Prep classes for HGC and MS magnet tests

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I dislike the term Highly Gifted Center bc people find it very off putting. But I do think these kids are often brighter than the bright kids who don't get in. I don't see too many admission errors.

What makes some people find the name off-putting? I dislike it because I feel a lot of those kids are really bright, but not gifted, so it's misnamed as far as I'm concerned (I'm PP that stated I dislike the name).

And why does MCPS call the ES HGC but in MS it's called a magnet? It seems harder to get into MS magnet than ES HGC, so if anything, it should be named the other way around - ES magnet and MS HGC for STEM or Liberal Arts, or whatever.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Stop pushing these kids!! They are either gifted or not, stop forcing them to overstudy, tutor, extra work to try and compete with gifted kids. Love your child for who they are not. Pressuring kids at age 8/9? Test prep. Insanity.

If your kids need test prep, they do NOT belong in HCG and Magnet.

Actually they do. Kids who prep (classes, enrichments, doing worksheets etc) get into HGC, magnet ms and hs and then Ivy League colleges. It is a matter of how much you want to succeed and how hard you are willing to work. If a kid can work hard and get into any institution - he deserves to be there. If an athlete works hard and wins at the Olympics, they deserve their medal.

However, if you think that your kid should not prep, that is your prerogative. For the rest of the parents and students who think that they are ready for the challenge these magnet programs offer, just ignore these people. They deliberately give wrong advice, bad mouth the programs and try and mislead people.

Replace "Gifted" by "Hard working and Dedicated" and it becomes easier to understand what the majority of high achievers do to become high achievers. No God is coming down from heavens to bestow the "GIFT" of superior knowledge to your child contrary to what you would like to believe about your snowflake.

What is "prepping"? Doing some worksheets at home once in a while? Or something more, like having a tutor or going to tutoring classes? Or all?

I think "prepping" (tutors, programs, etc..) for older kids (MS/HS) is fine. But, I think it makes some or a lot of parents uncomfortable when you talk about prepping a 7/8 yr olds. They are so young, and "prepping" them seems like adding so much stress in their lives at such a young age. It's only ES. And even if the kid was prepped to get in, if that kid is not really HGC material, then what happens once the kid is in HGC? Will that kid struggle a lot more in class because there is no parent or tutor in class to help that kid? Sure, the parent can help with HW, but not with classwork. I think the teacher will see through that.

But, I agree, that working hard is more important than being "gifted" or smart in terms of succeeding in life. Being in HGC is not a guarantee that they will succeed in life.

I dislike the term "Highly Gifted Center". Most of these kids are not really "gifted", just really "bright" and probably work hard. I would prefer if they changed the name to "magnet" or something.

My DC is in HGC and the only "prepping" DC has ever done is a couple of workbooks at home once in a while, nothing regimented. But, we have enforced the "do your best" ethos.

I think anything you do to enrich your child's knowledge or to prepare them for academics is "prepping". Taking your kids to museum, sitting with them when they do homework, doing worksheets, everything is prepping. Most of these things a parent can do for their kids without outside coaching and tutoring. Coaching and tutoring however is an option (though it is commercial) - if something more specialized is needed, or you do not have the time or your child does better in more formal setting of a class or if you are not a very good teacher yourself.

I will disagree that some kids may not be able to handle the rigor of HGC because they prepped to get in. In fact, if your child needs your help in understanding content, time management, task management, how to take notes, how to communicate, how to study effectively etc, he will be better served in life if this help is provided to him when he is younger and in lower grades. You do not want your kid not to have these skills (and these are study skills - something that can be learned) when they reach college. The stakes are much lower in HGC and workload not that demanding that a child cannot handle this. And if they need help - better in HGC than in HS or college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I dislike the term Highly Gifted Center bc people find it very off putting. But I do think these kids are often brighter than the bright kids who don't get in. I don't see too many admission errors.

What makes some people find the name off-putting? I dislike it because I feel a lot of those kids are really bright, but not gifted, so it's misnamed as far as I'm concerned (I'm PP that stated I dislike the name).

And why does MCPS call the ES HGC but in MS it's called a magnet? It seems harder to get into MS magnet than ES HGC, so if anything, it should be named the other way around - ES magnet and MS HGC for STEM or Liberal Arts, or whatever.

Well, I agree with you there. The Center was expanded years ago in response to parent demand (because everyone thinks his/her child is highly gifted). My sister, who has taught in the program for many years, says that some of what she used to do with her class is no longer feasible because the student population, while bright, is not *highly gifted* as it used to be.

RE calling the Center the HGC versus calling the middle & high school programs "magnets": That's easy. The elementary school program is not focused on a certain subject-matter, whereas the MS and HS ones are. Thus the difference. If MCPS created a program that e.g. combined the TPMS math/science/computer science curriculum with the Eastern humanities one, it could correctly be called a "middle school center for the highly gifted."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I dislike the term Highly Gifted Center bc people find it very off putting. But I do think these kids are often brighter than the bright kids who don't get in. I don't see too many admission errors.

What makes some people find the name off-putting? I dislike it because I feel a lot of those kids are really bright, but not gifted, so it's misnamed as far as I'm concerned (I'm PP that stated I dislike the name).

And why does MCPS call the ES HGC but in MS it's called a magnet? It seems harder to get into MS magnet than ES HGC, so if anything, it should be named the other way around - ES magnet and MS HGC for STEM or Liberal Arts, or whatever.

Well, I agree with you there. The Center was expanded years ago in response to parent demand (because everyone thinks his/her child is highly gifted). My sister, who has taught in the program for many years, says that some of what she used to do with her class is no longer feasible because the student population, while bright, is not *highly gifted* as it used to be.

RE calling the Center the HGC versus calling the middle & high school programs "magnets": That's easy. The elementary school program is not focused on a certain subject-matter, whereas the MS and HS ones are. Thus the difference. If MCPS created a program that e.g. combined the TPMS math/science/computer science curriculum with the Eastern humanities one, it could correctly be called a "middle school center for the highly gifted."

They have done this, and it's called the "Upcounty Center Program for the Highly Gifted."

http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/uploadedFiles/curriculum/specialprograms/middle/MSMagnetBrochureRobertoClemente.pdf

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I dislike the term Highly Gifted Center bc people find it very off putting. But I do think these kids are often brighter than the bright kids who don't get in. I don't see too many admission errors.

That is an odd reason to dislike the name.

The whole point of the Center is to provide an environment for students whose home school cannot meet their needs. What else would you call these students?

Why is it odd? It's annoying to encounter people who ask where my kids go to school. Then they find out that one goes to a different school bc he is in the HGC and they react in a way that they seem put off by the name, like my kid thinks he's better than theirs or we think our kid is better than theirs. If it were called something else then maybe they would be less weird about it.

BTW, I actually do think my child is highly gifted and don't have a problem with the label per se.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I dislike the term Highly Gifted Center bc people find it very off putting. But I do think these kids are often brighter than the bright kids who don't get in. I don't see too many admission errors.

That is an odd reason to dislike the name.

The whole point of the Center is to provide an environment for students whose home school cannot meet their needs. What else would you call these students?

Why is it odd? It's annoying to encounter people who ask where my kids go to school. Then they find out that one goes to a different school bc he is in the HGC and they react in a way that they seem put off by the name, like my kid thinks he's better than theirs or we think our kid is better than theirs. If it were called something else then maybe they would be less weird about it.

BTW, I actually do think my child is highly gifted and don't have a problem with the label per se.

I doubt it.

When my kids were there, I would just say, "he goes to X school." If questioned further, I would say "he is in the Center program."

No need to use the full name if it bothers you that much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I dislike the term Highly Gifted Center bc people find it very off putting. But I do think these kids are often brighter than the bright kids who don't get in. I don't see too many admission errors.

What makes some people find the name off-putting? I dislike it because I feel a lot of those kids are really bright, but not gifted, so it's misnamed as far as I'm concerned (I'm PP that stated I dislike the name).

And why does MCPS call the ES HGC but in MS it's called a magnet? It seems harder to get into MS magnet than ES HGC, so if anything, it should be named the other way around - ES magnet and MS HGC for STEM or Liberal Arts, or whatever.

Well, I agree with you there. The Center was expanded years ago in response to parent demand (because everyone thinks his/her child is highly gifted). My sister, who has taught in the program for many years, says that some of what she used to do with her class is no longer feasible because the student population, while bright, is not *highly gifted* as it used to be.

RE calling the Center the HGC versus calling the middle & high school programs "magnets": That's easy. The elementary school program is not focused on a certain subject-matter, whereas the MS and HS ones are. Thus the difference. If MCPS created a program that e.g. combined the TPMS math/science/computer science curriculum with the Eastern humanities one, it could correctly be called a "middle school center for the highly gifted."

The math in HGC classes are the same as the "regular" classes. It just so happens that most of the kids in HGC are also in compacted math. So, to me, it seems like HGC is more focused on language arts/humanities (maybe some science), but it definitely doesn't include math. In my DC's HGC class, there are a few kids that go to a different class for math because they are not in compacted math. Since DC's class has more kids that are in compacted math, those kids that are not in it, leave the class. But, let's say in a year, the majority or half the class are not in compacted math; then, it's possible to have the HGC class teacher teach on-grade math and not compacted math.

[Anonymous]

It's a culture change and a shift from high school/college preparation to preparing kids earlier and earlier. It's all about risk and the likelihood of success. No one will question preparing your child for the SATs, the MCATS, LSATs etc. and sending them to prep classes. Why does everyone have such heartache over GT Prep and Magnet prep? Those companies are catering to parents who have the money to send their kids, so their business is growing. The reality is that parents won't and can't spend the time working with their own kids, so they send them to these classes. Is it right or wrong? It really is neither IMO. It depends on what your gials and success factors are for your children--and every parent is different.

Gifted and high achieving are not things that come naturally to most kids--they are learned. Some kids just have a better aptitude and learn the information easier and quicker. But that doesn't mean that other kids who study and work hard can't be high acheiving. Like it or not, pretty soon it will be the accepted norm that kids will be "prepping" when they are 2 years old. It's happening already, whether we like it or not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I dislike the term Highly Gifted Center bc people find it very off putting. But I do think these kids are often brighter than the bright kids who don't get in. I don't see too many admission errors.

What makes some people find the name off-putting? I dislike it because I feel a lot of those kids are really bright, but not gifted, so it's misnamed as far as I'm concerned (I'm PP that stated I dislike the name).

And why does MCPS call the ES HGC but in MS it's called a magnet? It seems harder to get into MS magnet than ES HGC, so if anything, it should be named the other way around - ES magnet and MS HGC for STEM or Liberal Arts, or whatever.

Well, I agree with you there. The Center was expanded years ago in response to parent demand (because everyone thinks his/her child is highly gifted). My sister, who has taught in the program for many years, says that some of what she used to do with her class is no longer feasible because the student population, while bright, is not *highly gifted* as it used to be.

RE calling the Center the HGC versus calling the middle & high school programs "magnets": That's easy. The elementary school program is not focused on a certain subject-matter, whereas the MS and HS ones are. Thus the difference. If MCPS created a program that e.g. combined the TPMS math/science/computer science curriculum with the Eastern humanities one, it could correctly be called a "middle school center for the highly gifted."

The math in HGC classes are the same as the "regular" classes. It just so happens that most of the kids in HGC are also in compacted math. So, to me, it seems like HGC is more focused on language arts/humanities (maybe some science), but it definitely doesn't include math. In my DC's HGC class, there are a few kids that go to a different class for math because they are not in compacted math. Since DC's class has more kids that are in compacted math, those kids that are not in it, leave the class. But, let's say in a year, the majority or half the class are not in compacted math; then, it's possible to have the HGC class teacher teach on-grade math and not compacted math.

MCPS does sometimes say that the HGC is more of a humanities program yet the test includes a quantitaive reasoning component. In addition, my fifth graders science in HGC is more advanced than what he would get at our home school. For math, the kids in compacted (almost all) go to the advanced math teacher and the kids in 5th grade math stay.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I dislike the term Highly Gifted Center bc people find it very off putting. But I do think these kids are often brighter than the bright kids who don't get in. I don't see too many admission errors.

That is an odd reason to dislike the name.

The whole point of the Center is to provide an environment for students whose home school cannot meet their needs. What else would you call these students?

Why is it odd? It's annoying to encounter people who ask where my kids go to school. Then they find out that one goes to a different school bc he is in the HGC and they react in a way that they seem put off by the name, like my kid thinks he's better than theirs or we think our kid is better than theirs. If it were called something else then maybe they would be less weird about it.

BTW, I actually do think my child is highly gifted and don't have a problem with the label per se.

I doubt it.

When my kids were there, I would just say, "he goes to X school." If questioned further, I would say "he is in the Center program."

No need to use the full name if it bothers you that much.

NP here. Whenever my I have to explain why my kids do/did not go to their home schools in 4th and 5th grade, I actually just call it "the magnet." I never spell out what HGC stands for. And the potential for harassment for being in the program is definitely there. Our DS says that there are non-Center kids at the host school who tease him constantly for being in the HGC. Being teased for being bright was one of the reasons he wanted to get out of his home school, and it's happening all over again. So I sympathize with wanting to downplay the "label." I myself was teased mercilessly when I got pulled out for a similar program as a child. I didn't expect it to happen in high-achieving MoCo (and particularly in our west county community), but there you go.

As to the subject of this thread, my kids did not prep for HGC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I dislike the term Highly Gifted Center bc people find it very off putting. But I do think these kids are often brighter than the bright kids who don't get in. I don't see too many admission errors.

That is an odd reason to dislike the name.

The whole point of the Center is to provide an environment for students whose home school cannot meet their needs. What else would you call these students?

Why is it odd? It's annoying to encounter people who ask where my kids go to school. Then they find out that one goes to a different school bc he is in the HGC and they react in a way that they seem put off by the name, like my kid thinks he's better than theirs or we think our kid is better than theirs. If it were called something else then maybe they would be less weird about it.

BTW, I actually do think my child is highly gifted and don't have a problem with the label per se.

I doubt it.

When my kids were there, I would just say, "he goes to X school." If questioned further, I would say "he is in the Center program."

No need to use the full name if it bothers you that much.

I pretty much never say the whole name of the program but my kids often will- especially the younger one (not in the program).

[Anonymous]

If your child isn't taking a prep class for the MS magnets, how is he or she preparing?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If your child isn't taking a prep class for the MS magnets, how is he or she preparing?

My child did the MCPS-provided practice packet the week before. That is it.

He went to the Center, the TPMS magnet, and is now at the Blair magnet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your child isn't taking a prep class for the MS magnets, how is he or she preparing?

My child did the MCPS-provided practice packet the week before. That is it.

He went to the Center, the TPMS magnet, and is now at the Blair magnet.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your child isn't taking a prep class for the MS magnets, how is he or she preparing?

My child did the MCPS-provided practice packet the week before. That is it.

He went to the Center, the TPMS magnet, and is now at the Blair magnet.

+1


Not prepping for a test specifically does not mean that other kinds of "prep" is not happening. Read the thread. Kids are being enriched at home in other ways and it all contributes to kids being high achieving.

If you think your kid needs the prep - go for it. If you think your kid does not need the prep because he has been enriched enough - then be happy with that decision. It is a personal choice.