Secrets of Middle School Success

Responsibility & Organization at School Use your assignment notebook for keeping track of daily class assignments and due dates of long term projects …high school students depend on it every day and it is a good habit to start! Before leaving school, check to make sure all homework materials are in your backpack (textbook, folders, notebooks, worksheets, assignment notebook, study guides) If you are absent, you are responsible for making up missed homework. Be sure to check with your teachers because they expect you to come to them. Dont fall behind with homework as it is difficult to catch up. Ask your teachers for help if you dont understand something. Be prepared by having required supplies with you each day in class ( pencils sharpened, pens, erasers, paper). Bring only what you need to class …leave the rest in your locker. Keep your locker organized by using locker shelves. Choose a color for each class and have your folder and notebook colors match. This makes it easy to take what you need from your locker and reduces the chance of grabbing the wrong items.

Responsibility & Organization at Home Selection of a work space ….. *good lighting * flat work space *minimal distractions *necessary supplies nearby Homework Hints … *expect homework everyday *work at least 20 minutes B4 taking a break *find your ideal time to complete homework * save texting & checking Facebook until work is done *determine whether to finish hardest work or easiest work first *break down larger projects into small steps to be completed over time

Tips for Parents… Be available to help your child with homework if needed, but require them to do the work. Ensure they have necessary supplies on hand to minimize excuses (pens, paper, calculators…) Together with your child, establish homework completion rules (no tv, texting, computer/video games, social networking) until break time or work is completed. Remind your child of and monitor their computer use in regard to internet safety (chat rooms, Facebook, etc.). Keep in touch with the teacher websites for checking homework assignments and completion. Contact teacher directly for help in enforcing the use of the assignment notebook. Assist your child with establishing priorities and balancing work/free time.

Social & Emotional Development Young teens value independence and often seem secretive. Dont poke or pry, but be available to listen and help them if they ask. Support school rules and work cooperatively with your child and teachers to resolve issues that may arise. Conflicts with your child at this age are inevitable. Choose your battles! Enforce the rules that matter the most to you. This independence and the ability to follow through with their own decisions is a necessary stage if the teen is to become self-sufficient in society. Teens are beginning to understand their abilities and how that translates to success in the adult world. They begin to examine who they are, what theyre about and where theyre going. Their identity is shaped by the integration of opinions and attitudes of others that they respect and look up to. Teens begin to spend more time with friends and less with parents. It is with their friends that they practice social skills and discover what is acceptable in relationships and what is not. Even though they spend less time with family, they tend to continue conforming to parents rules and morals. Contact your school counselor or school psychologist for additional resources and support.