I never thought I'd say it, but I guess I kind of miss high school. I think that I took my four years of high school for granted because when senior year rolled around, I finally realized that my high school days were coming to a close and that life in college would be a totally different ball game.
During my last year, I did my best to do all that I could. I got together with as many friends as possible, took hundreds of pictures, attended my winter trip and my prom, and much more. There will be a point in college for all of you incoming high school graduates out there in which you will want to be back in high school. I guarantee it. But for now, while you are still in high school, I encourage you to enjoy every moment of it.
1. Take lots of pictures
Whether this is a selfie with a friend during class or a photo of a memorable team project, take as many pictures as you can. Four years of high school fly by quicker than you think, and once you enter college, you can look back and remember who you were with, what you were doing, and when it happened. When I look through my camera roll and my Polaroids, a wave of nostalgia always hits me whenever I see photos of my favorite English class or photos of my friends and me at our end of the school year picnic. Pictures not only allow you to hold onto memories, but emotions and feelings, as well.
2. Participate in senior year activities
My high school had Twin Day and Pajama Day, and it was great matching with one of my closest friends and walking into class with sweats and a Pillow Pet. If your high school has a prom, I encourage you to attend that because prom is truly a once in a lifetime event, and it's an amazing opportunity to see others in dresses or suits, to dress up yourself, or to prompose to that special someone. I even attended a winter trip at a resort upstate and that was when I went skiing and snow tubing for the first time ever, and it was one of the highlights of my year.
3. Get your yearbook signed
Typically during the end of the year, you are given time during the day to walk around the school to ask your teachers and friends to sign your yearbook. You'd be surprised as to how many teachers can remember you. Ask your friends to write down a favorite memory with you. Even if you have classmates that you didn't talk too much, you should still have them sign your yearbook and you should sign theirs. In the end, words can hold just as much meaning as photos.
4. Thank your teachers
On the day that I got my yearbook signed, I gave out thank you cards to the teachers who wrote recommendations for me and to those whose class I really enjoyed. I wrote a card to my AP Literature teacher who inspired me to continue to pursue writing in college, one to my biology teacher who made AP Biology my favorite class, and another to my math teacher who actually made me enjoy math. Writing cards is not only a nice gesture, but it's also a way to show your appreciation and to tell your teachers how much they impacted you.
5. Stay connected
It's never too late to ask for someone's phone number or social media. It's nice to see how everyone's doing and how they'll be doing five years down the line. If they're going far away for college, definitely stay in touch. They could share their experiences with you from all the way across the country or all the way around the world. In college, you can contact each other to meet and catch up during one of your breaks. Because I asked for people's contact information, I now talk to those who go to the same college as me, but didn't really talk to during high school. New friendships always form, even the unexpected ones.
6. Explore your school building
Even though you may have been in your high school for four years, there may be parts of the building that you never went to. I had originally thought that I had been to every single floor in my high school building, but I never knew that it had over nine floors until one of my friends took me to them. I encourage you to explore your high school building with your friends maybe during your lunch period or whenever you have a free period because there is probably so much that you still don't know about your school.
7. Attend a school-wide event
While there are activities set aside for seniors only, you should definitely still attend a school-wide event. Whether this is a chorus concert, a musical, or a talent show, continue to be a part of your high school community, show your spirit and pride, and support the freshman, sophomores, and juniors. Even though there are community building events in college, it's difficult to get the whole school together, so cherish the tighter knit community that you have as a high school senior.
8. Take part in Senior Ditch Day
This isn't technically an official school event, but students have made it one, so unless your teacher scheduled a test or project due that day, ditch school for a day. In many high schools, there is a day dedicated to seniors not showing up to their classes, and not surprisingly, teachers see it coming. When my friends and I ditched, we spent the day playing Monopoly, watching Netflix, and eating buffalo wings. It was for sure a day to remember because even my friends who normally never miss school decided to do so. As college freshmen, we now attend colleges across the East Coast, but we still think back and talk about that day as if it were only yesterday.
9. Explore your hometown
This especially goes for those who are not planning to attend college where they live. Just like how you may not know everything about your high school, you also may not know everything about the city or town that you live in. For me, I went kayaking at the Hudson River Pier, picnicking at Roosevelt Island, and toured an observatory. Even though I've lived in New York City my whole life, I didn't even come close to exploring a fraction of the city. Now that I attend college on Long Island, I really miss the hustle and bustle of the city and all that you can see there. So do something new in the place that you live because you may not come back often once college starts.
10. Create a time capsule
This one may sound cheesy and cliche, but I think it's worthwhile in the long run. Collect anything that held some sort of importance to you from high school and keep it somewhere safe. You could save tickets, stickers, t-shirts, notes that your friends wrote to you, or even a test that you got back and did very well on, because why not? This way, when you're in college, you can have some tangible things to remind you of your high school experience, or if you're sentimental like me, devote an entire shelf to whatever it is that you collect in high school.
Going to the cinema alone is good for your mental health, says science
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