The students that volunteer their time and knowledge on Reach a Student are eligible to receive community service hours. We are looking to expand our roster of academic and athletic mentors, interviewers, and video editors to help inspire and answer school-related questions. Join Us!
What Is Reach a Student?
Reach a Student is a website established to give students direct communication access to student mentors in various grade levels. Students will be able to reach out to other students and ask any questions they have regarding student and campus life. The site will also stream videos of students sharing their experiences at Windermere Prep as well as activities around campus. Find Out More
Taking 4 HLs is pretty much the most difficult schedule you could possibly have at Windermere prep. These 4 HLs, with 2 more SLs and an elective, create the most rigorous schedule possible. All of these hard classes on top of the other things required by the IB Diploma make for an extremely difficult week. However, there are some things you can do in order to make the week a little easier. Yes, it will require some effort and doing some extra work when you need to, but it looks really good on your transcript and thus will give you the edge over other students in the IB Diploma program.
Planning
Each weekend, you have both Saturday and Sunday to plan your week out ahead of you. The best way to do this is to look on the canvas and check what each of your teachers has scheduled for you and when. You will want to pay attention to what is summative, as this will take up the majority of your time. However, this is not to say that formatives are not important, but summative assessments are definitely something that you should focus more of your time on. Once you figure out what summatives you have, you will want to check if they are tests or projects, and then figure out how much time each assignment will take you. Is studying for the chemistry test going to take you a whole day? Then do your other assignments on different days and leave a whole day for chemistry. This is easily the best way to look ahead. It's critical that you do this on Saturday so that you can plan ahead and get as much work done as possible on Sunday.
Studying
You want to make sure you leave yourself a good amount of time to study for any test given to you. Sometimes it might be an easy test, in which case you don't need to leave yourself a lot of time. However, when you get the time to study, you will want to use it wisely, and not waste the time on your phone or doing other stuff. I find that the best ways to study are to watch youtube videos, read the textbook chapter for the class you are in, and doing practice IB questions that you can find online at ibdocuments.com or that your teacher has given to you. These are the easiest ways to study for me, but everyone has different methods. However, it is crucial that you use your time wisely.
Time Management
This is the single most important element in making sure you don't struggle in IB classes. You need to effectively manage your time so that you are able to devote a good amount of time to each classes assignments. Falling behind in one class is not something that you want, as this can cause further issues in the long run. Thus, you will want to make sure you allocate your time effectively in order to maximize your time. If you have extra time, you can use it to do other stuff. I find it effective to make sure I have all my work done for the day before I start giving in todistractions. I think that going back and forth between your phone and your work makes the whole process take longer. Overall, time management is more of a personal thing on how you decide to manage your time, but finding the way that works for you is crucial.
Extracurricular's
While taking 4 HLs on top of the other rigorous things IB requires is hard, it doesn't mean that you have no opportunities to do other things. Currently, I'm able to work a part-time job, play guitar, and hang out with friends while still being able to excel in my courses. You want to make sure you give yourself a healthy balance rather than make your entire life be about school. Take a break every now and then and allot some time to just chill out and relax. The IB curriculum is stressful, so it is only healthy to take some time to yourself. Naturally, school should come first. However, a healthy lifestyle should be a close second. Getting enough sleep and being social is crucial to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Hopefully, if you manage your time well enough, you will be able to maintain a healthy lifestyle while still excelling in your courses.
