The buzz of the alarm clock scares the teenage girl out of bed. She rushes while getting ready, not bothering to look presentable. The sun is still yet to rise and the world around her is quiet. After she dresses, she puts a soft piece of bread into the toaster. By the time she packs all of her softball gear, her toast is as black as the early morning sky. She stomachs her small breakfast and heads out to her first practice of the day.

The sound of basketballs rumble the ground when she enters the school. She powers through the whole workout and rushes to get to her first class.

Her school day is full of note taking and nodding. Lunch is the time to fill up since her puny toast did not hold her for long. After school, she rushes up the brick red stairs to the locker room where she gets ready for the next practice of the day – Softball. When it is over she climbs into her mother’s crimson red car and they speed off.

When she gets home, it is time for a much needed shower. Later, she begins her homework and completes it all without a complaint. The next day, she goes through all of this again and again until the weekend arrives.

“Everyday is super tiring for me with all of the sports and then homework after, but I just try to picture sleeping in on the weekend, and that always gets me through a busy week,” freshman Jillian Weber said.

There are many students at Bellevue East that go through a similar routine day to day. Completing homework and passing classes may seem to be a hassle for some students, but an over-achieving attitude seems to help Weber pull through the weeks.

“I don’t really know what I want to be when I grow up but I think it’s best to try your best in everything even if you don’t know what path you’re going take,” Weber said.

According to Carol Bainbridge, an expert on gifted education, high achieving students do not necessarily need to be gifted. Instead, they have good work ethic, organization, and time management. They also are motivated to get good grades other than easily getting As.

“Before a big test, I usually just take the time to memorize vocab and other things with Quizlets or quiz my friends on things with flashcards,” freshman Jazmyne Ganir said.

As stated by Bainbridge, “high achievers” can take longer to understand topics and memorize things than “gifted students.” This means that over achievers also may take lots of time doing homework, studying, and taking tests.

“I think I care more about getting good grades because my younger siblings kind of look up to me and always do what I do, so that makes me want to be a good role model to them,” Ganir said.

According Jennifer Cohen, an expert in productivity strategies, over achievers always have a goal they are working toward. Instead of doing the bare minimum, they always go above and beyond with their effort and time they put into tasks or assignments. Over achievers are also never shy to ask for help because they believe it is necessary for success.

“I think that every student is capable of passing their classes whether they are in an advanced or regular class, but I think the amount of effort they put in always shows their intelligence, not necessarily their grades,” instructor Whitney Wilson said.