This guide contains a minicourse based upon the content of "About the Middle School Years, Book 3" of the Educational Opportunities in Virginia publications. The minicourse has been designed to help students, with the involvement of their parents, to begin planning for their middle school education. Included in this guide is a sequential series of five 40-minute sessions and one 75-minute guidance session to be conducted with classes of students. The sessions are on the following themes: (1) introduction activity: "What will it be like to be a middle school student?" (2) overview of middle school program of studies; (3) middle school education and its importance; (4) group presentations on previously assigned topics; (5) exploring elective courses; and (6) the relationship between interests and career choices. Two parent sessions are also included, whose purpose is to increase parents' knowledge of early adolescent development and to encourage their use of constructive childrearing methods during the middle school years. (TE)