Transition from Elementary to Middle School Essay

Teachers, other licensed staff members and especially counselors are aware of the concerns of their students and the anxieties of moving into middle schools. But, sometimes this transition is more complicated for some students. A month and a half after the school started, teachers were able to identify students who were having difficulties adjusting to the school. It was important to support these student with open discussions and find out what were their fears or understand what they be worrying about. So The Soft Landing Group started and met for four session following an agenda, parents granted permissions to the participants, teachers were also partners allowing students to attend the group session during classes..

Middle school is no-one's favorite time. It’s that awkward transition from childhood to young adulthood, where students begin to determine who they want to be. I was a student who kept to myself and devoted most of my time to academics, maintaining only a small group of friends and never straying far from my comfort zone.

I spent the day in the classrooms observing students in general education and SPED classes.

Many schools, districts, and states are doing everything possible to assist students who are considered at-risk. The Phillipsburg school district has had success with the youth center afterschool program to assist low SES students. There are many programs available to students who are at-risk, but maintaining and improving these programs is essential to success. Students do not have to face the challenges of being at-risk alone anymore.

Throughout my life I have always been called a bright person, a reader, and an Einstein. When I was younger, I read many picture books such as Dr. Seuss and Dragon Tales and tried reading them to my younger siblings but they wouldn't cooperate. I was extremely fascinated about history and loved to play around if I was in that time period. For example, I pretended to be President Washington marching along the kitchen and even though my family didn't know much about him as they were from Colombia, they said I would make an amazing president one day. In elementary school I worked ahead of the other children and was made fun of for that but I didn’t care. Before middle I took a test that put me in an advanced math class so I can work at a much faster pass.Trust me, it was not as bad as I thought it would be so in my three years I worked hard and helped others understand the concepts of what we are learning in

When attending middle school, it is consider most students’ “awkward stage” of schooling, from their physical appearances and to the idea of becoming a young adult with a variety of choices to choice from such as their classes to the clubs or sports teams that they might want to join. For most middle school students, the idea of changing from a young elementary student, who was not given much variety in school to the idea of entering into middle school where they are learning how to become their own advocate by becoming a leader within and outside of the classroom. Within the middle school setting, all of these events of student’s life don’t happened over night. It takes time and the guidance of the teacher to help the student make connection

After-school programs embrace the idea that teens are capable individuals trying to reach their full potential. These programs view youth as a new generation of problem solvers ready to engage with their communities. Ersing also states that, “Such connections are particularly pertinent for youths living in impoverished environments where persistent social and emotional stressors contribute to feelings of depression and isolation, often resulting in poor decision making and unhealthy behavior” (27). It is imperative that after-school programs remain funded. The future of this country rests on the shoulders of the next generation.

When I first went into middle school I was so scared that I would mess up and embarrass myself. Now that I have gone through what I have and I know that I am still alive, I know that middle school is not the worst thing to go through. Middle school is a lot like elementary. It has doors, classrooms, teachers, and students.

Research associates the decline in achievement with adolescent development, school organization, socio-emotional fears, student-environmental mismatch, and the lack of parental involvement. Adolescent psychologists assert that the pubertal changes affect students’ academic achievement in school (Blyth et al., 1983 Bradley, 2003). Research on school structures found that students involved in a pyramid transition of multiple elementary schools into a single middle school experienced a greater achievement loss than did students in a linear transition of a single elementary school to a single middle school (Alspaugh, 1998a; Felner et al., 2001).

In middle school in the county we have experimented with the three configurations. The research conducted in the county by Swinton and Sunwonton (2014) sought to compare the success of sixth graders in the different grade configurations. “Success” was defined as proficiency in reading and in math, low absenteeism, and fewer suspensions. The achievement was examined from the end of the fifth grade to the end of the seventh grade, to determine how transition had an impact on their preparedness for high school. The results of their research determined that students who experience a middle school transition appear to improve the least in reading achievement the year of their transition compared to the other students who do not transition that

In education, the experience of being in middle school can be difficult for many students. Similar to most years, students receive new teachers and the have a curriculum that is different. The middle school years are more than just learning. The students also are starting to go through puberty and are learning about their own individuals. For most students, they do not understand the changes they are going through both physically and mentally. In This We Believe: Keys to Educating Young Adolescents, one can see research that shows how this is a crucial time for middle schools, and how teachers can effectively guide their students through this time.

The author of this article feels that most high schools across the nation are losing focus on the importance of students’ time in high school. The article takes us through the average day for a high school student, which most people can relate to. It then makes the point of how very crammed the average day for a young adolescent is with a severe lack of down time and the slew of negative consequences because of this. This rushed school day, in combination with the average number of students per class which is twenty or so, causes students and staff members to miss the opportunity to connect with one another. Therefore, teachers do not get a chance to really get to know each pupil and allows for students to fly under the radar as they coast

The purpose of this investigation was to use qualitative and longitudinal analysis to learn about the perceptions of elementary age students who are transitioning into middle school. The participants of this study included 331 fifth grade students in a large, rural, Southeastern public school district. The students came from three different elementary schools, but would all be entering into the same large middle school. This investigation consisted of four phases, the first beginning in January of the participants’ fifth grade year and the second in May. The third and fourth phases took place after the students had transitioned into middle school, one being completed in August and the fourth phase in December. During the investigation students were asked to complete three questionnaires and one writing assignment. The writing assignment, given during phase one of the investigation, gave the participants the opportunity to write any questions they had about middle school. The questionnaires used in the proceeding phases elicited responses regarding the following topics: Students’ concerns about middle school, the positive aspects of middle school, who the students would turn to for help, what they think middle school will be like, and what they think is important to know about transitioning to middle school.

Michael J. Fox once said “One's dignity may be assaulted, vandalized and cruelly mocked, but it can never be taken away unless it is surrendered.” This quote has a very personal meaning to me and my school years growing up. Basically to me it means if your getting picked on it only affects you if you let it. When I was younger, around 1st and 2nd grade, I would get picked on all the time. For example it started with me being made fun of and called names like idiot and dumb among other things really lame things. It didn’t help that we moved a couple times and I always felt like the new kid. Even going into Middle school last year we just moved to GA and I didn’t know anyone the first day. I am not going to lie, at first I was so bothered by the situation that it even made me not want to go to school.

Once the physiological needs of a child are met, it can move on to the second stage which concerns “safety.” The idea of safety is often a second thought to adults, however children often worry about their safety and what is going on around them. Reflecting back on Bandura’s (1977) theory of social learning, children who observe violent behaviour or abusive languages are more likely to replicate the behaviour elsewhere. As a result, children may act out and become more troublesome in school not only disrupting their own learning but the learning of others as well. In these cases, teachers can help to move the child forward in a positive way.