Attack Of The Adolescent Brain! What Every Middle School Teacher Needs To Know

Teaching adolescents can be hard. Being an adolescent is harder. During some of my most difficult days in the middle school classroom, I always found comfort when I remembered how I felt when I was a middle schooler. Those tween days of awkwardness and change were some of my worst. Something else that helped me as a teacher? Science! I found that understanding the adolescent brain was super helpful. That's why I thought I'd share a few facts about the adolescent brain that might make it easier for you to teach middle schoolers.

Adolescents sometimes get a bad reputation for being unmotivated and even lazy. As teachers, we know what a big impact kids’ academic performance can have on their future. We can be tempted to think that they’d see that too. Don’t our middle-school students know that they’re only hurting themselves if they slack off? The answer in many cases: Nope. 

Some adolescents are naturally motivated – real self-starters. However, for most, things are a little more complicated. Speed of brain development and common performance anxiety are two things that can seriously affect a young student’s level of motivation.

The frontal cortex is the area of the brain that controls reasoning, attention span, perseverance, and motivation. This structure is not fully developed in adolescents. In fact, it keeps changing and maturing well into adulthood.

A kid whose frontal cortex develops early is more likely to be a focused and conscientious student. Those who develop more slowly can tend to be inattentive, disorganized, and give all the appearances of being just plain lazy.

Anxiety plays a role in students' performance as well. Let's face it, anxiety about schoolwork is another motivation-killer. When a kid is worried about his/her ability to complete an assignment, they often react by avoiding it. They may do this without even consciously realizing it and as a result, may not be able to explain their behavior. Anxiety of this type can grow to the point where it actually physically limits access to the frontal cortex. And that means – you guessed it – zero motivation!

First off, let's keep in mind that the typical adolescent student is not behaving this way on purpose. Many of them are simply not yet mentally up to the challenge of getting organized and motivated. That's where we come in! As teachers, we can help adolescents become more successful.

One good way to get unmotivated middle school students moving is to provide the structure that they aren’t yet able to create for themselves. Show them what good study habits look like, provide examples, and let them know that you expect them to follow these examples on their own. I found that making it a point to teach students HOW to do things like organize their binders and HOW to actually study were so important. Sometimes it's essential to slow down and spend time teaching students critical skills. Units like this "How to Study" Doodle and Do resource that combines doodle notes and learning stations can do wonders for students. 

Another idea is to be consistent, firm, and relentlessly positive. Having structure in place can help to reduce your students’ stress and anxiety over schoolwork. Our attitude and interactions with them are equally important. This is where it pays off to spend time encouraging students.

I love surprising students with positive notes or cards to show them that they matter and that I care. The notes can be quick to write, you could even write them on the top of students' papers, but their impact is great! If you'd like to give it a try, I've put together a FREE set of positive notes that you can pass to students right HERE.

Does it ever feel like you're on an emotional roller coaster with your adolescent students? Fear! Anger! Tears! Joy! What’s up (and down) with that? Overly-emotional reactions are common in adolescents, who are undergoing rapid physical, psychological and social development. 

Puberty is the beginning of major changes in the limbic system, which is the part of the brain that forms emotions.The amygdalae, two almond-shaped clusters in the brain, are used by the limbic system to connect sensory information to emotional responses. As the amygdalae enter a new stage of development, adolescents are prone to intense anger, fear, sadness, and excitement.

The limbic system is under the control of the frontal cortex, which is tasked with moderating impulses. However, as we’ve already seen, the frontal cortex does not always keep pace with other developments in an adolescent’s body. So, where does this leave us teachers? All alone, facing a classroom full of raging, unrestrained amygdalae. No wonder being a middle school teacher can be so challenging!

Don’t give up hope! As additional areas of the brain start to help process emotion, older adolescents gain some equilibrium and have an easier time controlling their emotions. But until then, they will often misread the intentions of teachers, reacting with anger or tears to even the gentlest attempt to redirection.

Again, our best bet as educators is to set clear, demonstrable expectations for your middle school students’ behavior. Once these are established, be firm, consistent, supportive, and - let’s say it again - relentlessly positive. You can easily spread a little kindness with motivational posters and quote cards.

You might want to all combine reinforcement with intentional classroom exceptions. I've put together my favorite tips in this short video. 

Giving students a little guidance along the way as they grow into their amygdalae isn't a bad idea either. You might carve out times to teach about classroom community and positive emotions to guide them during their development. This could be as easy as creating a random acts of kindness chain to display around the classroom.

Here's the thing...middle school students are challenged to engage in rigorous educational activities at a time when their brains are going through immense changes. It's just plain hard to be an adolescent sometimes. Of course, it is their personal responsibility to manage their own behavior and study habits. However, by understanding the underlying physiological causes of their sometimes frustrating behavior, we can be ready to offer students the support and guidance necessary for success!

Thanks for stopping by!

Mary Beth

The Benefits of Teaching Creative Writing - Adding Creative Writing Tasks to ELA Instruction

This is an era of standard-based teaching, with lots of curriculum to cover in very little time. Teachers are pressured to make tough decisions that will have a serious impact on their students' education. We can't do it all, so what subject matter shall we prioritize? What's most important? If it's not likely to be on "the test", can we afford to spend time on it?  

Something has to give, and creative writing is all too often the first candidate for the chopping block. It's a subject that doesn't fit well into a standardized test. It's tricky to grade. Its value is difficult to justify by means of the standard research data. 

In fact, the value of creative writing has also been called into question by some Common Core designers. These leaders see the emphasis on "self-expression and emotion" that's associated with creative writing as being somehow detrimental to "lucid communication." These developments are unfortunate for a number of reasons. Creative writing does, indeed, allow for self-expression and emotional release - benefits that shouldn't be disregarded. Much has been written about the psychological and emotional benefits of creative writing.

Let's take a look at some of these practical values of creative writing, and consider some arguments for keeping it in our classrooms!  

It has been shown in studies that children who have the opportunity to study creative writing improve their performance in other subjects. Math, science, and language studies skills have all been shown to benefit from practice in creative writing. 

Writing encourages broad, creative thinking and helps build a problem-solving mindset that is open to multiple alternatives. In other words, kids who write regularly tend to become innovative analytical thinkers. This skill translates well to study of any subject, and will also benefit the student in their later career.

Speaking of writing regularly, it's easy to add some quick creative writing lessons into any class period with this set of 5 FREE Creative Writing Lessons. 

The language of literature is different from what's used in day-to-day writing and conversation. Creative writers get a chance to experiment with new words and unfamiliar turns-of-phrase. Students can take time to find the word that conveys their thought with the greatest clarity, precision and style. 

This is an excellent mental exercise. It's also fun! Students who build their vocabulary through creative writing go on to become adults who communicate clearly and vibrantly. This is a skill that's valued in the workplace, and earns the respect of colleagues. 

Get students building their vocabulary with this set of 101 This or That Writing Prompts. Students get to choose the writing prompt that appeals to them as they develop their skills as a writer!

The creative writing class experience involves group review of a student's work. Creative writing students learn to accept constructive criticism, and to use it to improve their work. Students are also given the opportunity to analyze the work of others, to weigh its merits, and to offer thoughtful, respectful guidance. This ability to work cooperatively in a group setting will prove to be invaluable in adult life.

Students can practice the skill of peer editing and review as they review creative myths, fables, or even persuasive advertisements. Giving students a chance to work together and build a community of writers is a wonderful and essential part of creative writing.

Creative writing gives students the chance to assert themselves and their opinions, and to develop their “voice.” This, along with the opportunity to see their own words on paper, helps to build self-confidence. Students who regularly put their thoughts out for their fellows to read, and even criticize, are less intimidated by other challenges. A student who has gained confidence and found his or her own unique voice through creative writing is better equipped to succeed in the adult world.

I saw some of the greatest growth in my students during my favorite poetry writing unit. Giving students a chance to write creatively as they experiment with different styles of poetry builds such confidence! 

In a standards-based and data-driven educational environment, it's not always easy to justify the need for creative writing. It's also not necessarily an easy topic to teach. However, for all of the reasons above, I feel that it's well worth the effort to include creative writing in our regular curriculum. In addition to the well-documented emotional benefits and "soft skills" it encourages, creative writing also develops a range of practical skills that are valuable in adult life.

Here are a few FREE creative writing activities that you can download right away:

➤ Limerick Writing Lesson
➤ Spooky Story Writing
➤ Spring Poetry Writing Lesson
➤ Pinwheel Poem Writing Lesson
➤ Winter Myth Writing

I hope you've found some great reasons to teach creative writing!

Thanks for stopping by!

Mary Beth

P.S. Be sure to sign up for a free set of Creative Writing activities here!