Teaching in Middle School Diary of a Wimpy Kid Teaching in Middle School

Diary of Wimpy Kid- The Last Straw The book is a journal for the main character Greg Heffley Greg’s father signs him up to play sports to toughen him up and change his attitude When that fails his father threatens to send him to military school Greg struggles in PE class and trying to talk to his crush Holly

Social Aspects of Middle School Students

Bullying Bullying is an issue that Greg faces a lot in the book from students at school. The specific bullying issue in this book is from Leon Ricket in detention, and in PE class. This is an issue that every person has dealt with or witnessed in some way during middle school Teachers need to be aware of this problem

Peer Pressure Many decisions that middle school students make come are derived from peer pressure from other students The issue of students wanting to fit in or avoid bullying is a direct connection with peer pressure “the pressures and pitfalls of school, and societal pressures are community forces that place all middle school students at risk.” page 31 Teaching in Middle school

Content and Extra-curricular Requirements

Middle School/Wimpy Kid connection For most people the content requirements are understood. We all know that math, science, english, and history are part of school even if we don’t enjoy them. For most people though we encounter an extra-curricular activity that takes us out of our comfort zone. For Greg it was physical education. He hated going to PE class because it consisted of activities that he didn’t enjoy and often time led to bullying.

Parental Involvement

Teaching in the Middle School “I have found that students of interested and involved parents are usually more motivated and serious about education” “Having adult role models for our student is wonderful. Some of our students do not have very good role models where they live.” page 232 Teaching in Middle School

Middle School/Wimpy Kid connection In book 3 Greg’s father is threatening to send him to military school because of Greg’s selfish behavior Greg is worried about spending a summer at Spag Military Union Greg is embarrassed by his Mom’s bumper stickers so she drops him off behind the school Parental Involvement from a child’s perspective is hard to understand To much parental involvement is dangerous

Faculty/Staff/Administrators role

Teacher’s role in the Middle School “I don’t understand why some teachers act as if they don’t like kids. I mean, the kids are what make middle school teaching interesting, fun, and challenging. Sure it can be frustrating at times, but we can all remember how lost we felt at that age. This is our opportunity as adults to make a difference.” page 57-58 Teaching in the Middle School

Middle School/Wimpy Kid connection There isn’t a lot of talk of teachers connected with the students but you get the idea that Greg feels his teacher’s do not understand what he is going through as a middle school student. It is our job to show our students we care about them, understand what they are going through, and are there for them when they need us.