Dear Rocky,

I’ve just started high school and the first thing I wanted to do was meet new people, so I signed up for multiple clubs and joined a new sport! My problem is that there is a lot more homework, studying, and activities to juggle in high school, and so far I haven’t been able to keep up with it all! How am I supposed to do my clubs, sports, and out of school activities and still be able to do all of my homework?

-Can’t Keep Up

Dear Can’t Keep Up,

First off, welcome to the Roadrunner family!

You’re doing the right thing when you say you’ve joined different activities to meet new people, but maybe you need to slow down. You’ll meet plenty of people in your different classes to start off with and clubs are a great way to get connected with everyone. The important thing is, especially for a new student, getting your schedule ready.

Try to look at your meeting dates for each club and see which ones overlap. Do the same for sports. You should make sure that no games or practices run at the same times, and if you need to, you can always ask the teacher or student running the club meeting to write you a pass for being late for your sports practice.

Homework should come first, and if you’re grades slip you risk losing your place on your team and in your clubs, so make sure to to keep your grades up. If it gets to the point where it’s too hard to keep your grades up, maybe have a talk with your guidance counselor about how to handle what went wrong. Not just freshmen have a hard time balancing their workload.  If I were you, I’d cut down some of the things on your schedule to an amount you can handle. It’s better to do a few things really well!

Finally, remember that it’s all about balance. Transitioning into school mode can be hard, but make sure you make time for yourself. If you get caught up on work, treat yourself by catching up with friends or watching a few episodes of your favorite show on Netflix.

Meep Meep,

Rocky