Middle School Madness

Ask any adult, what time period as a student was roughest for you...and the most common answer will be during Middle School.

What makes Middle School so difficult for us?

It is a time of transition.

We are changing quickly physically and emotionally with a side order of socially.

We have a need to try on life and experiment with what we believe is adult behavior, but we do not have all of the instructions as of yet.

The range of physical maturity in school ranges from kids that look like they are in 3rd grade to freshman in college.  This is the case for both boys and girls.

We start getting interested in dating.  And if we are not quite ready, the social pressure might cause us to go through the phone book asking every person of our gender of choice out within a month's time.

Our bodies created unwanted things.  Like- gas, acne, and body odor.  Girls get their periods and boys get unwanted erections.  The common piece here is the art of embarrassment.

As middle school students are trying to navigate fitting in, finding themselves, becoming social, etc...they are also seeing a huge increase in expectations.  Their parents are seeing them as different and more capable, thus creating new-found responsibilities.  The amount of change in middle school academic expectations  are seen by many as a time where the bridge is crossed between elementary school work to high school expectations.  The pace can cause breakdowns.

In the past couple of decades, there have been things like advisory and homeroom to make light attempts at helping students through these times.  The need for counselors and social workers in middle schools has more than tripled in these two decades.  The internal and external pressures bring our kids towards the breaking point.  It is no wonder we are seeing more and more middle school students on anxiety meds and antidepressants. 

Let's be aware of what our students are going through with a patient empathetic awareness and build connections to start to learn first hand what our students need.  If not us...then who?

Be Mindful.

Peace.

Mark Levine

#Mindfulliteracy
@LevineWrites