Is your middle school a mess regarding behavior post-covid?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everywhere is a hot mess. This isn't an FCPS thing or a middle school thing. It's not about rich kids or poor kids. It's all across the country.

Yes and no. Not every school system kept kids out of buildings and left kids on their own to fend with distance learning as long as FCPS. Now the chickens are coming home to roost. No kids in middle school but definitely noticed freshmen in multiple HS this year who behaved like oversized 6th or 7th graders.

My sister and brother both teach in schools that only closed for a brief time (public school in Nevada, parochial school in Michigan) They are experiencing the same mental health/behavior issues there as we are here. And they are behind in academics. It's the stress of the pandemic wearing on, the constant rotation of teachers and students being out with covid, the shortages of teachers, the polarization of everything etc.

I wonder if it’s neurological or hormonal damage from COVID infections?

I think this is the saddest part of all of this. I think it’s much easier to think that these behaviors are transitory and they are/were caused by something within our control. If only they had opened the schools earlier and in a few years Or months the kids will settle down. But Covid can and does cause damage to the neurological system and pediatric acute onset neuro psychiatric disorders. What remains to be seen is whether the damage is permanent.

And no I don’t feel like providing links. Do your own research. I’d recommend med journals

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are we still blaming Covid for behavioral problems a year later?

My middle school kid is pretty moody. He stayed home for a year and went back to school last spring. He has been back in school for over a year. He is shy and socially awkward. Thirty years ago, I was also a shy, socially awkward, moody middle school student. There were plenty of bad kids at my middle school. They tried to be cool.

Of course. Schools were closed for over a year, then barely opened for the last month or so and just had the kids staring at screens in person. Now middle schoolers won't even take masks off their faces b/c they are afraid for people to see what they really look like.

That’s not why they wear masks and you know it. Stop lying. You sound like a 7th grader yourself. Sad.

Do you have a middle schooler? This is absolutely 100% without a doubt why the entire middle school is still wearing masks .They do NOT want anyone to think they are ugly without the mask on.

I have 7th grade twins at Stone MS. This is correct. Not sure what to do about it but it is a bummer for these kids to be stuck in masks all year b/c they are afraid to be called maskfaces.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everywhere is a hot mess. This isn't an FCPS thing or a middle school thing. It's not about rich kids or poor kids. It's all across the country.

Yes and no. Not every school system kept kids out of buildings and left kids on their own to fend with distance learning as long as FCPS. Now the chickens are coming home to roost. No kids in middle school but definitely noticed freshmen in multiple HS this year who behaved like oversized 6th or 7th graders.

My sister and brother both teach in schools that only closed for a brief time (public school in Nevada, parochial school in Michigan) They are experiencing the same mental health/behavior issues there as we are here. And they are behind in academics. It's the stress of the pandemic wearing on, the constant rotation of teachers and students being out with covid, the shortages of teachers, the polarization of everything etc.

I wonder if it’s neurological or hormonal damage from COVID infections?

I think this is the saddest part of all of this. I think it’s much easier to think that these behaviors are transitory and they are/were caused by something within our control. If only they had opened the schools earlier and in a few years Or months the kids will settle down. But Covid can and does cause damage to the neurological system and pediatric acute onset neuro psychiatric disorders. What remains to be seen is whether the damage is permanent.

And no I don’t feel like providing links. Do your own research. I’d recommend med journals

This is silly b/c most kids locally had NOT had covid when we finally reopened schools this fall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our MS was messier than usual at the beginning of the fall. A few disciplinary issues, but more issues with kids with anxiety. A lot of teachers were a little rusty both on classroom management and just their processes of forming relationships with students in person. Now things are smoother.

Overall, I think MS is a pretty joyful place to be. Kids that age are as goofy and off-the-wall as they always have been. I think the kids going outside for lunch adds a really nice sense of spirit, and they often go outside for PE too. They seem pretty healthy and happy. The 15 min break always has a lively social buzz about it (though right now it has been paused at our school for testing). I've noticed a lot of the kids seem more resilient and a bit more aware of the world than maybe in years prior--I see it in classroom discussions and in their writing. The top students don't get as freaked out about an A- or a B+ as they might have done pre-pandemic. So teachers are fairly burnt out from having to retool so many times and cover lots of gaps, but at least for me, I get energy and happiness from the students.

Is it all fcps Middle schoolers who are afraid to take off their masks, or is your school better on that? Poor kids.

About 1/3 of kids took off their masks for awhile, but now more have them back on indoors because covid is going up again--we've had a lot of cases at our school in recent weeks which has made things harder recently because the work picks up right around now too.
But nearly all the kids who wear them have always taken masks off outside, and of course during lunch so it's not like they are scared to show their faces to each other. The 'mask face' thing is a bit of a joke, a lot of them joke about liking how the masks cover up their acne, braces etc. Girls who like make-up have fun doing wacky eye make-up because they don't have to do their whole faces. On the whole, I think the experience of being masked/unmasked at different times has kids talking a bit more about the usual adolescent anxiety about their appearances in MS--which is a good thing. Laughingly admitting to another person that you sometimes feel more comfortable hiding your face and them understanding and feeling the same is good for them feeling bonded. But I can imagine being middle schoolers some of them internalize it more strongly. And some of the kids who are angling for popularity will always use aspects of appearance as a way to try to be mean. But it cuts less if everyone has already sort of joked about it themselves.


I think the 5-10% of kids who always struggled somewhat though are having a worse time though. Those are the kids I worry about--they either have serious mental health concerns or family issues that have been exacerbated by the pandemic. But I think for the vast majority of kids--and it has nothing to do with whether they are masked or not-- they are fairly back on track and maybe even a little more resilient now that they used to be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our MS was messier than usual at the beginning of the fall. A few disciplinary issues, but more issues with kids with anxiety. A lot of teachers were a little rusty both on classroom management and just their processes of forming relationships with students in person. Now things are smoother.

Overall, I think MS is a pretty joyful place to be. Kids that age are as goofy and off-the-wall as they always have been. I think the kids going outside for lunch adds a really nice sense of spirit, and they often go outside for PE too. They seem pretty healthy and happy. The 15 min break always has a lively social buzz about it (though right now it has been paused at our school for testing). I've noticed a lot of the kids seem more resilient and a bit more aware of the world than maybe in years prior--I see it in classroom discussions and in their writing. The top students don't get as freaked out about an A- or a B+ as they might have done pre-pandemic. So teachers are fairly burnt out from having to retool so many times and cover lots of gaps, but at least for me, I get energy and happiness from the students.

Is it all fcps Middle schoolers who are afraid to take off their masks, or is your school better on that? Poor kids.

About 1/3 of kids took off their masks for awhile, but now more have them back on indoors because covid is going up again--we've had a lot of cases at our school in recent weeks which has made things harder recently because the work picks up right around now too.
But nearly all the kids who wear them have always taken masks off outside, and of course during lunch so it's not like they are scared to show their faces to each other. The 'mask face' thing is a bit of a joke, a lot of them joke about liking how the masks cover up their acne, braces etc. Girls who like make-up have fun doing wacky eye make-up because they don't have to do their whole faces. On the whole, I think the experience of being masked/unmasked at different times has kids talking a bit more about the usual adolescent anxiety about their appearances in MS--which is a good thing. Laughingly admitting to another person that you sometimes feel more comfortable hiding your face and them understanding and feeling the same is good for them feeling bonded. But I can imagine being middle schoolers some of them internalize it more strongly. And some of the kids who are angling for popularity will always use aspects of appearance as a way to try to be mean. But it cuts less if everyone has already sort of joked about it themselves.


I think the 5-10% of kids who always struggled somewhat though are having a worse time though. Those are the kids I worry about--they either have serious mental health concerns or family issues that have been exacerbated by the pandemic. But I think for the vast majority of kids--and it has nothing to do with whether they are masked or not-- they are fairly back on track and maybe even a little more resilient now that they used to be.

At our middle school, very few kids ever took their masks off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My oldest started at Irving the year COVID hit, so didn't quite have a full year there, but there were not the issues I have heard about happening this year. I don't know if it's the year and a half of virtual or something about the particular group of kids there now, but I worry for my youngest to start there.

I have had 3 kids go through Irving, one there now.

With the older 2, I only recall 1 fight in 4 years. It truly was a wonderful place.

Since shut downs, it has been lord of the flies.

Last spring was very positive, kids happy to be back and excited to see one another. That was when the only kids back were the ones who really wanted to be there. It was a wonderful spring.

Now that all the kids are back, this year has been insane.

I really do think that the 5/6/7 graders over covid had too much unsupervised time on their phones and no expectations from virtual school.

The 9th graders were a disaster too first semester at WSHS. But they finally got it together 2nd semester and spring has gone smoothly.

We are reaping the consequences of distance learning.

OP here - this is why I posted. I've heard this from so many "real life" friends with Irving experience. We'd heard only wonderful things about the school from kids and parents since we moved here in 2013. This is the first year I've heard so many negative things about behavior. It's hard to believe it's a coincidence that it just happened to occur after virtual school. Sad. I hope next year is better, but I'm not sure how they get the kids back on track. Knowing how well the school has been run in the past, I'm sure they are trying their best.

This is truly a weird year for Irving.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Parents need to stop assuming good rankings and past reputation of a school automatically equates to smooth sailing and academic excellence for their child. Without proper parenting and involvement, any school can turn into a dumpster fire experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My oldest started at Irving the year COVID hit, so didn't quite have a full year there, but there were not the issues I have heard about happening this year. I don't know if it's the year and a half of virtual or something about the particular group of kids there now, but I worry for my youngest to start there.

I have had 3 kids go through Irving, one there now.

With the older 2, I only recall 1 fight in 4 years. It truly was a wonderful place.

Since shut downs, it has been lord of the flies.

Last spring was very positive, kids happy to be back and excited to see one another. That was when the only kids back were the ones who really wanted to be there. It was a wonderful spring.

Now that all the kids are back, this year has been insane.

I really do think that the 5/6/7 graders over covid had too much unsupervised time on their phones and no expectations from virtual school.

The 9th graders were a disaster too first semester at WSHS. But they finally got it together 2nd semester and spring has gone smoothly.

We are reaping the consequences of distance learning.

OP here - this is why I posted. I've heard this from so many "real life" friends with Irving experience. We'd heard only wonderful things about the school from kids and parents since we moved here in 2013. This is the first year I've heard so many negative things about behavior. It's hard to believe it's a coincidence that it just happened to occur after virtual school. Sad. I hope next year is better, but I'm not sure how they get the kids back on track. Knowing how well the school has been run in the past, I'm sure they are trying their best.

This is truly a weird year for Irving.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Parents need to stop assuming good rankings and past reputation of a school automatically equates to smooth sailing and academic excellence for their child. Without proper parenting and involvement, any school can turn into a dumpster fire experience.

Who are you attacking? The PP with 3 kids? OP who is wondering if or how the pandemic has affected some students, particularly those who were at transition years during virtual school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's face MS in FCPS is a holding pen. We don't know what to do with these not small children anymore, not really teens yet so let's dump them all together for 2 years. It's a horrible age.

No, it's not a horrible age. It's a horrible school district.

Prior to the year and a half of no school, anyone with kids at our middle school would have said it was a wonderful place, wonderful school, with amazing tachers and principals.

Distance learning changed that.

Fcps broke our kids.

I wonder how people like you who feel victimized by everything instill any sort of resiliency in your kids. By the way, one of my kids really struggled with virtual learning. There is no question virtual learning was a flop for most kids. It sucked. And I am a frontline nurse....so Covid was beyond stressful for our family. But if you believe and act like kids are "broken" because of this experience, they internalize it. And Covid was traumatizing for kids on so many fronts besides virtual learning; some lost loved ones (yes in the DMV, ask me how I know), some kids had parents lose jobs, they saw increased domestic/political tension, all the uncertainty that came with a pandemic, etc. Oh and add in unlimited screen time (not something the school controls, right?). So when you conclude from all this sh7t storm that "FCPS broke our kids," you sound like an ignorant simpleton.

+1, The inability to try to move forward and rehashing points from 1-2 years ago is what will break the kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's face MS in FCPS is a holding pen. We don't know what to do with these not small children anymore, not really teens yet so let's dump them all together for 2 years. It's a horrible age.

No, it's not a horrible age. It's a horrible school district.

Prior to the year and a half of no school, anyone with kids at our middle school would have said it was a wonderful place, wonderful school, with amazing tachers and principals.

Distance learning changed that.

Fcps broke our kids.

I wonder how people like you who feel victimized by everything instill any sort of resiliency in your kids. By the way, one of my kids really struggled with virtual learning. There is no question virtual learning was a flop for most kids. It sucked. And I am a frontline nurse....so Covid was beyond stressful for our family. But if you believe and act like kids are "broken" because of this experience, they internalize it. And Covid was traumatizing for kids on so many fronts besides virtual learning; some lost loved ones (yes in the DMV, ask me how I know), some kids had parents lose jobs, they saw increased domestic/political tension, all the uncertainty that came with a pandemic, etc. Oh and add in unlimited screen time (not something the school controls, right?). So when you conclude from all this sh7t storm that "FCPS broke our kids," you sound like an ignorant simpleton.

+1, The inability to try to move forward and rehashing points from 1-2 years ago is what will break the kids.

It really was one year home. I think my kids connected with friends online. Before Covid, they barely chatted with friends online.

I know my friend’s child who had a lot of anxiety actually did better with virtual. My social kids suffered but it did not scar him for life. We spent a lot of family time together and they played sports and saw other kids. It isn’t like they just sat at home for 2 years. We stayed home for the first 2 months.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are we still blaming Covid for behavioral problems a year later?

My middle school kid is pretty moody. He stayed home for a year and went back to school last spring. He has been back in school for over a year. He is shy and socially awkward. Thirty years ago, I was also a shy, socially awkward, moody middle school student. There were plenty of bad kids at my middle school. They tried to be cool.

Of course. Schools were closed for over a year, then barely opened for the last month or so and just had the kids staring at screens in person. Now middle schoolers won't even take masks off their faces b/c they are afraid for people to see what they really look like.

That’s not why they wear masks and you know it. Stop lying. You sound like a 7th grader yourself. Sad.

Do you have a middle schooler? This is absolutely 100% without a doubt why the entire middle school is still wearing masks .They do NOT want anyone to think they are ugly without the mask on.

They aren’t all wearing masks. My son and his friends took them off the first possible day they could. But my son and most friends have a hood on every single day no matter what the weather is like. It could be 10 degrees or 95 and that hoodie is pulled tight. DS says it’s so no one sees his hair. Sort of the same thing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everywhere is a hot mess. This isn't an FCPS thing or a middle school thing. It's not about rich kids or poor kids. It's all across the country.

Yes and no. Not every school system kept kids out of buildings and left kids on their own to fend with distance learning as long as FCPS. Now the chickens are coming home to roost. No kids in middle school but definitely noticed freshmen in multiple HS this year who behaved like oversized 6th or 7th graders.

My sister and brother both teach in schools that only closed for a brief time (public school in Nevada, parochial school in Michigan) They are experiencing the same mental health/behavior issues there as we are here. And they are behind in academics. It's the stress of the pandemic wearing on, the constant rotation of teachers and students being out with covid, the shortages of teachers, the polarization of everything etc.

Yes. Look at society. Adults are a hot mess. Of course kids are going to be a hot mess too.

+1. Too many adults have not grown up yet. That is impacting the kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's face MS in FCPS is a holding pen. We don't know what to do with these not small children anymore, not really teens yet so let's dump them all together for 2 years. It's a horrible age.

No, it's not a horrible age. It's a horrible school district.

Prior to the year and a half of no school, anyone with kids at our middle school would have said it was a wonderful place, wonderful school, with amazing tachers and principals.

Distance learning changed that.

Fcps broke our kids.

And APS broke their kids and LCPS broke their kids and FCCPS broke their kids and ACPS broke their kids and DCPS broke their kids and MCPS broke their kids...

True. They did. So did arandi Weingartner.

But this is a fcps thread about fcps middle schools.

In this case, fcps broke our kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's face MS in FCPS is a holding pen. We don't know what to do with these not small children anymore, not really teens yet so let's dump them all together for 2 years. It's a horrible age.

No, it's not a horrible age. It's a horrible school district.

Prior to the year and a half of no school, anyone with kids at our middle school would have said it was a wonderful place, wonderful school, with amazing tachers and principals.

Distance learning changed that.

Fcps broke our kids.

I wonder how people like you who feel victimized by everything instill any sort of resiliency in your kids. By the way, one of my kids really struggled with virtual learning. There is no question virtual learning was a flop for most kids. It sucked. And I am a frontline nurse....so Covid was beyond stressful for our family. But if you believe and act like kids are "broken" because of this experience, they internalize it. And Covid was traumatizing for kids on so many fronts besides virtual learning; some lost loved ones (yes in the DMV, ask me how I know), some kids had parents lose jobs, they saw increased domestic/political tension, all the uncertainty that came with a pandemic, etc. Oh and add in unlimited screen time (not something the school controls, right?). So when you conclude from all this sh7t storm that "FCPS broke our kids," you sound like an ignorant simpleton.

My kids are mostly fine.

But "our" fcps kids are broken. Ask their teachers.

Fcps broke our kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are we still blaming Covid for behavioral problems a year later?

My middle school kid is pretty moody. He stayed home for a year and went back to school last spring. He has been back in school for over a year. He is shy and socially awkward. Thirty years ago, I was also a shy, socially awkward, moody middle school student. There were plenty of bad kids at my middle school. They tried to be cool.

Of course. Schools were closed for over a year, then barely opened for the last month or so and just had the kids staring at screens in person. Now middle schoolers won't even take masks off their faces b/c they are afraid for people to see what they really look like.

That’s not why they wear masks and you know it. Stop lying. You sound like a 7th grader yourself. Sad.

Have you met a middle schooler?

They were running IG sites specifically to doxx kids who unmasked, calling them too ugly to show their faces.

They had code names for all the kids deemed too ugly.

Why do you think a majority of teen girls in fcps have stayed masked? Why do you you think the handful of girls who removed their masks were the very confident or very beautiful girls?

You don't knkw teens.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our MS was messier than usual at the beginning of the fall. A few disciplinary issues, but more issues with kids with anxiety. A lot of teachers were a little rusty both on classroom management and just their processes of forming relationships with students in person. Now things are smoother.

Overall, I think MS is a pretty joyful place to be. Kids that age are as goofy and off-the-wall as they always have been. I think the kids going outside for lunch adds a really nice sense of spirit, and they often go outside for PE too. They seem pretty healthy and happy. The 15 min break always has a lively social buzz about it (though right now it has been paused at our school for testing). I've noticed a lot of the kids seem more resilient and a bit more aware of the world than maybe in years prior--I see it in classroom discussions and in their writing. The top students don't get as freaked out about an A- or a B+ as they might have done pre-pandemic. So teachers are fairly burnt out from having to retool so many times and cover lots of gaps, but at least for me, I get energy and happiness from the students.

Is it all fcps Middle schoolers who are afraid to take off their masks, or is your school better on that? Poor kids.

About 1/3 of kids took off their masks for awhile, but now more have them back on indoors because covid is going up again--we've had a lot of cases at our school in recent weeks which has made things harder recently because the work picks up right around now too.
But nearly all the kids who wear them have always taken masks off outside, and of course during lunch so it's not like they are scared to show their faces to each other. The 'mask face' thing is a bit of a joke, a lot of them joke about liking how the masks cover up their acne, braces etc. Girls who like make-up have fun doing wacky eye make-up because they don't have to do their whole faces. On the whole, I think the experience of being masked/unmasked at different times has kids talking a bit more about the usual adolescent anxiety about their appearances in MS--which is a good thing. Laughingly admitting to another person that you sometimes feel more comfortable hiding your face and them understanding and feeling the same is good for them feeling bonded. But I can imagine being middle schoolers some of them internalize it more strongly. And some of the kids who are angling for popularity will always use aspects of appearance as a way to try to be mean. But it cuts less if everyone has already sort of joked about it themselves.


I think the 5-10% of kids who always struggled somewhat though are having a worse time though. Those are the kids I worry about--they either have serious mental health concerns or family issues that have been exacerbated by the pandemic. But I think for the vast majority of kids--and it has nothing to do with whether they are masked or not-- they are fairly back on track and maybe even a little more resilient now that they used to be.

I cannot believe anyone would argue that teens feeling too ugly to show their faces and middle schoolers bullying each other to remain masked is a good thing.