WOODBURY — You get home from school and look at your schoolwork. As exam week encroaches, the question begins to creep into your mind: What do you need to study for? Biology? History? Algebra I? Students at Nonnewaug have around seven to eight classes. But dealing with multiple finals in one week is an overwhelming first for many freshmen.
As the school year quickly comes to an end, NHS students need to start studying for final exam week, which will begin June 9th and conclude with an exam make-up day to be held June 13. While some freshmen have taken one or two finals in middle school, for most, it’s their first ever time.
“I have a higher stress level now because it’s pretty stressful knowing I have to handle studying for eight finals,” said freshman Seren Kuijstermains, who has only ever taken one final before this year.
“Even though we have a couple weeks before finals, I feel like I need to study now, especially for my super hard classes,” said Tatum Kociszewski, another freshman feeling the heavy weight of finals. “Finals week is coming faster than I thought it would.”
Kuijstermains and Kociszewski are not the only freshmen who are finding themselves worried about passing their finals.
Though most students at NHS have already taken a final before, for freshmen, it’s their first finals week with eight exams. This year at NHS, teachers weren’t required to give a midterm, but instead the time was used for students to take the Winter NWEA assessment.
Midterms allow students to get a taste of what finals would look and be like. This year, however, isn’t the case. Some students may even have to remember the curriculum they learned all the way back from the first day of school.
“Since we didn’t have midterms this year, I am afraid I won’t remember everything,” said Kociszewski. “I don’t really know what the finals are going to be like because I haven’t had an exam like this at Nonnewaug yet.”
Though many students are feeling worried about their exams, teachers are doing what they can for their academic preparation.
“To prepare my students I am giving them a topics list so all of the topics that will be covered on the exam,” said science instructor Joshua Kornblut. “I’m making sure they have their old tests and assignments handed back to them so they can review.”
Whether it is something simple like a learning game or a topics list, the freshman class is nervous but ready to take on the last week of the school year.
“I feel good about having finals come up. I feel very prepared,” said freshman Thea Oleynikov. “Feel like my teachers have prepared me really well and have lowered my stress levels a lot.”
