In some ways, middle school is very much the same as it was a decade ago. In my own classroom, I recognize some of the hallmarks of the middle school years — changing voices, students spurting up three inches by the time May rolls around, and the awkwardness of being surrounded by so many developmental stages at once. In so many moments, it reminds me of myself when I was in the sixth grade. I wore my waist-length hair in a middle part back when extreme side parts were cool, had bungee laces in my Asics tennis shoes and frequently got in trouble for reading under my desk during math.
