When I was in elementary and middle school, I never had to study. Everything we learned just came easily to me. My grades were always up in the range where I wanted them, until eighth grade. In eighth grade I took algebra. Most kids take algebra in ninth grade, but about 80 eighth graders- depending on how many qualify- are advanced and take algebra early. The process of being accelerated started in seventh grade when they give you a certain number of points for your: quarterly averages from seventh grade, quarterly averages from sixth grade, trimester scores from seventh grade, and the score on a proficiency type test in the middle of seventh grade. The most amount of points you could get from all of these was 11, and the students with the top scores were accepted into the class. Once you were accepted, you had to complete a packet of problems that was due when you went to the bridging program over the summer.
The bridging program was for a week over the summer, where you went into school with one of the eighth grade math teachers to learn the entire eighth grade curriculum-- shortened of course, for time purposes. During the bridge week we spent three hours every morning learning what the rest of our peers would be learning over the course of an entire school year. Since I signed up for a July session, everyday seemed like we were going to melt inside the classroom, even though we were doing everything to keep the room cooler. We took notes, did worksheets and had at least one quiz per day. Plus we always had at least one full page of homework every night.
It wasn’t the homework, the notes, or the class work that I had trouble with, it was the quizzes. I had never had to study before, and I wasn’t about to start during a summer class, so my quiz grades weren’t the best over the week. I still passed the quizzes; I just didn’t get the hundreds or high nineties I was expecting to be able to get without trying to study. We left the summer session with another packet on how to use our new calculators, which were due on the first day of school and a piece of advice to study because we would have a quiz on the same day.
On the first day of school, I had finished the packet, but still had my mind set on not studying for anything in math, sure that the fact that I hadn’t done well on the quizzes during bridge was because the pace was a little fast, and we didn’t get as much practice doing the new things that we learned. Needless to say, when we took the first quiz of the year, I didn’t study the week before, or a class before or even the night before, even though our teacher had told us many times: “You need to study, or you won’t do as well as you expect to.”
The first quiz was on what we remembered from bridge, and although I didn’t fail, I got an 88%. My next two quiz grades were even worse, a 70.5% and a 74%, leaving my average at a 79.7, or 80. I had never done so poorly on anything thus far in my education, and we had only had about two or so weeks of school. On the first unit test, which was in October, I got a 70%. I was completely devastated. I still couldn’t accept the fact that I needed to study, and at the same time I did.
While my overall grade for the first quarter was and 80, my grades kept improving. I was finally learning that I had to study. Since we kept track of our test and quizzes on a grade sheet (this was before gradespeed) so we could see how we were doing, I could consistently see what my grade was. I made good progress by bringing my average up to a 90 by the end of the second quarter (it could have been higher, but I didn’t study well for the midterm), and I was finally at least happy with my grade.
I was able to keep my grade up at the 90 for the rest of the year and was happy to have successfully passed a high school level course, somewhat up to my standards. Although I wasn’t completely happy with my grades, since I know I could have done better, I was proud of myself for turning it around and keeping my grade from being even worse. I learned that I actually do need to study for things and that the class I was in was finally a challenge to me, unlike the classes I had taken up until then. When I got to high school, the next year I was prepared with what I needed to do to study. I was also able to consistently keep my grades up where I wanted them. By learning how to study for math in eighth grade, I now know what I need to do to help me get the grades I want for the rest if my high school career.
When I was in elementary and middle school, I never had to study. Everything we learned just came easily to me. My grades were always up in the range where I wanted them, until eighth grade. In eighth grade I took algebra. Most kids take algebra in ninth grade, but about 80 eighth graders- depending on how many qualify- are advanced and take algebra early. The process of being accelerated started in seventh grade when they give you a certain number of points for your: quarterly averages from seventh grade, quarterly averages from sixth grade, trimester scores from seventh grade, and the score on a proficiency type test in the middle of seventh grade. The most amount of points you could get from all of these was 11, and the students with the top scores were accepted into the class. Once you were accepted, you had to complete a packet of problems that was due when you went to the bridging program over the summer.
The bridging program was for a week over the summer, where you went into school with one of the eighth grade math teachers to learn the entire eighth grade curriculum-- shortened of course, for time purposes. During the bridge week we spent three hours every morning learning what the rest of our peers would be learning over the course of an entire school year. Since I signed up for a July session, everyday seemed like we were going to melt inside the classroom, even though we were doing everything to keep the room cooler. We took notes, did worksheets and had at least one quiz per day. Plus we always had at least one full page of homework every night.
It wasn’t the homework, the notes, or the class work that I had trouble with, it was the quizzes. I had never had to study before, and I wasn’t about to start during a summer class, so my quiz grades weren’t the best over the week. I still passed the quizzes; I just didn’t get the hundreds or high nineties I was expecting to be able to get without trying to study. We left the summer session with another packet on how to use our new calculators, which were due on the first day of school and a piece of advice to study because we would have a quiz on the same day.
On the first day of school, I had finished the packet, but still had my mind set on not studying for anything in math, sure that the fact that I hadn’t done well on the quizzes during bridge was because the pace was a little fast, and we didn’t get as much practice doing the new things that we learned. Needless to say, when we took the first quiz of the year, I didn’t study the week before, or a class before or even the night before, even though our teacher had told us many times: “You need to study, or you won’t do as well as you expect to.”
The first quiz was on what we remembered from bridge, and although I didn’t fail, I got an 88%. My next two quiz grades were even worse, a 70.5% and a 74%, leaving my average at a 79.7, or 80. I had never done so poorly on anything thus far in my education, and we had only had about two or so weeks of school. On the first unit test, which was in October, I got a 70%. I was completely devastated. I still couldn’t accept the fact that I needed to study, and at the same time I did.
While my overall grade for the first quarter was and 80, my grades kept improving. I was finally learning that I had to study. Since we kept track of our test and quizzes on a grade sheet (this was before gradespeed) so we could see how we were doing, I could consistently see what my grade was. I made good progress by bringing my average up to a 90 by the end of the second quarter (it could have been higher, but I didn’t study well for the midterm), and I was finally at least happy with my grade.
I was able to keep my grade up at the 90 for the rest of the year and was happy to have successfully passed a high school level course, somewhat up to my standards. Although I wasn’t completely happy with my grades, since I know I could have done better, I was proud of myself for turning it around and keeping my grade from being even worse. I learned that I actually do need to study for things and that the class I was in was finally a challenge to me, unlike the classes I had taken up until then. When I got to high school, the next year I was prepared with what I needed to do to study. I was also able to consistently keep my grades up where I wanted them. By learning how to study for math in eighth grade, I now know what I need to do to help me get the grades I want for the rest if my high school career.
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