As they transition to middle school, students have many different experiences. Students make new friends, experience common anxieties, and so much more.
When sixth graders first come to middle school, they are often nervous. As they transition, they often experience changes in their friendships and decide what they look for in a good friend. As mentioned in “The Middle School Dilemma: Changing Friendships” by Ran D Anbar, “Teens who find it difficult to gain acceptance by their friend group may choose to ignore their own desires or ‘dumb themselves down’ so that they can fit better with their peers” (Psychology Today). Students need to branch out and make new friends so that they can find a friend or friend group where they feel like they fit in.
Another concern sixth grade students have is that they are nervous about changing classes and then getting to the next class on time. Mrs. Willa Thayer, a sixth-grade science teacher at EIS, said that students “have a hard time remembering where to go for their classes and the best way to get around the building.”
Fortunately, once students get to EIS, they realize getting to class is not much of a problem. With the new middle school schedule that was implemented this year, some classes have up to five minutes in between, allowing students to have time to visit their lockers and walk to class. Also, after a couple of weeks, or even days (depending on the student), they can memorize their schedule and the location of the class as well as the best route, making changing periods seamless.
The EIS Student Assistance Counselor (SAC), Ms. Melissa Wilson, said that the most common middle school anxieties consist of “school stress,” to be more specific, “balancing school work and extracurriculars.”
To help with these struggles, the article “From Locker Anxiety to Lunch Tables: Easing the Biggest Middle School Worries,” by Nancy Reynolds, said to “Invest in a cool planner to help them organize their homework, future assignments, and projects. You can also consider buying a whiteboard for their bedroom so they can write down upcoming assignments and projects. The more organized they are, the easier it will be to keep up” (Raising Teens Today). It is essential for all students, regardless of grade, to stay organized. If you have your papers and assignments just shoved into your bag, you will undoubtedly lose them, but if you stay organized, you will have better grades and a much smoother EIS career.
Once students make it past the first year of middle school and enter seventh grade, things change again. Seventh graders have all new teachers and may have a larger workload, but EIS student Sarah Birch said, “Once you adapt to seventh grade, it’s much easier than sixth grade.”
The students at EIS have many different favorite aspects of middle school. Some students said that they were excited to have different classes and finally have a real cafeteria. Sixth grader Rowan Spadaro said that his favorite part of middle school is “seeing my friends in between classes.”
This is another common answer and something that many middle school students look forward to.
Eighth grader Siyona Karira, finishing off her last year at EIS, said, “Don’t stress too much about studying, but if you are struggling, find resources to help you.”
Another eighth grade student, Ella Tucker, said, “Listen to your teachers; they do a lot of work for you.”
