The start of a new school term is exciting. It is a time to start afresh and to set yourself goals for the coming school year.

Have you ever heard the saying, “As long as you try your best”? What this means is that, no matter what marks you get in a test and even if you don’t score any goals in a match, then it doesn’t matter – as long as you gave it your best. Giving something your best is giving it 100% effort.

Here’s another saying, “You only get out what you put in”. This means that, if you only try a little, then you will only get a little back. If you try 100%, then the rewards will be much greater.

Sometimes it is not that easy to be the best you can be, so a good idea is to sit down with your parents or guardian and draw up a contract. Sid’s contract would go something like this:

“This school year I will make sure I am always on time for lessons.

I will hand my homework in on time.

I find maths quite difficult so I will talk to my teacher and see if there are ways I can improve.”

Then sign the contract and ask your parents to also sign the contract and put it in a safe place. Re-read the contract once a month to remind yourself of the promises you have made.

When you have a plan, you are always thinking one step ahead, so you are always ahead of the game. In Sid’s contract he has promised to try harder at maths. So his plan to be the best he can be at maths would read like this:

“Speak to my teacher about how I can improve my maths skills, set one to two hours a week for practising maths at home, say my times tables every morning, join the school maths club and ask my parents (or guardian) for help.”

What you need now is determination. It is the driving force behind achieving your goals.

Sid is determined to do well at maths so he will put lots of effort into succeeding at maths. He will be very pleased with himself if he does well in next year’s maths tests.

All his teachers and parents can ask from him is that he does his best.