Student Success: 3 Ways to Promote Perseverance in Middle School
Middle school can be a tough time in life. These students are maturing and figuring out life with relation to themselves, their families, and how they fit in with their friends. Middle school students want to have student success, and they want to be able to persevere through middle school.What is perseverance?
According to dictionary.com, perseverance is the “steady persistence in the course of action, a purpose, a state, etc. Especially in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement.”
Perseverance is the ability to push forward despite your circumstances to become who you want to be in life. In middle school especially, there is a lot of perseverance necessary to achieve student success. Students are dealing with many things they’ve never had to deal with before throughout middle school. In addition to the changes in their physical bodies, students are learning how to deal with emotions and hormones affecting their emotions. They are also dealing with navigating complicated social webs at school and with friends. In addition to these, they are also trying to figure out how to have student success in the classroom.
Besides all of the typical things all middle schoolers have been dealing with over the past several decades, middle schoolers today have one more major thing to persevere through. That is social media.
Perseverance and Student Success Through the Age of Social Media
Social media is a big ugly monster for our middle-school-age kids. Not only are they figuring out how to interact with friends in a more mature manner, focusing on how they and their changing bodies are perceived, and trying to be a school success, but they have to deal with social media. Social media always shows the face that everyone wants to be seen. Through images and clever advertising of the self, anyone can make their lives look amazing despite the truth. Scrolling through social media, adults can easily be fooled into believing the grass is greener on their neighbors' lawn after perusing vacation photos or reading about honor roll students. Imagine how much harder it is as a middle school student. Many adults can’t understand that not everything on social media is real and true, so how do we expect middle school students to understand? Middle school students need to understand that not everything on social media is true, and despite what is portrayed, they do not need to live up to the hype. As teachers, we can help to equip our middle school students for life beyond social media and to teach them to persevere through the trying middle school years.3 Ways Teachers Can Help Middle School Students Persevere and Become a School Success:
1. Social Media
To help middle school students persevere through social media, parents and teachers alike can talk to students about what they see on social media. Middle school students aren’t typically the chattiest, most forthcoming students. As adults in the life of a middle schooler, it is our responsibility to talk with students about what we see on social media and what they may see on social media. We must tell them that not everything is real, what is downright ridiculous, and what is good and okay on social media.
Through sharing and talking, middle school students will be better equipped to see what is true and what is not and to be better equipped to be a school success with less worry about social media.
2. Academics
Academics in middle school are harder than they were in elementary school. The concepts that elementary students learn are built upon in middle school to make math, reading, science, social studies, health, and all other subject areas a bit more difficult. The focus on academics increases in middle school, and it is important to do well and learn to continue on with education.
If you are looking for a way to help stimulate engagement and growth in middle school students, I would love to share a resource I have developed specifically for this age group of learners. Middle schoolers are beginning to find their place in the world, and they don’t want to fail socially or academically. The Famous Failures products are exactly what you need. Through the stories and failures of famous people like Bill Gates, George Lucas, and others, your students will realize that perseverance pays off. Even though they may not be a school success in middle school, they shouldn’t give up.
With more famous people to celebrate like Walt Disney, Albert Einstein, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Thomas Edison, your students will love the Growth Mindset resources. Instead of being bogged down by failure, these famous people persevered and met their life goals in a way that will encourage middle school students to persevere.
