Helping Your Child With Their Transition to a Bigger School

Making the transition from elementary school to middle school is often difficult for young students. Learning their way around a new, larger school, being presented with new challenges, and becoming acquainted with an entirely new staff can all be overwhelming. This is all true for any student, but is especially true for students with disabilities. Middle school is the time in a child's life where their adolescence begins: they face new challenges, academically and socially. Teachers can help this transition by fostering a child's feeling of independence while continuing to provide supportive learning strategies. The Suffolk Center for Speech has some tips for any parents with children making this transition, especially those with children who have certain disabilities that might exacerbate this big change.

Think about the challenges your child will encounter when transitioning from an elementary school to a middle school. The school will be larger, with more students. Now, each subject is taught by a different teacher, so the child must gain a rapport with a slew of different mentors as opposed to just one. There’s more homework and a more significant emphasis on grades. Students are also given new responsibilities, such as a locker; remember clothes for gym class, etc.

Remember, the ultimate goal is to promote a sense of independence in a child while still providing him/her with a structure for learning. Suffolk Center for Speech presents: ways that parents and teachers can make this grand transition from elementary school to middle school easier and less overwhelming.

·         Schedule Classes Intentionally: Program classes so that they are close together, making it easier for your child to find their way from class to class. Remember how nerve wracking it was thinking “I’m gonna be late, oh my god, where is room 134?” You can even print a map of the school and draw your child his/her route. If your child has disabilities, find teachers who work well with students with disabilities and try to get your child in classes with them.

·         Color Code binders for different subjects using a system (green for English, blue for Math, yellow for History etc.) This will help your child in organizing their day. This sounds pretty obvious, but we cannot express how important it is to foster organizational skills in a child beginning middle school. Also, have your child separate “Class Notes” from “Homework”.

·         Use a daily planner. If the school does not provide daily planners (most do) help your child create one. Organize each day in the planner by subject starting from first period to last period. *A good way to encourage a rapport between student/teacher: make it your child’s responsibility to have the teacher initial each assignment in their planner (after class) to ensure that they’re correct.

·         No Loose Papers: Students are bombarded with loose papers: homework, permission slips that require a parent’s signature, etc. Provide your child with a miscellaneous folder to keep all of these loose papers (instead of just throwing them in their book bag, like I still do). This will foster organizational skills. Make sure you purchase binders with folders inside and a ruler-hole puncher. Punching holes in homework is fun (it was for me, at least) and will motivate your child to stay organized.

·         Keep a textbook at home and at school. This tip is especially important for students with disabilities who might require at home tutoring. Textbooks can also be heavy to carry back and forth to school; having one at home can eliminate this annoyance. Check Amazon for used books that are inexpensive but still in good quality.

·         Teach routines to your child. Remember, drawing a route for your child could really help them feel less overwhelmed for their first week of school. I wish my parents did this for me. The first week of middle school was when I initially realized that I’m directionally challenged. After school, go over these routines with your child. A student must learn several different routines when entering middle school and you can help (hallway routines, organizational routines, opening his/her locker, what to put in his/her locker and when). A map of their school, a list of their textbooks (separated by weight, don’t let your child break their back because they forget to put textbooks in their locker), and a pinpoint on the map of where their locker is can really help you plan out an overall day-to-day routine for your new middle schooler to follow. They’ll appreciate it; trust me.

These seem like obvious tips but parents often forget how important they are to a student’s transition. There’s a certain time and place when a parent should put their hands up and let their child take the wheel. The transition from elementary school to middle school is not always one of them. Gauge your child’s feelings about the transition, and if you feel they’re more worried than excited, utilize these tips to help diminish this worry and encourage excitement. They’re not just turning the page: they’re opening an entirely new chapter in their life. Be in it.

Written by: Tim Strampfer