Fires in the Middle School Bathroom: Advice for Teachers from Middle Schoolers by Kathleen Cushman

Fires in the Middle School Bathroom: Advice for Teachers from Middle Schoolers Reviews

• 
  Amy Hopping

  It is precisely because this book fulfilled its purpose of reminding readers of the complicated and contradictory middle school brain that I gave it four stars. The author explicitly stated that the book was not intended to provide concrete solutions, but rather to help teachers think of helpful solutions for their unique students and situations using the opinions and thoughts of the middle schoolers who were interviewed. Of course there are limitations to the amount of help this can provide. But it is meant to provide a perspective opposite the one from the experienced teacher or teaching coach that is typically provided. My one and only complaint is that the book included only the perspectives of urban children. Though all middle schoolers will have generally the same thought process, the perspective of a student from a different background will differ some. But the overall message from the book is to get to know your students and to not be surprised by their thoughts and feelings.
• 
  Julie Suzanne

  The author interviewed some middle school students. Their responses throughout the book are supported by Cushman's commentary aiming to help teachers understand the developmental needs of middle school kids. Everything in this book was obvious if you've ever taught youths in this age group. I mean, how could I not know that middle-schoolers change their opinions every other minute? Was it really an amazing find that tweens are pressured by their peers, want class to be more fun, and experiment with their identities? Nothing that the teens said in their interviews were any different from what we hear every day when we work with these kids.
  
  I guess that maybe this could be useful to a first-time teacher who was placed in a middle school position who really wanted a high school job, but to get our secondary education degrees, we DID have to take a class on child development focusing on grades 7-12, so I guess I would rate this book: Irrelevant to its intended audience.
  
  
  
• 
  Jill Adams

  Didn't seem as powerful as the high school text.
• 
  Emma

  I really enjoyed reading advice from middle schoolers. Most teacher, self-help books I’ve had have been from the perspective of a teacher, so it was refreshing to hear about what students have to think about teaching and the classroom environment.
  
  I think some of it was common sense stuff, but it got me thinking critically about my own teaching practices.
• 
  Maryann

  I found this book at a used book sale several years ago at the library. I picked it up for a reason not discernable to me at the time, as I was a college level instructor. Now, I'm going to be a high school teacher, and though the voices from this book are younger, they are still instructive. And really, not that different from what my older students wanted.
• 
  Samantha

  Even though this was written in 2008, it still has great advice for Middle School teachers today. I found many useful tidbits of advice and things to use in my classroom. I am glad I read it before starting to teach middle school. Easy read too, not so information heavy/boring like many teacher books.
• 
  Stephanie Kiefer

  Good book, especially if you are new to middle school. Even if you're a veteran teacher, this book offers good insight directly from middle schoolers.
• 
  Dana

  I work with middle school kiddos and was hoping to get some new perspectives into their needs and wants. My time in middle school was hardly easy, and part of that memory is what makes me so passionate about helping and working with them now. This book did have some of those perspectives I was seeking, and some helpful ideas for teachers, but little of that was applicable to my situation. There is plenty of good advice in here, especially for teachers who are just starting to work with middle schoolers, or who don't have much experience with them. I appreciate how the students represented in this book are from different backgrounds, income levels, and locations in the country. There is a good variety. I also appreciated some of the ideas for helping teachers keep track of information, such as parent contacts, what works and doesn't work, and interest surveys for students. Even though I am not a teacher, some of those will help me still. It would be really helpful to read a book incredibly similar to this but that is geared for school counselors. The students may be the same, but our interactions with the students are different.
• 
  Mr. Cody

  While I did appreciate the overall message of this text, I can't help but feel it was incomplete. Allowing authentic voices to be expressed is one thing, but after so many complaints, the messages became diluted. They beat you over the head with just how complex and contradictory middle school students are. That alone makes the reading process uneasy, but after a certain point I became disgruntled when problems would be brought up and discussed ad nauseam with one or two wrap up sentences used to discuss potential solutions.
  
  The critical aspect this book is missing is providing solutions or examples of what these children truly responded to instead of vague, one-sentence summaries. The personalities that were most prominent were also the ones whom expressed the most negativity. It made me feel like this was just an airing of grievances.
  
  I did appreciate the questions and spaces provided for self-reflection. I also valued the templates for parental participation. If this text gave me more direction instead of waves of negativity then I would have enjoyed it more.
  
  But then again the topics here aren't said for my entertainment. I think what I'm experiencing is growing pains. The messages are getting me to think very deeply and I'm obviously affected by what I've read... Ok fine! I'll give it another star! I do suppose the message is sticking with me long enough to write this uber-long review.
  
  Read if you're into challenging your own thinking and if you are up to the task of providing your own answers.
  
• 
  Anna

  Interesting and relevant but not necessarily anything new. I felt like I already knew a lot of this stuff just from working with middle school kids. They love to talk and I have heard most of this stuff from my own sixth graders. Plus, I've participated in a lot of discussions about middle grade psychology with teachers at my school and in my grad classes. So, really, I didn't find anything in this book to be more honest or insightful than what I already knew from personal experience.
  
  I think it all really comes down to reflection. If you actually spend time listening to your students then a lot of this you should probably know. Still, it might be good to skim through this book and sort of reexamine your biases and thoughts about your students. If you teach middle school you'll probably find that these kids (in the book) are telling you the exact same thing the kids that you're teaching are telling you about your instruction and interaction with them. Still, reading this makes it more transparent and concrete in some ways and got me to rethink some of my interactions with students.
  
  I definitely recommend this to new middle school teachers and/or those coming from teaching other age groups because this book does a nice job of showing the reader how middle school is different and how you can best support kids in this age group.
• 
  John Williams

  Most important about this book is the mere fact that it exists, what it sets out to do. The student testimonials are great, but this book serves to remind pre-service teachers and even current teachers that we must always start with the student perspective. Where are they coming from? What are they thinking? Who is it that you are about to teach and what can you do to help them want to learn? The book is not terribly prescriptive. In some cases that is impossible because student testimonials often come into conflict with each other. But that's okay. That in itself is an important lesson: that at any given time, any move you make or don't make can be met with a diversity of responses, and that the students in your class bring a diversity of needs and abilities. Balance is the answer: balancing between the needs of your many and different students. They all deserve to learn something and to be treated like the school and the teacher cares about their success. In the end, that is what this book is: a course in how to care for our students.
• 
  Liz

  This book wasn't as enlightening as the first. I can attribute that to two things off the top of my head: when I read the first one I was just about to start student teaching (as opposed to the years of experience I have under my belt when reading this one) and middle school children don't seem to give nearly as good advice. I accredit the later to their ever changing thoughts and opinions and their inability to really understand what their teachers' goals are, both for the teacher and the pupil.
  
  I was hoping for something that would give me a little more guidance as I prepare to teach Middle School for the first time after three years of high school teaching. I still think the book is worth skimming through, even if all you learn is that early adolescents are super indecisive about everything. I just won't recommend this one as readily as I did the first.
• 
  Liz

  This book is intended for Middle School teachers, but is great for anyone who works with urban middle school-aged teens. It explains, often with quotes directly from urban youth, exactly what these teens are thinking and going through. They describe what they feel they need in an educator, from their parents, and from authority figures in general.
• 
  Kim

  Kathleen Cushman spends her time asking tweens and teens questions the rest of us SHOULD make time for. In this book, the voices of middle schoolers unselfconsciously recall us to the impact we have on their day-to-day lives, self-concepts, and levels of engagement. A great book for teachers and preservice teachers about what students need and want in their school lives.
• 
  Juliette

  Another great resource for teachers....I didn't plan on teaching middle school, but the school I was hired at has grades 6-12. This book reminds teachers to really remember what it was like to be in middle school, which is important. I love the title, and the first month of school, there actually was a fire in the boys' bathroom at my school!
• 
  Anthony Purcell

  This is an excellent book. I feel every middle school teacher should read this! Understanding the thoughts and feelings of students is very important at this age. I remember being confused and scared but ready to take on the world. I encourage everyone to read this!
  
  "Teachers don't know what the kids are thinking, they only make a guess." - Jessica, 7th grader
• 
  Cathy

  There are better books out there and I actually had two students who were featured in this book. By legitimizing their comments without really knowing them as students and how they were in the classroom was disheartening. There were other students who were just as needy, behaviorally and academically, but those students made better choices and rose to the occasion.
• 
  Adelaide

  ED103. I found this book not so surprising. Middle schoolers want teachers to be lenient but not too lenient, authoritative but not too authoritative, friendly but not too friendly. Excellent. I think the most helpful part of reading the book was trying to remember what it felt like to be in middle school and think about how I can design classroom experiences with that in mind.
• 
  Cori

  I had to read this one for a class, and as a new teacher, I found it very helpful to get middle schoolers' perspectives on their teachers, which is basically all this book is. Everything they had to say seemed pretty authenitc.
• 
  Lindsey

  Advice for teachers from middle schoolers had some interesting points and some text like informative surveys but overall many points were common sense. Good for a new teacher or veteran to remind them of what life is like "in the trenches."
• 
  Brian

  A good book for those that teach or want to teach middle school. I felt like the last chapter for the most part didn't apply. It was more about after they transition to high school. It was a relatively short book, if it wasn't for the last chapter I would have given it 5 stars.
• 
  Maria Power

  Great resource for a first-year teacher. Relevant, but nothing new. The way it's written is tough to get through...yes, we know middle schoolers are irrational and contradictory, we talk with them every day!
• 
  Ryan

  I was hoping this book would help me get inside the head of a middle schooler as I prepare to make the transition this fall, but it was all common-sense stuff.
• 
  Emilia

  quick read, good account of the priorities and needs of urban middle schoolers in their own words.
• 
  Heather

  Some interesting advice and insight, but most of it was pretty self-explanatory. I would still recommend it to anyone that teaches middle school though!
• 
  Jennifer

  This book offered an interesting perspective into what middle schoolers really think about school.