The advantage of taking high school classes in middle school

High school can take a while to adjust to. 

The different amount of classes, homework, and material can overwhelm students when they first enter ninth grade. However, this drastic difference between middle school and high school can disappear by taking a high school class in middle school.

Math teacher Rachael Fowler offers students at Mabry Middle School and Campobello-Gramling School the opportunity to get an early lead in their high school career by taking Algebra 2 Honors at Chapman.  

These students learn to adjust to the different teaching styles and amount of material that Chapman offers. 

Fowler helps the middle schoolers adapt to the upcoming change of high school while making sure to acknowledge the differences between the two.  

“I try to give my middle school students the same rigor as my high school students,” Fowler said. “One of the main differences is that the middle school kids do not have as much freedom as my high school students.” 

Taking Algebra 2 Honors allows students to learn valuable study and time management skills. Fowler teaches them assets that they will use throughout the rest of their time here at Chapman. 

“It helps you know the workload in the future and helps you prepare for other classes,” freshman Bryson Cothran said. 

Cothran said that taking a high school class earlier helped him know the differences between middle and high school so he could enter as a freshman better prepared for success. 

“It was definitely a more challenging course, and it helped me with the workload that I probably wouldn’t have been prepared for when I was a freshman,” sophomore Ella Hollis said. “I would recommend this to anyone who wanted a challenge and to make their later years in high school easier.”