As a parent, you play an important role in ensuring your child succeeds in middle school. As your child grows more independent, it gets harder for you to be actively involved in his life, to get him to communicate with you and know the happenings in his life.
These middle school tips for parents and students listed below should be considered as a way for you to get actively involved in your kid’s life. In reading this, you would find that 30 middle school tips for parents and students, you would find out if they are useful and also how they can be helpful.
I also included frequently asked questions to make it easier for you. Keep reading!
Are middle school tips useful?
Middle school is mostly the turning point for many students in either a positive or negative direction. Instilling the notion of being a lifelong learner is important at every stage of education, but even more so during the middle school years. These tips are very useful and would ensure that you are actively involved in the educational life of your child.
Why do I need middle school tips?
It is important for students to develop good study habits during their middle school years. This can be beneficial to students in high school and beyond. Middle school is the time in a child’s life that is so important in developing an appreciation for learning and valuing education in general.
It is your duty as a parent to show the most care you can. Tips serve as a guide to ensure you don’t leave anything out.
Read: Tips on how to study for finals | College & High School
30-Best Middle School Tips for Parents and Students
1.Stock up on math supplies-
As a middle school student, you really do need your math supplies. These supplies could include individual whiteboards, notebooks, pre-sharpened pencils, calculators, and even an electric pencil sharpener.
Try to stock up on these math supplies before you start school. They are extremely important tips for middle school.
2. Introduce yourself creatively
Middle school has a way of bringing out the best features in you. In middle school, on the first day of school, you would be required to introduce yourself. You stand at the front of the classroom, looking at all those expectant faces for the very first time.
Think up creative ways to introduce yourself to your classmates and teachers, to let them know who you are and what they can expect over the year to come.
3. Connect the middle school years
When you are in one grade, you could attempt to go higher than the class you are in. With this, you can explore a variety of areas of study that may be of interest to you.
With this, you are exposed to a number of areas of interest throughout your middle school years. You would probably not see the benefit of this at the time. Just give it a few years.
4. Start the year with ice breakers and review
Best middle school “Do a day of getting-to-know-you and then check for prior understanding of content. I teach social studies, so some maps and a quick review of topics they should have been exposed to.”- Beth T.
“I teach seventh grade English and actually had BINGO posted the first day but changed a few to specifics about our city/school. In addition to BINGO, I made a classroom scavenger hunt students completed in a group. Making time for procedures in between is, of course, critical for the year as well.”- Erin B.
5. Ask questions
You are a middle school student now. Normalize asking questions when you do not understand them.
Come prepared with the questions of what you have been taught but do not understand. Asking questions is a great tool for unlocking the value in you.
Read: 40 BEST BACK-TO-SCHOOL TIPS FOR PARENTS AND STUDENTS
6. Develop your own style
In attending high school, you must ensure that you develop your own style. Develop your own style of reading, your own style of asking questions, making notes, and getting engaged in classwork.
Discovering what works for you is the first step towards your success in middle school.
7. Talk Positive
This can mostly be an inner monologue that makes you feel good about yourself and everything going on in your life.
By talking positively, you can get a lot done in the shortest amount of time. Talking positively has a way of improving your educational level and having you feel good about yourself.
8. Laugh (and laugh some more)
Do not take life too seriously. You are a high school student. Go out, have fun, and like I just said, laugh as much as you can. You cannot have this moment twice in your life.
9. Insist on respect and show respect.
You are a grown-up now. Remember that love and respect fit together like hand and glove. Give it and insist that your classmates and teachers speak to you politely and that you do so to them as well.
It may be tough going, as this age can be mouthy and naturally rude. But insist anyway.
10. Build Friendships
To get through your high school experience with so much fun, you need friends. Keep multiple lines of easy communication, make contact regularly with those you want to be friends with.
Ensure that you find people who have the same interests as you. Having friends in middle school goes to show you are sociable and ready to take charge of your life.
11. Speak early.
Once you see something you do not like or accept, speak up. You are young and should learn to start speaking up for yourself at this age.
12. Pay attention.
As a parent, pay attention. Look at what your child loves to do. Ask him questions about what makes him happy, and find ways for him to do these activities with other kids.
As a student, you should also pay attention at this stage of your life to realize the things which you like and dislike. It is at this stage of your life that you begin to find yourself.
13. Protect your sleep time
Do not get lost in video games and social media, especially at night. You are young and should get enough sleep. Pediatricians indicate that children in the middle school age range need nine to nine and a half hours of sleep per night.
As a parent, try to make sure your child hits this mark most of the time.
14. Create a quiet zone for studying
If you have read up to this point, then you are ready to go the extra mile. Establish a quiet workplace without noise or other distractions so other children cannot distract you while you are studying.
Steal out times in your day to glance at your books. This would help you to create a reading habit for yourself.
This is a valid middle school tips.
15. Safeguard weeknights.
As a parent, ensure to protect evening time during the week so children can be home, completing homework and studying for tests. Weeknights should be used for school work. Your children should only use phones and watch television after they are done with homework and studying.
16. Maintain tech-free bedrooms.
Keep computers, laptops, televisions, and gaming equipment in common areas and not in sleeping or reading areas. It would help your child sleep more peacefully and maintain concentration when reading.
17. Keep bedtime boring.
If you purchase mobile devices such as a cell phone, smartphone, MP3 player, Nintendo DS, or iPod Touch for your child, collect them all at bedtime so kids can sleep. Having a boring bedtime can ensure that you sleep like a baby.
You can also do this by listening to pink noises by listening to classical music or ocean sounds. Also, ensure that your kids shower before bed.
18. Restrict violence.
At this age, your child has a very vivid memory and a knack for trying new things. Try as much as you can to avoid purchasing video games that are riddled with violence. If games are borderline, rent and preview them before buying.
Read: Best Free Online High Schools In 2021
19. Monitor social media and internet usage closely.
Normally, you should not monitor your kid’s social media and internet usage closely because it is a way to breach privacy and trust. However, your child is in middle school and social media is filled with unfiltered content.
At this age, it should not matter so much if you go through and monitor their social media and internet usage closely.
20. Install internet guardrails
Many parents choose to install internet filtering software or set up parental controls. But the best guardrails are conversations parents have with kids about safe ways to use the internet as well as family rules, consistently enforced, that govern internet use. Depending on how your child is, this conversation could go both ways.
21. Remember your own adolescence and the way you handled sex.
This is the perfect age to have sex talk with your child. Remember your own adolescence and how you dealt with it. Tell them of your regrets and things you could have done better. Then trust that they value your advice enough to take it.
22. Tell your child the truth about drugs, sex, and alcohol.
Do not these conversations to the school or his friends to educate him. Have these conversations with them at home in a place where you and they feel comfortable.
23. Monitor your middle school friends.
Good friends make you feel good and would ensure that you have people to share things with. The best way you can make friends faster is by joining a new club or organization. If they are a bad influence encourage your child to find new friends. This is easier said than done. But do it anyway.
23. Be in the know.
In middle school, a lot of people would be excluded. Ensure that you are in the know. This means being aware of something only a few people would know like classified information. This would make you feel important and to know what goes on at parties.
24. Know the Disciplinary and Bullying Policies
It is a sad fact that children with learning and thinking differences are more prone to be bullied than other kids. Ensure you know the disciplinary and bullying policies of the middle school your child is enrolled in. Every school usually has its disciplinary policies in student handbooks.
The rules usually cover expectations, as well as consequences for not meeting the expectations, for things like student behavior, dress codes, use of electronic devices, and acceptable language. In knowing these policies, you would know how to protect your child when the need arises.
This is another middle school tips for students and parents.
25. Discuss rules and course of actions openly
Talk to your parents about the decisions you are about to take. When there is an organized field trip or something of that sort, ensure you tell your parents on time so it can be planned on time. do not take decisions on your own and ensure you follow the rules laid down by parents.
26. Get to know the teachers.
Knowing your teachers is one of the most important things you should do when your child gets enrolled in middle school. Have conversations with them, ask about their expectations, and know them by their names.
In doing this, you can find out how much time your child should spend on homework each night, whether there will be regularly scheduled tests, and if so, when. Ask about the best way to get in touch if you have questions. If the teachers use email, be sure to get their addresses.
27. Have an organizational system in place
You are in high school. Be organized. Being organized helps you do things faster and easier.
In ensuring you are organized, you must separate your hardcovers and paperbacks, attempt arranging your books by color, do not be afraid to stack your books so far as you know what stacks are there, display your favorite books in front, organize your books by genre or subject, group together the books you haven’t read yet.
In doing this, you can very easily find what you are looking for when you need it. This tip would help you not just in high school, but in your life as a whole.
28. Volunteer to chaperone school dances and drive kids to school sports competitions.
In volunteering, you would get to meet other parents, staff, and your child’s classmates. It would show you are very involved in the educational life of your child. Even though you might have a busy schedule, try to go to school meetings and events.
Attending concerts, plays, assemblies, meetings, and other activities is a good way to become familiar with your child’s school community.
29. Talk to your child about school.
In having conversations about school with your child, you would ensure you seek out any difficulties your child might be facing. Ask specific questions to draw out your child.
In addition, always try to ask about his day in detail at the end of every school day.
Read: Best High School Study Abroad Programs
30. Talk about safety
It’s the beginning of a school year. Your child can be reckless but we do not want that.
Talk to them about safety. This may range from little things like not leaving water on the floors to things like looking both ways before crossing the street, taking the same route every day if they are walking, familiarizing themselves with crosswalk rules, and being cautious in talking to strangers.
This would ensure that even when you are not present, your children are safe.
This is the last middle school tips for parents and students.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
8:10 a.m. – 3:35 p.m.
In most schools, it takes approximately 49 minutes
Yes. Backpacks are not allowed inside the classrooms but you will leave your backpack in the cubbies or hooks found in each hallway and carry materials that you need into the classroom.
Each middle school student is required to have an agenda. Agendas are used in the classroom on a daily basis to write down homework assignments or upcoming tests and projects.
Not really. But it goes a long way in showing you support and that you are interested in their education.
Conclusion
Middle school can be frightening at first for parents and students. The students may be startled at the new, larger school, or the thought that you might not pass your class. As a parent, you might also be a little bit frightened because you do not know what to expect.
You can however make this work by planning. These 30 best middle school tips for parents and students would serve as a guide.
