The Middle School Transition
My interview with Becky Gibbs:
Middle school can be a challenging time yet fundamental to human growth and development. Middle school age propels us into our adolescence with ferocity much like a dandelion finding its way through the sidewalk cracks. We start thinking more like adults and less like children. These thoughts and learned behaviors can lead to an adulthood of triggers, imprints, habits and perspectives about who we are and who we want to be. We rely on our family, environment, community, school, friends, religion or spiritual communities, and cultures to give us guidance and a shoulder to lean on. Not all of us are fortunate enough to have what we need during these years of early adolescence. Leaving grade school where awkwardness is a non-issue and becoming more observant of what someone else thinks of us is the middle school transition. These formative years change our perceptions of ourselves. Suddenly, it matters what our hair looks like, who we hang out with, and our view of both ourselves and our family becomes of immense value. Are we proud to live at 123 Alpha Street, one block over from our best friend’s home on Beta Street or are we ashamed and would rather die than to tell someone we live on Alpha Street. We sneak out of our homes through a back window to avoid conflict or meet up with friends to skip school. If our parents embarrass us too much, we never invite anyone over, especially if they are recovering from last night’s shenanigans. Our clothes, how we smell and if we bring our lunch to school or buy it in the cafeteria like the cool kids, matters. Life and our place in it begins to matter.
How we manage the gap between IQ and EQ shapes those teenage and young adult years. As young adolescents, we find ourselves relying more on the teacher - student relationships and friendships more than the previous years when our worlds were about our parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and immediate communities whether religious, athletics or cultural influences. It matters what the teacher or coach says to us, it matters what our friends think of us, and how we begin to navigate our lives, matters. In this thoughtful and educational interview with middle school math and science teacher, Becky Gibbs, she walks us through those hard middle school transitions and gives us perspective about what matters in raising our middle schoolers. Hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did!