Changing for the better

A proud Latina is what I am. My mother and father originally thought of the name Karin for me but in the end they named me Leslie Dinorah Calderon. One of my main memories that I tend to remember is when I attended a catholic middle and elementary school. Saint Joseph School was where I went to school for six years and it is where I met most of my friends. It was located right next to my house in Hawthorne where I would walk to school everyday and I would never be late because of it. My friends that I met there are currently still with me and it is amazing how we still know each other now. It was one of the best times of my life since the community was nice and we would hang out after school at daycare. Although everything changed when I graduated and my father told me that I would be going to a whole new district where none of my friends would be going. He made me go to Santa Monica High School, a place where I dreaded going every single day. It progressively got more worse each semester until senior year I did not care anymore and would ditch by leaving during off campus, go to my classes late, and not attend the full day. It got to the point where I did not even attend my graduation because I hated school. I did not see the reason on going since I would get high grades and it is something I regret doing when I reflect back on my actions. Of course I did have friends, but my negativity and awful thinking got to me where I pushed them aside. My decisions have brought me to where I am today and it is brought me a whole new perspective, and it will lead me to a whole new light through positivity and happiness.

In addition, a lot of my decisions were influenced through careful planning and through hard work. Time is something one must carefully plan and take advantage of. Chapter 4 introduced helpful advice on managing time through many ways. Making a to do list way always something I subconsciously did whenever I had to organize my day. In high school the teacher would tell us the homework and I would memorize it and then organize my schedule by telling myself that homework comes first before all things. Although I still use it today by putting a list on my phone because of how busy I can be with homework and helping my family. The list helps me figure out my priorities and helps keep my mind focused on the upcoming tasks. Another helpful tip I found was keeping a large monthly calendar which is what Canvas uses when one is looking at the upcoming homework assignments. Whenever I am trying to plan something with my friends, I look to this calendar to see what assignments or tests I need to do so that I have time to have fun. Managing time is an important asset that will benefit everyone because it can create less stress.

 Although time wasn't the only thing that has led to my achievements, studying and memorization has played a big part in my life as well. Studying and memorization come hand in hand when it comes to upcoming tests and quizzes. Studying is something no one wants to do and requires memorizing many terms and concepts. One of the tools that I mainly used when it came down to studying was testing myself repeatedly until I learned the material. When I was taking AP psychology back in high school, this class required you to memorize 20 pages worth of terms and definitions. This was extremely stressful for me because I didn't know it would be this difficult. I would receive low grades because I would only look at the notes once and not look back on them. It wasn't until my friend recommended me to look back and not just glance at the terms. This led to me studying almost five times and I would do it on the bus before going to school just to make sure I had the material all in my head. Even though it is a pain to study, it really helps you in the end. I have received As because of studying habits which lead me to receive an A in the class overall. Although studying is something everyone hates to do, it is important to look at which techniques are helpful for that person since everyone is different.