Yes, you read that title correctly: I'm excited for my daughter to start middle school next year.
It's a totally counter-cultural excitement. Middle school is typically an anxiety-inducing mess for kids and their parents in Collier County. Not so for the Snyders!
Most of my peers dread their children's middle school years. For them, middle school represents the commencement of a massive transition -- one filled with as-yet-unknown horrors outside of their control. And, truth be told, childhood ends abruptly for most students entering 6th grade. They typically go to a new school and have to navigate 7 or 8 different teachers -- ones they've likely never met. Their bodies & brains are changing rapidly. They begin thinking abstractly, and they desperately need deep discipleship and the truth of God's Word.
And, my little cutie baby is growing up, and her toddler and elementary years are over. I should be so sad, experiencing a sense of loss. So, why am I excited? Because for my sweet girl, the change to middle school is filled with excitement and only a minimal transition! Instead of turning left when she walks into school, she'll go down the hallway to the right. For us, middle school is a known quantity -- and one we're completely bought into. The school cares deeply about advancing her academic achievement and spiritual growth, and I'm so thankful. Here are a few more reasons we're PUMPED for Winnie to start middle school next year:
- My daughter already knows all the middle school teachers. Winnie has relationships with all of her teachers even now. She spends time in the middle school teachers' classrooms. She has a couple of them as coaches in the sports program. She'll need to get to know how their classes function, but she'll feel confident as she enters middle school. There also won't be as much lag time with the relationship-building process -- the teachers already know her and demonstrate Christ's love to her.
- She'll have the same teachers year after year. She'll have the same literature teacher, the same Bible teacher -- and so on and so forth -- for 6th, 7th, and 8th grade! This is a huge benefit -- these teachers can pick up right where they left off from year to year. There will be no gaps in her academics.
- The trip program is on point. I'm thrilled she'll get to go on a middle school retreat each year. She'll get to go to the Ark in Kentucky in conjunction with the Bible curriculum in 6th grade, and she'll get to go to Washington, D.C. after studying American government in 7th grade. And, at the end of her 8th grade year, she'll get to go on an international mission trip to Peru.
- We already know Winnie's friends and their families. Winnie will have many of the same classmates in middle school that she's had for years at NCA. We've developed such an amazing community of like-minded families. I'm so thankful we're walking through parenting middle school children together.
- NCA teachers take discipleship seriously and care deeply about her spiritual growth. She'll get the deep discipleship she desperately needs! The middle teachers at NCA are excited to help Winnie learn more about how God has uniquely gifted her. They want her to discover her passions; they want her to catch a vision for how God wants to use her to build His kingdom here on earth. They want her to know God more fully and love Him more deeply. And, they'll answer her questions with biblical truth.
I can't wait to see how God will work in and through the teachers at NCA -- and through her peers. I'm excited to watch my dear girl grow into the woman God wants her to be.
Students getting involved
