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10 years ago, Tri-Town Council’s high school youth group had a “wouldn’t it be nice if…” moment during one of their weekly meetings. The conversation had meandered to middle school memories and how nervous many of them felt when starting 7th grade in a new, larger school. “Wouldn’t it be nice if we could do something for the new 7th graders to help them feel less nervous and give them a chance to get to know each other?” someone remarked. As often happens, many of the best ideas are seeded in a conversation, and the concept of the 7th Grade “Welcome to Masco” took root at that meeting. 2 months later, Tri-Town Council hosted over 50 7th graders and 8 youth leaders at Masco’s field house. We like to say good things grow, and grow it did! Hosted annually since 2014, these events have served a total of over 1500 new Masco 7th graders.
While this youth conceived and youth led event has morphed over the years, the intention behind it has not changed. On the mornings of August 20, 21 and 22nd, Tri-Town Council (TTC) welcomed over 180 new Masco 7th graders and over 20 youth leaders for 90 minutes of connecting, information gathering, wisdom sharing and FUN! Masco Middle School organizes students in teams by color - red, blue, and white. Students on each team typically have classes together, the same group of core teachers, and share a classroom cluster. The “welcome to Masco” mornings were organized by 7th grade color team, so attendees had a chance to meet other 7th graders with whom they might have classes, see in the team hallway, or sit with at lunch.
Upon drop-off, where parents/caregivers had the opportunity to follow the same drop off process during the school year, 7th graders joined small groups and participated in a variety of connecting activities led by high school youth leaders. Practicing opening a combination lock with coaching from youth leaders and an opportunity to ask “Dear YAABy” questions about middle school - staffed by Belle and Neva from TTC’s Youth Action Advisory Board (YAAB) - were some of the other activities.
Joining back together as a larger group, 7th graders had a massive and raucous game of Rock, Paper, Scissors EXTREME, followed by a game of Clue where they had to identify 2 “suspects” from their team who hacked Masco’s computer system and changed everyone’s schedule around. As the morning wrapped up, 7th graders exited the campus with cheers and encouraging words from their youth leaders holding colorful signs filled with well-wishes.
Moving from elementary school to Masconomet is a significant step for all middle schoolers - one that can be filled with both excitement and uncertainty. TTC’s Youth Programs Coordinator Dawn Seymour, who plans the welcome events each year, reflected on the goals of the morning. “We host this event to help 7th graders feel a bit more comfortable, confident, and connected on those first few days of school.” Having high school youth lead the morning opens up opportunities for them to build their own leadership skills, serve as role models, and be a resource to new students -- sharing information and answering questions about middle school. Many high school youth - who go through a planning and training session led by Dawn before the events - share their own experiences with 7th graders in the hope of allaying some concerns that 7th graders are coming with. Just after the event a 7th grade parent shared, "This was JUST what my child needed! Thank you!" Not surprisingly, the benefits of the experience for both new 7th graders and youth leaders are mutual. "I liked being able to answer their questions," said one youth leader. "It was fun," shared another, continuing, "(Leading a group) was a confidence boost for me."
Tri-Town Council is happy to continue these 7th grade welcome events, now deeply rooted in tradition. We are grateful to the 22 youth leaders who committed time, energy and effort to preparing for the event and the fabulous class of 2030 and their families for participating. Big thank you to our partners at Masconomet for providing space to host these mornings on Masco's campus!
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