Get Involved-Chloe Zumwalt
Hello underclassmen of Excelsior Charter. As I part ways with this fabulous school, I would like to offer my most sincere and humble advice. Firstly, put yourself out there. You will leave the school feeling more prepared to take on the world if you have experienced everything Excelsior has to offer, and trust me it’s a lot. Secondly, do at least one high school sport, it will open you up to more possibilities and keep you active. When you exercise, you release endorphins that help combat general sadness and keep you feeling happier and motivated. Thirdly, balance whatever extracurriculars you’re a part of with schoolwork. It is absolutely no fun playing catch up on top of other responsibilities and you learn way less. That is all, I wish you all the best in all your future endeavors.
Hobbies-Chris Ponce
High school can be consuming with academics, clubs, and sports making it hard to find time to invest in hobbies. However, finding the hobbies that are right for you can make a big impact on your high school experience. It’s a great way to find more about yourself and get your mind off of things.
A popular and meditative hobby that anyone can enjoy is exploring nature and hiking! It is almost always free, easily accessible, and something to do with friends. The High Desert is home to dozens of scenic and beautiful trails. From places like Pacific Crest Trail (Hesperia) to Wrightwood, the possibilities are endless. Just be sure to remember the necessary basics: don’t hike alone, bring plenty of water, have directions downloaded beforehand, go early, and have fun!
Another hobby that might be up your alley, if nature is your thing, is gardening. A green thumb is not the only thing you will need for this hobby. Gardening does require some minor expenses and space (and the right weather), but what matters most of all in gardening is patience and dedication. Gardening is a daily activity. It creates a stable and peaceful start to your morning. Making sure to water your plants around the same time every day creates a strong sense of control and a regular schedule. The hardest part of gardening is starting it. Firstly, you need to decide what plants you will plant, be sure to map this out with the season and place where you live. The high desert can be a challenging but exciting place to garden. Spring and Fall flowers grow the best out here as well as vegetables that grow mostly during Fall. After you decide what plant is right for you, be sure to buy good garden soil (Lowes or local small businesses usually provide the cheapest price for good quality soil). Then, pick a plot in your yard and level the soil there. Use your finger to dig a small hole in the soil, place your seed, cover the seed with the soil, and then you will have yourself a great start to a beautiful and fruitful garden.
There are hundreds of more hobbies that you can do. It is important to find what is right for you in order to relax and spend your time wisely. Finding the right hobbies can even improve your academic work and help you find a better mindset!
Time Management-Asher Woodbury
Throughout my high school experience, I have learned many things. I learned how to make friends, play the tuba, and apply for college. One lesson that I learned time and time again was that good time management is a good habit to get into. Procrastinating was probably my biggest struggle throughout high school, and I don’t expect it to go away anytime soon. Hopefully, if you’re reading this, my past experiences can help you in some way.
Time management is more important than you would think. It doesn’t just work well for student life, but it is also a very useful skill outside of school. Having a job and going to college can seem like stressful situations, and there are times when that is the case, but having good time management skills can really be helpful in the long run. So trust me, a graduated student. Don’t wait until the last minute to submit important things, nobody enjoys themselves in that situation. It leaves less time to actually learn from the assignment, and it can be much more stressful than if you just did it on time in the first place.
Start College Applications Early-Angie Mendoza
There are tons of options for life after high school, but if you’re interested in applying to college your Senior year, start putting together what you’ll need to do so as early as possible. On top of ensuring you fulfill your A-G requirements, certain colleges may expect you to have taken additional years in certain subjects and have participated in extracurriculars. Knowing what schools you’re interested in applying to beforehand can help you map out where your focus should be throughout high school. However, though it’s easy to feel like you need to pile on extracurriculars and difficult classes, remember that overwhelming yourself won’t improve your grades and at the end of the day, extracurriculars—sports, clubs, volunteering, etc.—should be enjoyable to you. Not only will having enjoyable extracurriculars help you balance your commitments in a sane way, but when the time comes to talk about them in your college applications, you’ll be able to write about your experiences authentically.
As you near the start of your Senior year, you should begin the actual application process. Many college applications ask for a narrative essay and/or short answers. Narrative essays are seldom assigned in high school classes, so students are commonly inexperienced both in the structure of a narrative essay and the vulnerability of talking about themselves. For this reason, putting off the College Essay™ until the last minute is going to result in an inauthentic and directionless application. The essay is your opportunity to share your voice and give depth to the stats listed in your application; You should start a few months early and make multiple drafts—especially if you can’t settle on a topic. As you work on your essay you should also have a list of each school you’re applying to, their application requirements, and their deadlines. Be sure to gather all the information you need for applications and reach out to people for letters of recommendation early.
Volunteer Work-Chris Ponce
Volunteer work could potentially be one of the wisest investments you make in high school. Volunteering for somewhere you are passionate about will help improve you as a student and could play a major role in your college application process.
Colleges look at your volunteer work, however, it typically makes a bigger difference if your experiences have a narrative. For example, I applied as a political science major and almost all of my volunteer work listed was related to political campaigns/clubs. This will sometimes help an admissions officer understand why you are right for your major and overall, their university.
A key part in picking where to volunteer is picking a place that you are passionate about. Whether it is a local political campaign you are a supporter of, the local soup kitchen/homeless shelter, or a daycare, you should pursue it. If you aren’t passionate about where you volunteer, you will likely not enjoy your experience or work as hard.
No matter where you volunteer, you will be forced to exit your comfort zone. You will be exposed to plenty of new people (likely who are much older than you), and usually have to interact with strangers on a regular basis. Although this can be scary, especially as a high schooler, it is not a bad thing. Being exposed to a new environment can help you gain new perspectives, hands-on experience, and help you network.
Take Notes-Angie Mendoza
If you’re an underclassman currently skating by without taking notes, you might want to consider preparing for the more advanced classes to come. Yes, Excelsior tests are based on quiz questions but even writing out the answers will help you memorize them more easily and if you take an advanced math class, you’ll appreciate having the formulas and solving steps to refer to. Whether you choose digital or handwritten, note-taking is an extremely valuable skill in high school and even more so if you continue on to college.
When applicable, digital notes are far quicker and less tedious than handwritten notes but may not always be allowed. Generally, underclassmen get busted for using laptops in study hall and a lot of teachers don’t trust when they can’t see students’ screens in class, so you may be limited to using your iPad. If you’re comfortable using the iPad Word app—or any other note-taking app—then typing out notes is a good choice for wordier and vocab-focused subjects.
Hand-written notes are sometimes too slow in a classroom setting and can be tiring, but writing information by hand is better for memorization than typing and ideal for formatting math notes. For these, you should have designated notebooks for each subject and in addition to writing the textbook formulas directly, take the time to include some written out examples.
There are a ton of ways to format your notes, so it may take some trial and error to find what works best for you. Generally, using headers and different colored pens are good ways to make your notes readable. Also, heads up if you take any classes at VVC that require a l
ot of reading, for time’s sake, sometimes just underlining parts of the textbook then going through and making a Quizlet is more efficient than thorough notes.
Excelsior Culture-Angie Mendoza
Like any school, there’s no one Excelsior culture. You’ll undoubtedly meet all kinds of people at Excelsior that you may or may not click with, but I can confidently say that anyone can find their people if they look. A few years ago, this club didn’t exist. It began as an idea with friends that we made a reality. Excelsior encourages students to pursue any and every interest of theirs, so it’s no surprise that you can find clubs and teams for things like gaming, Legos, fashion, and of course, writing. Paired with the nature of independent study, a good way to describe Excelsior culture is freedom and expression.
The flexibility of Excelsior does have some downfalls. This past year off-campus has highlighted, particularly for us seniors, Excelsior’s inability to effectively communicate. Many of us are accustomed to wading through the waves of spam emails that don’t apply to us in hopes of finding the piece of information we need. Navigating college applications and graduation was especially difficult. A good facilitator and connections to teachers/club advisors can help ease the struggle of keeping up, however. Not everyone will go out of their way to respond to your emails, and often faculty don’t have the answers themselves, but you’ll find that others truly go above and beyond to support you at Excelsior.
I can’t imagine having spent the past six years anywhere else. Despite any shortcomings of Excelsior, I’ve loved my school and will miss so many aspects of my high school experience. When I think of Excelsior, I remember the times where the entire quad would join in with a group that’s started clapping, despite having no idea what prompted it. I’m thankful that I eventually went outside my comfort zone to sit in on different clubs throughout my time here. I miss the time when it was common for students to show up to school in cosplay. And on the off chance that anyone was there and remembers the camel, I think of that. Excelsior has so much to offer, and I hope all the underclassmen get the chance to experience it all.
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