AAP school experience

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:In my experience, it's parents of the gen ed kids who cause the most strife. They pass their jealousy off to their kids, which is nonsense if AAP is the lousy program they claim it is. If that were true, why would it matter what class your kid was in?

Oh, please. When your kid comes home from school in tears because all of their friends told them they just "weren't smart enough" to join them in AAP, get back to us. I never said anything at all to my DC about AAP, other than to reassure them after being hurt by these obnoxious kids.

Calling them “obnoxious“ really bolsters your argument that you’re not jealous.

DP but gee, I wonder where these children are getting their "we're better than you" attitude from. In talking to neighbors, all the bright kids end up in the same AP classes in high school anyway, so why should anyone care?

Here's the thing: Parents without kids in AAP spout all the time that "kids are all together in MS honors" or "end up in the same AP classes high school anyway."

If that is the truth, turn the question back on yourselves: Why should anyone care?

I'm so sick of parents trying to cut down a program just because their kid wasn't selected. Grow up.

I just posted above that my kid is a high stat kid. I don’t know all the kids from all the other schools. I do know most of the kids that my kids went to elementary school with. Many kids who didn’t get into AAP switched to private school, the ones who probably would have done well in honors or AP classes. There are new kids who moved in middle and high school who were never in AAP that do great too. There is not some huge population of non AAP kids who do significantly better than the AAP kids and end up at Harvard or Yale.

You're right, you don't know all the kids from all the other schools so your weird anecdote is totally false. AAP is not the huge indicator of success that you think it is.

I didn’t grow up around here. I did attend a magnet high school and DH and I are both ivy educated. I really don’t care about AAP or what college others go to. I definitely don’t care if another person’s kid is in AAP or not. I only care about my kids and I like their peer group in AAP.

I meant the other elementary schools feeding into Cooper/Langley when referring to other schools. From our elementary, most of the smart kids were in AAP. It felt like half of Cooper was AAP so this isn’t some difficult group to be in.

I knew from your first post that you were a Langley parent. So obvious.

DP. Um, I'm a Langley parent also and have been rolling my eyes at the above poster. No need to paint everyone with the same brush.

I have two kids at Langley. Over 50% of the kids at Cooper were Level IV AAP. Anyone at Langley can easily see the very obvious groups of kids at Langley.

My kids weren't AAP, yet are in all honors and AP classes at Langley. It's not obvious at all who was and wasn't in AAP during elementary and middle school and you're mistaken if you think there's somehow a tell. There isn't.

It’s pretty obvious in my son’s honor classes actually. He says there are quite a few goofballs. Obviously not AAP kids. A lot of AAP kids will also take more APs.

Aha! This shows your true colors! You have been brainwashed to think that all kids have these labels. FCPS has created a bifurcated student population at an elementary level. Then year later in high school, you—the parent assume that any goofball in your kid’s honors class is not AAP. Do you even hear yourself? This makes me think that the AAP program needs to be abolished. It is not working right with the toxicity that parents and students are layering upon it. Most little Larla’s and little Larlo’s are not some over creative, over innovative, super driven, over the top students. Rather, they are bright mixed with not so bright and goofballs mixed with non goofballs. They are average with only 1 or 2 occasionally standing out as gifted. We see this every year in our classrooms. I also find it ridiculous that their parents are paying for tutors, Mathnasium, RSM, Kumon, tutoring clubs, AoPS, etc. to keep up appearances that these kids are naturally bright and spending on testing prep.

Here's a thought: you parent how you want to parent, and I'll parent how I want to parent. Whatever classes my kid does or doesn't take is none of your businesses. Your opinion simply doesn't matter.

Just like if I thought you were "ridiculous" with baseball or karate or Sunday School or Scouts or whatever you do in your free time. Not my business. Your parenting choice.

Your jealousy over children is disgusting. Shame on you.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:What’s so sad is once a base kid moves into the AAP class, they lose all their friendships with the gen Ed kids because they literally never see them again.

This has been our experience at a school with an LLIV program. There are two regular classes and one AAP class. The girls in the 6th grade AAP class have cliqued up to the point where they even have their own sports teams in the local rec league. They stayed friends in 3rd, but my child and several others got dropped like a hot potato in 4th.

I knew a teacher who was really exasperated about one of those 2E kids in her classroom who threw screaming fits frequently. The kind where the rest of the class had to leave while the child exploded screaming. And, the irony: the kid really wasn't that smart. The mom pushed for it.

I don’t even know where to start with this, but it sounds a whole lot like frustration that students with disabilities can also be gifted.

Sorry that challenges your belief in eugenics

Do you even know what that means? That had nothing to do with the comment.

But, if the teacher did not think the child was gifted, why do you think that? You do know that parents who complain and push frequently get their kids admitted.

This surely demonstrates your ignorance about the program. Parents can’t “push” their kids into it. They have to be selected by a committee.

DP. Wrong. At our center, parents who were friends with the principal asked the principal to place their kids in the AAP classes. It's called "principal placing" and pushy parents use it to their advantage all the time.

Then your school isn’t a center. That would be a local level IV school. Principals cannot pupil place kids into center AAP classes.

DP but yes they can to round out class sizes. Otherwise you could have huge differences in class sizes between AAP and General Ed. You just can't have an AAP class that is 35 kids or two that are 17 when the general ed classes are 25. They pull from general education to even out class sizes.

You are completely wrong. In a center school, principals cannot round out class sizes to their liking. They can only do this at a local level IV school. In fact, that’s why many kids choose the center school - the class cannot be padded with Gen Ed kids. All the kids are committee placed only.

Do you even know what the difference is between a center school and a local level IV school?

You sound ridiculous when you talk about “kids” choosing centers. The parents typically make the decision.

Or do you think a lot of second graders really worry about being in a LLIV classroom at a non-center school where some kids may have been principal-placed?

“Oh, mommy, I must go to Mantua to avoid having a Gen Ed kid who may stunt my intellectual development in my class!”

With a kid getting ready to apply to college, you will see a big difference between all the kids. This disappointment in second grade is just one of many. I always tell my kids not to feel bad for failing. It teaches them grit.

Blaming parents of kids sending their kids to an AAP center is not the answer. You hear similar type complaints and jealous comments when Johnny gets in T10 while Bobby is going to XYZ state school. Lots of comments about Johnny is a legacy or his parents set him up with this internship or that. It is tiring. I don’t participate.

DP. Analogy fail. That has nothing to do with FCPS allowing certain kids to choose "special" schools if they score well enough on a test. Especially the FCPS that is constantly braying about "equity."

Shrug. The complaining sounds the same to me. Kid doesn’t make the baseball team or tennis team or basketball team complaining. An AAP center isn’t special. I actually like that kids in fcps can switch schools for sped, AAP, Spanish immersion, French immersion, etc. My kids didn’t have to switch because our base was a center and my kids’ needs were always served at our schools.

Some kids go to special schools to allow them to play more tennis, gymnastics, football…

There is nothing wrong with being average or being in gen ed. Most people are average. To me, the complaining all sounds the same whether it is about sports, AAP, TJ, college, med school, law school, internships, jobs.

Except most kids in AAP are average. I have been teaching AAP for the last 10 years. I usually have 1-3 TRULY gifted kids each year. There are many SMART kids but not truly gifted. Many of these SMART kids don’t want to put the effort in so their performance is average. I have a handful each year who struggle and I question how they were even selected. They have also continuously dumbed down the curriculum since I started.

If AAP is not a truly gifted program, then it should be taught at the base school.

I say this as an AAP teacher. Centers will be on the chopping block most likely during boundary adjustments.

AAP is not meant to be for truly gifted kids. It’s for children who are academically advanced and can understand the curriculum easily especially math. That is why by 5th grade they are ahead one year in the math curriculum. I don’t understand why people complain about the AAP program. It is just for students who are advanced and can keep up with the fast pace. Why should we get rid of it? They are students who are behind or right at grade level. The GE program serves those students perfectly fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s so sad is once a base kid moves into the AAP class, they lose all their friendships with the gen Ed kids because they literally never see them again.

This has been our experience at a school with an LLIV program. There are two regular classes and one AAP class. The girls in the 6th grade AAP class have cliqued up to the point where they even have their own sports teams in the local rec league. They stayed friends in 3rd, but my child and several others got dropped like a hot potato in 4th.

I knew a teacher who was really exasperated about one of those 2E kids in her classroom who threw screaming fits frequently. The kind where the rest of the class had to leave while the child exploded screaming. And, the irony: the kid really wasn't that smart. The mom pushed for it.

I don’t even know where to start with this, but it sounds a whole lot like frustration that students with disabilities can also be gifted.

Sorry that challenges your belief in eugenics

Do you even know what that means? That had nothing to do with the comment.

But, if the teacher did not think the child was gifted, why do you think that? You do know that parents who complain and push frequently get their kids admitted.

This surely demonstrates your ignorance about the program. Parents can’t “push” their kids into it. They have to be selected by a committee.

DP. Wrong. At our center, parents who were friends with the principal asked the principal to place their kids in the AAP classes. It's called "principal placing" and pushy parents use it to their advantage all the time.

Then your school isn’t a center. That would be a local level IV school. Principals cannot pupil place kids into center AAP classes.

DP but yes they can to round out class sizes. Otherwise you could have huge differences in class sizes between AAP and General Ed. You just can't have an AAP class that is 35 kids or two that are 17 when the general ed classes are 25. They pull from general education to even out class sizes.

You are completely wrong. In a center school, principals cannot round out class sizes to their liking. They can only do this at a local level IV school. In fact, that’s why many kids choose the center school - the class cannot be padded with Gen Ed kids. All the kids are committee placed only.

Do you even know what the difference is between a center school and a local level IV school?

You sound ridiculous when you talk about “kids” choosing centers. The parents typically make the decision.

Or do you think a lot of second graders really worry about being in a LLIV classroom at a non-center school where some kids may have been principal-placed?

“Oh, mommy, I must go to Mantua to avoid having a Gen Ed kid who may stunt my intellectual development in my class!”

With a kid getting ready to apply to college, you will see a big difference between all the kids. This disappointment in second grade is just one of many. I always tell my kids not to feel bad for failing. It teaches them grit.

Blaming parents of kids sending their kids to an AAP center is not the answer. You hear similar type complaints and jealous comments when Johnny gets in T10 while Bobby is going to XYZ state school. Lots of comments about Johnny is a legacy or his parents set him up with this internship or that. It is tiring. I don’t participate.

DP. Analogy fail. That has nothing to do with FCPS allowing certain kids to choose "special" schools if they score well enough on a test. Especially the FCPS that is constantly braying about "equity."

Shrug. The complaining sounds the same to me. Kid doesn’t make the baseball team or tennis team or basketball team complaining. An AAP center isn’t special. I actually like that kids in fcps can switch schools for sped, AAP, Spanish immersion, French immersion, etc. My kids didn’t have to switch because our base was a center and my kids’ needs were always served at our schools.

Some kids go to special schools to allow them to play more tennis, gymnastics, football…

There is nothing wrong with being average or being in gen ed. Most people are average. To me, the complaining all sounds the same whether it is about sports, AAP, TJ, college, med school, law school, internships, jobs.

Except most kids in AAP are average. I have been teaching AAP for the last 10 years. I usually have 1-3 TRULY gifted kids each year. There are many SMART kids but not truly gifted. Many of these SMART kids don’t want to put the effort in so their performance is average. I have a handful each year who struggle and I question how they were even selected. They have also continuously dumbed down the curriculum since I started.

If AAP is not a truly gifted program, then it should be taught at the base school.

I say this as an AAP teacher. Centers will be on the chopping block most likely during boundary adjustments.

AAP is not meant to be for truly gifted kids. It’s for children who are academically advanced and can understand the curriculum easily especially math. That is why by 5th grade they are ahead one year in the math curriculum. I don’t understand why people complain about the AAP program. It is just for students who are advanced and can keep up with the fast pace. Why should we get rid of it? They are students who are behind or right at grade level. The GE program serves those students perfectly fine.

The issue is that there are plenty of kids who can handle the slightly more advanced LA/Social Studies/Science portion but not the math who end up in LIV. Then he math slows down for the kids who can handle the math.

The kids who are ahead only in Math tend to stay in Gen Ed and are placed in Advanced Math, which would be fine if Advanced math was actually uniform across the County. Some schools start Advanced Math in 3rd, others in 5th, and a few not until 6. If you are at one of the schools that don't start until 5th or 6th then your kid is going to be bored in math.

Gen Ed is too broad right now. There are kids that are 1-2 grades behind all the way to kids who are a grade level ahead. And the kids who are on grade level to ahead end up getting little to know attention from the Teacher because the focus is on getting the kids who are behind up to speed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s so sad is once a base kid moves into the AAP class, they lose all their friendships with the gen Ed kids because they literally never see them again.

This has been our experience at a school with an LLIV program. There are two regular classes and one AAP class. The girls in the 6th grade AAP class have cliqued up to the point where they even have their own sports teams in the local rec league. They stayed friends in 3rd, but my child and several others got dropped like a hot potato in 4th.

I knew a teacher who was really exasperated about one of those 2E kids in her classroom who threw screaming fits frequently. The kind where the rest of the class had to leave while the child exploded screaming. And, the irony: the kid really wasn't that smart. The mom pushed for it.

I don’t even know where to start with this, but it sounds a whole lot like frustration that students with disabilities can also be gifted.

Sorry that challenges your belief in eugenics

Do you even know what that means? That had nothing to do with the comment.

But, if the teacher did not think the child was gifted, why do you think that? You do know that parents who complain and push frequently get their kids admitted.

This surely demonstrates your ignorance about the program. Parents can’t “push” their kids into it. They have to be selected by a committee.

DP. Wrong. At our center, parents who were friends with the principal asked the principal to place their kids in the AAP classes. It's called "principal placing" and pushy parents use it to their advantage all the time.

Then your school isn’t a center. That would be a local level IV school. Principals cannot pupil place kids into center AAP classes.

DP but yes they can to round out class sizes. Otherwise you could have huge differences in class sizes between AAP and General Ed. You just can't have an AAP class that is 35 kids or two that are 17 when the general ed classes are 25. They pull from general education to even out class sizes.

You are completely wrong. In a center school, principals cannot round out class sizes to their liking. They can only do this at a local level IV school. In fact, that’s why many kids choose the center school - the class cannot be padded with Gen Ed kids. All the kids are committee placed only.

Do you even know what the difference is between a center school and a local level IV school?

You sound ridiculous when you talk about “kids” choosing centers. The parents typically make the decision.

Or do you think a lot of second graders really worry about being in a LLIV classroom at a non-center school where some kids may have been principal-placed?

“Oh, mommy, I must go to Mantua to avoid having a Gen Ed kid who may stunt my intellectual development in my class!”

With a kid getting ready to apply to college, you will see a big difference between all the kids. This disappointment in second grade is just one of many. I always tell my kids not to feel bad for failing. It teaches them grit.

Blaming parents of kids sending their kids to an AAP center is not the answer. You hear similar type complaints and jealous comments when Johnny gets in T10 while Bobby is going to XYZ state school. Lots of comments about Johnny is a legacy or his parents set him up with this internship or that. It is tiring. I don’t participate.

DP. Analogy fail. That has nothing to do with FCPS allowing certain kids to choose "special" schools if they score well enough on a test. Especially the FCPS that is constantly braying about "equity."

Shrug. The complaining sounds the same to me. Kid doesn’t make the baseball team or tennis team or basketball team complaining. An AAP center isn’t special. I actually like that kids in fcps can switch schools for sped, AAP, Spanish immersion, French immersion, etc. My kids didn’t have to switch because our base was a center and my kids’ needs were always served at our schools.

Some kids go to special schools to allow them to play more tennis, gymnastics, football…

There is nothing wrong with being average or being in gen ed. Most people are average. To me, the complaining all sounds the same whether it is about sports, AAP, TJ, college, med school, law school, internships, jobs.

Except most kids in AAP are average. I have been teaching AAP for the last 10 years. I usually have 1-3 TRULY gifted kids each year. There are many SMART kids but not truly gifted. Many of these SMART kids don’t want to put the effort in so their performance is average. I have a handful each year who struggle and I question how they were even selected. They have also continuously dumbed down the curriculum since I started.

If AAP is not a truly gifted program, then it should be taught at the base school.

I say this as an AAP teacher. Centers will be on the chopping block most likely during boundary adjustments.

AAP is not meant to be for truly gifted kids. It’s for children who are academically advanced and can understand the curriculum easily especially math. That is why by 5th grade they are ahead one year in the math curriculum. I don’t understand why people complain about the AAP program. It is just for students who are advanced and can keep up with the fast pace. Why should we get rid of it? They are students who are behind or right at grade level. The GE program serves those students perfectly fine.

Very reasonable. Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s so sad is once a base kid moves into the AAP class, they lose all their friendships with the gen Ed kids because they literally never see them again.

This has been our experience at a school with an LLIV program. There are two regular classes and one AAP class. The girls in the 6th grade AAP class have cliqued up to the point where they even have their own sports teams in the local rec league. They stayed friends in 3rd, but my child and several others got dropped like a hot potato in 4th.

I knew a teacher who was really exasperated about one of those 2E kids in her classroom who threw screaming fits frequently. The kind where the rest of the class had to leave while the child exploded screaming. And, the irony: the kid really wasn't that smart. The mom pushed for it.

I don’t even know where to start with this, but it sounds a whole lot like frustration that students with disabilities can also be gifted.

Sorry that challenges your belief in eugenics

Do you even know what that means? That had nothing to do with the comment.

But, if the teacher did not think the child was gifted, why do you think that? You do know that parents who complain and push frequently get their kids admitted.

This surely demonstrates your ignorance about the program. Parents can’t “push” their kids into it. They have to be selected by a committee.

DP. Wrong. At our center, parents who were friends with the principal asked the principal to place their kids in the AAP classes. It's called "principal placing" and pushy parents use it to their advantage all the time.

Then your school isn’t a center. That would be a local level IV school. Principals cannot pupil place kids into center AAP classes.

DP but yes they can to round out class sizes. Otherwise you could have huge differences in class sizes between AAP and General Ed. You just can't have an AAP class that is 35 kids or two that are 17 when the general ed classes are 25. They pull from general education to even out class sizes.

You are completely wrong. In a center school, principals cannot round out class sizes to their liking. They can only do this at a local level IV school. In fact, that’s why many kids choose the center school - the class cannot be padded with Gen Ed kids. All the kids are committee placed only.

Do you even know what the difference is between a center school and a local level IV school?

You sound ridiculous when you talk about “kids” choosing centers. The parents typically make the decision.

Or do you think a lot of second graders really worry about being in a LLIV classroom at a non-center school where some kids may have been principal-placed?

“Oh, mommy, I must go to Mantua to avoid having a Gen Ed kid who may stunt my intellectual development in my class!”

With a kid getting ready to apply to college, you will see a big difference between all the kids. This disappointment in second grade is just one of many. I always tell my kids not to feel bad for failing. It teaches them grit.

Blaming parents of kids sending their kids to an AAP center is not the answer. You hear similar type complaints and jealous comments when Johnny gets in T10 while Bobby is going to XYZ state school. Lots of comments about Johnny is a legacy or his parents set him up with this internship or that. It is tiring. I don’t participate.

DP. Analogy fail. That has nothing to do with FCPS allowing certain kids to choose "special" schools if they score well enough on a test. Especially the FCPS that is constantly braying about "equity."

Shrug. The complaining sounds the same to me. Kid doesn’t make the baseball team or tennis team or basketball team complaining. An AAP center isn’t special. I actually like that kids in fcps can switch schools for sped, AAP, Spanish immersion, French immersion, etc. My kids didn’t have to switch because our base was a center and my kids’ needs were always served at our schools.

Some kids go to special schools to allow them to play more tennis, gymnastics, football…

There is nothing wrong with being average or being in gen ed. Most people are average. To me, the complaining all sounds the same whether it is about sports, AAP, TJ, college, med school, law school, internships, jobs.

Except most kids in AAP are average. I have been teaching AAP for the last 10 years. I usually have 1-3 TRULY gifted kids each year. There are many SMART kids but not truly gifted. Many of these SMART kids don’t want to put the effort in so their performance is average. I have a handful each year who struggle and I question how they were even selected. They have also continuously dumbed down the curriculum since I started.

If AAP is not a truly gifted program, then it should be taught at the base school.

I say this as an AAP teacher. Centers will be on the chopping block most likely during boundary adjustments.

AAP is not meant to be for truly gifted kids. It’s for children who are academically advanced and can understand the curriculum easily especially math. That is why by 5th grade they are ahead one year in the math curriculum. I don’t understand why people complain about the AAP program. It is just for students who are advanced and can keep up with the fast pace. Why should we get rid of it? They are students who are behind or right at grade level. The GE program serves those students perfectly fine.

Except the kids are all getting the same LA curriculum. AAP kids and Gen ED are all doing Benchmark.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s so sad is once a base kid moves into the AAP class, they lose all their friendships with the gen Ed kids because they literally never see them again.

This has been our experience at a school with an LLIV program. There are two regular classes and one AAP class. The girls in the 6th grade AAP class have cliqued up to the point where they even have their own sports teams in the local rec league. They stayed friends in 3rd, but my child and several others got dropped like a hot potato in 4th.

I knew a teacher who was really exasperated about one of those 2E kids in her classroom who threw screaming fits frequently. The kind where the rest of the class had to leave while the child exploded screaming. And, the irony: the kid really wasn't that smart. The mom pushed for it.

I don’t even know where to start with this, but it sounds a whole lot like frustration that students with disabilities can also be gifted.

Sorry that challenges your belief in eugenics

Do you even know what that means? That had nothing to do with the comment.

But, if the teacher did not think the child was gifted, why do you think that? You do know that parents who complain and push frequently get their kids admitted.

This surely demonstrates your ignorance about the program. Parents can’t “push” their kids into it. They have to be selected by a committee.

DP. Wrong. At our center, parents who were friends with the principal asked the principal to place their kids in the AAP classes. It's called "principal placing" and pushy parents use it to their advantage all the time.

Then your school isn’t a center. That would be a local level IV school. Principals cannot pupil place kids into center AAP classes.

DP but yes they can to round out class sizes. Otherwise you could have huge differences in class sizes between AAP and General Ed. You just can't have an AAP class that is 35 kids or two that are 17 when the general ed classes are 25. They pull from general education to even out class sizes.

You are completely wrong. In a center school, principals cannot round out class sizes to their liking. They can only do this at a local level IV school. In fact, that’s why many kids choose the center school - the class cannot be padded with Gen Ed kids. All the kids are committee placed only.

Do you even know what the difference is between a center school and a local level IV school?

You sound ridiculous when you talk about “kids” choosing centers. The parents typically make the decision.

Or do you think a lot of second graders really worry about being in a LLIV classroom at a non-center school where some kids may have been principal-placed?

“Oh, mommy, I must go to Mantua to avoid having a Gen Ed kid who may stunt my intellectual development in my class!”

With a kid getting ready to apply to college, you will see a big difference between all the kids. This disappointment in second grade is just one of many. I always tell my kids not to feel bad for failing. It teaches them grit.

Blaming parents of kids sending their kids to an AAP center is not the answer. You hear similar type complaints and jealous comments when Johnny gets in T10 while Bobby is going to XYZ state school. Lots of comments about Johnny is a legacy or his parents set him up with this internship or that. It is tiring. I don’t participate.

DP. Analogy fail. That has nothing to do with FCPS allowing certain kids to choose "special" schools if they score well enough on a test. Especially the FCPS that is constantly braying about "equity."

Shrug. The complaining sounds the same to me. Kid doesn’t make the baseball team or tennis team or basketball team complaining. An AAP center isn’t special. I actually like that kids in fcps can switch schools for sped, AAP, Spanish immersion, French immersion, etc. My kids didn’t have to switch because our base was a center and my kids’ needs were always served at our schools.

Some kids go to special schools to allow them to play more tennis, gymnastics, football…

There is nothing wrong with being average or being in gen ed. Most people are average. To me, the complaining all sounds the same whether it is about sports, AAP, TJ, college, med school, law school, internships, jobs.

Except most kids in AAP are average. I have been teaching AAP for the last 10 years. I usually have 1-3 TRULY gifted kids each year. There are many SMART kids but not truly gifted. Many of these SMART kids don’t want to put the effort in so their performance is average. I have a handful each year who struggle and I question how they were even selected. They have also continuously dumbed down the curriculum since I started.

If AAP is not a truly gifted program, then it should be taught at the base school.

I say this as an AAP teacher. Centers will be on the chopping block most likely during boundary adjustments.

AAP is not meant to be for truly gifted kids. It’s for children who are academically advanced and can understand the curriculum easily especially math. That is why by 5th grade they are ahead one year in the math curriculum. I don’t understand why people complain about the AAP program. It is just for students who are advanced and can keep up with the fast pace. Why should we get rid of it? They are students who are behind or right at grade level. The GE program serves those students perfectly fine.

No one is saying get rid of AAP. They are saying to get rid of centers and have all ES be local Level 4. You don’t need a separate school for a slightly advanced curriculum. They should be educated their base school.

[Anonymous]

AAP has really just become a slightly accelerated math program. That’s all. Sadly, even this program is not passing all of our kids to Algebra 1 by 7th grade. So, for all the clamoring, it’s not working right.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:What’s so sad is once a base kid moves into the AAP class, they lose all their friendships with the gen Ed kids because they literally never see them again.

This has been our experience at a school with an LLIV program. There are two regular classes and one AAP class. The girls in the 6th grade AAP class have cliqued up to the point where they even have their own sports teams in the local rec league. They stayed friends in 3rd, but my child and several others got dropped like a hot potato in 4th.

I knew a teacher who was really exasperated about one of those 2E kids in her classroom who threw screaming fits frequently. The kind where the rest of the class had to leave while the child exploded screaming. And, the irony: the kid really wasn't that smart. The mom pushed for it.

I don’t even know where to start with this, but it sounds a whole lot like frustration that students with disabilities can also be gifted.

Sorry that challenges your belief in eugenics

Do you even know what that means? That had nothing to do with the comment.

But, if the teacher did not think the child was gifted, why do you think that? You do know that parents who complain and push frequently get their kids admitted.

This surely demonstrates your ignorance about the program. Parents can’t “push” their kids into it. They have to be selected by a committee.

DP. Wrong. At our center, parents who were friends with the principal asked the principal to place their kids in the AAP classes. It's called "principal placing" and pushy parents use it to their advantage all the time.

Then your school isn’t a center. That would be a local level IV school. Principals cannot pupil place kids into center AAP classes.

DP but yes they can to round out class sizes. Otherwise you could have huge differences in class sizes between AAP and General Ed. You just can't have an AAP class that is 35 kids or two that are 17 when the general ed classes are 25. They pull from general education to even out class sizes.

You are completely wrong. In a center school, principals cannot round out class sizes to their liking. They can only do this at a local level IV school. In fact, that’s why many kids choose the center school - the class cannot be padded with Gen Ed kids. All the kids are committee placed only.

Do you even know what the difference is between a center school and a local level IV school?

DP. This is absolute BS. How do I know that? Because OUR CENTER SCHOOL does exactly this. Please stop lecturing others about the reality of their own schools - which you clearly know nothing about. It is YOU who is completely wrong.

Name your school. Only local level IV AAP schools can pupil place. Center schools cannot. You are clearly confused on what a center school actually is.

Question to you - how many AAP classes are at your school? How many schools does your “center” pull from to make their AAP classes?

Not PP, but again since you're obsessed with a name Canterbury Woods has done full time principal placement in the past. So there's no actual rule against this, contrary to your claim. That was the previous principal; I don't know that the current one still does.

+1.

- another Canterbury Woods parent who has been told by at least 2 parents that this was done in 2021-2022 and 2022-2023

Being told by parents doesn’t make it true. The parent was telling you that someone else’s kid was placed or their own? Big difference. I never believe what a parent says. It’s just gossip. I don’t believe a parent would admit to their own child being principal placed at a center school because that would open up Pandora’s box.

DP. I don’t know how many more people need to tell you this, but kids are principal placed at center schools all the time. Whether it’s to even out class sizes or because a parent is friends with the principal and asked him/her to do this - it happens all the time.

I think those of you insisting it does not happen simply don’t want anyone to think that YOUR kid could have been principal placed. So transparent.

Or maybe it's AAP parents who are appalled by the idea of the program being watered down when, in our experience, some committee placed kids were more likely to need extra help in AAP than principal placed ones .

That too. Either way, it’s clear the vehement denials that center kids could ever be *gasp* principal placed are coming from AAP parents who desperately want to pretend center programs are somehow exclusive to their own kids. How embarrassing for anyone to think those “regular” kids are being put in classes with their “special” kids! /s

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In my experience, it's parents of the gen ed kids who cause the most strife. They pass their jealousy off to their kids, which is nonsense if AAP is the lousy program they claim it is. If that were true, why would it matter what class your kid was in?

+1
Sad jealously.

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Anonymous wrote:In my experience, it's parents of the gen ed kids who cause the most strife. They pass their jealousy off to their kids, which is nonsense if AAP is the lousy program they claim it is. If that were true, why would it matter what class your kid was in?

Oh, please. When your kid comes home from school in tears because all of their friends told them they just "weren't smart enough" to join them in AAP, get back to us. I never said anything at all to my DC about AAP, other than to reassure them after being hurt by these obnoxious kids.

Calling them “obnoxious“ really bolsters your argument that you’re not jealous.

DP but gee, I wonder where these children are getting their "we're better than you" attitude from. In talking to neighbors, all the bright kids end up in the same AP classes in high school anyway, so why should anyone care?

Here's the thing: Parents without kids in AAP spout all the time that "kids are all together in MS honors" or "end up in the same AP classes high school anyway."

If that is the truth, turn the question back on yourselves: Why should anyone care?

I'm so sick of parents trying to cut down a program just because their kid wasn't selected. Grow up.

I just posted above that my kid is a high stat kid. I don’t know all the kids from all the other schools. I do know most of the kids that my kids went to elementary school with. Many kids who didn’t get into AAP switched to private school, the ones who probably would have done well in honors or AP classes. There are new kids who moved in middle and high school who were never in AAP that do great too. There is not some huge population of non AAP kids who do significantly better than the AAP kids and end up at Harvard or Yale.

You're right, you don't know all the kids from all the other schools so your weird anecdote is totally false. AAP is not the huge indicator of success that you think it is.

I didn’t grow up around here. I did attend a magnet high school and DH and I are both ivy educated. I really don’t care about AAP or what college others go to. I definitely don’t care if another person’s kid is in AAP or not. I only care about my kids and I like their peer group in AAP.

I meant the other elementary schools feeding into Cooper/Langley when referring to other schools. From our elementary, most of the smart kids were in AAP. It felt like half of Cooper was AAP so this isn’t some difficult group to be in.

I knew from your first post that you were a Langley parent. So obvious.

DP. Um, I'm a Langley parent also and have been rolling my eyes at the above poster. No need to paint everyone with the same brush.

I have two kids at Langley. Over 50% of the kids at Cooper were Level IV AAP. Anyone at Langley can easily see the very obvious groups of kids at Langley.

My kids weren't AAP, yet are in all honors and AP classes at Langley. It's not obvious at all who was and wasn't in AAP during elementary and middle school and you're mistaken if you think there's somehow a tell. There isn't.

It’s pretty obvious in my son’s honor classes actually. He says there are quite a few goofballs. Obviously not AAP kids. A lot of AAP kids will also take more APs.

Aha! This shows your true colors! You have been brainwashed to think that all kids have these labels. FCPS has created a bifurcated student population at an elementary level. Then year later in high school, you—the parent assume that any goofball in your kid’s honors class is not AAP. Do you even hear yourself? This makes me think that the AAP program needs to be abolished. It is not working right with the toxicity that parents and students are layering upon it. Most little Larla’s and little Larlo’s are not some over creative, over innovative, super driven, over the top students. Rather, they are bright mixed with not so bright and goofballs mixed with non goofballs. They are average with only 1 or 2 occasionally standing out as gifted. We see this every year in our classrooms. I also find it ridiculous that their parents are paying for tutors, Mathnasium, RSM, Kumon, tutoring clubs, AoPS, etc. to keep up appearances that these kids are naturally bright and spending on testing prep.

WELL SAID. The absurdity of AAP centers or exclusive AAP classes cannot be emphasized enough.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:In my experience, it's parents of the gen ed kids who cause the most strife. They pass their jealousy off to their kids, which is nonsense if AAP is the lousy program they claim it is. If that were true, why would it matter what class your kid was in?

Oh, please. When your kid comes home from school in tears because all of their friends told them they just "weren't smart enough" to join them in AAP, get back to us. I never said anything at all to my DC about AAP, other than to reassure them after being hurt by these obnoxious kids.

Calling them “obnoxious“ really bolsters your argument that you’re not jealous.

DP but gee, I wonder where these children are getting their "we're better than you" attitude from. In talking to neighbors, all the bright kids end up in the same AP classes in high school anyway, so why should anyone care?

Here's the thing: Parents without kids in AAP spout all the time that "kids are all together in MS honors" or "end up in the same AP classes high school anyway."

If that is the truth, turn the question back on yourselves: Why should anyone care?

I'm so sick of parents trying to cut down a program just because their kid wasn't selected. Grow up.

I just posted above that my kid is a high stat kid. I don’t know all the kids from all the other schools. I do know most of the kids that my kids went to elementary school with. Many kids who didn’t get into AAP switched to private school, the ones who probably would have done well in honors or AP classes. There are new kids who moved in middle and high school who were never in AAP that do great too. There is not some huge population of non AAP kids who do significantly better than the AAP kids and end up at Harvard or Yale.

You're right, you don't know all the kids from all the other schools so your weird anecdote is totally false. AAP is not the huge indicator of success that you think it is.

I didn’t grow up around here. I did attend a magnet high school and DH and I are both ivy educated. I really don’t care about AAP or what college others go to. I definitely don’t care if another person’s kid is in AAP or not. I only care about my kids and I like their peer group in AAP.

I meant the other elementary schools feeding into Cooper/Langley when referring to other schools. From our elementary, most of the smart kids were in AAP. It felt like half of Cooper was AAP so this isn’t some difficult group to be in.

I knew from your first post that you were a Langley parent. So obvious.

DP. Um, I'm a Langley parent also and have been rolling my eyes at the above poster. No need to paint everyone with the same brush.

I have two kids at Langley. Over 50% of the kids at Cooper were Level IV AAP. Anyone at Langley can easily see the very obvious groups of kids at Langley.

My kids weren't AAP, yet are in all honors and AP classes at Langley. It's not obvious at all who was and wasn't in AAP during elementary and middle school and you're mistaken if you think there's somehow a tell. There isn't.

It’s pretty obvious in my son’s honor classes actually. He says there are quite a few goofballs. Obviously not AAP kids. A lot of AAP kids will also take more APs.

Aha! This shows your true colors! You have been brainwashed to think that all kids have these labels. FCPS has created a bifurcated student population at an elementary level. Then year later in high school, you—the parent assume that any goofball in your kid’s honors class is not AAP. Do you even hear yourself? This makes me think that the AAP program needs to be abolished. It is not working right with the toxicity that parents and students are layering upon it. Most little Larla’s and little Larlo’s are not some over creative, over innovative, super driven, over the top students. Rather, they are bright mixed with not so bright and goofballs mixed with non goofballs. They are average with only 1 or 2 occasionally standing out as gifted. We see this every year in our classrooms. I also find it ridiculous that their parents are paying for tutors, Mathnasium, RSM, Kumon, tutoring clubs, AoPS, etc. to keep up appearances that these kids are naturally bright and spending on testing prep.

Here's a thought: you parent how you want to parent, and I'll parent how I want to parent. Whatever classes my kid does or doesn't take is none of your businesses. Your opinion simply doesn't matter.

Just like if I thought you were "ridiculous" with baseball or karate or Sunday School or Scouts or whatever you do in your free time. Not my business. Your parenting choice.

Your jealousy over children is disgusting. Shame on you.

DP. You’re confused. No one cares what classes your kid takes. The point is that advanced classes should be available to ANY and ALL students who can do the work. This could be implemented through flexible groupings, as other posters have suggested. That would allow all kids to cycle into and out of different levels as needed. No one would be prevented from excelling to the next level. If they weren’t able to do the work, they could simply move down a level until they were.

This desire of some parents to have exclusive AAP classes and centers says so much more about you than it does anyone else. Gen Ed kids - many of whom are advanced in at least one subject - don’t get exclusive classes. Why should your kid?

[Anonymous]

AAP is not meant to be for truly gifted kids

[/b]

Agree. But, FCPS uses it to justify complying with the GT law.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:What’s so sad is once a base kid moves into the AAP class, they lose all their friendships with the gen Ed kids because they literally never see them again.

This has been our experience at a school with an LLIV program. There are two regular classes and one AAP class. The girls in the 6th grade AAP class have cliqued up to the point where they even have their own sports teams in the local rec league. They stayed friends in 3rd, but my child and several others got dropped like a hot potato in 4th.

I knew a teacher who was really exasperated about one of those 2E kids in her classroom who threw screaming fits frequently. The kind where the rest of the class had to leave while the child exploded screaming. And, the irony: the kid really wasn't that smart. The mom pushed for it.

I don’t even know where to start with this, but it sounds a whole lot like frustration that students with disabilities can also be gifted.

Sorry that challenges your belief in eugenics

Do you even know what that means? That had nothing to do with the comment.

But, if the teacher did not think the child was gifted, why do you think that? You do know that parents who complain and push frequently get their kids admitted.

This surely demonstrates your ignorance about the program. Parents can’t “push” their kids into it. They have to be selected by a committee.

DP. Wrong. At our center, parents who were friends with the principal asked the principal to place their kids in the AAP classes. It's called "principal placing" and pushy parents use it to their advantage all the time.

Then your school isn’t a center. That would be a local level IV school. Principals cannot pupil place kids into center AAP classes.

DP but yes they can to round out class sizes. Otherwise you could have huge differences in class sizes between AAP and General Ed. You just can't have an AAP class that is 35 kids or two that are 17 when the general ed classes are 25. They pull from general education to even out class sizes.

You are completely wrong. In a center school, principals cannot round out class sizes to their liking. They can only do this at a local level IV school. In fact, that’s why many kids choose the center school - the class cannot be padded with Gen Ed kids. All the kids are committee placed only.

Do you even know what the difference is between a center school and a local level IV school?

You sound ridiculous when you talk about “kids” choosing centers. The parents typically make the decision.

Or do you think a lot of second graders really worry about being in a LLIV classroom at a non-center school where some kids may have been principal-placed?

“Oh, mommy, I must go to Mantua to avoid having a Gen Ed kid who may stunt my intellectual development in my class!”

With a kid getting ready to apply to college, you will see a big difference between all the kids. This disappointment in second grade is just one of many. I always tell my kids not to feel bad for failing. It teaches them grit.

Blaming parents of kids sending their kids to an AAP center is not the answer. You hear similar type complaints and jealous comments when Johnny gets in T10 while Bobby is going to XYZ state school. Lots of comments about Johnny is a legacy or his parents set him up with this internship or that. It is tiring. I don’t participate.

DP. Analogy fail. That has nothing to do with FCPS allowing certain kids to choose "special" schools if they score well enough on a test. Especially the FCPS that is constantly braying about "equity."

Shrug. The complaining sounds the same to me. Kid doesn’t make the baseball team or tennis team or basketball team complaining. An AAP center isn’t special. I actually like that kids in fcps can switch schools for sped, AAP, Spanish immersion, French immersion, etc. My kids didn’t have to switch because our base was a center and my kids’ needs were always served at our schools.

Some kids go to special schools to allow them to play more tennis, gymnastics, football…

There is nothing wrong with being average or being in gen ed. Most people are average. To me, the complaining all sounds the same whether it is about sports, AAP, TJ, college, med school, law school, internships, jobs.

Except most kids in AAP are average. I have been teaching AAP for the last 10 years. I usually have 1-3 TRULY gifted kids each year. There are many SMART kids but not truly gifted. Many of these SMART kids don’t want to put the effort in so their performance is average. I have a handful each year who struggle and I question how they were even selected. They have also continuously dumbed down the curriculum since I started.

If AAP is not a truly gifted program, then it should be taught at the base school.

I say this as an AAP teacher. Centers will be on the chopping block most likely during boundary adjustments.

AAP is not meant to be for truly gifted kids. It’s for children who are academically advanced and can understand the curriculum easily especially math. That is why by 5th grade they are ahead one year in the math curriculum. I don’t understand why people complain about the AAP program. It is just for students who are advanced and can keep up with the fast pace. Why should we get rid of it? They are students who are behind or right at grade level. The GE program serves those students perfectly fine.

Really? You know that SPED kids are mainstreamed into Gen Ed classes, right? Why is that allowed? Plenty of Gen Ed kids are indeed capable of advanced work, whether it’s math or LA. That’s why we need flexible groupings for ALL kids to have their needs met. If FCPS is mandated to have a gifted program, AAP is NOT it. It should be a very small and selective GT program, as it used to be.
DP

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:What’s so sad is once a base kid moves into the AAP class, they lose all their friendships with the gen Ed kids because they literally never see them again.

This has been our experience at a school with an LLIV program. There are two regular classes and one AAP class. The girls in the 6th grade AAP class have cliqued up to the point where they even have their own sports teams in the local rec league. They stayed friends in 3rd, but my child and several others got dropped like a hot potato in 4th.

I knew a teacher who was really exasperated about one of those 2E kids in her classroom who threw screaming fits frequently. The kind where the rest of the class had to leave while the child exploded screaming. And, the irony: the kid really wasn't that smart. The mom pushed for it.

I don’t even know where to start with this, but it sounds a whole lot like frustration that students with disabilities can also be gifted.

Sorry that challenges your belief in eugenics

Do you even know what that means? That had nothing to do with the comment.

But, if the teacher did not think the child was gifted, why do you think that? You do know that parents who complain and push frequently get their kids admitted.

This surely demonstrates your ignorance about the program. Parents can’t “push” their kids into it. They have to be selected by a committee.

DP. Wrong. At our center, parents who were friends with the principal asked the principal to place their kids in the AAP classes. It's called "principal placing" and pushy parents use it to their advantage all the time.

Then your school isn’t a center. That would be a local level IV school. Principals cannot pupil place kids into center AAP classes.

DP but yes they can to round out class sizes. Otherwise you could have huge differences in class sizes between AAP and General Ed. You just can't have an AAP class that is 35 kids or two that are 17 when the general ed classes are 25. They pull from general education to even out class sizes.

You are completely wrong. In a center school, principals cannot round out class sizes to their liking. They can only do this at a local level IV school. In fact, that’s why many kids choose the center school - the class cannot be padded with Gen Ed kids. All the kids are committee placed only.

Do you even know what the difference is between a center school and a local level IV school?

You sound ridiculous when you talk about “kids” choosing centers. The parents typically make the decision.

Or do you think a lot of second graders really worry about being in a LLIV classroom at a non-center school where some kids may have been principal-placed?

“Oh, mommy, I must go to Mantua to avoid having a Gen Ed kid who may stunt my intellectual development in my class!”

With a kid getting ready to apply to college, you will see a big difference between all the kids. This disappointment in second grade is just one of many. I always tell my kids not to feel bad for failing. It teaches them grit.

Blaming parents of kids sending their kids to an AAP center is not the answer. You hear similar type complaints and jealous comments when Johnny gets in T10 while Bobby is going to XYZ state school. Lots of comments about Johnny is a legacy or his parents set him up with this internship or that. It is tiring. I don’t participate.

DP. Analogy fail. That has nothing to do with FCPS allowing certain kids to choose "special" schools if they score well enough on a test. Especially the FCPS that is constantly braying about "equity."

Shrug. The complaining sounds the same to me. Kid doesn’t make the baseball team or tennis team or basketball team complaining. An AAP center isn’t special. I actually like that kids in fcps can switch schools for sped, AAP, Spanish immersion, French immersion, etc. My kids didn’t have to switch because our base was a center and my kids’ needs were always served at our schools.

Some kids go to special schools to allow them to play more tennis, gymnastics, football…

There is nothing wrong with being average or being in gen ed. Most people are average. To me, the complaining all sounds the same whether it is about sports, AAP, TJ, college, med school, law school, internships, jobs.

Except most kids in AAP are average. I have been teaching AAP for the last 10 years. I usually have 1-3 TRULY gifted kids each year. There are many SMART kids but not truly gifted. Many of these SMART kids don’t want to put the effort in so their performance is average. I have a handful each year who struggle and I question how they were even selected. They have also continuously dumbed down the curriculum since I started.

If AAP is not a truly gifted program, then it should be taught at the base school.

I say this as an AAP teacher. Centers will be on the chopping block most likely during boundary adjustments.

AAP is not meant to be for truly gifted kids. It’s for children who are academically advanced and can understand the curriculum easily especially math. That is why by 5th grade they are ahead one year in the math curriculum. I don’t understand why people complain about the AAP program. It is just for students who are advanced and can keep up with the fast pace. Why should we get rid of it? They are students who are behind or right at grade level. The GE program serves those students perfectly fine.

Really? You know that SPED kids are mainstreamed into Gen Ed classes, right? Why is that allowed? Plenty of Gen Ed kids are indeed capable of advanced work, whether it’s math or LA. That’s why we need flexible groupings for ALL kids to have their needs met. If FCPS is mandated to have a gifted program, AAP is NOT it. It should be a very small and selective GT program, as it used to be.
DP

AAP is already relatively selective. Only two in DC's second grade cohort got in, DC not included.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:What’s so sad is once a base kid moves into the AAP class, they lose all their friendships with the gen Ed kids because they literally never see them again.

This has been our experience at a school with an LLIV program. There are two regular classes and one AAP class. The girls in the 6th grade AAP class have cliqued up to the point where they even have their own sports teams in the local rec league. They stayed friends in 3rd, but my child and several others got dropped like a hot potato in 4th.

I knew a teacher who was really exasperated about one of those 2E kids in her classroom who threw screaming fits frequently. The kind where the rest of the class had to leave while the child exploded screaming. And, the irony: the kid really wasn't that smart. The mom pushed for it.

I don’t even know where to start with this, but it sounds a whole lot like frustration that students with disabilities can also be gifted.

Sorry that challenges your belief in eugenics

Do you even know what that means? That had nothing to do with the comment.

But, if the teacher did not think the child was gifted, why do you think that? You do know that parents who complain and push frequently get their kids admitted.

This surely demonstrates your ignorance about the program. Parents can’t “push” their kids into it. They have to be selected by a committee.

DP. Wrong. At our center, parents who were friends with the principal asked the principal to place their kids in the AAP classes. It's called "principal placing" and pushy parents use it to their advantage all the time.

Then your school isn’t a center. That would be a local level IV school. Principals cannot pupil place kids into center AAP classes.

DP but yes they can to round out class sizes. Otherwise you could have huge differences in class sizes between AAP and General Ed. You just can't have an AAP class that is 35 kids or two that are 17 when the general ed classes are 25. They pull from general education to even out class sizes.

You are completely wrong. In a center school, principals cannot round out class sizes to their liking. They can only do this at a local level IV school. In fact, that’s why many kids choose the center school - the class cannot be padded with Gen Ed kids. All the kids are committee placed only.

Do you even know what the difference is between a center school and a local level IV school?

You sound ridiculous when you talk about “kids” choosing centers. The parents typically make the decision.

Or do you think a lot of second graders really worry about being in a LLIV classroom at a non-center school where some kids may have been principal-placed?

“Oh, mommy, I must go to Mantua to avoid having a Gen Ed kid who may stunt my intellectual development in my class!”

With a kid getting ready to apply to college, you will see a big difference between all the kids. This disappointment in second grade is just one of many. I always tell my kids not to feel bad for failing. It teaches them grit.

Blaming parents of kids sending their kids to an AAP center is not the answer. You hear similar type complaints and jealous comments when Johnny gets in T10 while Bobby is going to XYZ state school. Lots of comments about Johnny is a legacy or his parents set him up with this internship or that. It is tiring. I don’t participate.

DP. Analogy fail. That has nothing to do with FCPS allowing certain kids to choose "special" schools if they score well enough on a test. Especially the FCPS that is constantly braying about "equity."

Shrug. The complaining sounds the same to me. Kid doesn’t make the baseball team or tennis team or basketball team complaining. An AAP center isn’t special. I actually like that kids in fcps can switch schools for sped, AAP, Spanish immersion, French immersion, etc. My kids didn’t have to switch because our base was a center and my kids’ needs were always served at our schools.

Some kids go to special schools to allow them to play more tennis, gymnastics, football…

There is nothing wrong with being average or being in gen ed. Most people are average. To me, the complaining all sounds the same whether it is about sports, AAP, TJ, college, med school, law school, internships, jobs.

Except most kids in AAP are average. I have been teaching AAP for the last 10 years. I usually have 1-3 TRULY gifted kids each year. There are many SMART kids but not truly gifted. Many of these SMART kids don’t want to put the effort in so their performance is average. I have a handful each year who struggle and I question how they were even selected. They have also continuously dumbed down the curriculum since I started.

If AAP is not a truly gifted program, then it should be taught at the base school.

I say this as an AAP teacher. Centers will be on the chopping block most likely during boundary adjustments.

AAP is not meant to be for truly gifted kids. It’s for children who are academically advanced and can understand the curriculum easily especially math. That is why by 5th grade they are ahead one year in the math curriculum. I don’t understand why people complain about the AAP program. It is just for students who are advanced and can keep up with the fast pace. Why should we get rid of it? They are students who are behind or right at grade level. The GE program serves those students perfectly fine.

The issue is that there are plenty of kids who can handle the slightly more advanced LA/Social Studies/Science portion but not the math who end up in LIV. Then he math slows down for the kids who can handle the math.

The kids who are ahead only in Math tend to stay in Gen Ed and are placed in Advanced Math, which would be fine if Advanced math was actually uniform across the County. Some schools start Advanced Math in 3rd, others in 5th, and a few not until 6. If you are at one of the schools that don't start until 5th or 6th then your kid is going to be bored in math.

Gen Ed is too broad right now. There are kids that are 1-2 grades behind all the way to kids who are a grade level ahead. And the kids who are on grade level to ahead end up getting little to know attention from the Teacher because the focus is on getting the kids who are behind up to speed.

+100
It’s insane that Gen Ed kids have a mixture of levels, while AAP classes are allowed to be separate. The bright GE kids are the ones being screwed here.