Can Middle School Be Wonderful?

The Puberty Podcast by This Is So Awkward

Aug 18, 202654:40Kids & family

Rereleasing this gem pushing back on the tired trope that middle school is a phase to endure not enjoy. But according to educator, principal, and author Chris Balme, these years may be some of the most fascinating and im...

Related Episodes

Continue listening to more episodes from The Puberty Podcast.

The Insidious Ranking Lists of Middle + High School

Oct 6, 2026 - 49:11

Kids have ranked other kids according to attractiveness, popularity, and sexual appeal for decades. But t...

Sexual Assault and Consent

Oct 3, 2026 - 80:24

The story of the “Cornell 7” gang rape has sent shockwaves across the country. As details emerge, a parad...

The Childhood Wounds We Bring to Parenting

Sep 29, 2026 - 51:55

Our childhoods may be long ago, but they don’t always stay in the past. The hurts and patterns we experie...

Growing Up in the Age of Deepfake Nudes

Sep 22, 2026 - 44:43

AI makes it easy to create fake sexual content — changing what a person is wearing, the pose they are str...

The Puberty Update: Timing, Trends, and What We Still Don't Know

Sep 15, 2026 - 54:44

Just like the kids going through it, puberty data is constantly growing and changing. In this episode, we...

Does AI Help Raise Kids?

Sep 8, 2026 - 49:49

AI impacts all of us at every age – down to the youngest kids. But how, exactly, does it change things li...

Senior Year of High School, Unfiltered

Sep 1, 2026 - 61:33

Senior year of high school looms large – not just in the minds of teens, but their parents, too – for all...

The Science of Real Optimism

Aug 25, 2026 - 48:52

The term optimism doesn’t just refer to blind positivity. It’s also the acknowledgement of challenges tha...