Math pathway

[Anonymous]

Kid coming in from private to 9th. She is taking Algebra 1 this year at her school but many MPCS kids are going into Algebra 2 in 9th according to my daughter. What comes next? It's her favorite subject and her school tops out at Algebra I in 8th.

[Anonymous]

School offerings vary somewhat, so it is always a good idea to go to your high school web site and check the course catalog.

In general, the highest/fastest pathway from where she is would be:

Honors Geometry
Honors Alg 2
Honors Precalc
Calculus (choice of AP AB or BC during Sr. Year)

But there are other options if she does not love math

[Anonymous]

Geometry is next for her. She could talk it in summer school to catch up with the MoCo kids that like math.

Geometry in 8th is very common for the advanced kids (a few more advanced even take Alg 2), but if she is in geometry as a 9th grader, the majority of the kids with her are kids who aren’t as into math.

[Anonymous]

Isn't there a Geometry Honors in 9th track for kids just like her? I know a number of kids who are in 9th who are really smart and are good at math but just didn't take the compacted track that would put them on a path to be taking Alg 2 in 9th.

I think it's more common now than in the past because these grades had pandemic learning loss.

[Anonymous]

We faced the same thing a few years back.

Options:

1. Take a class over the summer at a private school(Landon offers one or has in the past) for non-credit. If you take Cal in HS, there is no official graduation requirement for Geometry- or that’s what I was told.
2. Take Geometry through MCPS over the summer.
3. See if you can take both Algebra 2/Geometry in the same year.
4. Accept that your daughter will be one year behind peers through 12th. It’s humbling but your daughter can still get to Cal BC as a senior.

[Anonymous]

Yes our school offers honors geometry as well as regular geometry in 9th. But the most advanced would be honors algebra 2 in 9th.

[Anonymous]

Take Honors Geometry. Many MCPS kids are over-accelerated and struggling. My kid has 98% MAP-M scores but pulled him back in MS and will take all honors math and then likely Calc BC in 12th. His friends that took Alg 2 in 9th are having to drop off the honors track and get tutors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Take Honors Geometry. Many MCPS kids are over-accelerated and struggling. My kid has 98% MAP-M scores but pulled him back in MS and will take all honors math and then likely Calc BC in 12th. His friends that took Alg 2 in 9th are having to drop off the honors track and get tutors.

+1. What’s the rush?

[Anonymous]

Let's correct a few things:

1. Tutoring is a function of wealth, not "need".
ALL the families I know who are middle class and above have hired a tutor at some point for their kid. Sometimes for remedial purposes, but often to get A in advanced tracks, reduce anxiety, and be in great shape to apply to college. The most tutored subject is math.

2. It doesn't matter what math track your kid takes, as long as she masters the content, since it builds on itself year after year. Any lack of understanding one year will come back to bite you in the following years... which is why tutoring in math is particularly useful.

3. Caveat to 2. If she's a bright student and you're hoping for decent college admissions, or you're not wealthy and trying to get as much aid as possible, know that her GPA and advanced tracks will play the largest role in getting ahead. Financial aid usually comes in the form of loans. Merit aid is a straight-up discount on tuition. It's really worth it to work hard for the best academic achievement she can, just to shave off some of those obnoxious college costs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Take Honors Geometry. Many MCPS kids are over-accelerated and struggling. My kid has 98% MAP-M scores but pulled him back in MS and will take all honors math and then likely Calc BC in 12th. His friends that took Alg 2 in 9th are having to drop off the honors track and get tutors.

+1. What’s the rush?

Wish I had done this. Feels too late halfway through geometry in 8th.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Kid coming in from private to 9th. She is taking Algebra 1 this year at her school but many MPCS kids are going into Algebra 2 in 9th according to my daughter. What comes next? It's her favorite subject and her school tops out at Algebra I in 8th.

Does your kid enjoy to math beyond and outside of the school curriculum? Does she want to get a math / applied math degree in college?
If not, she is well placed on a solid hours track. Keep working to get solid on the courses, and do extensions like Alcumus. She'll end up ready to take Multivariable Calc in college if she wants to, with a solid foundation.

If yes, she might want to push ahead of her current path, or just do non school math outside of school. (Math club, AoPS type stuff), or add an extra AP Stats class as an elective in high school.

[Anonymous]

I would not do geometry over summer school. Just do honors geometry in 9th. She will still be able to do AP calc BC senior year if she wants to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We faced the same thing a few years back.

Options:

1. Take a class over the summer at a private school(Landon offers one or has in the past) for non-credit. If you take Cal in HS, there is no official graduation requirement for Geometry- or that’s what I was told.
2. Take Geometry through MCPS over the summer.
3. See if you can take both Algebra 2/Geometry in the same year.
4. Accept that your daughter will be one year behind peers through 12th. It’s humbling but your daughter can still get to Cal BC as a senior.

From the Code of Maryland 13A.03.02.03, B(3) for students beginning 9th in 2021-22 or later, the requirement is:

Mathematics — four credits, including one with instruction in algebra aligned with the Maryland Comprehensive Assessment for algebra or one or more credits in subsequent mathematics courses for which Algebra I is a prerequisite, and one with instruction in geometry aligned with the content standards for geometry

https://dsd.maryland.gov/regulations/Pages/13A.03.02.03.aspx

So, you can get out of Algebra 1 by taking something like Algebra 2 or Precalc or Calc, where Algebra 1 is a prerequisite, but you have to take Geometry as a HS credit course (whether in MS or HS).

Separately, acceptance to a school in the University System of Maryland requires completion of 4 years of mathematics, which must include Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II. Students who complete Algebra II before their senior year must complete a senior year mathematics course that is intensive in algebra and expands on algebra foundations developed during Algebra II.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We faced the same thing a few years back.

Options:

1. Take a class over the summer at a private school(Landon offers one or has in the past) for non-credit. If you take Cal in HS, there is no official graduation requirement for Geometry- or that’s what I was told.
2. Take Geometry through MCPS over the summer.
3. See if you can take both Algebra 2/Geometry in the same year.
4. Accept that your daughter will be one year behind peers through 12th. It’s humbling but your daughter can still get to Cal BC as a senior.

From the Code of Maryland 13A.03.02.03, B(3) for students beginning 9th in 2021-22 or later, the requirement is:

Mathematics — four credits, including one with instruction in algebra aligned with the Maryland Comprehensive Assessment for algebra or one or more credits in subsequent mathematics courses for which Algebra I is a prerequisite, and one with instruction in geometry aligned with the content standards for geometry

https://dsd.maryland.gov/regulations/Pages/13A.03.02.03.aspx

So, you can get out of Algebra 1 by taking something like Algebra 2 or Precalc or Calc, where Algebra 1 is a prerequisite, but you have to take Geometry as a HS credit course (whether in MS or HS).

Separately, acceptance to a school in the University System of Maryland requires completion of 4 years of mathematics, which must include Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II. Students who complete Algebra II before their senior year must complete a senior year mathematics course that is intensive in algebra and expands on algebra foundations developed during Algebra II.

Thanks PP. My daughter started high school before this rule was imposed.

[Anonymous]

Many do Algebra 2 in 9th as they started Algebra in 7th, which is a common track. Your daughter should do Geometry.