HGC letters

[Anonymous]

Huh, my kid is one who did start K reading chapter books, has always been in top reading and math sections, and did get pull out services, but did not get in. Can't tell if she had a bad day, is regressing to norm, or if being one of the top students is just not good enough. Oh well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the parent asking about non-MCPS students: my child is currently not in MCPS, and was one of those tested at the Board of Education, and was also accepted to Pine Crest.

Would you mind answering a few questions? My child is currently in private. She is middle of the pack in her school. They don't have standardized testing. Enrichment/acceleration only happens if you are 2 grades ahead of your proper grade. There are only a handful of children that qualify each year. Everyone else is "middle".

Without exposure to MCPS, how did you know HCG would be right for your child? Prior to the BOE test, did you have any data that indicated HCG would be a good fit? Did you have any issues getting teacher recs? I'm worried about this part since the school would like to keep the students they have. Had your child ever been exposed to a standardized test?

Thanks for your thoughts and for sharing your experience.

Sorry, but if your child is "middle of the pack" in school, why would you think your child is a candidate for the "HIGHLY GIFTED" center? Are you assuming that middle of the pack in private is top of the pack in MCPS? I'm pretty sure that all of the kids that got into HGC were at the top of the pack in their home schools, reading 2 grades above level, etc..

PP here-- our school differentiator for English is the ability to write 2 grades ahead. Reading 2 grades ahead is fairly common. But if you can write cohesive comprehensive stories, insightful essays that incorporate original thought instead of book reports, then you are accelerated. My child does not write at that level so he is in the middle. If that's the peer group for HGC, then perhaps it's not worth having him take the test.

I am not assuming anything. I do not have a point of reference and was asking for assistance. I apologize if I have offended you.

No need to apologize. I was not offended. Was just curious why you would think your DC was a good candidate for HGC based on your description. What you described as accelerated in your private school is pretty much what kids in HGC are doing. As you said, reading 2 grades ahead is pretty common in regular MCPS schools, as well. To get into HGC requires more than just reading 2 grades ahead. The kids that are getting in are able make inferences and write beyond their grade level.

Thank you for sharing that. It's exactly the type of info I was looking for. DS is happily doing 3rd grade math-- the school has offered that and is reading 2 grades ahead. He enjoys problem solving but is not a fan of homework. He still writes book reports though and offers no insightful commentary.

It sounds like he is not a good candidate for HGC.

RE: math, HGC doesn't offer accelerated math. In MCPS, accelerated math is offered under compacted math, which is not part of HGC. There are kids in HGC that are not in compacted math, and vice versa.

HGC requires *a lot* of writing, so if your DC is not a strong writer, then it might be tough for him. My DC hates HW, too, and sometimes, there is a lot of it.

To the other PP, I'm not trying to discourage PP from having her DC apply to HGC. I don't care; it doesn't affect us at all. I'm merely trying to be honest and answer this PPs questions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the parent asking about non-MCPS students: my child is currently not in MCPS, and was one of those tested at the Board of Education, and was also accepted to Pine Crest.

Would you mind answering a few questions? My child is currently in private. She is middle of the pack in her school. They don't have standardized testing. Enrichment/acceleration only happens if you are 2 grades ahead of your proper grade. There are only a handful of children that qualify each year. Everyone else is "middle".

Without exposure to MCPS, how did you know HCG would be right for your child? Prior to the BOE test, did you have any data that indicated HCG would be a good fit? Did you have any issues getting teacher recs? I'm worried about this part since the school would like to keep the students they have. Had your child ever been exposed to a standardized test?

Thanks for your thoughts and for sharing your experience.

Sorry, but if your child is "middle of the pack" in school, why would you think your child is a candidate for the "HIGHLY GIFTED" center? Are you assuming that middle of the pack in private is top of the pack in MCPS? I'm pretty sure that all of the kids that got into HGC were at the top of the pack in their home schools, reading 2 grades above level, etc..

PP here-- our school differentiator for English is the ability to write 2 grades ahead. Reading 2 grades ahead is fairly common. But if you can write cohesive comprehensive stories, insightful essays that incorporate original thought instead of book reports, then you are accelerated. My child does not write at that level so he is in the middle. If that's the peer group for HGC, then perhaps it's not worth having him take the test.

I am not assuming anything. I do not have a point of reference and was asking for assistance. I apologize if I have offended you.

No need to apologize. I was not offended. Was just curious why you would think your DC was a good candidate for HGC based on your description. What you described as accelerated in your private school is pretty much what kids in HGC are doing. As you said, reading 2 grades ahead is pretty common in regular MCPS schools, as well. To get into HGC requires more than just reading 2 grades ahead. The kids that are getting in are able make inferences and write beyond their grade level.

Thank you for sharing that. It's exactly the type of info I was looking for. DS is happily doing 3rd grade math-- the school has offered that and is reading 2 grades ahead. He enjoys problem solving but is not a fan of homework. He still writes book reports though and offers no insightful commentary.

It sounds like he is not a good candidate for HGC.

RE: math, HGC doesn't offer accelerated math. In MCPS, accelerated math is offered under compacted math, which is not part of HGC. There are kids in HGC that are not in compacted math, and vice versa.

HGC requires *a lot* of writing, so if your DC is not a strong writer, then it might be tough for him. My DC hates HW, too, and sometimes, there is a lot of it.

To the other PP, I'm not trying to discourage PP from having her DC apply to HGC. I don't care; it doesn't affect us at all. I'm merely trying to be honest and answer this PPs questions.

I don't think you should be dissuaded if your child is not writing beautifully and making great inferences. The child will improve their writing at the HGC. What gets you in is an intelligence-type test. Bubble sheet, not essays!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Huh, my kid is one who did start K reading chapter books, has always been in top reading and math sections, and did get pull out services, but did not get in. Can't tell if she had a bad day, is regressing to norm, or if being one of the top students is just not good enough. Oh well.

Or she may be Highly Gifted, and just not a great test taker.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You do realize "Highly Gifted" is a misnomer. Not that these kids aren't bright but I surely don't think my child is highly gifted. He goes to MCPS and gets mostly "P"s, with an occasional "I" or "ES". He's in the higher level for math and the higher reading group but not one of those kids who is pulled out. In fact he came to MCPS from preK not reading at all. We didn't do any studying/practicing for this test nor did I prep him in any way. He scored at or above the median on all 3 sections and was accepted. I say this only to point out that if you are interested in having your child try for the program you should do so (or talk to his/her current teacher for advice).

PP who questioned that other PP's kid's chances of getting in to HGC... Yep, I realize that most of those kids are not "highly gifted", mine included. I've always said as much. But, HGC is also not for the middle of the pack, either, which is what that PP stated her child was. Anyone can have their kids tested, but, I do think that some parents put way too much pressure on some of these kids to get tested. Apparently, some kids have a lot of anxiety during these tests, so much so that some kids have cried during the tests. I think parents need to realistic about their kids' chances.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I don't think you should be dissuaded if your child is not writing beautifully and making great inferences. The child will improve their writing at the HGC. What gets you in is an intelligence-type test. Bubble sheet, not essays!

But, if the child is not at a certain level to start out with, that kid will struggle a lot. Of course, most kids improve their writing while at HGC, or at the home school, for that matter. But, if a child is in HGC, then it will be expected that the child already writes and comprehends at a certain level to begin with.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

No need to apologize. I was not offended. Was just curious why you would think your DC was a good candidate for HGC based on your description. What you described as accelerated in your private school is pretty much what kids in HGC are doing. As you said, reading 2 grades ahead is pretty common in regular MCPS schools, as well. To get into HGC requires more than just reading 2 grades ahead. The kids that are getting in are able make inferences and write beyond their grade level.

Really, I don't know what it requires to get into an HGC. Some of the kids in my child's grade who got in were a big surprise to me. And some of the kids whom I expected to get in didn't even get on the waitlist.

But I agree with the other PP that "Highly Gifted" is a misnomer. In my experience, some of the kids at the HGC really are highly gifted, but a lot of them are just regular smart kids. So if the PP's kid is a just regular smart kid, it seems to me that it's worth a try.

[Anonymous]

It's always worth a try and, as our child's third grade teacher says, you get another data point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I don't think you should be dissuaded if your child is not writing beautifully and making great inferences. The child will improve their writing at the HGC. What gets you in is an intelligence-type test. Bubble sheet, not essays!

But, if the child is not at a certain level to start out with, that kid will struggle a lot. Of course, most kids improve their writing while at HGC, or at the home school, for that matter. But, if a child is in HGC, then it will be expected that the child already writes and comprehends at a certain level to begin with.

Kids are gifted in different ways. There are many who get into HGC who were not the best writers in 2nd and 3rd Grade. Their ideas are more uniformly interesting than the mechanics are strong.

[Anonymous]

Just to offer some data points on some statements from earlier. My son is at the HGC now and loves it. We had concerns sending him because he is is more of math kid and we were told that the math was the same as home school. His writing was decent but we were concerned he would struggle.

You know what? His writing has improved tons and he is doing fine. The math compared to home school compacted math is also better just because of the peer group alone.

The homework load isn't that much worse than third grade but from what my son says there is a lot of work in class. I would say the program is not a good fit for a kid that is not self-motivated.

[Anonymous]

How do you ask for teacher recommendations without offending the teacher/school?

[Anonymous]

You dont ask for a recommendation if you are already in MCPS. The school takes care of it.

[Anonymous]

I am so confused about whether to accept or decline this program. Dd is very outgoing and social. I heard that the kids in the program tends to be quiet and not into sports. She loves sports.

[Anonymous]

The kids in the program are like any other kids. Some are quiet. Some are loud. Some are into sports. Some aren't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am so confused about whether to accept or decline this program. Dd is very outgoing and social. I heard that the kids in the program tends to be quiet and not into sports. She loves sports.

You can always drop out, but you can never go if you decline.