Colorado Association of Middle Level Education

CAMLE is proud to be working with Conference Sponsor nXu this Fall. believes young people deserve more than academic excellence — they deserve purpose, and the college & career readiness skills to pursue it. And it starts in middle school. Their K–12 curriculum and durable skills framework help students discover who they are and where they're headed — laying that foundation early — and through their partnership with Overgrad, students have access to the postsecondary planning tools to map out how to get there.

Building a Pipeline for Middle School Leaders - To truly support the middle level child – and the teachers and leaders who dedicate their careers to them – districts may want to consider intentionally cultivating a leadership pipeline from within their middle school-trained teaching staff. After all, no one truly understands the middle school child like someone who was trained in it, who has worked in the trenches of it, and who believes in its importance.

Building a Direct Pipeline for Middle School Leadership The vast majority of middle school educators feel deeply connected to adolescent learners. Jen Schwanke believes MS principals should be drawn from that pool.

As a class assignment during the spring semester, 6th grade students at University Middle School in Greeley were digging deep to uncover answers to four important topics:

Is Artificial Intelligence (AI) going to replace all jobs?
Is the Colorado Measures of Academic Success (CMAS) test worth students’ stress?
What will the plot be in the new Spider-Man: Brand New Day movie?
And is everyone’s favorite squeezable fidget toy, the NEEDOH, too distracting for class?

https://www.unco.edu/news/articles/lights-camera-learning-middle-school-students-get-a-taste-of-tv-news/

The energy in Middle School hallways right now? Absolutely unmatched. 🎉

Yes, it's a little chaotic. But it's also one of the most powerful opportunities of the year to help young adolescents reflect on how far they've come.

The challenge is to mark the end of the school year meaningfully, and to give students a sense of closure, accomplishment and hope for what's next.

Edutopia just dropped a fantastic roundup of 19 highly engaging end-of-year activities that balance the celebration with meaningful reflection. http://bit.ly/43559wF

A couple of favorites that feel especially right for the middle grades:

🪜 Summer Goal Ladders: Students write a big goal, then map out all the steps to get there.

🎤 Hot Seat Exit Interviews: Students take turns pulling a question out of a hat and answer reflective prompts: What are you most proud of? What will you carry with you? What advice would you give your first-day-of-school self?

How are you closing out the year with your students? Feel free to share below- we love learning from our Middle Level educator friends!

Two teams of eighth graders from The Manning School of Academics and Arts in Golden recently traveled to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston to present yearlong engineering projects, including a 3D printed chess set made from recycled plastic and biodegradable medicine packaging. Through this partnership, NASA could patent, build and even send their work into space.

Colorado middle schoolers' NASA projects could launch into space after Houston showcase The scientists from The Manning School of Academics and Arts in Golden may just be in 8th grade, but they're already working with NASA.

The weather in Colorado is perfect for taking a PodWalk with some of our favorite Education Podcasters.

Check out some great listens for your next outing: https://app.smore.com/n/afx20

We are thrilled to announce our Keynote Speakers for our 2026 Colorado Middle Grades Conference: Dr. Karen Weller Swanson and Dr. Micki Caskey, Authors of Mutual Mentoring for Mid-Service Teachers.

Register now for early-bird rates to join us for a day of connecting with fellow middle level educators in September!

https://camle.wildapricot.org/page-18308

What does it take to keep families connected during the middle school years when kids are pulling away and parent involvement naturally starts to fade? Prairie Heights Middle School has built something remarkable: a whole-school culture of community, from chili cookoffs to Outstanding Parent Awards, that keeps families and community partners genuinely invested.

Read more on the CAMLE Young Adolescent Times Blog to discover the intentional systems behind their success and what might just work in your school too.

The Importance Of Community in School Success

Author: Jessica Cooney, Principal, Prairie Heights Middle School, 2026 School to Watch
https://camle.wildapricot.org/Blog/13627743