Current Events > I survived my first year teaching middle school.

(+) Yeah! (+)

Taught 6th and 7th grade this year.
I had always taught similary aged kids before (4,5,6 graders), but never in a traditional "middle school" setting like I did this year. I also taught these kids last year, so that made the transition easier for all of us.

AMA or something I guess.

6th grade is still elementary school

Source: I went to the 6th grade in Elementary school

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I teach Social Studies in Ohio, in a very small rural school (cornfields on every side).

When I was a kid we always went to school into June, but since becoming a teacher it always seems like were done before Memorial Day.

What was the brattiest thing to deal with?

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I'm coming back, this year was actually pretty good and I love my job overall.
I have the option to move to 7th and 8th next year, but I will probably just stay in my current position.

Concreterock2 posted...

What was the brattiest thing to deal with?

Kids making random sexual moaning sounds.

Dakimakura posted...

6th grade is still elementary school

Source: I went to the 6th grade in Elementary school

Depends on the town. My towns middle school is 6-8.

For the OP, how were your 6th graders? My kids say the teachers in their school claim the 6th graders this year were the worst they had in a while. Maybe all the COVID virtual learning screwed up their in class behavior.

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Oh you're in East Los? Sup?

Cuticrusader09 posted...

Depends on the town. My towns middle school is 6-8.

For the OP, how were your 6th graders? My kids say the teachers in their school claim the 6th graders this year were the worst they had in a while. Maybe all the COVID virtual learning screwed up their in class behavior.

The 6th graders were about 10x more annoying than the 7th graders.
Most were okay, but about 15% were just rude and ungrateful most of the time. I taught they class below them last year and they were fine, so I see this group as an exception and not the new rule.

Were there any nice, sweet kids or were they all either boring or assholes? I remember my middle school years more fondly than high school, but most people seem to describe middle school as a vast wasteland of suffering.

I teach at a university.

Middle school looks like a nightmare to me

In your observation, are kids less socially and emotionally intelligent now that social media reigns?

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In my day the game was penis. Where you take it in turns to say the eponymous word louder than the previous person while still staying under the teachers radar.

It was an important developmental exercise that taught us the value of recognising opportunities and taking controlled risks.

How do you reeeech those keeeeds?

Did you actually want to work with middle schoolers, or is that just where the district placed you?

It takes a certain kind of hero to willingly work in a middle school, haha

Captain_Qwark posted...

8 school days left

i'm looking forward to that. it becomes way easier to walk my dog when there isn't cars going up to the school.

mid june is when i'll get relief for several month's.

As a former middle school teacher, I have to say that is an accomplishment worth celebrating! And it's such an important, impressionable age. Good for you for taking it on.

Any decent obnoxious farts from the kids?

darkmaian23 posted...

Were there any nice, sweet kids or were they all either boring or assholes? I remember my middle school years more fondly than high school, but most people seem to describe middle school as a vast wasteland of suffering.

There are a ton of sweet kids. Some of my students are my favorite people that I know, and I don't mean when it comes to students, I mean out of all people I know. I am gonna be really bummed if I don't have some of them again next year.

IronChef_Kirby posted...

Did you actually want to work with middle schoolers, or is that just where the district placed you?

It takes a certain kind of hero to willingly work in a middle school, haha

I wanted to work with middle schoolers and teach in a middle school. My teaching license covers grades 4-9. I had to wait a few years for an opening in the actual middle school, that's the only reason this was my first year teaching "middle school".

DarthDemented posted...

Any decent obnoxious farts from the kids?

One kid in first period farted a lot.

Did your evaluation became more rigorous as you began teaching more content?

billcom6 posted...

One kid in first period farted a lot.

That first fart of the day is usually the best one

Nice, Im finishing my tenth year in the classroom myself.

Its a tough life, but if you can get through one year, it gets easier day by day.

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Robotics? O__O

Dakimakura posted...

6th grade is still elementary school

Source: I went to the 6th grade in Elementary school

It depends on area. I went to 6th grade in middle school but in the same city my cousins' 6th grade was in elementary.

billcom6 posted...

Kids making random sexual moaning sounds.

Weird... I have a couple of younger co workers that do this shit. We have radios though and they do it on the radio so everyone hears

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I have had some kids for 3 years now, and will have some of them next year, meaning I will teach the same kids 4 years in a row, which is really crazy. Even crazier I could have switched jobs to potentially have them for 5 years in a row.

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My wife is a math and coding teacher for 7th and 8th grade in the Inland Empire. This year has been pretty rough in her district, hopefully its not as bad for you in LA.

That is the age when kids around here started doing drugs. Have problems with that?