On Wednesday, East Clinton Middle School held its second-annual sixth grade retreat to welcome its new class of sixth graders and help them transition into the middle school.

For many students, the transition to middle school is one of the most stressful times in their school careers. Students transition from the world of elementary school where life is pretty structured. When they come to the middle school, that structure tends to go away and students have more freedom and independence, according to school officials. There are also the social pressures that come along with middle school. Middle school is a time of significant change for every student.

East Clinton Middle School tries to smooth that transition by holding a yearly retreat in the summer. The main goal of the retreat is to reduce the stress that comes along with starting middle school and allow students to explore the world of middle school without the pressures of a regular school day. Sixth grade students at ECMS also have the unique challenge of meeting students from a different school in the district.

“One of the biggest stressors that our students face as they move into middle school is meeting students at the other elementary school. Many parents and students tell us this each year. This is where the idea for the retreat came from,” said East Clinton Middle School Principal Matt Melnek.

This year’s retreat focused on relationship building for the students. Students were assigned groups that were led by seventh and eighth grade mentor students.

“These mentors have given up some of their summer days to help our sixth grade students successfully transition to middle school. This really speaks to the character of our student body,” Melnek said.

These mentors used their leadership skills to independently lead their sixth graders throughout the day by taking them on tours of the school, leading group discussions about middle school, and completing many team building activities. The goal is for the sixth grade students to meet with their mentors throughout the school year to keep those connections strong and help build success for the students. Many staff members at the school also volunteered their time to get to know students and lead many of the activities that students participated in.

“We hope that this retreat becomes a yearly tradition. Many of our students who attended felt that it made a difference and helped them feel more at ease with starting middle school,” Melnek said.

East Clinton Middle School will welcome all of its students back on Sept. 5.

Melnek said, “We are really excited about this school year. We feel that we have a lot of good things going on here and those things along with the construction of our new school, has generated a lot of excitement for this school year!”