Hello world. I am an 8th grader at Dobie Junior High and I’ve had a really great time at UIL this year.

Last year I heard the word UIL being thrown around the school. I am in orchestra so I’m already familiar with it.

We go to Steele High School and play 3 songs for a panel of judges within a group.

However, I didn’t know about academic UIL.

I didn’t even think about joining last year because it wasn’t required and I was too lazy to stay after school and practice with people I didn’t know. The only reason why I did it this year was because it was required to be in NJHS. They way it turned out, I really enjoyed it!

I decided to sign up for 3 events – Mathematics, Spelling, and Science.

I actually ended up making new friends in all 3 categories.

After about 3 weeks of participation, I was beginning to feel stressed because my schedule was getting too cramped. Spelling on Monday, math on Tuesday, and science on Wednesday. I also had Algebra homework everyday and I had to practice to remain decent in orchestra.

I decided to quit math because I felt like I had too much on my plate and I didn’t think I was smart enough for it.

I continued going to practice for spelling and science.

I thought I was really improving in spelling but not so much in science.

The reasons I kept going were because I love science, the coach was my own teacher, and the people in the group were really fun to hang around.