Spotify

I am currently obsessed with the app Spotify. I love that it is all free and you get to hear more songs like the ones that you already enjoy. I love how it has thousands of premade playlists that you can listen to for hours. It is really helpful when you are studying because there are hundreds of songs that other people have already put together that are aimed at helping you focus or keeping you relaxed. All you have to do is pick one and hit play.

Then, if you find a song that you really like you can save it to your own music. I love this feature because you might not be able to remember the name of the song later on to look it up, so this way you already have it saved. With this app you can easily find great songs that you would have never been able to hear without it.

However, I don’t like that you can’t play individual songs. If you want to specifically want to listen to a certain song then, then you either have to pay or just go to a different music program. That is the one thing that kind of annoys me with this app but I suppose the company has to have some incentive to make people want to buy from them to become a member.

The commercials and advertisements are typically between 15 and 30 seconds and after every few songs. I actually don’t mind the ads because they don’t last that long and sometimes there will be the option to watch a video and then get a half hour without being disturbed.  These videos are only 30 seconds long, so that seems like a good deal to me.

I really love this app right now and I think it is a really good deal.

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How to Chirstmas shop on a Budget

As teenagers we never seem to have very much spare cash just lying around that we can use to spend on other people. So how are we supposed to get presents for our whole family and all of our friends? I mean we probably just work a minimum age job (if that), so getting everyone expensive gifts is out of the question. But you still want to get everyone nice things that they will actually use and appreciate. I have come across some solutions to this problem that might be able to help some of you out as well.

1)     You could make your own homemade present. Parents are always going to be appreciative of something you spent the time to make yourself. Just try to not make it too “kiddish”. You could knit your mom a scarf or make her jewelry. You could knit your dad a hat or make some mittens.  

2)     Make a kit of some sort. For example if your family is really into movies, you could buy some popcorn, seasoning, a cute container, and a movie or two. This is super inexpensive and is extremely cute and thoughtful. This idea also works great with a hot chocolate theme to it.

3)     You can hit up thrift stores. They have really cheap clothes that you can give to people ironically. Typically you can find one or two really ugly Christmas sweaters there that would be a perfect gift to a friend. Or maybe they have ironic or humorous T-shirts you could wrap up and stick under the tree. This gift won’t cost you much and will probably make the person receiving the gift laugh.

4)     Baked goods are always a good option for when you are running low on cash. You can bake a batch of cookies and that can serve as presents to many people. You probably even have cookies already at your house from baking with your family, so you could probably just use those.

5)     Search the clearance items at stores. You could buy a bunch of little things that can go in the same present for less money than one large gift. Most of the time the things you end up buying are ridiculous so you will have a fun time seeing the reactions on their faces when they open their present.

6)     Pictures are always an inexpensive yet personal gift you can give someone. You could frame a photo of you and your best friend and give it to them. Or make a collage of all the great times you two have had together. It is something you can put a lot of thought and effort into without breaking the bank this holiday season.

Helpful Tip: If you want more ideas I would suggest going to youtube.com.

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SMART Lunch

So my school has started this new program called SMART Lunch.  Basically it is an extended lunch hour in which students can go talk to their teachers and get help on things if they need it. Currently, we have an eighty minute period in the day dedicated for students to work on homework or go get help from teachers.

I really like this idea because if you are struggling in a class it gives you opportunities to go in for extra help. This is so much better than having to go in before or after school because, when you ride the bus that was nearly impossible. Another thing I like about SMART lunch is that upperclassman can leave and go off campus. So in the middle of the day you could go home and eat lunch and do homework there if you wanted too. Eighty minutes is also enough time to go out to eat or grab something quick at a fast food restaurant. If you forget to do some of your homework for your afternoon classes than you can quickly finish that up during lunch. I cannot tell you how many times I have had to do that. SMART lunch is a great break from the stresses of the school day and it is nice to get away so the day is not too overwhelming.

However, this new freedom will be taken advantage of by some kids. For instance some kids will leave for SMART lunch and just not come back to school for their afternoon classes. Or some students might not use the time for studying (if you know what I mean). But that is to be expected from a bunch of high school students. I just hope these few students don't ruin it for the rest of us who actually appreciate the new time off. The other problem with SMART lunch is that it is easy to get distracted and do other things with friends rather than doing the work that needs to get done. But that’s not something the school can control and regulate, so they can’t do anything to change that. Right now it is a requirement that if you have a D or an F in a class you are not allowed to leave and required to attend tutorials in those classes. The problem with this is the school won’t punish you if you don’t go to the required tutorials and it is hard to regulate all 2000 kids at my school.  So it wouldn’t be too hard to leave even if you aren’t supposed to.

Overall I think that SMART lunch is a really good addition to our day and should improve our school’s academic performance.

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YouTube

I am going to write this post assuming that everyone knows what YouTube is. But, in case you have been living under a rock for you entire life here is the link: www.youtube.com. I am going to talk about the benefits and distractions of this website for high school students nowadays.

First, I would like to say that YouTube has really good academic advantages to it. If you are having trouble with a particular concept in school this website will probably have multiple different teachers lecturing about it that can really help you understand it.  I talked about how this helped me in my AP European History class in an earlier blog post. But there are many different teachers out there who post their lectures on this sight that can really help you out because each one explains something a little differently. This sight has been a huge lifesaver and I give it credit for me passing many tests.

Now to the fun stuff. YouTube has always been big in the music scene by having nearly every song you can think of has been uploaded to this sight. So if you are wanting to watch a new music video or look up the lyrics to your favorite songs than you can find them on this site. There are even playlists that you can listen to that other people have put together.

YouTube can actually be a job and people can become famous for making videos on this sight. Some of my favorites that I recommend you checking out are as follows:

1)      Bethany Mota: https://www.youtube.com/user/Macbarbie07

Beth talks about hair, makeup, outfit ideas, and other girly stuff. She gives you great beauty tips and has a really fun personality that is fun to watch. Recently she was on DWTS (Dancing With the Stars), so she hasn’t been uploading videos as muchas she used to be, but hopefully she will start again soon.

2)      Superwoman: https://www.youtube.com/user/IISuperwomanII

This is a SUPER hilarious channel that she uploads to twice a week. She likes to make fun of people, including her family, in a way that isn’t mean but is really funny.

3)      Casper Lee: https://www.youtube.com/user/dicasp

This is another comedic channel, that usually consists of funny skits that Casper and his friends perform

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Surviving AP Physics

I can say that without a doubt that AP physics is one of the hardest science courses that I have taken during my high school career. Let’s just get one thing straight, this entire course is applied mathematics. It deals with a lot of concepts that require careful thought and can at times be very tedious. Don’t get me wrong, I think the class is very interesting and I like the challenge. But, it is definitely not for everyone. To succeed in this class you are going to have to be willing to work hard to understand the difficult problems or concepts.

The biggest issue I have with this class is the tests. My teacher designs his tests like the AP exam, so that we get practice with the time constraint.  This is especially difficult because each problem requires you to think and a lot of math work with equations in order to answer. So basically if you don’t know it, just skip it and move on because otherwise you will not finish.

However, you do get an equation sheet that will be on the AP exam that you can use. This takes some of the pressure off because you don’t have to memorize the many complex equations. But, when you do you math ALWAYS check your units and make sure they are the right ones. There are many times that the question will give you multiple different units and you will have to convert it before you even start solving the problem.

None of the concepts you will learn are too out there; you should be able to understand everything and everything seems to make sense. So this class is for someone who really likes complicated math problems that you will have to use both logic and mathematics to solve. I don’t want to scare anyone away from taking this class but I am just warning you what you are getting yourself into. This class is completely manageable but it is by no means an easy science course that you take to boost your GPA.

When solving complicated physics problems always be careful and double check your work when you are done. It is really easy to make a stupid mistake and get an answer that is way off. Even something as simple as rounding can change your ending answer by a lot.

This class is definitely very challenging and something that you shouldn’t take lightly.

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Trivia Crack

The app called Trivia Crack is the new latest craze to hit the high school scene. The game gives you trivia questions and you try to get “crowns” in each category. The first person to get all six “crowns” wins the game. The six categories are science, geography, sports, art, and entertainment.  This game directly connects you to your friends so that you can play against one another.

The game has literally taken over the lives of almost everyone around me, including myself, and if you see anyone on their phones you can assume they are playing trivia crack. Even my family has gotten in on this craze; there have been very intense battles between my dad and I to see who wins.  

Anyway, trivia crack is a great game because it tests your knowledge and you can learn something new from it. I like it better than other games that have been popular in the past because you can get something out of it rather than just figuring out how to put three of the same colored candies in a row. However, it can be very distracting especially in class because you think it won’t take very long to play. I also like this game because you directly play against your friends rather than just yourself or against complete strangers. This keeps the game exciting because it appeals to your competitive side.

In the app there is an option to challenge your opponent. This gives you a chance to steal one of their “crowns”, but you have to risk losing one of your own. This is a great feature it means if you are really far behind your opponent then you have a chance to catch up. However if you lose, you get even further behind.  These can get really competitive, especially if you send one every round. There have been multiple instances where I have been about to win the game, but lost because of all the challenges my opponent has sent me (Which was really annoying!). Anyway, this game is really fun to play with your friends and won’t fry your brain like other games can.

Another reason I like this app is because due to the different categories everyone has a chance and is good at least one of them. For me, it is science that I am really good at, but for some of my friends it is sports or art. It really just depends on what you are interested in and what you like to do.

Helpful hint: Don’t challenge someone until you get a few of the characters, that way if you lose you will still have some left.

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Surviving Gym

Gym class is not for everyone. Some people thrive in it while others dread it, but at some point during your high school career you will probably have to take a gym class at some point. My school just changed its curriculum this year, so I am in a gym class right now. If you are like me and have to take gym, I would first check if an online or classroom gym is available. With the classroom gym, you don’t have to get all sweaty and gross in the middle of the day. Then with online gym it doesn’t take up a whole class period and you get to exercise whenever and however you want to.

However, for most of us we don’t get that luxury. For an hour of our day we are forced to exert physical exercise. If you can choose when you have the class I would suggest trying to get the one either right before lunch or the last class of the day. That way if you get too sweaty and gross you will have extra time to freshen up before you see other people. I decided to take my gym class as a zero hour. For those of you who don’t know what that is, it is an optional extra hour that you can take before school starts. This also gives me extra time to get ready in the locker rooms before school.

If you can choose the type of gym to take, I would suggest the ones that will get you the least sweaty. The last thing you want is to be super smelly and gross for your next class. Some classes will even let you out extra early so that you have enough time to get ready.

When packing for gym class in the morning or the night before there are four essentials you need to make sure you bring. The first is gym clothes to change into so that you don’t have to wear your gross clothes all day. Then deodorant and perfume to make sure you don’t stink. You will also need a hair brush and some make up. Just the necessities to get refreshed after gym class.

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Surviving AP US History (APUSH)

AP US History, at least at my school, is not a horribly challenging class to get a good grade in. As long as you pay attention in class and do your homework you will be fine. The only things I find challenging is keeping the timeline straight because our book sometimes goes out of order of when things happen. So if you are in the class or planning on taking it, make sure to pay attention to when things happen.

I have previously taken two other advanced placement social studies courses and I would say this is not really different than the other two. It is mostly learning about when things happened, why they happened, and the effect they had. You probably already know some of the material that this class covers so there isn’t anything brand new to cover. But, this class does go into greater detail that you will have to analyze.

When writing the free response questions make sure to include specific events or examples for evidence that supports your claims. The new advanced placement grading system is looking more for you to be able to recall these events when writing. So even if your thesis is correct if you don’t have specific examples to support it you could still loose points on it. This can be the difference between a four and a five.

The document based questions are like any others you might have encountered in any other advanced placement social studies class. You get ten to fifteen documents and a question that you use the documents to answer. However there are sometimes documents that might prove the opposite of what your claim is. With these documents you don’t have to use them, it is worse to use documents incorrectly than to not use them at all.  Most of the time, the answer to the question is in the documents and is not too complicated or difficult to figure out.

I would recommend taking this course because I have heard it gets you out of a lot of general education classes in college.  It is a good boost to your GPA and looks great on college resumes. I think it is easier than my previous two advanced placement social studies classes, which were AP European history and AP Human Geography, but it is still going to be more challenging that the regular class. However, if you pass out of some college classes, it is worth it, because it will save you both time and money.

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Surviving Finals

Every school has them, and every student dreads them. It is officially finals season and these tests can either make or break your grades. They can be stressful, intimidating, and most of all annoying. But, we all have to get through them, so here are some helpful suggestions that might make finals seem a little less terrible.

1.       Make sure you understand what is on your final and how it is weighted. That way you know what to study the night before you take it. Most finals are weighted between ten and twenty percent of your grade, if the final is not weighted as much you know to focus on other classes where the finals are weighted more. Also make sure you know what you will be tested on so you can make sure to study the right material.

2.       On the day of finals, do not stress out. You either know the information or you don’t. There is really nothing you can do about it, so try not to stress out about it. Just relax, and think about what the questions are asking because you probably do know the answer.

3.       Eat a good breakfast. You don’t want to be falling asleep while taking your finals. I suggest things that will give you as much energy as possible. Things like oatmeal or eggs are always good along with coffee or other drinks that will give you energy. This step is especially important for timed tests because when you are tired you tend to be slow and sluggish. The last thing you want is to not even finish the test.

4.       In the weeks prior to finals try to do every extra credit opportunity possible. This way your grades are padded in case you don’t do so hot on the finals. This will relieve some of the stress that finals can put on you.

5.       Be confident when you answer the questions. I have already done a blog post that tells you how to survive test taking but I want to emphasize not second guessing yourself. Your first instincts are usually right.

6.       When finals are over plan to have a celebration or treat yourself to something special. This will motivate you to do well on finals and give you something to look forward to. And if you didn’t do well, this should take your mind off of it.

Finals are never a fun time during the school year but it is important not to stress too much about them. You can even think about them as a good thing. It could be another chance to improve your grade enough to get from an A- to an A.  

Good luck everybody!

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