Chemistry/softball

This week chemistry has really kicked my butt, I can't get a grasp of the material and I have gone to SI and asked for help from other students but still I don't get it. I asked for help from my peer mentor and she agreed to help, I'm still worried cause I need this course and then I found out that I can't drop this course cause I wouldn't have enough hours to be considered a full time student. I am really worried because me and my parents had an agreement that if I contained a 3.75 they would buy me a brand new ford raptor truck, which is my dream truck. I have pretty high grades, most all B's except this one class I have a D and my coach for softball was concerned about this grade and I tried to ensure him but that didn't go well. Softball season starts next semester and if I fail this one class then I don't think I'll be able to play, and that would be horrible, not only for me but also my teammates. I'm praying that I do well in this class. At first I didn't believe this class was going to be hard but I was wrong, this class and Human A&P will be the classes that I need to put most of my work in. I am doing better in Human A&P than I thought I would be doing, on the last test I made a low B which was good for the class I was in because 20 people had failed that test and only 5 people made an A and 10 people made a B like me. Softball for me is a "get-a-way" from everything that stressed me out and sadly out offseason on the field is up and we can't practice as a team anymore, we can only practice by ourselves without the coach. We are still working out early in the mornings, which is exhausting, but it's good for me cause I am awake for my classes through out the day and I would rather work out in the morning rather than later in the day. The morning work outs are nice now, because it is nice and cold in the mornings, and I love the cold weather.

Softball and school

This weekend we had a softball tournament and for the very first time of playing other teams we did really good and our coach was surprised. We will probably have two teams, a varsity and junior varsity and I think I will be starting for first base. I am really excited to see where our team will be for next semester. I think that the new freshman on the team are really good and they will help out our team in the long run but there are still some things that we need to work on to get better as a team if we want to make the playoffs and win the conference. Outside of softball I have made several more friends and it was more difficult this week on the school work. I had homework for almost all my classes and had a least 3 test which really taught me how to organize my study time and how much I needed to study for each topic. On one of my test (Human A&P) I really should have studied more, because I studied and learned all of the bones but none of the "notches" of the bones which was on the test. I am not really freaking out because there was more than two sets of the test and on one of the sets I did really well. On my other test which was in chemistry I was really prepared and felt confident going into. When I got there and looked over the test I realized that it was a little harder than I thought it would be but I still think I did really well. My midterm in frex I am feeling confident because I know what is going on in the class and I have stayed up to task with what is going on. I probably have to annotate more chapters to be on the safe side, so I can feel confident on the in class midterm. On the take home test I have already finished half of it so I don't procrastinate and fall behind and have to do it all on one night. I have started reading all the chapters again to prepare more. I don't want to under-study for the midterm. This up coming week I only have the frex midterm and then the Comp paper that is due which I have already finished, which I hope is good. I have had other people read it and they said it was fine so I think I will be fine in that class.  

So Excited

Well for this coming up week (October 3-8) I am so excited because for softball we have been going really hard on our offseason. We work out every morning from 6-7 am, meaning I have to usually wake up at 5:30 am and then on Thursday's through Sundays we practice during the days, for a very long period of time. On Saturday we usually practice from 9 am to 7 pm and have a long lunch break. Well on this week Coach Wilson has decided to give off the morning practice to give us some nice and relaxing time to sleep in. I am so excited because I get to sleep in and take more time on studying and on my school work. As far as school wise I think I am doing pretty well with juggling my time and knowing how much time to work on things. This coming up week I have a major test in Human A&P and I am super nervous but I am determined to do my best because this class means a lot to me (not saying the other ones don't) I have been studying for at least 1 to 2 hours a day and breaking down every paragraph in the book and analyzing the text just like Frex class has taught me so far. At first I didn't think that this would help for Human A&P because it was a strange text, not your normal english text. But I was wrong, and this helps a lot and I understand the words more. For Chemistry class I have a exam on Friday and I feel pretty confident on this but I know I still have to study like usual. I really like my professor for my class and I know I can always go to him for any questions I may have about the course. I am not a huge fan of math but knowing that I have a good Chemistry teacher makes me feel happy and confident with math. I am still loving college here and I am excited to meet new people, I don't really mind all the hard work you have to do, all the homework that is assigned because I know in the long run this will help me out in the future. I am excited about my future and I am so curious of how my life will plan out, but time will just tell, but time needs to speed up.  

Chemistry

I have never been good at basic chemistry with the algebra 1, in high school my algebra teacher did not do his job well and so I never really learned it well. So coming here and going into problem solving chemistry is a little difficult never really learning the basics. I have gone to SI and stayed after class to understand more but it is hard coming in being behind other students. I need this credit so struggling is not making me happy. On the current quizzes I have done better than I thought I would have, but I know these grades are not to my fullest potential. What I really enjoy though is how much my professor helps me and how easily he explains things, multiple ways. I get along with him very well and I am happy that we have a good student professor relationship. My class size is small so everyone knows each other and we help each other quite a bit. His teaching methods work well, and give us a lot of opportunities to have grades in the grade book. Everyday we have homework to turn in, a daily assignment then gives us more homework that is due the next time we see each other, which will be a quiz grade on occasions. I love this class but I am not happy with how I am doing in there and wish I could do better. I talked to my teacher about the possibility of having a private tutor because I know from experience I work well with one on ones. This private tutoring may be difficult because of my schedule being busy but that is college and you have to learn how to use your time wisely. With softball practice on Thursdays-Sundays it is hard to study as much as you truly need. On Saturdays our practices run from 9 am to 7 pm and the other days 1 pm to 7 pm. My other classes are coming more easily and the change from high school to college has slowly slipped in and now I understand why they say that college is totally different from high school. The professors here expect you to be the big adult that they never expected in high school. I enjoy classes still and I still enjoy Texas Lutheran.    

Struggling

School is school, the homework, the quizzes and test are all the same but the only thing has changed is that I have started study hall as a requirement for softball. I was actually surprised, because I found out like I like this study hall on Mondays and Wednesdays. At first the thought of the mandatory study hall made me upset and I didn't want to go. But now I like this because it makes me focus on doing my homework and here there are no distractions. No phones, no tv, no best friends, no talking. The internet is strictly for school related subjects, and getting caught leads to a lot of trouble. Softball practices start soon, and I am a little bit of nervous because I know I have to be more diligent with my time and my studying. My hardest class has to Human Anatomy and Physcology, this class takes a lot of concentration, reading and understanding everything that is being said about it. The first test is next week, and I am so nervous because I want to ace this test. My other classes require a lot of reading but I don't mind as long as I stay focus and mark up the text. Frex class has taught me to pay attention to each detail in the text and to read between the lines. This has certainly helped in A&P because I focus and know about what I am reading about. Currently out side of school, I have made a lot of friends and enjoy the community here, it reminds of being back at home and I haven't been homesick yet. I have heard about a lot of freshman missing their home and becoming homesick but I am not one of them. I enjoy being here except for the really really small town with nothing to do on the weekends. But the athlete teams keeps me occupied as well as my friends. I can not wait till softball season starts because I enjoy playing, and I can't wait to play at the collegiate level. I have played softball for almost all my life, of course I played other sports but I always stuck with softball and I hope I will enjoy these last years of playing.

A new beginning

Most teenagers want to explore the world and never look back at where they grew up, but that was not for me. Texas Lutheran offered many options for me, staying close to home (Katy, Texas), playing softball, a great Physical Therapy program and a warm welcoming community. Transitioning from high school to college was a very large step for me, I was leaving behind, family, friends and most importantly the place where I grew up. College has been an exciting adventure, but one I know I can accomplish with help from the professors. Here, I have learned to be well-organized, time management and to make new friends everyday. The courses I am taking to become a Physical Therapist mean I have to read more than I ever have and to really buckel down and not be a procrastinator like I was in high school. In high school, students could get by without reading there books for class and not knowing everything the teacher taught, but here it is much different. I was a "A" student in high school, and I loved studying but here is a whole new story, studying doesnt mean for just an hour, it means for several hours and knowing EVERYTHING the professor taught you. To this new challenge, I was at first scared, just like any new college student would be but after the first week was under my belt I knew I could take it on. College means a lot of growing up for high school students, now I know why most teenagers do not make it all the way. For me, that will not be an option, I know what I have to do in order to master all my classes as well as be a student-athlete and I am willing to make that effort. Texas Lutheran is my new home, and I am liking every moment here, yes I will endure those days where I absolutely hate it and wish I could just go back to my hometown and never return. My experience so far has been exciting and I hope this feeling never changes.