Amid a bluster of sports events, dropping temperatures, and falling leaves, students are settling into the new school year.  Every student has a different mentality going into the first quarter, and the resulting ups and downs of the school  year can vary.

When asked about this year’s homework load, Cameron Downey ‘17 says, “Thus far I am drowning in homework, but there are some rare nights where I don’t have homework and on those nights I get anxiety because I feel like I am going to get more homework the next day.”

Like many students, Downey often comes across stress when encountering different amounts of homework during the school week. This homework anxiety is especially prevalent within the junior and senior classes as the college process begins to ramp up, adding an additional layer of work and worry to our lives.

Maddie Dekko ‘16, shares how she manages first quarter stress, saying, “sleep in the best way.” She adds, “I like to break up my study periods into two hours. Playing soccer relieves the stress. I also try my best not to procrastinate.”

While a large time commitment to sports at the start of the year can stretch some students to their limit, Dekko uses her sport as a way to relieve stress and give herself a break from the rigors of schoolwork.

Students may have their own ways of dealing with stress, but a clear motivator of getting through the week is the figurative pot of gold at the end of the rainbow: weekends and breaks. Max Owens ‘18 and Sean Leblanc ‘18 say that during the school year, they look forward to Spring Break and Winter Break.

While not all students express these sentiments to this degree, many seem to use long weekends and breaks as motivators to battle through tough workloads and long days.

Asya Shogren ‘19 shares a tip about surviving the first quarter on weekends, saying that  “utilizing partnerships with friends to work collaboratively can save a lot of time.”

As first quarter comes to a close, Downey shares three words that sum up her first quarter experience, “different,” “challenging,” and an “adjustment.”

Although the first quarter has proven to be difficult for many students in the community, there are a variety of tactics and motivators we all use to find value in the beginning of the school year and ensure that school doesn’t completely dominate our lives.