{"id":1445,"date":"2018-03-21T10:30:37","date_gmt":"2018-03-21T15:30:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/teachersfirst.com\/blog\/?p=1445"},"modified":"2019-04-05T17:39:29","modified_gmt":"2019-04-05T21:39:29","slug":"teaching-in-the-middle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/teachersfirst.org\/blog\/2018\/03\/teaching-in-the-middle\/","title":{"rendered":"Teaching in the Middle"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>They say that it takes a special person to teach in a middle school and most days during my career as a middle-school educator I would wholeheartedly agree with that sentiment.\u00a0 Here\u2019s why\u2014 the brain is said to be fully mature by the age of 25.\u00a0 This leaves a challenge for all K-12 educators, but during adolescence in particular, the challenge is heightened.\u00a0 The middle school brain is filled with emotion and changes\u2026 so how could we possibly guess as to the best way to consistently engage these students in the classroom?!\u00a0 One of my former bosses once told a story about a middle school student who brought a raw egg (yes, an egg!) into school one day.\u00a0 You could probably guess this didn\u2019t end well; the egg proceeded to drop out of his sweatshirt pocket during class and suffice it to say, his teacher was not thrilled.\u00a0 After a trip to the office, it was determined that he had no clue<\/em> as to why the egg was in his pocket.\u00a0 A seemingly well-behaved, academically successful student who just made a \u201cmiddle school\u201d decision.\u00a0 This story about sums it up\u2026 you never know what you\u2019re going to get in \u201cthe middle\u201d.<\/p>\n

Now, how could we, as educators, possibly engage these students?\u00a0 Here are some general ideas on how to engage them in 21st<\/sup> century learning experiences:<\/p>\n

Create an inviting learning environment.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

One where students feel supported, one where risk-taking is encouraged, and one where students are offered opportunities to share their feelings and have a voice.<\/p>\n

Provide clear instructions and expectations.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Structure and planning is essential.\u00a0 Emphasize instructions both verbally and in writing, if possible.\u00a0 Provide scaffolding and slowly encourage more academic independence and choice for your lesson planning.<\/p>\n

Model.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Model both desired behaviors and student outcomes.\u00a0 Of course, don\u2019t forget to recognize and positively reinforce students when outcomes are met.\u00a0 Continue this all\u2026 school-year\u2026 long.<\/p>\n

Check for understanding.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t neglect this step as formative assessment is key to gauging comprehension and planning instruction moving forward.\u00a0 This could be a simple, informal check such as a think-pair-share, or a more structured check as a written exit ticket.<\/p>\n

Feedback, feedback, feedback.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Be active in the learning process and look to diversify ways in which you provide feedback.<\/p>\n

Be patient.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Easier said than done, I know!\u00a0 Especially if you\u2019re in the middle of an important lesson and a student drops a raw egg, as referenced in my story above.\u00a0 Remember that your students are going through explainable changes and experiences and sometimes their actions just don\u2019t make sense.\u00a0 Talk to them, create connections, and stay calm (and forgive yourself when you don\u2019t!).<\/p>\n

As a middle-level educator, it is your responsibility to help shape the brains of our developing students. \u00a0The tools and skills you provide will empower them to maximize their potential now and prepare them for their future opportunities in the 21st century.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

They say that it takes a special person to teach in a middle school and most days during my career as a middle-school educator I would wholeheartedly agree with that sentiment.\u00a0 Here\u2019s why\u2014 the brain is said to be fully mature by the age of 25.\u00a0 This leaves a challenge for all K-12 educators, but … read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[139,50,46,190],"class_list":["post-1445","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-classroom-application","tag-classroom-management","tag-instructional-strategies","tag-lesson-ideas","tag-middle-school"],"modified_by":"Karen Streeter","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/teachersfirst.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1445","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/teachersfirst.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/teachersfirst.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teachersfirst.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teachersfirst.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1445"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/teachersfirst.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1445\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2572,"href":"https:\/\/teachersfirst.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1445\/revisions\/2572"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/teachersfirst.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1445"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teachersfirst.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1445"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teachersfirst.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1445"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}