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Middle School Transition
Middle School Transition
Middle school can be a scary transition for students. At McDonough Middle School, we work to ease that transition for students by helping to keep parents informed and by creating an ongoing support system for our students. Characteristics of a middle school:
Characteristics of a middle school:
4 or 5 academic teachers
2 connection teachers
Daily connections classes
Extracurricular activities (sports limited to 7th and 8th grade students).
What to expect from your Adolescent?
Physical changes related to puberty.
Struggles with peer relations and self-concepts.
Moodiness and self-absorbed behavior.
Testing of limits and boundaries.
Need for privacy balanced with parental involvement.
Suicide Prevention
Suicide Prevention
The social/emotional well-being and physical safety of each student is extremely important in Henry County. In order to proactively address concerns of depression and child/adolescent suicide, the MMS Counseling team facilitates the Signs of Suicide (SOS) Prevention Program each year. The SOS program has been researched and proven successful at increasing skills in students such as seeking help for friends and involving trusted adults. The SOS Program is the only youth suicide prevention program that has demonstrated an improvement in students’ knowledge and adaptive attitudes about suicide risk and depression, as well as a reduction in actual suicide attempts. The SOS Program has shown a reduction in self-reported suicide attempts by 40-64% (Aseltine et al., 2007; Schilling et al., 2016).
Our SOS program goals are as follows:
To explain that suicide is a preventable tragedy that often occurs as a result of untreated depression
To provide students training in how to identify serious depression and potential risk of suicide in a friend
To impress upon youth that they can help themselves or a friend by taking the simple step of talking to a trusted adult about their concerns
To teach students who they can turn to at school for help, if they need it
If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide or experiencing a mental health or substance use crisis, 988 provides connection to free, confidential support. There is HOPE. The Lifeline WORKS. For 24/7 confidential support, just call, text, or chat 988. Visit 988lifeline.org to learn more.
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