I wanted to be like a fireman or a police officer or something like that. I learned at high school that it is important to have fun at your job. Now I want to be an electrician or a mechanic. I want to go to a trade school and do what I love,” Welch said. 

High school is a good opportunity to learn about life and start your career in a good way. It is a good place to make friends and find out what you love. That’s what makes high school special.