Student Voices: Reflections on Middle School by Neko L., 8th grader, and Leticia R., Lauren Q., & Ronny D., 7th graders

Reflections on Middle School

“Middle School Reflections” by Neko L., 2022-23 8th grade

As I end my Middle School career, I reflect on all the experiences I’ve had, all the friends I’ve made, and most importantly, everything I’ve learned. At this school, I have found teachers who have taught me things I will use for the rest of my life, disciplined me, and shown me how to be a good person. I look back at how I was all the way back in sixth grade, and I realize how much I have grown and am proud. The school and the faculty have taught me so much, and I am so sad that this is my final year, but I am also pleased that due to the help and teaching of the staff at this school, I am fully prepared to transition into High School. 

I have found new passions in many classes like art, guitar, and the literacy leader program. In my guitar class, my teacher taught me how to use my imagination in every problem and think outside the box. His skills teach me not only about learning the guitar but also about math, science, and social skills. In art, I strengthened my creativity and learned many new things for my own art. In the literacy leader program, I made new friends and socialized, and practiced leadership.

I remember coming to this school small and scared. Covid-19 was still a thing and everyone was required to wear masks, it was not my ideal start to middle school but it was a start. I learned a lot in my 6th-grade year. I started out as this annoying, strange, little kid. I learned being annoying was not very acceptable in the community. I used to get in so much trouble all the way back in 6th grade, and I’m grateful that I have grown and learned from those mistakes. Throughout my years here, I grew from that little kid who knew nothing about this school and the people in it to a kid who now knows people and this school and to not be annoying or get in trouble. Now in 8th grade, I am doing better than ever, I am getting better grades, I rarely get into trouble, and I feel that I am bringing at least a little bit of joy and appreciation to my peers.

I am extremely excited for my coming into high school, it feels like I really have a chance to make a difference in my school for my peers throughout the next few years if my life. I feel like all of my troubles and bad grades and being annoying in the past has brought me here because now I have learned from them and I am now a better person and I finally feel like I can be ready for high school. I can’t wait for my new classes and new teachers and new friends I will meet and old friends that I will make new experiences with.

“My Transition from Elementary to Middle School” by Leticia R., 2022-23 7th grade

Transitioning from elementary to middle school was a significant change that turned my world upside down. For six years, I had grown comfortable in the familiar routine of waking up, getting ready, and going to the same place. But suddenly, everything was different. I had to leave my comfort zone behind.

When I first visited the middle school before starting, I was taken aback by its size. It felt enormous compared to the cozy halls of elementary school. Mixed emotions flooded my mind as I thought about the upcoming transition. I was excited about new experiences but also scared and nervous about the unknown. Countless scenarios played out in my mind, and I wanted everything to be perfect.

I spent the night before organizing my clothes and planning where to meet my friends. I was determined to have the best pens, notebooks, and classes. Everything had to be just right. As I boarded the bus the following day, fear gripped me, but knowing that I had my friends by my side brought some relief.

I felt a mixture of anxiety and anticipation during that first day of school. I was eager to meet my new classmates and see what my classes would be like. As the days turned into weeks, and the weeks into months, I began to settle into the rhythm of middle school. I realized it was normal to feel anxious before such a significant change.

Through my middle school experiences, I’ve learned that it’s okay to have difficulties and be scared of the challenges ahead. But once you face those challenges head-on and come out the other side, realizing everything will be okay, it’s the best feeling in the world.

Transitioning to middle school taught me valuable lessons about adaptability, resilience, and stepping outside my comfort zone. While it was a daunting change at first, I’ve come to appreciate the new friendships, opportunities, and growth that middle school has brought into my life. And as I continue my journey, I look forward to embracing future challenges and discovering more about myself.

“5 Assignments I Liked in 7th Grade and Why” by Lauren Q., 2022-23 7th grade

Moon Phases with Oreos

In my science class my teacher Ms. Bullock had us do an assignment about the different moon phases. When we did this assignment we made the different moon phases out of Oreos. We took the Oreos and carved out the moon phases and then we put them in order and explained them. This assignment was really fun and helped me remember and understand the moon phases better. 

Boundaries with graham crackers

Also in my science class, my teacher had us do this assignment about plate tectonics to help us learn the different plate tectonics. In this assignment we put two graham crackers on top of frosting. Then with the different boundaries we moved them in different directions and for some we had to wet the graham cracker. This assignment was really fun and educational.

Literacy Week Door Decorating

In my literacy leaders class (Ms. Moye’s class) for literary week, we had to decorate the doors. In this project we got to choose which Christina Diaz Gonzalez book to use to decorate the door. We got to draw and come up with so many ideas for the door. We drew the characters, made flags, and cutouts of different things we thought complemented the book.

Science debate

In my science class, my teacher had us do a debate on whether we should continue space exploration or not. We got assigned into the different teams and had to come up with reasons to support our claim. We all had different roles in this debate and it showed us how to work as a team and listen to the other team. We had time to do our opening, rebuttals, and our closing. We also had time to talk to our team to see what we would say next. This assignment was fun but also taught us. 

Book Snap 

Also in my literacy leaders class (Ms. Moye’s class), we had this assignment where we had to choose a book and try to promote it so more kids will read it. We had to make a poster about the book and the author. We put the author’s name and then wrote a little summary about the book to make other kids read it. This assignment took a lot of time to finish but in the end it was worth it and fun.

“Food Rescue” by Ronny D., 2022-23 7th grade

**From Kellee: This post is about a program we do at my middle school. We have a share table in the back of the cafeteria for students to place any food or beverages they do not want. Others then can take what was left, if they would like. Anything that is left over gets donated to the Salvation Army. Last year, we donated almost 8,000 pounds of food! Ronny was part of my 5th period class who was in charge of daily lunch pick ups and the Salvation Army pick up once a week**

The food rescue program consists of the food that students don’t eat being donated to people in need. Student Literacy Leaders weigh, pack, count and collect the food by themselves. It is the students who make the food rescue program happen and one of those students was me. My experience with this program was great. It made me realize how much food is wasted, and how much we can help eliminate food waste. Each year, 119 billion pounds of food is wasted in the United States. Our School, HCMS, is making a difference to food waste in America. The Salvation Army are the ones who pick up the food collected weekly. After the food is collected, the Salvation Army delivers the food to places and people that need it. There are also other factors to food rescue like the “share table,” a bin & cooler where people leave their donations. Then, after lunch, the food is transported to the refrigerator in the front office. An experience I won’t forget while doing food rescue was the first time I ever did food rescue. It reminds me of how much I liked the idea of donating food to people in need. 

Thank you so much to my student voices today and their look at middle school experiences!