New school, new classes, new friends, and new responsibilities. For many, freshman year can be hard to navigate because of these changes. However, surviving freshman year is not impossible, and for this year’s freshmen, it’s almost a given that they will emerge victoriously as sophomores at the end of the academic year.

For many junior high school students, high school seemed like a distant and far off dream, until former 8th graders found themselves walking through the doors of Seven Lakes on the first day of freshman year. Freshman Kathy Aung had been anticipating the start of freshman year since the end of 8th grade.

“I was excited [for high school]” Aung said. “I rarely get nervous to explore anything.”

Though excited, many freshmen were surprised to discover that their first year of high school would be a bit different from what they were expecting.

“[I was expecting] a lot of work and a lot of stress,” freshman Seth Holland said. “But it wasn’t as bad as I thought.”

After spending over two months in high school, the freshmen have definitely gotten into the swing of how things work at Seven Lakes and have adjusted to high school life pretty well. 

“High school is just a little bit harder than junior high and very different,” freshman Hannah May said. “And the school is a lot bigger.”

High school also offers more activities and opportunities for students than what they had in junior high, providing an outlet for freshmen to connect with upperclassmen and make new friends.

 “Clubs are fun,” Aung said. “I’m in the beta club and we’re going on a trip in February. I’m also running for class officer.”

Although they are both considered to be secondary schools, there are definitely significant differences between junior high and high school.

“[I like] high school better because there’s more freedom to do what you want,” freshman Dane Worcester said.

In three years, today’s freshmen will be seniors, submitting college applications and planning for their futures. There will be new freshmen who will be looking up to these seniors for advice.

“I wouldn’t be worried if you’re stressing about going into high school,” Aung said. “If you need to take an easier class, take it. It’ll be better in the long run.”