As a new school year begins, educators are often amazed at the changes students have undergone over the summer. No other developmental phase is this more evident than early adolescence—the beginning of a time marked by a surge in hormones. and remarkable physical, cognitive and emotional growth.
“They are going through physical, cognitive, psychological and social-emotional changes at a pace second only to childhood. Their brains and bodies are changing dramatically, and they don’t always understand what’s happening to them,” says Katie Powell, director of middle school programs at the Association for Middle Level Education and a former sixth-grade teacher.
These changes are a big reason why the transition from primary to secondary school can be so difficult for many students, experts say. But just as the start of this intense growth period varies greatly from child to child (between ages 10 and 14), so does the start of secondary school itself.
Many middle schools consist of grades 6 through 8. Some districts send 5th grade students to middle school. Others limit middle school to 7th and 8th grade students. Still others forego middle school altogether and opt for a kindergarten or 1st-8th grade configuration.
There is no clear consensus on how best to group students in this age group. Many experts say that what matters is not necessarily how you put together the middle school grades, but rather how you approach this level—especially for young adolescents coming out of elementary school.
“It’s less about saying we’re moving toward a school building for grades 5-8 or 6-8, but rather that we’re coming to a better understanding that children are unique in early adolescence and that schools need support at the district level to have the autonomy to structure their school day accordingly,” Powell said.
Simply lumping all students moving from elementary school to traditional middle school together, with its greater complexity and higher demands, is unlikely to work well for most new middle school students. Experts explain why that’s the case and offer strategies for a smoother transition to this next level.
Mismatch: early adolescence and suddenly increasing demands of middle school
Lisa Carey, a child development expert, describes a scenario that sometimes happens to students during the abrupt transition from elementary to secondary school.
“It’s always struck me how kids are really good in 5th grade, but then they collapse in 6th grade, and there’s a lot of crying and a lot of confusion in the first few weeks of school,” says Carey, assistant director of the Center for Innovation and Leadership in Special Education. at the Kennedy Krieger Institute and former 6th grade special education teacher.
Carey attributes scenarios like this to a “stage-environment mismatch” situation. This research term, when applied to the school context, describes an unequal combination of demands within a given learning environment in relation to the developmental stage of the students.
“We’re failing to adequately manage the development of this age group, and that’s where we see them kind of falling apart,” Carey said, citing the sudden increase in responsibility and complexity that sometimes comes with middle school – from using a locker to navigating between multiple classrooms and teachers whose expectations may differ.
Powell of the Association for Middle Level Education agrees that new middle school students sometimes bear a disproportionate share of the responsibility for their challenges.
“Often, school district leaders ask, ‘What is going so wrong in middle school that the data (on academic achievement or behavior) lags behind those at other levels?’ And that probably points to the unique developmental issues of early adolescence,” she said.
Powell adds that no matter how middle school classes are divided, school leaders must recognize and accommodate the unique needs of children in early adolescence. Some middle schools are working hard to accomplish this, as evidenced by the structures and practices they have put in place to help students transition to the next level.
Take a team approach
Dave Dershin, principal of Randy Smith Middle School in Fairbanks, Alaska, describes a grade-level team approach as an effective way to make middle school instruction more manageable.
“Our 6th grade team is comprised of English, math, science and social studies teachers who work together to help sixth graders adjust to their new environment,” said Dershin, Alaska’s 2024 Secondary School Principal of the Year.
Each of these teachers works on strategies to help students strengthen the skills they need to succeed in middle school and beyond: social skills, organizational skills, and time management skills.
“The team diligently taught these required non-content skills, and when students weren’t performing well, they double-checked expectations and supports before moving on,” Dershin said.
Practical strategies for success: parent involvement, locker exercises, peer mentoring
Lynn Jennissen has spent most of his educational career volunteering in middle school. The current assistant principal of St. Michael-Albertville Middle School West in Albertville, Minnesota, which teaches fifth through eighth grades, is part of a school administration that has implemented some simple methods to reduce new students’ stress levels and help them acclimate to their new environment – starting before they even get to middle school.
The first step is to communicate with parents, who, according to Jennissen, are sometimes reluctant to have their fifth-graders attend the same school as eighth-graders.
“If you can get the parents on board to reassure their child at home before school starts, then the child will say, ‘Well, I trust my parents and they say it’s a good thing. So yeah, I can probably do this,'” says Jennissen, Minnesota Middle Level School’s 2024 Assistant Principal of the Year.
Students also begin practicing locker combinations about a month before the end of fourth grade, with additional practice at the beginning of middle school and at a special open house at the beginning of fifth grade.
During the first few days of middle school, newcomers are paired with eighth-grade mentors, selected through a rigorous application process, to help them navigate locker combinations or find their next class.
Once students come to class, they can expect consistency from all teachers. Each fifth-grade teacher posts the same expectation lists on a prominent poster in the classroom, titled “Team Five Expectations.” This consistency of expectations makes it easier for students to transition from having just one or a few teachers to having several, Jennissen said.
Maintaining relationships
Experts say it can be beneficial for students at new middle schools to build a trusting relationship with their teachers.
“Relationships are the foundation of pretty much everything in middle school,” Powell said. “If we don’t really create spaces for dialogue about the human experience, kids may not know that what’s happening to them (during puberty) is totally normal.”
Assigning students to a counseling group can help build these relationships. Typically, a counseling group consists of a staff member (most likely a teacher) and a small group of peers from the same grade who meet regularly throughout middle school, perhaps daily or weekly. It is the job of the adult in the counseling group to build healthy relationships with this group of students, encourage their academic achievement, and foster social-emotional skills.
“The best thing we can do for middle school students is to humanize our students,” Powell said. “We often forget what it’s like to be 12.”
