Question for freshman currently in Honors Algebra 2

[Anonymous]

Do you think your child was ready? With Covid hitting and math going pretty slow in middle school, was your child prepared? Honors Geometry seems pretty simple but my DD struggled a bit with Algebra 1. Still getting A’s in Geometry and ended up with a high B in Honors Algebra 1. But it was first year back from Covid.

Did you do anything prior to the class or change levels? Or is everything going ok.

[Anonymous]

Yes, my child was fine but we do use the free tutors which you might want to try if it's free to review what you think they missed. Your kid has been back in person for two years so they did Algebra 1 in person so I don't see the concern. High B is still good.

[Anonymous]

No - not ready at all, but teacher is good at reviewing basics and we have a tutor 3x a week.

[Anonymous]

My DD is the same, but she said she finds Geometry a lot easier than Algebra, so she is getting high Bs in Alg2.

I told DD to review the material on Khan Academy. My senior HSer math whiz taking MVC said Khan Academy is actually pretty good.

[Anonymous]

Mine dropped down from honors to regular Algebra II and it was a huge confidence boost. She is the only freshman in the class, teacher loves her because she participates, and she has a firm grasp on the material. I asked her if she wanted to take honors pre-calc next year and she said, why it is the most dropped class at our entire school?

[Anonymous]

I was worried about my 9th grader who is currently in Honors Algebra 2, since Algebra 1 was the virtual year. But it's been going surprisingly well -- she hasn't needed a tutor and only occasionally asks us for math help. Her geometry teacher last year seemed to have built in some algebra review and did a great job getting the kids back into thinking mathematically after the virtual year. My kid did the optional Algebra 2 summer math packet before this year, which was useful because she was rusty on some basic algebra. There were also some topics in the summer packet that she didn't remember learning at all, so we helped her figure them out. But overall, it seems like she was prepared.

[Anonymous]

Yes, my daughter was well prepared. She had a great Algebra 1 teacher in 7th grade (shoutout to her Math teacher at Neelsville MS) who really helped her with the foundational skills needed for Geometry and Algebra 2.

[Anonymous]

I had my son repeat Alg 1 in 8th grade. Sailing through Geometry and am confident will be prepared for the track Honors Alg2, Precalc, and Calc BC in 12th.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I had my son repeat Alg 1 in 8th grade. Sailing through Geometry and am confident will be prepared for the track Honors Alg2, Precalc, and Calc BC in 12th.

Many JW teachers are recommending repeat Geometry or take non honors Algebra 2 at RM. I am not sure if they are noticing a pattern of failure but I was really surprised the overall push for it.

[Anonymous]

My child had the opportunity to take Algebra 1 as a 6th grader after the Covid lockdown, and jumped on it. She watched Khan Academy videos to solidify her knowledge and seems to be doing appropriately challenged now in Geometry - she's making straight As but has to work at it. I imagine it will be the same in 8th for Honors Algebra 2.

So yes, get a tutor, or work from home. Math builds on itself so the effort is worth it.

[Anonymous]

This class did algebra 1 online so they had a lot of holes. My kid's algebra 2 teacher was great, but left after 1st quarter. A couple of long term subs have ruined it for the kids. It's been a struggle since.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This class did algebra 1 online so they had a lot of holes. My kid's algebra 2 teacher was great, but left after 1st quarter. A couple of long term subs have ruined it for the kids. It's been a struggle since.

Use the MCPS free tutoring as you can do as many hours as your child needs.

[Anonymous]

I have a current jr who took Alg 2 as freshman. I was concerned about the same thing, and so the kid did Khan Academy's version of Alg 2 in the summer prior to freshman year. She didn't get all the way through, but first semester definitely went more smoothly based on this preparation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you think your child was ready? With Covid hitting and math going pretty slow in middle school, was your child prepared? Honors Geometry seems pretty simple but my DD struggled a bit with Algebra 1. Still getting A’s in Geometry and ended up with a high B in Honors Algebra 1. But it was first year back from Covid.

Did you do anything prior to the class or change levels? Or is everything going ok.

DC finds it incredibly not challenging, and wishes that these classes move to the faster pace .

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child had the opportunity to take Algebra 1 as a 6th grader after the Covid lockdown, and jumped on it. She watched Khan Academy videos to solidify her knowledge and seems to be doing appropriately challenged now in Geometry - she's making straight As but has to work at it. I imagine it will be the same in 8th for Honors Algebra 2.

So yes, get a tutor, or work from home. Math builds on itself so the effort is worth it.

This sounds like a mistake. Good luck w that later. Kids that are truly advanced in math don’t need tutors.