When the fireweed gets brittle and their flowers disappear, you know that summer is coming to an end, which means school is on its way. Moreover, students comprising the class of 2021 are about to begin their freshman year at Seward High School. This can be quite a dramatic experience for some of the upcoming students, but for most, not so much.

For example, when I asked freshman Marisa Phasomsap if she was nervous or excited for high school, she replied with, “Would it be neither?” Curious, I asked her why, and she said she already knew where most of the classes were, along with knowing some high schoolers due to taking math classes there almost everyday.

Unfortunately, not everyone got a chance to attend the high school for classes last year, so they couldn’t get a feel for the campus. For instance, freshman Lani Lackey said she was nervous for high school “because of all the work,” but was glad to find that it was easier than she imagined.

However, high school isn’t all about being excited or nervous; you have to learn to balance between school, sports, friends, and other extracurriculars. Freshman Calysta Lohman said that she was afraid of “trying to balance everything between sports and school” and having time with her friends and family because she didn’t want to be stressed out.

One main difference between the middle school last year and the high school this year is the block schedule. The middle school has just recently changed its schedule to a block schedule; therefore, it’s new to the freshman this year, but it will be easier for the next high school class. It seems like the freshmen prefer the block schedule over the eight period classes. Such is true for Max Pfeiffenberger. His favorite things about high school thus far are “Probably the block schedule, so you have more time to get stuff done; and then the PLC’s, so you can get all your work done.”

Another incredible contrast among the middle school and high school is the sports. Jacob Wendt thinks the biggest difference between middle school and high school sports is that “high school is more competitive.” He commented, “There’s bigger kids around. It goes wider in the state. Like, you can go up to Barrow now to play football. Whereas, cross country for middle school, you stay within the peninsula.” Jacob is not wrong. High school allows kids to travel to many more places for sports; this also shapes student athletes’ time management skills, so they can stay caught up in school.

This raises another difference sports wise: grade checks. In middle school, grade checks are every week, and compared to high school, it’s more often so you have “a longer amount of time” to get work done, according to Jacob. But freshman Cody Bryden has a different opinion on grade checks. He said, “I personally wish it was like every two weeks, not every four weeks. That way you got enough of a punishment where you just miss one meet but not enough that you miss. . . like in cross country that’s half the season, is four weeks.” Also, Cody prefers high school sports more than middle school sports “because you get to go have your freedom to go to different places instead of just staying in the peninsula. Depending on what sports you do, you can go all the way up to Barrow.” Overall, student athletes seem to be liking high school sports better than middle school sports due to more travel and opportunity.

In addition, middle school doesn’t seem nearly as intense as high school. Yet, the class of 2021 seems to be adjusting to it very nicely. Plus, coming from a freshman, I think everyone is getting a great start to the school year and is very excited to be a seahawk.