Click here to see yesterday's five tips to surviving high school.

Pretend like I'm your older sister, sitting down with you over a nice cup of coffee.  You're a freshman going into high school for the first time.  I'm a "wise" senior.  I honestly want to help you out and give you some advice.  Some much needed advice.  Advice that will help you, not harm you.  You're listening with open ears, right?  Good.

Take a sip of that caramel frappuccino and listen to my five tips for today.

1. Be the one to reach out and make friends.  I'm sure that right now you're thinking, "I hope people will reach out to me and be my friend."  Guess what?  A lot of kids are hoping that same thing, wishing desperately that someone will reach out to them and offer a gesture of friendship on the first day of school.  I entered high school without any friends.  On my first day, I walked up to some girls I recognized and started up a conversation.  I said, "I don't have anyone to sit with today at lunch.  Can I sit with you girls?"  They said yes.  We've been best friends ever since.  "I'm way too shy to do something like that!" you might think.  In complete honesty, I'm very shy too.  It may take coming way out of your comfort zone in order to make some friends.  Remember that everyone is as scared as you are. 

2. Respect the upperclassmen.  This might sound a little offensive to you, but it's true.  You aren't as "cool" as the upperclassmen yet.  You won't be for two more years.  Don't try to act cooler than us.  Don't talk trash to us.  Don't run around shouting, "2014 is the best class at this school!"  That kind of thing will make you a target for hazers.  You need to accept the fact that we are older and wiser than you, no matter how difficult it is to swallow your pride.  Would you treat a ten or eleven year old the same way as you would someone your own age, even though you're "only" a few years older than them?  You're fourteen.  We're eighteen.  There is a difference.  Just smile and say hi when we walk by.  If you're nice to an upperclassman, we'll be nice back to you.  If you act like an immature brat, we'll make you wish you were in middle school.  It's really up to how you act.  If you get on an upperclassman's good side, you will be protected from all the mean seniors.  Show the upperclassman a little bit of respect.  Acknowledge that we've been in high school longer than you have.

3. Drama belongs in middle school, not high school.  Do not join a group of friends who are obsessed with causing drama and gossip.  It isn't worth it.  Don't you dare be a drama starter.  You will be miserable.  Upperclassmen hate drama.  We don't like the kids who start it.  You will not be liked if you start drama.  People will talk bad about you.  Don't overreact if someone says something that ticks you off.  Hold it in.  Don't take revenge.  Don't bad mouth someone.  Smile when someone glares at you.  Just don't even go there.

4. Get involved.  Find yourself a hobby.  That's a great way to find like-minded friend.  I like guitar, piano, inner city ministry, writing, and Bible studies.  Your hobby might be a sport or an instrument.  Maybe it's yearbook.  Maybe it's drama.  Find something that you can do and learn and enjoy with other kids.  Through things like this, you can make friends with people who are like you.

5. Don't do stupid things.  This might sound obvious, but a lot of new freshman fall for these temptations every year.  I'll remind you ahead of time.  Do not do drugs.  Do not drink.  Do not have sex with the senior football player.  Do not drive when you don't even have your permit yet.  Do not steal anything.  If you get involved in anything illegal, you're not going to have a fun time in high school.  You'll only make yourself miserable.  Be smart.  Come on.

Tune in tomorrow for the next five tips for surviving high school!

School is about to begin.  If you're an upcoming freshman in high school, there is a good chance that you're so scared right now, you feel like you're dying inside.  I'm a senior now, but I remember how horrible that feeling is.  I've been writing five daily tips to surviving high school for the past few days.  Click here to see yesterday's five tips.

You don't need to worry about high school.  I wish I could give you a hug and reassure you that it really will be okay.  Don't let yourself get too nervous.  Here are today's five tips. 

1. Never date an upperclassman.  Never.  Do you understand what I'm saying?  Never.  You are a cute, naive, innocent freshman who wants to fall in love.  He is an experienced, older guy who doesn't care about love.   It will not work between you too.  He is using you, no matter what he tells you.  No, he is not different from other senior guys.  I've seen this happen a million times over.  Older guys don't date younger girls because they appreciate their maturity and intelligence or for love.  Older guys date younger girls because you're more gullible and it's easier to get into your pants and get you to do things an older girl would refuse to do.  Even if you think to yourself, "I know what I believe.  I'll be fine," you're still going to get hurt.  He will break your heart and not think anything of it.  Leave the older guys to the older girls.  Say no to their advances every time.  I cannot warn you enough.

2. Be careful who your friends are.  Yes, high school is a time to make new friends and create a new image for yourself.  It's a reason for celebration, but it's also a reason for caution.  Don't be so desperate to make friends right away that you befriend the wrong crowd.  Friends who are involved in illegal activities, such as drugs or alcohol, are obviously a bad choice.  Friends who cuss all the time and put each other down, bad choice.  Friends who love drama and gossip, bad choice.  Friends who are depressed and suicidal all the time, bad.  Friends who are very boy crazy, bad.  Friends who are not Christians like you, bad.  Friends who don't encourage or support you, bad.  Having a great, godly, close-knit group of friends is essential for having a good high school career.  If it takes you a couple of months to find this group, it will be worth it.  I have a group of friends like this.  Believe me, they make my life so much easier.  Sure, you should be casual friends with everyone.  In this paragraph, I'm talking about starting an involved, intimate friendship.  Do not befriend a wrong group and think, "I'll be fine.  I know what I believe."  Imagine you're standing on a chair.  Is it easier to pull someone onto the chair with you or for someone to pull you off the chair?  Do you get what I'm trying to say?

3. Don't dress older than you are.  Watch the makeup.  You're most likely using makeup for the first time (or you haven't been wearing it for that long) as you go into high school.  You're still experimenting with your "look."  Be careful that your look is unique, but not over the top.  Wearing bright blue eyeshadow is over the top.  Caking on the eyeliner is over the top.  Try to look naturally pretty so that your personality will shine through your actual features.  You don't want to look fake.  You want people to take you seriously.  In the same way, don't dress in skimpy clothes to attract guy or stand out.  You're fourteen or fifteen years old.  Don't dress like you're twenty.

4. Your grades are actually important now.  In middle school, it didn't really matter whether or not you got a B or C in a class.  Now it does.  It matters a lot if you want to get into college or receive good scholarships.  Don't be fooled into thinking that your freshman year doesn't matter.  If you screw up your GPA now, you will have to struggle for the next three years to bring it back up.  It matters.  Get to studying.

5. Don't take bullying in any shape or form.  We've probably all been there.  Teased for the way we look or talk, for who we are.  Do not be caught making fun of an uncool kid.  As an upperclassman, when I see a younger kid making fun of someone else, I become disgusted and outraged.  People will not respect you if you make fun of others.  On the other hand, people will respect you if you are the one to step up and say, "Hey, leave him alone."  It might not seem like it at the time, but you will be respected and admired, and more people will like you.  If you are being bullied by anyone, beyond the typical, "Hey, fish. I smell tuna," you need to tell someone.  Talk to a teacher, principal, a parent, or an older kid who will stand up for you.  You are worth so much more than being degraded or made to hate yourself.  You matter more than that.  Never take bullying, in any situation.

Check back tomorrow for five more tips to surviving high school.