Which school would you recommend for a strong math student
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Anonymous
| Seeing the discussions on whats normal in the 9th grade math in this other thread, it made me wonder what private school would be best for strong math student. My DS is gifted in math. He has never taken any math classes outside of MCPS and I watched how fast he picks up a concept the school teaches. Needless to say he’s bored to death at the class where the teacher spent more attention to those who are behind to prepare them for all the tests. He has consistently tested 3-4 grades above his level yet he has only been placed in the gifted pool because he didnt win the lottery. He is fairly strong academically overall but it’s pretty clear his reading and writing are no way close to how advanced his math is. He is a pretty good athlete and plays one sport at the travel team level. He’s not a type A kind. We are looking for private school for middle and high school. Where would you recommend for someone who is naturally strong in math and can get the attention needed? |
Anonymous
| All of them. Being good at math is nothing novel. All schools accommodate kids who come in a bit ahead due to different school sequences. The prior thread was about the sequence a school would not call "ahead." |
Anonymous
| Basis lndependent mclean. No other choice |
Anonymous
| If your kid is actually ahead they would need college math classes during high school. Otherwise they are just normal for the privates. |
Anonymous
| Recommend the magnets. The HS ones are not lottery. You won't find anything better if your main goal is top math instruction. |
Anonymous
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Maybe private middle school to build up writing with an option of continuing or applying to magnets for high school.
Check the course catalogs for what courses are offered, ask questions about how often advanced courses are offered and how many students take them. Ask to speak with current parents with a similar math profile. |
Anonymous
This. Other than the top magnets, you will not find a place that will challenge your child in math. If that is not an option, go with supplementation outside school to encourage his interest. |
Anonymous
In western Fairfax County, look into Nysmith. Blair S&T magnet or TJ are public options at the HS level. Loads and loads of people use outside services such as AoPS, Kumon math, Mathnasium, or RSM. There also are online options like Beast Academy. If you want to supplement at home, look into “homeschool” supply places, like Rainbow Resource, which has a free curriculum catalog and online material comparing different options. |
Anonymous
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What state? What grade? What math placement are they in now?
What are these tests that place "3-4 grades ahead"? The MAP test doesn't really measure that. Why aren't you giving him outside enrichment? (Doesn't have to be a proper class.) Are you looking at private just for math or were you already planning it? Are the other subjects classes a good fit at your public? |
Anonymous
| OP, you don't mention where you're looking, so people won't know what to suggest. I think you should look at the schools' websites for their curriculum books. Specifically, see if there are courses at the school beyond calculus BC/II. This will give you one indicator. It's not always perfect, though, because some math programs are more challenging than others given the same level, but you may not get meaningful answers on how challenging a particular program is from people unless they have had kids at two different schools. You can also ask the schools how active they are in various math or stem competitions to see if there are many enthusiastic math students at the school. |
Anonymous
So he is rising 5th grade and in 7/8th grade math classes at MCPS? Not a CES or magnet program yet? |
Anonymous
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Also, there is a difference between a high MAP score and actually having completed multiple years of math courses above his current grade.
How are you determining math level? |
Anonymous
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Private HS will let kids place ahead in math (ie freshman in calculus BC)—you do need to look at each school’s curriculum to make sure there are enough classes to continue math through senior year or be prepared to take it at a community college.
The interesting catch here is that the kids in those situations, seem to be new in HS versus those that already attended, so they got ahead at other schools. You might want to look at Nysmith for middle then Sidwell, GDS, etc for HS. |
Anonymous
| Our experience is that LS and MS math was really boring -- school only accelerated by one year (algebra I in 7th, geometry in 8th) and there wasn't enough in class differentiation. But high school has been much better, with honors classes and several classes post-BC calculus (he's in 10th grade, pre-calc). I think this is pretty common for private school. |
Anonymous
| It is harder to get accelerated in math during middle school at the top privates (compared to good publics), but if the student is already advanced coming into a top private school in 9th grade, the top DC privates have multiple years of post-Calc math available to those who need it. GDS and Sidwell in particular. I don't know as much about the single-sex schools. |