Sophomores and juniors, it’s time to choose your electives.

We often hear about how a teenager’s high school experience should be one of the most memorable parts in their life. Receiving a high school education is a great privilege for a lot of people in the United States, and I can assure you that many students can agree that athletic events, clubs, and even electives determine the fundamentals of making their experience great. Just like every high school offers, electives are classes outside the required curriculum that students have the option to take, such as art, music, journalism, computer programing, psychology, and many more. According to the article “How to Choose High School Electives,” taking a class that sparks your interest cannot only be fun and help students reduce their stress but could also lead to scholarship opportunities and more pursuits in college. Our intention with this article is to emphasize the importance to freshmen, sophomores, and juniors of taking as many of the beneficial electives that J. Sterling Morton High School offers freely to their students. 

“Sculpture is one of the electives that mainly caught my eye. Getting to work with paint and clay to make your own mugs seems really cool!” Junior Aliah Lopez said. 

Taking an elective can introduce you to an entirely new subject that might lead you to find a new hobby or career choice! Here are more electives J. Sterling Morton High School has to offer: 

• Culinary 
• Design/Art classes/Drawing/Painting 
• Language classes- Spanish, French, Chinese 
• Auto Mechanic  
• Anatomy/psychology/Advance Health/Biology/Chemistry 
• Calculus/ Algebra/ accounting/21st-century math skills  
• LifeGuarding (certification available for those who want to get paid!)

These are a few electives that J. Sterling Morton High School has to offer help students get more involved and create new hobbies. 

“They are new curriculum that is interesting and exciting. It’s something different that students can get involved with and find their interest,” sophomore Zoe Bustamante said. 

Picking an elective that you like is a benefit. 

“I enjoy having electives; I feel that they are more of a class we want to take and not have to so then that leads to some failing since we picked something that catches our attention,” junior Yeniah Matos said. 

Additionally, seniors must choose an English elective for their required English credits for their last year. The English electives offered for next year include AP Literature, Journalism, College Prep English, Multicultural Themes, Creative Writing, Science Fiction, and Contemporary Literature. (AP Lit, Journalism, and College Prep English are whole-year classes.)