It can be a little tough, sometimes you can just forget things.”
— Blaise Sorenson
Sixth Grade is a pivotal time in a young person’s life. It is a time for many big changes, including the transition from elementary to middle school. New and exciting challenges come with moving to any new school, but especially for sixth graders, some of whom are moving to a brand new school for the first time in their life.
Sixth grade math teacher, Renae Harvell, agrees that moving into sixth grade is difficult, saying,
“Navigating so many different classes and [figuring out] what’s due and assignments.”
Blaise Sorensen and Brittany Tschudi are among the group of students who agree that the transition was difficult at first.
“It can be a little tough,” Sorensen says. “Sometimes you can just forget things.”
“When I first came to middle school, I was kind of nervous because I’m starting at a whole new school with none of my friends” Tschudi says.
Making friends after moving to a brand new school is another challenge many incoming sixth graders anticipate. Since Spectrum starts at the sixth grade, students come from schools all over Elk River and the surrounding cities.
“[It’s] a little bit harder than I thought it would be, but then again a little bit easier,” Tschudi says. “I’m starting out at a whole new school and I’ve never seen any of these people before.”
People enter sixth grade with different expectations for how making friends will go, but end up pleasantly surprised with what they find.
“I kinda thought it would be like my elementary school experience which wasn’t that good making friends,” Sorensen says. “[But] I became friends with some people, and they’re nice and kinda fun.”
New friends aren’t just a fun thing for new students, but teachers as well.
“It’s fun to watch their friendships develop,” Harvell says.
This first year of middle school for the sixth graders will be a new and exciting challenge as they enter a new chapter of their lives. Sixth graders go through a lot of changes during their first year of middle school, but their excitement and perseverance will get them through to the other side.