‘As much as I like it, it can also cause stress’
Freshmen share their experiences transitioning from middle school to high school over the pandemic
Freshmen Grace Dholakia and Camila Patino answer questions about school so far for the L.A.B. podcast during lunch on Sept. 2. Both Dholakia and Patino are part of the cheer team.
As she walks through the new building’s crowded halls, freshman Camila Patino gets a bumpy first experience of high school, but she spots familiar faces of friends she hasn’t seen in a while.
“At first it was a shock because my middle school wasn’t as big, and it was initially a shock seeing a lot of people, especially during Cardinal Hour,” Patino said. “Although, I would say I like that there’s a lot of people, because I’ve seen a lot of people that I haven’t seen in a while…it’s cool to go to school with them again.”
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, freshmen lost a year and a half of “in-person learning.” They missed the eighth grade experience and preparation for high school.
“I was scared of going to high school because everyone seemed so tall and so much older,” freshman Allyson Nguyen said.
Before the first day of school, during Cardinal Check-in, freshmen toured the new building to help familiarize them with the building.
“I really liked the check-in because I think that without it I would have been completely lost on the first day of school,” freshman Grace Dholakia said. “I also really liked how we kind of did everything there, like the ID pictures and laptops, so that when it came time for the first day of school, you were already kind of ready and comfortable with the school and even some of the teachers.”
For freshman Jeffery Gao, the new school felt familiar and natural despite being much larger than Lanier Middle School.
“It felt like I was already here before and I got around pretty easily. I figured out my way around the school very easily,” Gao said.
For others, such as Patino, getting around the school and acclimating to a new environment was more challenging than expected.
“Initially, being at Bellaire was a shock because my middle school wasn’t as big,” Patino said. “The first couple of days this week were kind of rough, but I’m getting more into the roll of high school.”
Dholakia said she looks forward to meeting new people and trying out new electives and clubs.
“One aspect of high school I’m looking forward to is probably football games, but besides football games, I’m looking forward to just experiencing different types of classes,” Dholakia said. “This year I started taking art, and I used to not be so good at it and not really enjoy it, but now it’s come to be one of my favorite classes.”
Freshman Feifan Liu said he is looking forward to making new friends after attending a small middle school, and fellow freshman Luke Wang said he’s particularly interested in joining the Red Cross club.
“I’m just interested in getting involved in stuff and kind of helping people because I think, when I grow up I want to be a person that helps people,” Wang said. “At Bellaire, I have the opportunity to help people around me.”
After a year and a half of virtual school, Nguyen said she is ready for in-person school again.
“I’m looking forward to just being around friends and having that school environment again,” Nguyen said.
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Travis Vu • Dec 8, 2021 at 10:16 am
As a freshman, the topic discussed in this article felt more than just an event. It was real to me, and probably a lot of other people as well. Because there have probably been many people that experienced the sudden pandemic, the article probably resonated with people more than the others that they have read. The freshman students today had only been in seventh grade the last time they were in-person, so most of them aren’t accustomed to high school yet. We certainly aren’t recovering from the pandemic yet, but even if we aren’t, this article did at least console the students who didn’t transition from middle school to high school properly.
Charles Yu • Dec 8, 2021 at 9:51 am
As a freshman myself, I think this article was an interesting insight to the opinion of other freshmen who are not only at a new school, but also have to adapt to a different learning environment than last year. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt the rush of getting from class to class and finding the best routes and people to walk with, as for months I’ve been traveling from class to class with a click of a button. In this article on returning back to school in particular, I am well acquainted with an interviewee, and it’s nice to hear others’ perspectives on how this school is different from their previous schools. Perhaps in the future we could get an interview when all the people in this article are seniors, and compare their opinions when they entered to when they left.
Botao Yuan • Dec 8, 2021 at 9:51 am
I think this article was very interesting because it is not only somewhat relatable but also because I know some of the people in the article. Personally, the switch from middle school to high school was not very stressful, but the article helps me understand what the people around me are going through. In addition, I just think it’s cool to see some of the people I know on the school news because it is really interesting how differently people are portrayed in class and an article. In addition, it is cool knowing that as big as the school is, there are still many tightly knit communities and people I know.
Luke Wu • Dec 8, 2021 at 9:51 am
I think this article was very interesting. It’s cool how I know the people in the article. For example, Feifan Liu is in my French class, in which I talk to him regularly. It is interesting to see the contrast between his personality portrayed in the article and how he is in real life. I’m also familiar with the other people because they went to the same middle school as me. However, I did not interact with them much, so I can’t say much about this. Also, I think the article is very professional with how it quotes and portrays the people speaking.