Written by Junior Elizabeth Foster
Here’s some of my advice to theater students choosing classes.
As a thespian, your job is to make fantasy become reality. This idea does not apply to your life as a student. The reality is that you only have so much time to pursue the things you love. High school is about making the time that you have meaningful between academics, extracurriculars, and social activities.
- Every class you take, take it because YOU want to take it; because YOU want to learn what that class has to offer. Honors and AP courses take time to understand, and by taking these classes, you really do sign away a part your life (like Ariel sort of did, haha). So sign away parts of your life to things you actually want to pursue. It is not worth it to take an honors class in something you loathe or have no interest in.
- Time is finite. So choose your classes for your interests. It makes the time you spend studying more enjoyable. If you are passionate about the subject, your attitude about the class will be positive and you will be more willing to put the time in to succeed. Remember that it is healthy to do other things besides homework, so make sure you can still spend time with friends.
- When creating your schedule for next year, take the time to consider the trimester locked courses. For example, 1.0 credit AP classes are only offered during 1st and 2nd tri. .5 credit AP classes are only offered during 2nd tri (the only exception is AP Music Theory, which is 1st tri only). By planning with the different trimesters in mind, you alleviate possible scheduling conflicts. This step also allows you to see if you accidentally signed yourself up for 6 AP classes during 2nd tri, the same time as the musical.
- Weekends are a great work time, especially during tech week. The weekend before my first tech week I did all my APUSH notes so I wouldn’t stress about them during the week. That was the greatest gift I could’ve given myself at the time because, after tech rehearsal, I could just sleep and ignore the rest of my homework. Sleep is sometimes more important than homework.
- The one class I could not do without is Choir. I found that no matter what other classes I take if I have Choir in my day, my schedule is (somewhat) balanced. Even if you are a band or orchestra kid, you understand the importance of having music in your day, every day. A 3 tri music class benefits you socially, emotionally, mentally, intellectually, and promises at least one opportunity in the day to be creative.
I hope some of this advice is useful to the article!
Act Out 