Is school out for the summer yet? Today is March 30.
Apparently, in my mind, today was the first day students went back to in-seat learning because my dream last night centered around RBHS. As I slept, my mind drifted to the familiar brick walls of the main commons where I and countless other students wandered around looking for our friends and classes. When I woke up, however, reality smacked me in the face as I realized, regardless of location, I still had to complete assignments and “attend” class. I grabbed a bowl of cereal and organized myself so I could crack down and get to work.
I started out by checking my email, which I think is going to become a common trend during the next month. I read over teacher expectations and began compiling a list of items I need to complete and when I need to turn everything in. Since I had taken time during spring break to work, I was caught up in nearly every class except for Advanced Placement (AP) Calculus AB (I still had one worksheet to finish).
I heard horror stories from other students about not being able to access various Google platforms and having Schoology crash, but for me those systems worked fine. The bane of my existence took the form of OneNote. Try as I might, my school computer refused to sync and allow me to access the lessons and documents I needed for AP Calculus. After hitting the refresh button for what seemed like an hour (but was probably only 20 minutes), I logged on to OneNote via Google on my personal computer. Since I couldn’t use my stylus to take notes, I decided to print off this week’s paper work. Without the luxury of the school’s speedy double-sided printing, this mundane task took me nearly 15 minutes to complete. Then, irony being what it is, by the time I sat back down to start on my math work, OneNote had synced.
With a groan, I got to work. For the next 3.5 hours I sat on the couch working through various practice problems and reviewing theorems and definitions in preparation for the AP test’s new free response style. Even if I understood a concept when we first learned it, my brain now seems to be Swiss cheese. There were substantial gaps in my memory, which only served to make my day more frustrating and infuriating. To make matters worse, I have a test in the subject this week, and I am still extremely shaky on one of our last content pieces. I am trying to find a way to self-teach, but I think I may need to reach out to friends and my teacher for clarification and additional explanations.
After I completed my notes on today’s AP Calculus lesson, I decided to switch subjects to AP Biology. I enjoy the class’ writing-heavy side (since English is one of my stronger suits) because it relies more on descriptive skills and application rather than blatant memorization and regurgitation of information. In a little more than two hours I was able to complete all of the assignments for this week. Even though some of the topics weren’t the most interesting, especially because I’d learned about them two years ago, I enjoyed the review and could complete them with relative ease.
Most of my classes and course work seem manageable, but AP Calculus is still overwhelming. I’m hoping to figure out a consistent time management system. I have my fingers crossed Columbia Public Schools figures out a lenient grading system in this time of change and alternative education.
To stretch our legs and move around a bit, my mom and I went on a half-hour walk before dinner. As a semi-relaxing end to our first day back to “school,” my family and I decided to watch 500 Days of Summer together. Although my brother lists it as one of his favorite movies, it left me with a feeling of disappointment. The film’s final scenes hinted at the repetition of the main character’s initial behavior, but I hope he learned his lesson and is moving on to a happier season in his life.
“It is nice to be important, but more important to be nice.” ― John Templeton, American-British investor
How did you spend your thirteenth day of social distancing? Let us know in the comments below.
