This Site is best viewed in Internet Explorer (4.0) at 800x600 or greater
Coping with Year 12 Mentally and Physically
There is no doubt that Year 12 is not just a survival in academics, but also a mental, physical and emotional strain. Coping with this strain is very important, since it can lead to academic strife or in more extreme cases, unneccessary illness. Therefore it is very important that before year 12 has started, a form of relaxation and stress relief has been discovered. It is also equally as important for regular physical exercise to be a part of the weekly schedule. I will now discuss various forms of mental and physical relaxation in relation to study, and briefly suggest activities to remain fit during the year. With this and a sound scholastic approach, almost anyone should be able to cope with year 12.
Mental Approach
Without an encouraging mental attitude, it will be harder to get down to work and quite often the quality of the work produced will suffer. Therefore, it is beneficial to have the right attitude, fueled by an incentive. You may already have an incentive, so use that. However, if you lack incentive or you lose it during the year, these mental thoughts may help (they did for me):
- it is only one year out of your long life to have to work hard
- this one year is going to decide your after school activities (University (College) /TAFE/apprenticeship) based on your success
- after this year of hard work, you will most probably be studying / working how you want (University/TAFE/apprenticeship)
- this one year will decide what you are doing for the rest of your life
- working this hard will teach you more about yourself (and it does!), ie how you handle situations and what you can endure in the aspects of workload, new ideas/concepts and time management
Physical Aspects
I am no authority on sport, however I can say from experience, that physical exercise certainly does enhance academic performance. Regular exercise amidst a heavy workload keeps the body fit and the mind clear. Sport during study gives the advantages of
- helping to forget study pressures for a while
- an oppertunity to release all excess physical energy which accumulates when studying
- releasing mental frustration in a physical form
- feeling 'cleared' in the head and ready to donate fair time to study
If you are in the position to select what sport you will play during year 12, there are some simple points to consider so that study is not adversely effected.
- consider the time it takes to play the sport, a game like cricket would not be ideal since it can take a whole day(s) to play
- think about the actual amount of exercise that you are doing, for example tennis would be better than archery simply because archery doesnt involve much exercise
- consider where the sport is - avoid having to travel long distances - ie a school sport would be ideal since it can be played after or during school
- ask the question : "Is there any possibility of the sport effecting my study in a bad way?"
- will the sport tire you too much to complete your study and do it effectively?
Once you have an incentive to fuel your efforts and a sport to sustain them, success is sure to follow.
Back one Page