As the holidays approach, school may start to seem less important to students and their grades may take a backseat.
With all of the excitement that comes with winter holidays along with the long upcoming breaks, it can become challenging for students to focus in school. As students begin to enjoy relaxing and spending time with loved ones, school is the last thing on their minds.
“Around the holidays I usually get really lazy and I don’t really prioritize school, I am more focused on sitting back and relaxing,” junior Kaitlyn Lee said.
Even though Thanksgiving and winter break are supposed to give students a break from all of their assignments, it is still really important that they are able to keep up with the work that is given to them.
Teachers are not supposed to assign any homework over the breaks due the day they come back from school, but this does not mean that there is no work given to the students at all.
“In general, my student’s test grades tend to either go up or remain the same. Probably because the students have had a long break and time to reset and refocus, it helps them get back on track with their work,” history teacher Ashley Senior said.
Some teachers assign books to read, packets to complete, or even tests to study for, that they expect to be done the week they get back.
“What I should do is complete the most time consuming work first and dedicate certain days during my break for school so I can stay on top of all of my school work,” Lee said.
Even the lucky students who have no work assigned during the break can still use their time wisely. They should make up missing assignments that they have not yet completed.
“My teachers don’t usually assign too much work over holidays so that’s when I make sure to get a head start on upcoming projects and other assignments during that time,” junior Maisha Maliha said.
The extra time can also give students the opportunity to review material that they don’t really understand to help them really grasp the concept upon their return to school.
Another thing that students need to think about is the fact that midterms and finals don’t disappear over the breaks either.
The time off from school can be used help them get a jump start on preparing for those major tests.
Regardless of whether they are assigned work or not, one to two weeks without school can really enable students to slack off.
Most students hate the idea of receiving work during their time off, and would rather be doing other things that are more enjoyable.
“It’s hard to keep up with grades because on one hand I want to do school work to maintain my grades but on the other hand I really want to spend time with my relatives,” sophomore Jane Kim said.
A lot of people like going to holiday shows, parties, or festivals with loved ones to get into the holiday spirit, and having a load of unfinished school work waiting for you at home can really put a damper on the fun.
“My family likes to meet up during the holidays which leaves me less time to do school work,” Lee said.
For students who have been excelling in school, it’s important that they don’t allow the winter holidays to be a reason for them to fall behind, and for the students who are behind, the breaks are a perfect way for them to catch up.
“There is barely any days besides long weekends to be able to relax and not stress about assignments so that’s why I really look forward to vacation and it makes it even harder to return back to school once it’s over,” Kim said.
Of course it is really important for students to relax and allow their brains to take a pause, but this doesn’t mean that it is a great idea for students to become lazy. The more out of routine the student becomes, the harder it will be for them to jump back into their schedule when school returns.
“I hate having to go back to school after break because I get really used to sleeping in and being with friends and family all day,” Maliha said.
Going from 14 days of doing nothing to diving straight back into school can be a little overwhelming for some.
“I like to stay up late and wake up late during my time off. When I get back from the holidays I don’t want to do anything school related, that’s what makes coming back so hard,” Lee said.
Taking a little time out of your academic life is always much needed and can be very beneficial.
As long as you’re ready to get back into the swing of things you will be set.