Hello, I’m 11 years old and I’m going into seventh grade. I know some of you may say I’m too young to be worrying about a thing like this, and obviously, I am. I’ve been studying everyday and night for the past few weeks this summer to get into college, even though my grades won’t count until I’m in highschool. But I can’t stop because it makes me happy, I literally have a problem. If you have any advice for me, go ahead.
It’s a great question
Childhood isn’t about college.
Childhood is about discovering who you are-- what you like and what you don’t like. It’s about developing the type of personality that will allow you to make friends, to stick to a job until it’s done, to know right from wrong even when no one’s looking. It’s about developing the basic academic knowledge that will enable you to understand more difficult concepts when you see them in high school and college. (The other math teachers and I in my high school are always complaining that too many of our kids don’t have “number sense”)
So, sure, you’re preparing for college.
If you want a summer project, here it is: pick a topic that interests you. It can be anything from Native American Culture to the history of the automobile to I don’t know what. Learn everything you can about that topic this summer. Read books, watch videos, the whole works. Figure out what you like to learn and learn it.
Also, think of jobs that seem interesting and cool. Learn more about them by talking to people who do them. See if they can allow you to go to work and shadow them for a few hours or days. This can help you get a better idea of what’s out there in the community and world beyond school and what you may wish to study further.
^^ Great idea!!! And to take it a step further, consider emailing one or two at the top of their professions to find out what those jobs are really like. You may be surprised with some pretty cool responses.
Wasting your childhood, but studying every night makes you happy. So do you want advice? Or are you just looking for reassurance that it’s okay to study all summer? Your message is confusing in light of your title.
As an adult with a college kid and and high schooler, I can tell you that your childhood is the shortest period of your life. I think it would be very sad if you did nothing but study all summer (what exactly are you studying for, by the way?) If you live in a city, go to museums and parks. Take walks, and see what things your city offers. You are very young, so there isn’t much you can do without parents, but get together with freinds and maybe one of your parents can supervise your activities. If you live in a place with access to the outdoors, go outside as much as possible. Appreciate the world outside while it’s still interesting and beautiful. Ride your bike, hang out with friends, go swimming.
I don’t know if you have a problem. At your age I read books by the thousands, which isn’t so different from studying. It’s okay to do that if it makes you happy, but doing it now becasue you think it will help you get into college is a little misguided. Imagine your disappointment in several years if you realize that what you studied wasn’t needed to go to college.
At this point in your young life, you really should be doing things that are of interest to you. Unfortunately, “studying” is not really an actvity that looks good on an application. Sure, it will help you get good grades, but colleges like to see what you do apart form studying and schoolwork. So if you enjoy a particular aspect of studying, such as looking at stuff through a microscope, or learning all you can about insects, those are possibly things that could become activities outside of school. I suspect though that your studying right now involves poring over SAT or ACT study guides, and that is not a healthy thing to be doing all summer. Learn to compromise. If you spend an hour studying, spend two hours doing things that are not studying. And if your studying is for taking a standardized test, well, I hope you stop that, because that truly is a waste of precious time.
The first thing I’d say is to get off of CC until you are a junior in college.
Other than that go out and find things in the world that interest you, find friends to have a good time with, enjoy your family, do things to help others, read for pleasure, etc. – no college is looking for a drone who studies every minute of every day.
There’s nothing wrong with studying if you genuinely like studying. But if you’re only doing it because you want to get perfect grades or go to a really good college, then you’re doing it for the wrong reason. You shouldn’t be worried about that stuff right now.
Well, one thing an 11-year-old shouldn’t waste their childhood on is college confidential.
Go out and play with your friends, its summer for christ’s sake.
You will wish you had the sort of time when you are older, enjoy while you still can.
Set a schedule – study time, outside time, time with friends, time volunteering or working on a project. Find balance.
First things first, 11 yr olds need to not work. Second, have fun doing what you really like, even if it doesn’t “look good on a college app”, you are 11, you are not supposed to be doing anything except enjoying life. Third, don’t worry about other people’s expectations, do what you are good at. Make studying something you look forward to, like a video game or compitition. Try to do your best. That is all you should do. 4th, Go outside, don’t look at a phone, meet people that you actually look at and converse with. Take care.
Feed your curiosity. If that takes you into thinks like quantum physics so be it.
Forget about college until you are a sophomore, and then only think about it in terms of course planning and timing of taking SAT II exams. Wait until you are a 2nd semester junior to get serious.
Enjoying learning is fantastic and sets you up for a lifelong experience for doing so.
Enjoying achievement can be like a drug addiction where you get a big let down until your next high. This can be problematic.
Understand the difference between the two.
I understand how you feel. Although in middle school I was not stressed about college, I still studied for 100s on tests and assignments. For me, it wasn’t about getting into college or getting scholarships; it was simply because I wanted to learn and do well. Starting in 9th grade, I started working towards college and it started to consume my time. I found myself almost drowning in different clubs and in homework and studying. I was studying for a Chemistry test while I worried about not having time to study for the ACT. But as soon as summer started, I had endless free time, but I actually felt worse than when I was extremely busy. The productiveness of the school year gives me pleasure.
People may tell you that children aren’t supposed to worry about school, but should play soccer or go out with friends. These things are important in childhood, but do what makes YOU happy. If it’s studying and learning, so be it. I think your stress comes from being loaded down with doing everything that other people say will get you into college. Don’t blindly follow that. Keep up with your grades, but also allow yourself time to learn what YOU want to learn and what YOU want to do. Cut out activities that don’t make you happy. Also sometimes I find myself studying fo a test just to ace that test and not learning anything. If you find yourself doing that, limit the studying time.
Finally, grades in middle school don’t matter much in high school or college, but it does provide you with a solid foundation to grow on.
It seems to me like you’re not studying because it makes you happy. You’re studying compulsively to alleviate anxiety about not getting into college, not getting perfect grades, disappointing your parents, not being “successful,” etc. But if you’ve heard of the Law of Diminishing Returns, you’ll know that there’s a point at which you maximize your outcome. After that, any extra studying you do will (in the best case) have little to no effect, or (more likely) actually hurt you by causing burnout.
It would be a better use of your childhood to cultivate a passion for something. As other posters have said, find a topic and learn about it, or pick a career field you find interesting and do something related to that. Do things that require you to move or get out of the house. Take up creative writing, or learn to code, or build things, etc. Do community service. Even hanging out with friends and practicing a work-life balance is an investment in your future emotional well-being and, by extension, success. Not only will this make you a more well-rounded, happy person; these kinds of activities are definitely more important to selective universities, for whom most of their applicants will have excellent grades.
Competitive colleges want interesting people. There is a lot more to acceptances than grades and test scores. Go develop a life away from studying that makes you interesting.
Do you have any particular areas of interest or hobbies? Let us know what interests you and we can give you some ideas.
If you are into science, explore astronomy or ecology. Look for activities that combine learning with hands on activities - nature hikes in the woods or marshes where you can identify plant life and learn about botany or animal life. Beekeeping where you can learn not only about bees but the impact on are agricultural system and the risks they face due to environmental changes. If you are urban, go to an urban farm and get your hands in the soil. Live near the beach? Go explore some tide pools. My point is you can still learn but do it in a first person, hands on way. Incorporate play into your learning, or learning into your play.
Please get off CC until you’re AT LEAST a sophomore in high school. My parents ruined my middle school years by making it all about straight As. Develop good study habits of course, but worrying about it right now will do nothing !
Enjoy the fact your grades don’t matter in middle school as long as you can.
Middle school is not really important or very indicative of your future. I got a C in 6th grade and decent grades 7th and 8th but once high school started is when I flipped the switch and got all A’s. All that matters during middle school years is that you understand the basic concepts and figure out who you are, while you still have excess time. I mean if you “love” studying, then go for it. But try to explore, I wish I did more of that.
You said in your fist post, " But I can’t stop because it makes me happy."
While we’re on the subject of enjoying your childhood: if being on CC makes you happy, by all means continue to post here. There are no age limits-- upper or lower-- on membership.
If studying makes you happy, why do you think that you are wasting your childhood?
You’re only young once and there’s a lot more to life.