A Teacher's Journal: Teaching Middle Schoolers

Perhaps the most important tool that I found to understand the unique characteristics of my kids was The National Middle School Association. This group has developed a wide collection of resources that help parents and teachers to understand the unique characteristics of pre-adolescents. My favorite resource are a set of three presentations called the Fundamentals for Student Success in the Middle Grades.

What I learned was something that no one ever told me in college: Middle schoolers are going through an incredible period of cognitive change. Their pre-frontal cortexes----the part of the brain that controls organization and decision making----are still developing.

Do you think that explains why completing homework is such a challenge for kids from 12-14?! Perhaps homework policies that punish students for missing tasks or classroom policies that punish students for missing pencils or paper are developmentally inappropriate after all!

I also learned that in an adult, the pre-frontal cortex and the amygdala work together as a "surge suppressor," moderating emotions. In middle schoolers, this coordination hasn't fully developed yet----leading to emotional outbursts and mood swings.

Sound like your kid?

Good! That means they are a perfectly normal middle schooler!

Anyway----I just wanted to share a resource that helped me to understand my students better because I think kids in the middle are often woefully misunderstood!