Role playing gives middle school students a chance to work through their feelings or concerns about various situations. They are also able to put themselves in someone else's shoes to gain a different perspective. When used in an academic capacity, students are better able to understand the concepts they are learning in the classroom. Some middle school students find the classroom topics more interesting when they are able to engage in nontraditional learning methods like simulation activities.
For social situations, middle school students can use role playing to simulate peer pressure situations they actually face. For example, if some of the students feel pressure to smoke, plan a role playing activity about saying no to cigarettes. This gives the students the tools to handle real-life situations. Other potential situations that affect middle school students include bullying, conflict with parents and disagreements with friends. To get the students involved, set up an anonymous suggestion box where they are able to suggest role playing topics that concern them.
For an academic focus, use role playing to enhance topics you're teaching in class. You can adapt role playing to work for most subjects, but literature and history are particularly well-suited for the activities. In literature, students are able to act out the passages they read to gain a better comprehension of the story. Historical reenactments bring the subject matter to life, enabling the middle school students to better connect to and understand what happened in the past.
Set ground rules for all role playing and simulation activities at the beginning of the school year. The rules should create a safe environment that discourages students from insulting or belittling one another during the role playing situations. Establish rules on audience participation. The point of role playing is to let the students experiment within the situation, so you don't want them to feel as if there is a right or wrong answer within the activity. Encourage students to take a role in initiating the role playing situations.