LEAven Blog

 I have a long-time friend from Illinois.  For a number of years, she and I would have a good-natured exchange every spring.  At some point, she would mention “eighth-grade graduation.”  As someone whose entire K-12 education was experienced in Florida (where we didn’t have eighth-grade graduation), I would look at her sideways and say, “Eighth-grade graduation?  Isn’t that like everybody getting a participation trophy?”  This would set us off on a back-and-forth banter.  I won’t go into all the details of our mutual ribbing, but my point of mentioning it is this:  I’ve come around to my friend’s way of thinking.  Having taught middle school for the past seventeen years, I have come to see the value in celebrating graduation from middle school.  Let me take a moment here to tell you why.

First, for students, the transition from middle school to high school is one of the biggest changes of their school career.  Unlike other changes, moving from middle school to high school almost always involves changing schools. That, in itself, is huge!   Along with changing schools come a myriad of smaller changes.  When one moves from middle school to high school, almost everything seems new, different, and challenging!  I think this is important to recognize.  We should emphasize this transition, and celebrating the end of the elementary/middle school years is a good way to do so.

Second, tied in with my first point, eighth-grade graduation is an appropriate place to emphasize the presence of God in our lives and our dependence on Him every step of our way.  At the time of eighth-grade graduation, a student is usually around fourteen years old (sometimes a bit older or younger).  This age is often the first time in a student’s life when they will face major change with at least a little “adult sensibility” at work, and it won’t be the last!  This is an excellent time to help a young person see the importance of acknowledging God in all of life’s milestone events.  We always recognize what God has done for us through the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus.  We rely on Him, not on ourselves, and here is a great place to remind a young person of that.

Third, looking at this as a teacher, one of the things I love about the end of the school year and graduation is the reconnection with former students through cards, social media posts, and graduation announcements!  Every year at this time, I hear from former students who have graduated from high school or college, and my first thought is, “Wow!  It seems like just yesterday he or she was a part of our eighth-grade graduating class!”  There is such joy in that reconnection!  This year I have heard from new graduates of nursing programs, physical therapy programs, business schools…even a graduate from law school!  Of course, there are those high school graduates of whom I think, “That can’t have been four years already!”  Every one of these students brings joy to my heart and a prayer of thanksgiving to my lips!

So, yes, let’s celebrate middle school graduation!  May God bless every graduate this year! May He equip them for the big move to high school. That move is now just around the corner!