Effective middle school teaching methods require adaptability, understanding, and balance between structure and creativity to prepare students for their next step in school which is high school.

In middle school, teaching methods play a crucial role in keeping students engaged and connecting what they learned into their lives. Teachers prepare interactive lessons, projects, and learning strategies that address students’ diverse needs. They emphasized the importance of making learning relevant and promoting skills like communication and critical thinking, preparing them for future challenges.  

“If they can’t transfer the information from the classes and be able to say ‘this is going to help me in my life,’ then we still need to keep fighting. What students learn at school makes them mentally agile so that tomorrow when you face a complex problem you have the tools to solve it,” William Duque, 7th-grade social studies teacher, said.

Ari Holsten, a teacher who transitioned from middle to high school, highlights the key differences between these age groups. While middle school teachers often need to employ various incentives to encourage students, high schoolers seem to be driven by their goals and aspirations, reducing the need for external motivators.

“I think there’s a lot more independence amongst the students, so you have to use a lot less behavior management strategies. Just as an example, I would use different prizes and other things that kids could earn in middle school just because they needed a little bit more motivation. Here I’ve found that my high schoolers are just more motivated to be successful in general,” Holsten, ISC and data science teacher, said.

A key aspect of effective teaching in middle school is recognizing each student is different. Teachers must use customized teaching methods that adapt to the various needs of their students rather than enforcing a classroom that standardizes everything.

“I have learned that each student has their own way, time, and style of learning and we cannot expect everyone to achieve the same objective without understanding that each one is unique,” Dioger Yarce, middle school art teacher, said. 

Successful teaching methods are not always limited to specific age groups. Holsten uses strategies traditionally seen as helpful for younger students, has been proven effective for high schoolers as well, keeping them just as engaged. This shows the adaptability of some methods across different stages of development at school.

“I think recognizing that high schoolers and middle schoolers are both children, high schoolers are just older and more mature, and they still like things that middle schoolers like. Anytime I’ve given prizes or stickers to my high schoolers, they’re still excited about it (…) this keeps high schoolers engaged, even though it’s supposedly a middle school strategy,” Holsten said.

Through activities like essays, debates, and role-playing, students enhance their communication skills and show teachers the connection between their thoughts and how they express themselves. These methods create meaningful experiences for teachers and students in the classroom.

“An effective teaching method is that the child has to learn how he thinks he speaks and how he speaks he writes. Here we do a lot of essays and debates. (…) When I debate I am able to transmit everything I think. Everything that requires to debate, construct, prepare writings that sound like they truly feel they speak, has a lot of validity for me,” Duque said. 

Middle school teachers offered valuable advice for new teachers entering the school. They emphasize key points like making connections with students to create a positive learning environment, encouraging them to ask for help,  and having an open mind; as teaching methods they might initially doubt could be very effective for the classroom.

“The most important thing is that whatever the subject you are going to teach, do it with love, in this way, a connection is formed with the students who see in you a reference to follow and be able to achieve great things. Also, teach them that It is okay to make mistakes as a form of learning,” Yarce said.