Middle Schoolers in Training {Bright Idea}


Even though we as teachers reassure our students that the transition to middle school/junior high isn't that bad, students' anxieties and worries still blow everything out of proportion. First, there's dressing for PE. And changing classes with different teachers. And dressing for PE. And remembering locker combinations. And dressing for PE. You get the point.

To try to lessen their worries, we take them for a visit to the middle school. We invite older students to come answer questions. We have a transition night in the fall. But the worries are still there.

So this year we decided to try something new. In addition to the normal stuff, we wanted to tackle some of the fears head-on while they're still in a familiar environment. We thought that there are SO MANY changes that they have to deal with next year that we'd see what we could prep them for now. We decided on having them live out of lockers.


Students completely cleaned out their desks and put everything in their lockers. Until now, kids used lockers just for their coats and bags. Now, they use them for their supplies as well. As students are leaving their special, lunch, etc. and coming back to my class, I hold up a little whiteboard with a list of materials. They have two minutes to go get what they need (which is the passing time at the middle school). Materials are put in lockers on the way to specials, lunch, and recess.


So far, things are going well. We still have one more week(ish) left, so if you have any tips on what you do to prepare your students for going to middle school, I'd love for you to leave me a comment!

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