This is my first semester being at NCSS because I transferred over from Rhinelander High School. I still attend two classes at the high school: math and child development. At first, I was a little nervous about coming into a new school, even though it is in the same building as the high school. It turned out I had nothing to worry about because everyone has been so nice and welcoming. The students in my advisory get along so well with each other. I didn’t think I would like being in the same classroom all day with the same people, but I do. I think it makes it easier to make friends and build a better community when you are always around the same people. It is a great learning experience because you learn how to work with one another. The school is not that big, so everyone knows each other. Everyone is different and here it is so easy to be yourself and express your differences.

NCSS is such a different experience that at first it was a little difficult to adjust academically. I think I am doing pretty well so far. You have to do more things on your own than you would in a regular high school class. You have to create your own task list to help you stay on track and you decide how long it will take you to complete a project. For projects, you can take things from different subjects and connect them to get more scope and sequence. Scope and sequence are the topics that we have to learn that meet the Wisconsin State Standards. By having the students do those things, it makes us become more responsible and I think it helps us learn how to become more independent ahead of time. If you plan on going to college, you will need to learn some of these skills early on. In college you will have people giving you assignments to do, but a lot of them you will be doing on your own. I like working by myself, so it works out really well for me. I really enjoy having so many different ways to do a project.

Right now, I am working on an economics project. I am looking into the career I am interested in (which is being a preschool teacher) and making a monthly budget for myself. I am also finding the similarities and the differences of economies in Wisconsin, California and London. I am trying to connect as many things as I can so that I can get more scope and sequence. At the moment, I am comparing what it would be like to teach in the United States versus somewhere abroad. This is a great project because I get to research information on things that are relevant to my life and interests. I am really enjoying being a NCSS student and am planning on coming here next year.