Top Ten Most Thrilling Academic Moments of My High School Career

1. I entered high school, freshmen year, thinking, "Now that I'm in high school, I am smart."  The first day, although I felt extremely nervous, was quite thrilling as well.  I thought I was smarter than I had ever been, but"'What could have put such an idea into [my]...little head?'" (Wilde, 38). I am not sure, because when I remember the classes I took my first year of high school, I laugh at their simplicity and long to be back in Honors English 9 or World History.
2. Honors Chemistry, my sophomore year of high school, was not my favorite class.  However, when the end of the year came around, I loved doing 'unknowns,' a lab everyday where Mrs. Salyers gave us an unknown substance and we had to perform tests in order to figure out which chemical it was.  I felt like a real scientist and felt "'more pleased with [myself] than I've seen'" (Kesey, 158).  
3. A big moment in my high school career was learning how to study.  My sisters have told me that you think you know how in high school, but learn how in college, and again, that you don't really learn how until grad school.  So, although I will probably become a much better studier in college, I remember how bad I used to be at taking tests in middle school, and how much better I am at test taking in high school.  When I could study and prepare well for tests, I told myself, "'I ain't no little kid'" and gladly moved on in my high school experience (Kesey, 172).  
4. In physics, at the end of my junior year, we built toothpick bridges.  I slathered a bunch of toothpicks with glue and crossed my fingers the day that Mr. Roberts would place weights of the bridges.  But Mr. Roberts placed more and more weights on my bridge, and I though, "'I am quite ready for more'" (Wilde, 31).  It wasn't the strongest bridge, but I accomplished something I had never done before. 
5. Another thrilling moment in my high school experience was when I decided to drop band and take Arabic.  Although it was a difficult decision, I am extremely glad I did it because Arabic is one of my favorite subjects and it helped me realize my interest in international studies.  I realized, "'I am, God help me, in a state resembling happiness'" (Currie, 196).
6. Sophomore year, I signed up for Creative Writing.  I couldn't wait for this class, as I signed up with friends and thought it would look great on my high school transcript. But the first day, I walked in Mr. Stuart's room, and learned that the class consisted of 5 or 6 sophomore girls, and the rest senior, AP English guys.  What made this worse was when Mr. Stuart told us we would have to read everything we wrote out loud to the class.  Having my friends around seemed "friendly and comforting," but the smart, older guys made reading my stories out loud practically impossible (Currie, 46).  However, I found this class a thrilling moment of my high school career due to my ability to overcome a fear, and it's great preparation for AP English 11
7. In Mr. Sweeney's honors algebra 2 class my sophomore year, he placed a sticker on A tests, and when you got a sticker, you put it on the sticker chart in the back of the room.  The stickers helped you obtain extra credit on the final exam, so whenever I received I sticker, it was quite thrilling to walk to the back of his room and place it on the chart.  I felt like getting stickers on math tests was the "'the visible personification of absolute perfection,'' until I got to AP English (Wilde, 31).
8. A thrilling academic school year was taking photography class.  Although I'm not exactly artistic, my experience in that class was fun and exciting.  Learning how to work in the dark room and print pictures was a great stress relief from my other classes.  When I first walked through the mysterious door to the dark room, "'I notice[d] all the machinery...is quiet, like it's still waiting'" (Kesey, 149).  But once I got the hang of things, I realized the thrill of taking a completely different class than all my others.  
9. Another thrilling experience of my high school career was when I realized I could understand and speak Spanish.  The first couple years of the language were slightly unproductive, but the last couple of years, I realized I actually do know Spanish!  The first time I watched a movie and understood what was going on, I felt like I had "never experienced a moment quite like it" (Currie, 285).
10. Last, but not least, I found it quite thrilling when I passed the AP English 11 exam.  I doubted myself so much but actually passing was a confidence boost for AP English 12.  After passing, I feel like, "'Anything, anything, anything is possible'" (Currie, 302).