@HritikKumar I will be participating in FRC (The First Robotics Challenge) for the first time next year. I will also be participating in FRC (First Technology Challenge) for the first time through my Engineering Explorations 1/Robotics class. Both are FIRST programs and it will be first time competing in both next year. I have been participated in VEX Robotics since the 6th grade, so it’s a little nice to change it up and try FIRST.
@snowfairy137 Oh, I thought this show was in its first season. I’ve never seen it advertised on ABC until now. I’m thinking it would be kind of cool to participate in. Hank’s videos were what helped me do well in Chemistry. Thank God for Hank.
@ak2018 Thats nice I have competed in First Robotics for two years. The competitions are always a blast but build season is very very stressful. Well that’s how it is for me. My team competes in the NYC regionals so we compete against teams from all over the world and it’s definitely an exciting experience.
@ak2018 In relation to what you said about crash course, I feel in debt to them. My school’s science department is horrible with one or two good teachers. I would have failed chemistry definitely
@HritikKumar build season is stressful but its awesome at the same time. My team competes in the PNW district, so usually just with teams from Washington, Oregon and Alaska unless we make it (and have the money to go) to worlds.
Also @snowfairy137 I agree with you. After looking over some ACT math questions, I think they are much more straightforward. I’ve been studying Geometry for the past few minutes at the library. I’m currently volunteering (I’m on my shift right now) at the library and decided, since it’s a slow day, to study up on some Geometry, my worst math subject. I’m using the book: Master Math: Geometry. It’s been a really big help.
@HritikKumar@snowfairy137 My friends who are in FRC have told me how stressful, yet fun, the build season can be. I believe the way it works at our school is that we can only do FRC on Saturdays for 5 hours (7am - 12pm). I’ll probably plan to have my parents take me. Our school’s FRC team is very focused and organized. By the way, our team is in the Chesapeake district (Virginia, Maryland, and D.C. included). I honestly didn’t know there were FIRST districts.
VEX was similar. Our county has a event called Roboticon where all of the middle school robotics teams compete for a chance to go to states. I have two Roboticon medals from 6th and 7th grade. Our county, by the way, has the most VEX Robotics teams in Virginia.
@ak2018 We usually build after school 3 days a week for a couple of hours so it definitely cuts into our time to do homework and enjoy life outside of school
We have a pretty small team so I guess each person does more work respectively. Our lab is open after school for like 3 hours and on weekends and holidays for about 7 hours. You aren’t required to come to all of them though, except for a design review meeting after school Monday; you log your hours and those contribute to your varsity point total. In general, the varsity team is the people the team pays to travel to competitions.
I need some advice. I’ve been trying to do a lot of things this summer and I think I’m biting off more than I can chew. I’ve made my calendar for the month and I’m a little behind. Do you guys think I should take certain things out. Since I will be ending summer school on August 5th, which takes up most of my time on weekdays, I will be a lot less busy once it ends.
Here are all of the things that must be in my schedule that I must do and can’t/won’t reschedule:
Summer School (Every weekday from 7:00am - 12:40pm until August 5th)
Summer Quest Volunteer Shift (Every Saturday From 12pm - 3pm until August 20th)
A list of things I am making myself do that I would rather not reschedule, but might take out:
Read Half Bad by Sally Green (Finish by Late July) (Reading 15 Pages per Day)
Read Diamond Boy by Williams (Start in Late July and Finish by Late August) (Reading 15 Pages Per Day)
Listen to The Dragonfly Effect by Gordon Korman on Audiobook (Finish by July 17th) (Listening 15 Minutes a Day)
Listen to I Will Always Write Back by Martin Ganda on Audiobook (Start on July 18th and Finish in Late August) (Listening 15 Minutes a Day)
Coding in Java (1 - Hour Every Week)
A list of things I must do, but am having trouble finding enough time for:
SAT Prep (1.5 Hours on Tuesdays)
ACT Prep (1.5 Hours on Fridays)
Work On AP Chemistry Assignment (On Weekends)
Take SAT and ACT Practice Tests (Since I don't feel like sitting down for 3 hours to take a test, I decided to do different sections on different days)
Things I don’t really have to do, but I do anyway:
Go to Summer Quest Events (1 - Hour Programs Usually Held Once or Twice A Week) (I'll be going to a fun little one where we'll be stained glass CD Mandalas on Tuesday right after summer school and another one on the following Tuesday where we make BrushBots, a must-see event to a Robotics-enthusiast)
Another thing to note is that after I get back from summer school, I’m often very tired due to all of that running. I usually take a 5-6 hour nap which is probably why I’m procrastinating on everything. It doesn’t help that I usually have school the next day. Most days, I don’t get home until about 1:15pm.
I’m really worried because I finally called about my delayed AP score and when I said “code 97” the person transferred me to the office of testing integrity, which lead to a message about how they were closed (makes sense because its a weekend I guess). I guess they think I cheated on the AP test or something?? I didn’t but what if they don’t believe me? I have to wait till Monday to find out now, too. UGh.
@snowfairy137 I believe another person on the 2016 AP Score Results Thread mentioned that their AP Calc BC scores were also delayed, so it’s not just you. Don’t worry!
@snowfairy137@kassh4 I just thought of a really good idea. I forgot that most of the schools I’m applying to (except for UVA, JMU, and The College of William and Mary) superscore the ACT and SAT. I also forgot back in May when I was thinking about doing SAT/ACT prep, that my plan was to use the SAT for its reading section (because of the extra time) and the ACT for its math section (because of the more straightforward math questions). Thanks to this revelation, I now have decided that I will be doing both tests, but only studying for certain sections. I’ll prep for the SAT Reading and Writing tests and the ACT Math and Science tests. This will change my schedule calendar dramatically. I’ll be fine if JMU, UVA, and The College of William and Mary don’t superscore. JMU is at the bottom of my list, it’s unlikely that I’ll even get in to the College of William and Mary, and UVA is only my second choice. UVA also, somehow, requires higher SAT/ACT scores than Virginia Tech. Do you guys think this is a good idea?
I literally just took one of the ACT Math tests on the ACT website and I got 10/12 of the questions right! I finished all questions with one minute to spare. Those questions are straightforward as hell! :)) The two questions I got wrong were on Geometry, so I know what I need to study the most. I’m so happy!
@snowfairy137 They don’t. But they do superscore the ACT and convert that to an SAT score. So if I did better on the ACT Math section than the SAT Math Section, then they would convert my ACT Math score using the SAT scale, and use the converted score as the new SAT Math score. They would take the best score from one test date.
I’m pretty sure I will do a lot better on the ACT Math section as it allows for a calculator and the questions are much more straightforward.
just found this thread! I took AP world, physics 1, and bio this year, and got a 5 on world, and a 4 on bio and physics. I was pretty disappointed on bio especially because I actually really enjoyed the class. But if I’m planning to major in biochemistry or premed, should I release the 4 on bio and physics to colleges when I apply? I’m planning to apply to MIT and Cornell, so would it look bad to send in those 4s?