Hundreds of incoming middle school students and
incoming freshmen packed
the halls of Arlington Middle School and Terry Parker High School. Both schools
held their Summer Bridge Programs, which aims at getting students acclimated to the challenges a new school can pose.
“There’s a lot of anxiety going from elementary
school to middle school, it’s a big transition. There’s a lot of research that’s
been done on the transition not only from middle school to sixth grade, but also
ninth grade in high school. A lot of the same
issues,” said Arlington Middle School Assistant Principal Mark Wilhelm.
In both Arlington Middle and Terry Parker, students
were escorted around the school by teachers. They were shown where most of the
school resources were located. Many students also took part in activities that
were geared toward showing them what they can expect when they move up a grade.
“We want to get them used to going to different
teachers, get them used to learning the subject areas and also to making friends,”
said Tracy Montgomery.
Montgomery is a math teacher at Arlington Middle
School. She was also the one who drew up the grant to get the money to have the
Summer Bridge Program.
“Without parental involvement, the child will not be
successful. You know the old saying, it takes a village to raise a child…we want
everybody to be involved,” said Montgomery.
At Terry Parker High School, students got to sit in
classes and hear from teachers about what they can expect.
“Coming from middle school to high school is a very
difficult transition. What we try to do is give the students the opportunity
to come in and learn the campus, start building those relationships, tour the
campus and start getting familiar with this environment,” said Ernest Woodward,
Assistant Principal at Arlington Middle School.
The Summer Bridge Program was made possible by a $9,000 grant from the
United Way. Both Terry Parker and Arlington Middle School leaders say they plan
on applying for the grant again next year.
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