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Bart Woods knows that early adolescence is tough, which is why he had almost 200 young teenagers roaming the halls of his school last month.

Woods is the principal at Kearney Middle School and skipper of the school district’s program to help its students make a successful transition from fifth to sixth grade.

The 2009 middle school transition program ran from June 2 to 4 and included 186 participants, which represented roughly 70 percent of the middle school’s projected enrollment for this fall, Woods said.

The students who took part in the program learned the ins and outs of surviving at the secondary school level, from organizing lockers to good study skills. All of it was designed to alleviate any fears the students may have about entering middle school, Woods said.

Extreme physical and emotional changes can make early adolescence a scary time, Woods said. Adding in the big shift to middle school only exacerbates the trauma for students.

“A big thing with kids is the fear of the unknown,” Woods said. “This is, obviously, an awkward stage for kids.”

The transition program was started in 2007, a year after Woods started as the building principal. He credited the school faculty for making it a success, particularly sixth-grade math teacher Kerri Pettegrew.

“It’s something we discussed as a staff that was needed,” Woods said. “The sixth-grade teachers really went after it.”

Middle school transition programs have become increasingly common across the country as more districts recognize the need to prepare students, according to the National Middle School Association.

In March, 2002, the association released a position statement commissioning school districts to help their students adjust to middle level education by recognizing their anxieties, reaching out to parents as educational partners and creating a standardized process.

“A well-designed transition plan can restore the strong sense of belonging the entering middle school student once felt in elementary school,” the association statement reads. “The young adolescent must feel successful in school, have opportunities for self-expression and decision-making, and feel cared for and respected as a person.”

In the Kearney program, the students toured the building, learned lunch and library procedures, studied organizational and study skills, deciphered the often baffling mechanisms of a combination lock, talked to counselors and participated in team-building activities.

Dividing the students into teams was a good way to build camaraderie among the future classmates, according to Woods.

“This allows them to make new friends,” he said. “All of these things are fun.”

A sense of humor can go a long way toward making middle school tolerable for teachers and students, Woods said.

“The kids are a lot of fun,” he said. “That’s something that will help them get through this stage and thrive.”

The right combination

Here are a few basic things that parents can do to help their children transition to middle school:

- Organization — Teach your child how to stay organized by assigning them achievable tasks that also develop responsibility.

- Experimentation — Participate in activities that are new, challenging and demonstrate the importance of failure in the learning process.

- Knowledge — Do your own homework as a parent about the physical, mental and emotional changes your child is under-going.

- Process — Learn and review school rules and procedures and encourage your child to take advantage of the school counselors.

- Involvement — Go to events at your child’s school and get to know the teachers and administrators.

- Support — Encourage your child’s budding independence, but understand they still need your help and advice.

Source: National Middle School Association and the U.S. Department of Education.

Staff writer Ray Weikal can be reached at 389-6637 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

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