Following a consideration of the middle school and the educational concepts involved, profiles are presented of eleven middle schools designed with a sense of innovation, adaptability, and matching institutions to the needs and potentials of children. Some of the schools are wholly committed to innovation from team teaching to ultimate nongradedness, but others follow fairly conventional classroom patterns for the present. The descriptions emphasize why the schools were designed as they were, and how they were designed and built. Schematics and photographs are included along with an evaluation of the schools relative to the programs for which they were planned. (FS)