The middle school provides a planned transition from childhood to young adulthood: it moves a student from the protective nurture of elementary school to the more depersonalized high school setting gradually, sensitively, and by design. Composed of the ideas from middle school education that each of the educators who choose this wonderful level of educational concentration seem to discover over and over again, this handbook is divided into six sections. The first and second sections introduce the middle schooler and cover the history and focus of middle schools. Section 3 discusses such topics associated with the middle school curriculum as sexuality and physical education, evaluation and grading, and scheduling. Sections 4 and 5 are dedicated to middle school educators--teachers and the principal--and the middle schooler's parents. The sixth section highlights important middle school issues including advisors, behavior, leadership and participation, mixed-age groups, multicultural education, networking, and transition. Intended to become a workbook for each of its readers, this document has wide margins to make room for personal stories and anecdotes. Topics covered in the appendices include learning and learners, boldness, middle school teachers, parent peer groups, middle and upper school cooperation, and the resources used for this document. (KM)