Dear Jimin, 

I am having a hard time catching up with my homework and am worried that I will fail my classes. I feel like I always have to be perfect. What do I do?

Sincerely, Phillip in 6th grade

Hello Phillip,

I want to tell you that you aren’t alone in this. Many of you 6th graders actually asked similar questions, and I totally understand how you feel as well. When I first became a middle school student, I was so pressured by all the changes going on in my life. Honestly, there was even a day when I just started crying because I thought I forgot the supplies I was supposed to bring. But thinking back now, it feels like I put too much pressure on myself.

What I want to tell you is to take it easy, and that you should let go of some of the pressure so you can focus better on your homework and academic life. That is one major thing you can do to release some stress about this life transition. 

Also, writing a checklist in your daily planner and checking Google Classroom will reassure you that you’re always on top of your classes. 

Lastly, realize that you’ll do a great job. Everyone has potential, and I guarantee you do too. If you just put the effort into your schoolwork, you won’t fail. By the way, it’s also not a big deal if you make mistakes. Nobody is perfect. We work with teachers and do corrections and retakes, so if you aren’t successful the first time, you’ve always got a chance to try again. Just make sure you don’t take advantage of the retake system and use it as a crutch. Don’t get into an endless cycle of backtracking and redoing old work.

Good luck with your first year of middle school, and I bet you will love middle school as much as me. 

Sincerely, Jimin, who really wishes all 6th graders can overcome your pressure.

If you have any questions for Jimin, email her at [email protected], and be sure to let her know whether she can use your name or you want to be anonymous.