The start of a new school year is an exciting time, but it can also be an anxious time for youth as they make the transition from elementary school to middle school. Researchers have found that preteens worry about three types of changes:

• Logistical changes. Where are my classes? How far are they from each other? How do I get to my locker? What if I forget my locker number? Where are the bathrooms? What happens if I am late?
• Social changes. Will I keep my old friends? Will I make new friends? What if the older students bully me?
• Academic changes. How difficult are my new classes? How much homework will I have? How do I find the information that my teacher may put online?

How Can You Help?

While young people may say they do not need help, parents and guardians should still go over things with them.

Learn the rules. Look at the school website and the student handbook, especially the code of conduct. You should know the rules and help your child know them as well. This can reduce disciplinary calls in the future.

Know the school’s layout. Make it a priority to attend the orientation for parents/guardians and students, if there is one offered, before school starts. Bring your child’s academic schedule with you so you can walk through their day, including to their locker and the bathrooms, while you are there. Class tardiness can turn into a disciplinary issue. So, the better you understand the layout of the school, the more you can help your child avoid this issue.

Get organized. Actively teach your child how to organize and manage their assignments and activities. Find the best way to keep track of assignments from teachers and work together with your child to set things up. Whether it is using physical or online calendars, planners, checklists, assignment binders, or mobile apps, help them choose something and let them manage it. You can check in with them from time to time to see how everything is going and if any changes need to be made to how they manage everything.

Help your child learn how to study. Studying skills are not always taught. Encourage your child to learn about different ways they can study instead of just rereading notes over and over. This will often lead to them having better grades and higher academic self-esteem. There are various ways to study, including the following:

• Summarizing key points in their own words
• Creating study guides and flashcards
• Redoing practice problems
• Creating practice tests

You can help your child by finding videos for them to watch or setting them up with an after-school tutor, if available. Youth that develop these skills in middle school will be better prepared for high school and beyond.

Get your child involved. Look at the list of extracurricular activities offered at the school. Encourage your child to join sports teams, clubs, or other extracurricular activities that are of interest to them. Getting involved in these types of activities has many positive benefits, including strengthening connections to the school and making new friends with common interests.

If possible, bring devices out of their bedroom. Having computers, tablets, and phone-charging stations in a common place outside of your child’s bedroom will help them be well rested in the morning and help you monitor them online. Preteens are eager to explore online, enter romantic relationships, and connect with others outside of school through social media, so talk to your child about their daily lives so that you know what is going on.

Conclusion

Just because your child is not in elementary school anymore, does not mean that you should not be involved in their school life. Parental involvement is even more important in middle school as you help them navigate their new academic and social world. Before school starts, find out what your child is expecting from middle school. What are they excited about? What are they nervous about? Ask open-ended questions at different time points and be prepared to listen.