Middle School Menu of Services

6-8 Students

  • College 101: This presentation provides a general understanding of post-secondary options, including institutions and degree types, educational and career opportunities available by degree type, and what steps students can take during their middle school years to pave a successful path to college.
  • College Costs: This presentation addresses the anxiety many students face regarding paying for college by providing a general understanding of college costs and financial aid while emphasizing two key truths: (1) college is expensive, and (2) there are many ways in order to make it more affordable.
  • Fixed vs. Growth Mindset: This presentation provides a general understanding of the difference between a fixed and growth mindset, neuroplasticity, how to develop a growth mindset, and the power of positive self-talk using growth mindset concepts.
  • Knowing Your Value: This presentation demonstrates the correlation between education and future earning potential. Students will act as hiring managers and be responsible for determining the best candidate for the job and how much the candidate deserves to be paid based on their education, experience, skills, and their budget.
  • Majors and Careers: This presentation demonstrates the correlation between college majors and careers by helping students understand what a college major is and providing examples. Students will engage in an activity that allows them to identify their passions and connect those passions to possible majors and career goals.
  • Preventing Summer Melt (only offered in spring): This presentation helps students understand what summer melt is, what causes summer learning loss, and provides suggestions for combating summer melt.
  • SMART Goals: This presentation provides a general understanding of the five characteristics of a SMART goal, how to develop and implement an action plan, the importance of reflecting on progress and learning, and strategies for achieving SMART goals.
  • What Colleges Look For - How to Stand Out in High School: This presentation is geared toward high-achieving students and provides a general understanding of building a personal narrative, the role of research and research institutions, college visits, and how to respond to challenges and rejection during the college admissions process.

6-8 Parents

  • College Admissions for High-Achieving Students: This presentation is geared toward parents of high-achieving students. It provides a general understanding of college rankings, how to help your student respond to challenges and rejection during the college admissions process, how to work with your student to refine important soft skills, and college visits.
  • College Prep Tips for the Middle School Parent: This presentation provides tips on facilitating college and career conversations with your middle schooler, making college more affordable for your student, helping your student select classes colleges care about, utilizing strategies to help your student prepare for standardized tests, and allowing your student to picture themselves on a college campus.
  • Preventing Summer Melt (only offered in spring): This presentation helps parents understand the facts around summer learning loss, how their students might be impacted by summer learning loss, and what can be done to prevent summer learning loss in middle school students.
  • Soft Skills for Success: Middle school is the perfect time for parents to help their student develop and refine soft skills. This presentation addresses communication, conflict resolution, self-regulation, and perspective-taking as non-academic skills students need to succeed in high school, college, and beyond. Having good soft skills serves students at all life stages - in school, at home, and in their future careers.
  • The Truth About College: This presentation addresses the reality of the following common misconceptions about college: I can’t afford to send my student to college, I have time before my student needs to think about college, a college degree isn’t worth it anymore, my student must go to a big-name college to succeed, and I can’t talk to my student about college - I didn’t go.

Additional Information

Early Outreach staff is happy to attend other school events pending availability. Consider including 51³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏ Early Outreach in your family nights, college fairs, career days, or other special events!