It’s important to feel comfortable in Middle School being that it’s a new chapter in your life. The question is, how do you survive in a new school with new people? Imagine waking up getting ready for your first day of Middle School,  with new people surrounding you.  People bigger or smaller than you, everyone looks intimidating and there’s nothing you can do, but follow your schedule and hope you don’t stumble.  The good news is that there are people that want to help.  Hopefully this guide will let you know that everything is going to be okay.

Socializing

Socializing is a big part of middle school.  Reputation isn’t important, neither is being popular.  All that matters is that you have something or someone to look forward to coming to school. Jacey Goris, 7th grader, said, “Be the first person to talk to someone, if someone is sitting alone be sure to sit with them or play with them.”   Mr. Malmstrom, WMS Teacher, said, “A tip that I got from my mom was to worry about making the other person feel comfortable.  If you worry about that, then you won’t be nervous.”   

Although it may be hard, it can boost your confidence when you go up to someone and start talking; who knows, maybe they had a bad day and you wanting to be their friend makes it better!

So many of us hope for people not to walk up to us and start making conversation.  It’s also awkward to be so forward to introduce ourselves, right? Wrong! Being social can help you find friends, friends that will be there for you!  Get out there and start socializing, you only have this experience once, so make use of it.

Some things you could say to help you get better at socializing or introducing yourself to new people is, tell them your name! For example, “Hello, my name is ____. Nice to meet you.” People can tend to be shy when you first meet them but, there sure to come through.

Make sure to surround yourself with people who share your interests and fully fit with your vibe, and be yourself.  Also make sure to find people who aren’t like you, they could teach you a lot about other things than just your comfort zone of thinking.  You should also never try to look for people’s approval. You are you; and you are perfect just the way you are.  

Classes

Class is the basis of our learning experience, and it’s important to pay attention, even if you don’t want to because that geometry lesson might just come in handy later down the line.  Even if the lesson doesn’t seem important, look at it as though you are practicing listening skills for future jobs and classes.

As important as it is to pay attention, it can also be difficult for people, and that’s okay.  Some tips from student to reader is to keep your head up, participate in class, ask questions, distract yourself with your will to learn and work on that assignment.  

It might be difficult, but it’s possible if you put your mind to it.

It’s also important to study and take notes so you can get good grades.  Haiqa Khan, 7th grader, said, “Take notes, the most important thing, pay attention and just study more to get better grades.” 

As important as it is to take notes it’s also important to study those notes until you get the subject down.  John Lande, 7th Grader,  stated, “I like to study in quiet places where there are usually no distractions. . .”  Like how Haiqa says to study more, John explained how it’s important to find quiet spaces to concentrate on your work.

Electives

My favorite part of school is picking my electives, but how do you know what elective you want?  To answer this question, it depends!  How I picked my elective is simple, I thought about what I was interested in.  I liked writing and one of my favorite teachers was teaching it. I also thought about whether I was willing to put in the effort to write twice a day almost everyday.  

Being willing to put effort into your work in Journalism is a big part of being a great writer and student.  I am glad I ended up on Journalism because this class is very enjoyable for me and I like that I’ve gotten better at talking to people and more confident.  I also love bringing joy to my readers whenever they read my articles.

Veronica Diaz, 7th Grader, said, “Even though I don’t have it, I’d say Journalism because we get to go to school and talk to people. . . It sounds interesting and it’s interactive.”  It’s just as interesting as it looks, going out of your comfort zone to interact with other students to get their perspective on whatever you’re writing about is a great way to practice socializing with people.

I admit, I am biased towards journalism, because I am in it.  However, you should find something you love.  You should try to find an elective that catches your eye, also try to match the elective that goes with your personality.   This was my personal experience on choosing an elective so don’t let my opinion affect yours.

Image

A myriad of middle schoolers think that your appearance matters, but in all honesty, it doesn’t; as long as you don’t get in trouble of course.  Dressing with the trend, wearing wacky colors, wearing baggy clothes, it doesn’t matter what you wear.   You should wear what you think is best for YOU, not for what people would think if you wore that shirt or pants.  

Some tips I’d recommend about your image is to dress the way you’re feeling. If you’re feeling masculine, dress masculine; feeling feminine, dress feminine.  There’s nothing wrong with expressing yourself through your clothing.

When I started Middle School we were online and I didn’t have to worry about my outfits until 7th grade. I used to wear a lot of simple clothing until I got to the 7th grade and I started dressing the way I wanted to.  I usually dress feminine because I like feeling pretty, so I highly encourage you to dress the way you feel no matter the style. 

It’s A Wrap

I hope this guide to surviving middle school helped you get a little more insight of what it’s really like to be a middle-schooler. It can seem intimidating, but in the end, you get what you put into it.