It was mixed.

DD was ready for more independence, changing classes, less coddling that our ES gave. She was also ready for more challenging classes and interesting electives.

She did not like the overly mature crowds in MS (overt making out/dating, vaping, fighting, WAY adult language and stuff like that). We are no prudes in our house but she would have liked to have been more kid-like, rather than be forced to be around so much "grown up" behavior for another year or so. Plus, there was lots of friend drama in MS (and that was pretty much true for everyone). Nothing severe but the usual stuff when friend groups get shuffled around.

So did she like some parts of it better? Yes. Some, not so much.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I understand your point, I really do, but just because you allow 11 or 10 year olds to be kids doesn't mean they are treated like they are 3. I'd rather that age group act younger rather than older

I’m sorry, what is your point? Are you unhappy middle schoolers get to stretch their arms a little, or what?

I do believe I made my points in earlier comments. Do they bother you or something?

How are we supposed to know what your “earlier comments” are? Sheesh. Anyway. Basically, most middle schoolers are enjoying more freedom. As it should be! Yay

I apologize I thought you read them. Anyway, what types of freedom do you mean? It sounds like alot of middle schoolers on here hardly have any free time

My middle schooler has plenty of free time. Schools are not the same as they were 5-10 years ago. Schools are constantly aware of mental health and stress load, and have made changes to try to increase students’ free time. However, when we talk about more “freedoms” for middle schoolers, most PP’s are talking about the freedoms they have on campus, not at home. Here are some things my kid likes:
Lunches. Amazing food, much better than her elementary. Real food, not kid food, and from a global perspective: Korean, Persian, Indian, Italian and Japanese lunches all served. Fizzy sodas sold (Izzy?) and ice cream too on Fridays? Freedom of choice
Lunch- kids can roam all over campus and don’t get yelled at by yard ladies like in elementary school - freedom of movement
Lockers - kids congregate and socialize (pre covid), leave notes in each other’s lockers, decorate lockers - freedom of expression
Classes - kids can choose electives that fit their interests whereas in elementary everyone takes the same classes - artistic/intellectual freedom
Friends - a huge amount of kids and potential friends. So many different types of kids! That’s quite exciting for my middle schooler - social freedom
On & on. Those are just a few small examples.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I understand your point, I really do, but just because you allow 11 or 10 year olds to be kids doesn't mean they are treated like they are 3. I'd rather that age group act younger rather than older

I’m sorry, what is your point? Are you unhappy middle schoolers get to stretch their arms a little, or what?

I do believe I made my points in earlier comments. Do they bother you or something?

How are we supposed to know what your “earlier comments” are? Sheesh. Anyway. Basically, most middle schoolers are enjoying more freedom. As it should be! Yay

I apologize I thought you read them. Anyway, what types of freedom do you mean? It sounds like alot of middle schoolers on here hardly have any free time

My oldest is just finishing 6th grade. At her private school they begin “middle school” in 4th, which is when kids move to the upper school building and begin having a fully departmentalized schedule. It’s a big leap. My dd was diagnosed with mild adhd at the end of 3rd grade. She’s also the absolute youngest in her grade (she won’t turn 12 until October). We got her a tutor to help with executive functioning in 3rd when she was struggling a bit. She stopped tutoring when the pandemic started. This year she’s had a hybrid schedule and is home 2 or 3 days a week and in school the others.
She is absolutely thriving. She has a wonderful group of good friends, she’s matured so much and manages her schedule, homework (which has been pretty light this year), social life, school drama, etc, extremely well. She’s definitely still a “kid”, she’s a little baffled by the other kids in her class who are starting to date, but it just doesn’t really affect her. Most of her friends are on the younger end as well and they aren’t “there” yet which is completely fine. Several of her friends have come out at gay or trans this year and she’s been loving and supportive of them. She started a petition to make Eid a holiday at school because one of her friends is Muslim and she felt it wasn’t right for her to have to miss school when other religions get their holidays off.
Over the past week I’ve watched her make handwritten cards for every one of her teachers, advisor and some of the staff. She bakes for all of her friend’s birthdays, she helps her younger siblings with learning (they don’t really have hw yet but one struggles with spelling and she’s the best “tutor” with tons of patience).
I was super concerned about middle school given my own horrific experience so I’m amazed that she’s having such a good time. I really hope it stays this positive over the next few years.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I understand your point, I really do, but just because you allow 11 or 10 year olds to be kids doesn't mean they are treated like they are 3. I'd rather that age group act younger rather than older

I’m sorry, what is your point? Are you unhappy middle schoolers get to stretch their arms a little, or what?

I do believe I made my points in earlier comments. Do they bother you or something?

How are we supposed to know what your “earlier comments” are? Sheesh. Anyway. Basically, most middle schoolers are enjoying more freedom. As it should be! Yay

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I understand your point, I really do, but just because you allow 11 or 10 year olds to be kids doesn't mean they are treated like they are 3. I'd rather that age group act younger rather than older

I’m sorry, what is your point? Are you unhappy middle schoolers get to stretch their arms a little, or what?

I do believe I made my points in earlier comments. Do they bother you or something?

No my comments were originally about the post and then from a poster who said their child didn't like being treated like a child. In a nut shell, I don't like how middle school forces kids to grow up too fast and basically ends their childhood.

Anonymous wrote:I understand your point, I really do, but just because you allow 11 or 10 year olds to be kids doesn't mean they are treated like they are 3. I'd rather that age group act younger rather than older

I’m sorry, what is your point? Are you unhappy middle schoolers get to stretch their arms a little, or what?

I understand your point, I really do, but just because you allow 11 or 10 year olds to be kids doesn't mean they are treated like they are 3. I'd rather that age group act younger rather than older

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both of my kids loved middle school a whole lot more than elementary school. According to them everybody in elementary school was treated like a child, when entered middle school treated like they were older and independent.

Everyone is elementary school was treated like a child? Lol that's because they are children, so are middle schoolers for that matter. Does your kid hate being a kid or something?

11-14 year olds generally hate being treated like 8 year olds, yes. Does yours enjoy it ?

Worse, 11yo really hate being treated like 5yo kindergarteners.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kids whose elementary school social situations were not ideal often benefit from meeting and mixing with a new set of kids from the other elementary schools. Academically, many kids enjoy the electives, social studies and science getting equal time to English and math, and teachers who specialize in their subjects. Middle schools being larger, have drawbacks but they also have certain resources (special ed, sports, counseling, etc.) that elementary schools can't offer.

Public elementary schools do offer special ed. and counseling.

Depends on the school.

Anonymous wrote:Do you think a cell phone is needed or is useful for your child in middle school?

Yes, for social reasons for sure, but we learned it was nothing but a distraction when it was taken to school. We monitor DS’s phone and kids are on them all day. Texting and all sorts of apps. So he has a phone but it doesn’t go to school.

They are still on the laptops on Discord all day anyway but I can’t do anything about that.

What do you mean by freedom? Middle school is usually where homework gets insane and kids are usually made to be super busy. I'd say they hardly any freedom at all.

Mine is, knock on wood! I think they just have so much more freedom in middle and that is really important for some kids.