The transition from pre-teen to teen years is difficult for all of us. Social hierarchies change, hormones are raging, and schedules change. Suddenly, your grades and school activities matter even more, as college and adulthood loom closer. It’s a time of transition, change, and chaos. However, creating a middle school to high school transition plan can make a huge difference.
This transition from middle school to high school can be especially difficult for a child with disabilities. People with developmental disabilities often struggle with routine, major life changes, and new hierarchies of structure and procedure. People with autism, ADHD, or anxiety disorders may become especially frustrated by new and overwhelming input.
Luckily, there are many steps you can take as a primary caregiver to smooth the path from middle school to high school. In this article, we’ll cover the different types of changes to expect. Additionally, how to start planning for them well in advance.
Remember that even with the perfect middle school to high school transition plan, there will likely be a few bumps in the road. Just be patient with yourself and your child. Importantly, keep communication open and transparent, and you’ll both make it through this fine!
Types of Changes to Expect–And How to Address Them
Academic Changes
One of the most obvious and immediate changes as your child transitions into high school will be the academic expectations. In middle school, while children often travel from class to class, they still work from a guided learning model, while high school operates on an independent learning model.
In other words, middle school still has several elements of primary school about it. While there is more independence, teachers still communicate directly with parents about big events and projects. Homework assignments are usually drills, memory work, and physical projects. Teachers and parents are “guiding” children through their education.
In high school, children are expected to take more responsibility for their own education. Teachers communicate directly with students about their assignments, projects, and school events. The level of work is higher in both quality and quantity. Your child will have to write papers, apply critical thinking skills, and show a grasp of abstracts more often.
This can be especially difficult for children with disabilities because the highly structured system in which they operated is now looser and more abstract. There’s more freedom, but with that comes responsibility and the need to problem solve on their own.
Solutions for Their Middle School to High School Transition Plan
The first thing you can do to address academic changes is to ensure that the IEP transition from middle school to high school goes smoothly. Make sure the school and all your child’s teachers have copies of their IEP and understand their individual needs.
Stay as involved as possible. Your child deserves (and needs) independence, but they also need support–especially in the first year of their transition to high school. This means open and frequent communication with both the school and your child
Schedule regular meetings with your child to check in and offer accountability on completing assignments. During middle school, check in daily. As your child enters high school, scale these meetings back to once per week. This gives your child a tangible representation of their growth in both independence and trust, while also keeping you in the loop and ensuring that they’re not becoming overwhelmed.
You should also try to ensure your child gets the appropriate amount of sleep each night. The National Sleep Foundation says teenagers need between 8 – 10 hours per night to focus and perform well in school.
Procedural Changes
For some children with developmental disabilities, this will be the largest hurdle to overcome. The routine and schedule changes that come with entering high school can be alarming. For example, finding classrooms, riding the bus, following a bell schedule, lunch line procedures, how to open and lock a locker, etc. are all completely new experiences.
Solutions for Their Middle School to High School Transition Plan
To avoid anxiety and confusion, practice and preparation are a major part of your middle school to high school transition plan.
For instance, after you get a copy of the class schedule, ask the school if you can take a tour to find those classrooms and walk the halls. If not (and some schools may not allow this for safety reasons), ask for a map that you can study with your child.
Practice opening lockers with combinations–just make sure that you’re using the same locks in the high school! Play recordings of the bell so that your child knows what to listen for. Go over the student handbook to ensure they understand the new rules and regulations. Do whatever you can to equip them with knowledge and understanding. This will greatly reduce anxiety and reduce the chance of a first-day meltdown.
Social Changes
The third–and most challenging–of the changes that come with the middle school to high school transition are social changes. Some children with disabilities have no trouble with the social aspects of school, but many struggles to pick up on certain cues and behaviors.
Suddenly, your child has to worry about keeping old middle school friends who may be in different classes, making new friends, and meeting new teachers. That’s a lot to sort through and prioritize, even for typically-abled children.
Solutions for Their Middle School to High School Transition Plan
Unfortunately, this is the least easily addressed part of your middle school to high school transition plan. There are too many unknown variables. You cannot, for instance, control how other children react to or interact with your child. But there are certainly steps you can take to prepare them for these changes and to let them know that they have your love and support to fall back on.
If you have older children with friends in high school, or you know children from this high school through camp or church, or some other activity, ask them to form a panel so your child can ask questions about high school friends and life. Look through extracurriculars with your child and see if they have a special interest in any activities that could foster healthy relationships. Ask the school if they have any mentorship programs or buddy systems.
If you’re having trouble, consider reaching out to disability-specific organizations with middle school to high school transition programs. You’ll find so many resources and peer activities that can help prepare your child for a successful and fulfilling high school career.
Contact Easterseals
Easterseals Arkansas offers many programs designed to help children with disabilities succeed and transition successfully into their adult lives. Contact us for more information about the programs available for you and your child!