Middle school is a pivotal point in students' lives where they learn how to navigate new emotions and experiences. This can be exciting but the increase in academic responsibility, social pressures, and heightened self-awareness can also lead to anxiety. While this is normal and to be expected in middle school students, Friends’ Central Middle School doesn’t believe it has to be that way.
Staff and faculty at Friends’ Central believe that middle school should be a time of growth and exploration, where students are supported through challenges so that they can tackle them with confidence rather than fear. FCS community and curriculum are designed to support students during these formative years, ensuring that they not only meet the academic and social demands of middle school, they exceed them.
Building a Strong Community
FCS Middle School Principal Andy White believes that empowering young students starts with a strong community. “As one of our Quaker values, [we] ascribe to and live by the idea of community, and we live it in a way that is pretty profound,” he explained. One of the ways these values show up in our everyday practice is through community-building routines that ensure that students feel at home, such as our advisory program.
Advisors are responsible for around 10 students, gaining a 360-degree view of their academic and overall well-being. Advisors help to tackle potential issues early on, celebrate wins both big and small, and foster a sense of belonging that middle schoolers look for within their academic community. Along with the advisors, FCS teachers reinforce the established culture of kindness and compassion of the Middle School. This culture results in a community where students build resilience and thrive during a time of real change and growth.
“If you were to ask kids what makes [our] Middle School special, [it would be] that they really do feel like they can come here and be themselves, and that’s pretty rare for a 13-year-old to say,” shared Andy White.
It is extraordinary to see the academic and community heights Middle School students can achieve when they feel connected and at ease.
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Empowered Autonomy for Teachers
Andy uses the words “Empowered Autonomy” to describe the type of support that teachers are given in order to provide the most enriching and engaging learning environment for students. “On an institutional level, at Friends’ Central, we have an initiative entirely focused on student engagement,” Andy White explained. “We’ve adopted a new system of feedback for teachers called the Wellington Engagement Index. In this system, students provide instant feedback, indicating on an X and Y axis how challenged they feel and how much they love the course. If students feel challenged and love it, that’s what we’re looking for—that’s engagement.”
Tips for Parents: Supporting Middle Schoolers at Home
- Expect some Anxiety: Early adolescence can bring natural stress and confusion. Embrace these feelings as growth, helping your child learn to manage their emotions rather than suppress them.
- Validate, Don’t Fix: Acknowledge your child’s feelings without rushing to solve their problems. Offer a safe space for them to express themselves, and encourage them to find solutions.
- Be Proactive, Not Reactive: Check-in with them regularly, creating a calm space for open sharing, and offer gentle reassurances. Model patience to help them navigate stress and handle challenges with confidence.
By working together, teachers, parents, and students can create a middle school experience that is as academically enriching as it is emotionally supportive. When you approach challenges with understanding and compassion, you can help your Middle School student grow into confident and emotionally resilient individuals as they prepare for the academic journey ahead of them.
