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You don't have to be a brainiac to get good grades, girl! | Source
But before you roll your eyes and close this browser, hear me out: Yes, homework sucks. Yes, studying for tests is not as exciting as texting your friends. Yes, it can feel really frustrating and sort of hopeless when your grades don’t seem to reflect how smart you know you are: so hopeless, in fact, that sometimes it seems easier to just stop trying.
Unfortunately: grades are important. Not only are they great leverage for working things out with parents (a later curfew, car privileges, etc. are easy to bargain for when you have solid grades), but they definitely determine where you go to college. (And here’s the thing no one tells you in high school: college is way, way easier than high school.)
But on top of that, as stupid and pointless as you may feel grades are now, if you actually work towards improving them, and see a result, you’re going to feel so good about yourself. Which is really the best reason to do anything.
At a loss as to how to start working towards that A (or, hey, even B-)? The tips I’ve got for you should get you well on your way.
Ready? Let’s Go!
Can You Trust Him?
every day at about 6:30 i check if i have any homework to do, i dont usually do it all in one night, i spread it out. By doing this, i have lots of free time and lots of time to make my homework high quality. Also i have a little note book, with a section for each subject so when i’m in lessons i take notes and when it comes to the tests all my notes are organized and easy to understand. i think planning things and generally being more organised really helps. Another tip, if you don’t get something, go to the teacher at lunch or after school, most of my teachers are happy to sit down and help me in their free time, but be careful, dont disrupt them too often or when they’re busy. If your teachers aren’t being very helpful ask your parents or even your friends! It’s very likely they will understand something you don’t get and vice versa, so you can help eachother!
I’m going to grade 10 this year, and don’t know how to stop procrastinating. I have been an honor roll student since grade 5, and last year, not handing in homework/assignments didn’t stop me from getting honor roll for both semesters. I freak out if I get grades lower than 80%, but I hate doing my homework, and I think i’m addicted to the computer. I don’t pay attention much in class, but I can still get 90% marks… I’m just scared that my grades will lower by so much in future years, because I can’t stop procrastinating…
I’m in the same boat. What I find helps is to try to focus really hard in class so that I don’t have any homework to procrastinate on. I found that by not wasting any time in school, I did an average of about 15 minutes of homework per week (and usually this would be one hour for one week doing a project, and then nothing for the rest of the month) last year and had a 97% average in my academic classes.
Hey x I’m going into grade 10 and I get bored with studying really easily
so I make fun games. Like if u r struggling with maths u can put a formula (12×11) on one side and the answer on the other and u can do that with science, languages etc
X hope it helps xx
Im a sophmore this year too :X & the best way i know to stop procrastinating is by shutting my phone & PC off , turning the tv off . Getting some snacks and doing my homework . I ask my mom to hold my phone until i’m done with homework. that way i don’t have to worry about slacking .
Well I have always been a lucky person that retains info like super quick so I was always a good student. Then 8th grade came around and during class I was just plain bored so my grades started to slip because I didnt turn in home work. So for my freshman year I was determinded to get strait As because I want to be validictorian when my time comes. So to ensure this i made a poster for my locker to remind me what i want to do (go to stanford and then become an astronaut) so it would remind me why i put up with the death that is high school. This really worked for me and for my freshman year i got all strait As (yay lol). I think you guys should try it because having a reminder there of why you need need need to put up with high school cam really get you moving on those rainy days when all you want to do is sleep and space out. I hope you girls try this and it works just as well for you as it did for me
-alex “kisses”
Hey, I’m Jordyn. I have OCD (Obsessive compulsive disorder) you can search it on the Internet and I have to get a grade higher than a B+ otherwise I can’t sleep at night, can’t concentrate & stay in my room for about 6 months. Its just the way I do things.
OCD can be different for different people. For me I have to stay organized, get good grades, keep my room clean, have my hair and clothes ALWAYS neat etc. etc.
This helps with my study a lot.
We have an empty room in our house, which is where I study all the time (no distractions) and it helps a lot. That is because of my OCD I can’t study in an area if it has an object in it other than the things I need of course.
well, one thing i do to study is to set test and quizzes for myself. i read through the notes and try to give myself a mini test and then i would ask my friend to grade it or i grade it by my self. it really works.
I finished Freshman year and will be starting my Sophomore year in about 3 weeks and I am really going to try my hardest to get straight A’s. During my Freshman year I became this ultimate slacker out of nowhere and went from getting A’s and B’s to mostly C’s (and even a D, which I will never live down). Whenever I talk about how I will try harder and how I am determined to get straight A’s to my friends they always laugh and say things like “shall we compare last years report cards?” and “sure you will (heavy sarcasm included)”. It makes me feel awful but at the same time it really makes me want to prove them wrong. If I could go back a year and give myself advice it would be to suck it up and do the work because if I’m being honest with myself my Freshman year grades are probably my biggest regret.
I really admire your determination! I just finished 7th grade and I’m going into 8th, and I was a major slacker! I got F’s because I didn’t feel like trying. I guess you could say that I’m one of the lucky kids who could understand something easily, like math or social studies. But it’s just that I was in a huge depression, I stayed in my room all the time and I felt like I just wanted to cry and cry. Everytime I would try to tell someone my feelings I would end up breaking down, so I didn’t even bother. My first semester I had A’s and B’s, but then I got C’s, D’s, and F’s. Even though I got 100% on my tests, I rarely turned in my homework, and I almost went to summer school… Reading your comment built up what little confidence I had and I feel determinded to prove everyone that I’m going to work my hardest this year and not slack… Thank you, and If I could go back in time at the beginning of the year too, I would do the same.
~Good Luck,
~Phoxxi.
I really think that your going to do well, judging by the level of determination you possess. you should aim to prove your friends wrong and also you may want to help them get good grades also because when they reach full adulthood they are going to regret it.
Thank you so much for the advice but i always try not to procrastinate and idk how to stop. And i read that the article said to put any types of electronics away and i tried that but i always end up not understanding the material then going on my computer, looking up videos and articles on the material, and then i start facebooking and watevs
Oh thank you, I’m going to be a junior and i have been getting okay grades but not the best that i usually do, i’m going for valvictorian
i noticed that in college, your grades vary directly with how much you attend class.
I procrastinate all the time. And if something seems boring to me I don’t do it. So that’s probably why my grades aren’t as good as they can be. But I can’t help it….
hey!! I’m Daniella and this coming year I will try to do my best…
I agree with everything here, I realized all of these things after my first semester of college when I got not so great grades. I dont agree with the first page saying college is way easier than high school, that is NOT true. You can still pass and do okay if you are slacking off and not following everything on this list in high school, but in college you WILL fail, so be careful!
i do most of this but i also doodle alot during class so my teachers dont think im paying attention but i think better when i doodle and it helps me listen 2 the lesson
i understand your pain i made braclets in class because my hands need to be doing something at all times or else i cant concentrate and so my teachers thought i wasnt paying attention and one teacher actually took points off an assignment because she thought i wasnt working and let my peirs do the work WHEN I DID 90% OF IT FOR THEM hmmf so unfair
this year ive gotton honor roll each semester so im TRYING to get 1st honors not second:)
Hey, I’m Koko. In order to pay attention and not wriggle in my chair or fidget around with the stuff surrounding me ( I have A.D.D AND A.D.H.D) I take notes. I usually never look at them again but it does help me BIG time. Ok so another tip is have mints in your bag to keep you awake and don’t chomp on it suck on it or just keep it in your mouth, it always works for me. Tip number 3 is have a smart friend that can help you with it or a study buddy. Tip number 4 Come up with stupid little chants, rhymes, songs, and phrases. Example: For the multiplication problem 8×8 I remember 8 and 8 went to the store to buy a Nintendo 64.
They all help me out tons. I also pray that I will understand to the best of my ability that I can understand the lesson and I find other ways in life to relate the lessons to my life. 
I am a college student and I agree so much with this! I see the kids in my classes and they never take notes or ever have their homework done. Then, they wonder why they do poorly on tests. Homework is not a form of torture, it really does help you learn! And getting help from a teacher is always good! =D
Even though I won’t be in highschool for 1 1/2 years (7th grade) This was so helpful! I’ve always been a straight A student and then my grades wouldn’t stop slipping. Now i have some motivation to get up, go to the library, and ace my papers! Thank you!
Hi I’m Daniella and you remind me of me haha!!
I’ve been so distracted for like a week and now I’m making an F in geometry. I have a suicidal friend, and I can’t focus. It’s the second week of the quarter, but I feel lost. I’m usually an A student, but I’ve been depressed this year. Any advice?
Try to get your problems out of the way. Your friend is suicidal? Give your best attempt to get her help, and try to focus as much as you can. Getting rid of your probems lowers stress, which vanishes depression. I wish I could tell you something specific on how to help your friend, but there is most likely a board on here to help. Like, under the My.Gurl “Support and Recovery” board there will probably be girls dealing with the same issues. Try looking there.
Thanks! This was extremely helpful….I really need to buckle down if I want to get into a good college! and im only a freshman! lmbo