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For three of my six years as a teacher, my first assignment was a high school teacher. I assumed that my students were academically, mentally, and socially prepared for the challenging coursework during my first year as a teacher. The most memorable lesson from my first year was to never assume anything with students. The high school freshmen geography course, the students fresh from middle school, was the biggest challenge! The first quarter was dedicated to eliminating all traces of middle school. The second was an explanation of high school expectations. By second semester, I had a class consisting of high school freshmen.

High school is one of the most exciting times of a young person's life. It signifies the completion of nine years basic education, Kindergarten to eighth grade, with four more to complete. With high school, there are more freedoms and opportunities. The security is gone, and again, students start over as the small fish in a huge pond. Some students become accustomed to the academic and social responsibilities of high school. Others struggle and often drop out before their senior year. Educators, parents, and school boards across the country question the strategies to prepare middle school students for high school. There are three ways, in my opinion, to prepare students for high school. All three stakeholders should work together to begin student transition before ninth grade, prepare students mentally for the coursework, and encourage students to explore the career and social options of high school.

First, preparation for high school should begin earlier than the eighth grade. The physical changes usually occur during the middle school years. School systems should encourage programs where high school sophomores talk with rising ninth graders about the academic and social differences between middle and high school. The wisdom of upper level students seems more credible than the words from paraprofessionals.
The days of team-teaching, outdoor gym, and exploratory classes are long gone. The student is one of 175 on a teacher's roll, one of hundreds in a freshman class, and one of a few thousand in a school. Whereas middle school students are assigned to English, math, science, and social studies classes with a chance for performance art classes, high school students wish to have a slot opened for more exploratory classes. The typical high school schedule includes the core classes, language and health/physical education class, which are required

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