Switching grades is always tough. Whether it’s new teachers, more difficult subjects, the pressure or more homework, almost everyone experiences some difficulty when adjusting to the next grade level.
Middle School Counselor Rylan Smith often advises students with academic problems.
“They’re worried about the pressure from home, [and] they’re worried about getting high grades in class,” Smith said. “Sometimes they’re worried about college. Sometimes they feel they have to make a certain grade in order to do certain sports, or their parents will put certain requirements on them.”
Each student has his or her own way of dealing with these challenges. Here are some ways to cope with academic struggles from adults, as well as students who have passed, and even thrived, from grade to grade.
6th to 7th grade
7th grade is often thought of as the hardest grade in middle school. This can scare or worry rising 7th graders, especially those with older siblings. But 7th grader Daniel Rodriguez doesn’t fully agree with the people who consider 7th grade to be incredibly difficult.
“Personally, I would say that it’s partially hard and partially not so difficult,” Rodriguez said.
People attribute the tough transition to the different workload that comes with 7th grade.
“In the 7th grade,… teachers assign you things more often,” Rodriguez said. “In the 6th grade, teachers are typically a bit more [lenient] with you.”
Another one of these differences is the midterms and final exams that students take at the end of the year. In 7th grade, these exams can be worth 10 percent of a class’s final grade, and even 20 percent for higher level maths. Exams can be stressful since the amount of material they cover can be overwhelming and tough to thoroughly review. Rodriguez, however, was less fazed than others.
“For me, it’s really just about studying for two tests’ worth of material,” Rodriguez said.
The biggest difficulty to overcome is the preconceived fear that 7th grade is too much for students to handle because, for the most part, this feeling is merely an exaggeration. Rodriguez advises against worrying too much about the difficulty.
“You should definitely not be afraid,” Rodriguez said. “Even though you might hear it’s a lot harder, it’s really not that bad–especially if you [pay attention] in class and start to study a little bit more often.”
7th to 8th grade
Transitioning from 7th to 8th grade can seem like a relief, but the differences between the two grades make 8th grade harder than it looks for almost everyone, including 8th grader Ethan Cogdill. Two of these differences are the teachers and homework.
“In 8th Grade, teachers expect a lot more from you and they do not guide you as much as they did in 7th grade,” Cogdill said. “We have also had more homework in the second semester.”
The biggest difference between 7th and 8th grade is the workload as well as the number of projects. 8th grade has significantly more independent projects such as the Science Olympiad and the 20Time Project. These can be hard to manage, along with other homework.
“In the beginning, it was difficult to get used to the workload, but by the end of the first semester, I was used to the amount of work,” Cogdill said.
However, 8th grade can be made significantly easier, as long as you’re willing to put genuine effort in. Cogdill emphasizes the idea of time management.
“I would say to manage your time carefully, don’t procrastinate and use your study period time wisely,” Cogdill said. “Go to a study period at least twice a week.”
8th to 9th grade
The transition between 8th and 9th grade is a large jump as students have to adjust to high school from middle school. This jump can always be scary for students worried about starting a new chapter of their lives.
For many students, including freshman Samantha Lin, the hardest part of 9th grade was the critical thinking required to succeed.
“The courses get harder now,” Lin said. “[Teachers] ask for more in-depth answers and not just memorization. You have to use analysis.”
Another difficult aspect of 9th grade is the increased workload. Often times, students can find themselves drowning in homework, especially for those who frequently miss school. Lin has her own advice to prevent this from happening.
“Get used to doing homework, and try not to do it at the last minute,” Lin said.
The difficulty of transitioning between grades is dependent on the student and the grade that they’re in. The main solution to coping with the large workloads of middle school is to manage your time wisely, and really get serious when it comes to school.
However, there is one factor that affects close to every student at Trinity Prep: the willingness of a student to ask for help.
“A lot of times we tell our friends, ‘Oh, school’s no big deal,’ and yet we spend a lot of time studying on our own, [though] we don’t like to tell our friends that,” Smith said. “And so, I think if [the students] share the fact that they’re struggling a bit, they’d find out they’re not by themselves.”