Every June, LS sends some of its students to both Curtis and Lincoln School, to allow the rising 9th graders a chance to ask questions about high school. Ms. Klein, who has been the 8th grade transition coordinator for the past two years, states that these meetings have “been going on for 18 years, possibly longer. It’s a way for current students to connect to the incoming class and answer questions and elevate some of the stress and anxiety that comes along with moving to a big, new school. Particularly for students who are from Lincoln, since they have a much different experience having their K-8, while students in Sudbury have multiple schools that they go to.” LS students visit the Lincoln School during a morning advisory block from 8-8:30. During this half-hour period, Lincoln kids have the chance to ask LS students questions. Most kids ask about the schedule, and Ms. Klein notes that students often ask “how you navigate this building.” 

This year, Ms. Klein was able to hold an 8th grade meet and greet between Curtis and Lincoln students at a LS girl’s basketball game. This was the first time LS had ever hosted a gathering between the two middle schools. She wanted to do the meet and greet because of feedback she had received from the Lincoln and Curtis 8th grade counselors that she had worked with last year. The meet and greet was a major success: “it was really well attended by students from both Lincoln and from Sudbury,” as she estimates that about 80 students from both Curtis and Lincoln attended the event.

Ms. Klein also mentions how small Lincoln Middle School is compared to Curtis, and she estimates that Lincoln students make up about 10% of their LS class. “All the people from Lincoln know all the people from Lincoln, and some people crossover from different activities that they are in and they know other students from Sudbury, but a lot of them don’t. It’s easier for some students in Sudbury: they have a bigger human interaction base and terms of friends and people in the building.” 

Ms. Klein went to a K-8 school, and then a regional high school much like LS. Based on her personal experience, she advises the incoming 9th graders to see how many different connections they can make. “A good way to do that is to get involved in different activities and extracurriculars that are offered here. Whatever you’re interested in, it’s likely that there’s something here that is going to match that interest. And if there isn’t something, then students have the ability to try and make a group or a team out of it.”

Thanks to Ms. Klein’s transition planning, Lincoln and Curtis students will be better prepared to start at LS in the fall.