Every year about this time, at every school across our area, someone is having a “first day.”
Exciting? Yes.
Nerve-wracking? That, too.
But guess what? You’ve got this!
Matt Scialdone, Wake County’s 2015-16 Teacher of the Year, offers these nine tips on transitioning to a new school year:
- Attend your school’s orientation.
- Sign on and learn the communication tools teacher use, such as Blackboard, Weebly, Edmodo and Remind. Parents too!
- Not syncing with a certain high school teacher? Just wait 90 minutes for the next class.
- Don’t count on using your locker. Multi-building campuses and fewer textbooks thanks to technology have made lockers obsolete.
- Extracurricular clubs, sports and arts? Do them!
- Shop the clubs, then invest your time in 1 or 2 favorites. Become president; it shows colleges you know how to make leadership decisions.
- Volunteer, or take on the “ultimate extracurricular,”a job.
- Be the bigger person; back away from social media when it becomes negative.
- Be open to new experiences and people — that’s how you grow!
For the younger set, here’s more advice straight from the mouth of fifth-grader Emma Key of Resurrection Lutheran School in Cary:
- “Have an open mind about all people; don’t just have one kind of friend. Pick people who respect you, who have fun with you, and who want to play.”
- “Don’t go crazy or be loud at lunch. You can talk with your friends, but don’t shout across the room. Stay in your seat, clean up your personal area so there are no crumbs on the floor, and wash your hands.”
- “Don’t let anyone bring you down. Stand up for yourself and your friends. If you have a problem, tell the teacher. Make good choices, and follow the rules.”
