Several schools that eschewed the middle school model and remained K-8 discovered anecdotally that their students showed fewer behavioral problems and higher academic achievement than many students enrolled in middle schools. On the basis of studies that verified these observations, school district leaders in Milwaukee, Baltimore, and Philadelphia accelerated a shift to the K-8 model. Their feedback on the process and on the K-8 model itself suggests 10 strategies that can help middle schools transition to the K-8 model, such as including parents in the process, adding higher rather than lower grades, ensuring grade-level balance, and making 6th grade serve as a bridge between the elementary and middle school grades.