High school math courses for College entrance

[Anonymous]

It also helps to think ahead. Unless DC has a strong interest in a math heavy STEM field, it's hard to believe they need more than AP Calculus in HS, which is an 11th grade subject on the math track, if you take Algebra in 7th.

[Anonymous]

Take a Algebra in 8th, then take AP or Honors Algebra in 9th to get an easy A on her transcript.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:^^^ sorry! iPhone. Anyway, low grades early in the year (lots of forgetting to turn in completed homework and careless mistakes). He spent the rest of the year struggling to get the grade up. So, when deciding, keep in mind Algebra is a HS credit class and will go on the HS transcript, which can add stress, and most AAP parents don't want the first entry for the HS GPA to be a B/B-. And consider how well you think your DC will adjust to changing classes, keeping up witH seven sets of assignments, due dates that often coincide (eg, a big project due the same day as an Algebra test) and real consequences (lower grades) for not turning in homework.

You can get the grade for a HS class takenin MS expunged and then it is not on the transcript or part of the HS GPA.

This is true. But the form says that if you do this for both Algebra & Geometry, they can't earn an Advanced HS diploma.

If I had the 7th grade Algebra grade expunges, I would have my child retake it in 8th grade. So the advanced diploma is still in play. Also, the advanced diploma means - ? what? Nothing. Colleges don't care- they just want to see the classes your child has taken.

I think an AAP MS would be very resistant to repeating Algebra I or dropping down mid year. What your peers think about you matters a lot in MS, and being seen as smart is very important in *some* AAP centers.

[Anonymous]

My dd took algebra 1 honors in 7th and geometry honors in 8th. She got a B in both and pass advanced on the SOLs.
I have no intention of expunging them or having her retake them. She did great and I'm sure she will get into a great college that's a good fit.

When did anything less than perfect become something to hide? When did a B become "doing badly?" There's a lot more to life than UVA.

[Anonymous]

most AAP parents don't want the first entry for the HS GPA to be a B/B-.

My disorganized, non-AAP DS (late September birthday) easily qualified for Algebra I in 7th grade. He doesn't love math or dislike it. He's just pretty good at it. I ended up having him take it in 8th, mostly because of bad experiences my friends' kids had with 7th grade Algebra in our particular middle school. He tended to get As on tests and quizzes and Bs and Cs on homework and classwork, with a final grade of a B+ and about a 570 on the SOL. If he were in AAP, I suppose I would have to expunge this grade and/or make him take Honors Geometry online in July, but lucky for him, I'm not going to do either of those things.

Math 7 Honors was a good class - not particularly challenging, but interesting because of the survey of different math topics. I don't think the compacted math curriculum prepares kids all that well for Honors Algebra. I never did any outside math tutoring or classes, though.

OP, you should probably ask your DC what she wants to do and check to see how the class is in your middle school. The class may be perfectly manageable with some teachers. My other DC took Algebra I Honors in 8th grade a few years ago and the class was exponentially more difficult than my son's experience this year. She had two to three hours of homework every night, the teacher wouldn't go over anything in class, and she used a really old, out of print text book that no one else in FCPS seems to use for the same class (I swear it was the same book I had for Algebra 2 in the late 80s).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My dd took algebra 1 honors in 7th and geometry honors in 8th. She got a B in both and pass advanced on the SOLs.
I have no intention of expunging them or having her retake them. She did great and I'm sure she will get into a great college that's a good fit.

When did anything less than perfect become something to hide? When did a B become "doing badly?" There's a lot more to life than UVA.

Don't be so sure she will get into a great college. The competition is brutal. Unless your kid got B's in middle school Alg/geom AND got into a selective school dont be so quick to bash others.

[Anonymous]

It's not about the risk/benefit in 7th grade.

It's the risk/benefit in 12th grade, and where she will be in the sequence - beyond calculus. Is she THAT good a math student?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My dd took algebra 1 honors in 7th and geometry honors in 8th. She got a B in both and pass advanced on the SOLs.
I have no intention of expunging them or having her retake them. She did great and I'm sure she will get into a great college that's a good fit.

When did anything less than perfect become something to hide? When did a B become "doing badly?" There's a lot more to life than UVA.

Don't be so sure she will get into a great college. The competition is brutal. Unless your kid got B's in middle school Alg/geom AND got into a selective school dont be so quick to bash others.

What do you consider a selective school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My dd took algebra 1 honors in 7th and geometry honors in 8th. She got a B in both and pass advanced on the SOLs.
I have no intention of expunging them or having her retake them. She did great and I'm sure she will get into a great college that's a good fit.

When did anything less than perfect become something to hide? When did a B become "doing badly?" There's a lot more to life than UVA.

Don't be so sure she will get into a great college. The competition is brutal. Unless your kid got B's in middle school Alg/geom AND got into a selective school dont be so quick to bash others.

HYP are not the only great schools. My ds just got into Duke with a handful of Bs and (gasp) one C.

[Anonymous]

Two thoughts. First, will this Alg. I class be identical in rigor to the she would take in 8th. If not, don't take it. Is it is the same, then look into what AP calc courses are offered at your HS. If possible, you want a good math student to at least get through BC level AP calc. Our oldest's school only went through AB level which led to some scheduling issues first year of college. Alg I is the most important math class your child will ever take -- the basis for all higher math. Be sure she is ready for challenging word problems and abstract thinking. Our youngest took it in 7th and did fine, but realize you are likely committing your child to AP calc in 11th grade and the work in 10th is really the same quick pace. A lot of math kids get the concepts easily- but the kids also need the maturity to grind out the problems/ homework - and that is not about intelligence and sometimes can pose challenges.

[Anonymous]

And you can still get into H/Y/P taking Alg I in 8th grade - but maybe not if you are positioning yourself as a STEM kid

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My dd took algebra 1 honors in 7th and geometry honors in 8th. She got a B in both and pass advanced on the SOLs.
I have no intention of expunging them or having her retake them. She did great and I'm sure she will get into a great college that's a good fit.

When did anything less than perfect become something to hide? When did a B become "doing badly?" There's a lot more to life than UVA.

Don't be so sure she will get into a great college. The competition is brutal. Unless your kid got B's in middle school Alg/geom AND got into a selective school dont be so quick to bash others.

HYP are not the only great schools. My ds just got into Duke with a handful of Bs and (gasp) one C.

Agree, my DS got an F in Latin in the 9th grade, amazingly enough, the world remained on its axis and he just finished his freshman year at Macalester with a 3.8 GPA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My dd took algebra 1 honors in 7th and geometry honors in 8th. She got a B in both and pass advanced on the SOLs.
I have no intention of expunging them or having her retake them. She did great and I'm sure she will get into a great college that's a good fit.

When did anything less than perfect become something to hide? When did a B become "doing badly?" There's a lot more to life than UVA.

Don't be so sure she will get into a great college. The competition is brutal. Unless your kid got B's in middle school Alg/geom AND got into a selective school dont be so quick to bash others.

HYP are not the only great schools. My ds just got into Duke with a handful of Bs and (gasp) one C.

Agree, my DS got an F in Latin in the 9th grade, amazingly enough, the world remained on its axis and he just finished his freshman year at Macalester with a 3.8 GPA.

I think it would be pretty presumptuous for someone to assume that their middle schooler will never get anything below an A in high school. Expunging Bs seems like a risky game. Those Bs could end up boosting the GPA rather than dragging it down.

[Anonymous]

So what do seniors take if had AP calc as a junior?

[Anonymous]

To the PP, I think the choices are Multivariable Calculus or AP Statistics, depending on the school.

OP here - I guess one of my questions is: if DD ends up not being the keen STEM type, can she stop math with AP Calculus (AB or BC) in 11th grade or will that limit her College admission potential?