Dear Parents of Middle Schoolers,
Are you ready for high school? Fortunately, we’ve gone through this transition a few times (read: hundreds). It’s not going to be the easiest thing you’ve ever done, but it certainly won’t be the hardest as long as you have the right perspective and preparation.
We get this question a lot from parents of middle schoolers like you: what can my kid be doing now to best prepare them for high school so that it’s not a huge shock? We love when parents ask us this question because it means that they’re proactive, which is the key to success in the game of college admissions. Here’s the thing: while middle school doesn’t technically “count” (as in, colleges don’t see a student’s grades from middle school), there is a cumulative effect that you don’t want to be on the downside of when it comes to focus, work ethic, and curiosity.
If students don’t start working hard, reading, and managing their time effectively in middle school, then it’s going to be much harder to start laying the foundation for those important skills in high school. Here’s what you can do as a parent to make sure that you’re helping set your child up for success in high school (and college, and life, really):
Make sure that your kid reads.
It might sound simple, but it’s the most important thing that we emphasize in our work with our students. They are always reading a book, which we then talk about with them at length. And the book is on a topic that they are interested in (or think they might be interested in). Sometimes the book is a great success and sometimes it’s not! Both experiences are useful in that they are data points that help guide our future work, whether it’s what we know to steer clear of or steer towards for the next book, extracurricular activity, project, or online course. Ultimately, it will help them with their supplements. Speaking of extracurricular activities…
Make sure that your kid is spending their free time effectively.
Don’t get us wrong, we believe as much as the next person that “kids should be kids,” but we also believe that kids are dynamic human beings with interests that should be challenged, stoked, and nurtured. That evolution of interest only comes with meaningful engagement. This means spending time creating something, whether it be a local or school-based club, community engagement doing something that they are passionate about, writing, starting a business (even a small one, and even if it might not be a success), getting a job, enrolling in a college-level course at a community college, or an online course. Community engagement and innovation are qualities that admissions officers look for in an applicant. Start now.
Start implementing productive technology habits now.
And by productive, we mean limited. Our most successful students don’t have any form of social media to maintain or monitor, but we know that’s a huge ask in 2021. Encourage your child to severely limit their social media engagement time, because it’s not helping them progress in any way. Get a physical NYTimes subscription to come to your house. We’re not luddites but we do encourage our students to limit their social media engagement during high school for many reasons detailed here. There’s no such thing as a “good” social media presence. Trust us. Have your kid read this if they don’t believe you.
Re-evaluate sports.
While your child may have played soccer since they were 4 years old, we have to be honest with you and tell you that sports are essentially useless in college admissions unless your child is definitely going to get recruited. If they are truly that good, you would know by now. Or you’ll know very soon. There are probably some other people who aren’t us who you could talk to about that. But, if sports are just a fun thing that your child does, then that fun thing turns into a time suck in high school. While it’s important for students to get exercise and maintain their health, sports teams are a huge time commitment and take up a ton of time that could be spending cultivating rich experiences and opportunities. Start that conversation now rather than later to best manage expectations.
Remember: the brain that your child leaves middle school with is the same brain that they go to high school with. Nothing changes overnight. Our biggest piece of advice is to start implementing good habits early.
Let us know if you have any questions or need some guidance on middle school. We’re experts at getting kids into college.