There’s an age-old adage: “It takes a village to raise a child.” As a middle school teacher, I have always believed in this philosophy but often felt limited to the four walls of the classroom. Making home visits was never on my radar until a fateful day when my multilingual skills became indispensable for a
“It’s my child’s first day of middle school, now what?” Parents and guardians across the country are grappling with this transition from child to young adolescent and navigating their role in school and daily life. Although direct parent/guardian involvement often takes a back seat once students enter the middle grades, young people still need that
Read More… from Onboarding Middle School Families: A seat for everyone at the table
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As you may have heard, book banning in schools has become a hot-button issue. The American Library Association recorded an unparalleled number of reported book challenges in 2022, with popular middle grades titles like New Kid by Jerry Craft and Maus by Art Spiegelman among those in contention. This issue impacts not just students, but
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Research makes clear that to be successful, middle schools must address school safety proactively, justly, and thoughtfully. We also know that school safety is first and foremost rooted in school culture. Unfortunately, it’s sometimes the case that schools’ approaches to safety can actually cause students to feel less safe. That’s why when I heard about
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New Research Highlights Perspectives from Self-Described Social Justice Educators In a recent issue of Middle School Journal, researchers Ebony Terrell Shockley and Valeisha Ellis investigated, through a series of interviews, the perspectives and pedagogical practices of teachers who self-identify as social justice educators. But what does that really mean, to be a social justice educator?
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Growing up in the Midwest, I had rare glimpses at sneaker culture. Most of my friends, including myself, just had one pair of sneakers that we wore until they fell apart. Maybe, if you were lucky, you had a second pair for gym class. My first introduction to sneaker culture came later when I moved
Read More… from Sneaker Sense: A Footwear Fascination Helps Principal Connects with Students
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