By Celine Park
How do you deal with someone who seeks attention at every chance they get? I have a friend who loves to talk about their talents and fishes for compliments. The person is really nice, but it’s getting in the way of our friendship. What should I do to move past this?
In my opinion, it depends whether your friend is purposely trying to put themselves up on a pedestal, or if this is just your friend’s normal manner of speech. I personally don’t think you should break your friendship simply because you think your friend is fishing for compliments. People often do this subconsciously, and your friend probably doesn’t know that you feel this way. Try to give this person the benefit of the doubt, but if it continues, I would consider discussing this with him/her. I wouldn’t advise talking badly about your friend to other people because things could become really complicated. During middle and high school, there constantly will be conflicts between you and your friends. Just know that things will get better, and the best way to move past this particular conflict is to cut your friend some slack.
 
What’s the best way to establish better relationships with teachers?
To start off, don’t be that one kid that always messes around and disturbs the class. This doesn’t mean you have to get perfect scores on your tests for your teacher to like you, but at least be tolerable. Not talking in class, being kind to your classmates and getting your homework on time will show your teacher you care about class. After you show your teacher that you are someone who is polite and kind to your peers, then it will be much easier to establish appropriate relationships with your teachers inside and outside of the classroom!
What do you do when your partner for a project isn’t doing any work?
Before you begin your project, you should make a plan with your partner to divide the work evenly. If your partner won’t stick to the plan, meet with him/her and try to understand why your partner hasn’t done any work. If your partner is not willing to put in work to complete the project, do your equal share of work on time and ask your teacher what you can do to complete the assignment without having to do all of your partner’s work. At the end of your project, if your teacher assigns a student evaluation survey to see how equally distributed the work was, be honest.