A turning point in my education was in 7th grade when I was told that my grades seriously mattered. Not that my grades didn’t matter before, however, I was informed by my teachers that the grades I get in 7th grade would affect which high schools would accept my application. Back then, I always found myself doing average in school and not really caring if I didn’t get the best grades, but as I got older, I knew that it was time to get serious. My teachers constantly reminding me that my grades that year would matter did both good and bad things to me. It was bad because I felt very stressed just at the thought of getting bad grades. I felt as if me getting bad grades would result in me ending up at a bad high school and not do my best when it comes to school. While it stressed me out, it also in a way, lit up a fire inside of me and just motivated me to do the best I have ever done when it comes to my grades. As a result of this, I did everything I had to do, and not just that, but I also made sure that everything I did was done flawlessly. Consequently, after a grueling school year, I received my report card and saw that I had 95’s and above for all the classes I took. This made me very happy and made me realize that school isn’t so hard. It showed me that all it took for me to do well was time, dedication, and an “alright, I got this” mentality. Ever since then, I have tried my hardest to do my best in school and in life as well

In my junior year of high school, I had the fortune of attending an English class taught by an amazing teacher. My English teacher that year, Ms. Lally, was someone who I am very grateful to have met. Before I was assigned her class, I rarely saw her around and didn’t know her. Aside from freshman year, this was the first time that I walked into a class without really knowing the teacher. Even though this might seem like a bad thing, it made me very interested as to how my teacher might be. Will she be a strict teacher? Is she a teacher that develops close relationships with their students? Does she assign a lot of work? These are some of the many questions I had walking into her classroom for the very first time. After a couple of months of attending her class, it made me realize that her class was my favorite out of them all. The way she taught her class was new and different from the English classes I had previously attended. Her class personally felt like a breath of fresh air. Unlike my other English classes, I wasn’t just taught something and handed multiple papers to do. This class felt much more interactive and genuinely made it fun and interesting to attend. Not only did she teach me things from her class, but she also taught me things I could use outside of her class. An example of this is her teaching me how to stay motivated. She always said to think about the reward at the end of the road. As a result of this, the motivation I gave myself seriously impacted my education.