Accelerated Math

[Anonymous]

OP, what were your child’s MAP percentiles in 1st through 3rd grade? If they have been overall pretty high I would have a different recommendation for you than if they’ve been spotty or medium. I don’t think it makes any sense to use a single MAP test to gatekeep kids, but I also think you need to be honest about whether your student has shown a consistent history of needing acceleration. There are not a lot of great supports in math in the accelerated pathways (they don’t add co-teachers in middle to these classrooms) and your cohort of kids is probably missing some foundational skills due to their age in the pandemic, so the pathway really should be for kids who demonstrate clear readiness.

Separately, there are on-ramps but they do involve a bit of work on your child’s part to cover skipped topics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If we haven’t heard anything by now, does that mean our DC was not selected? In 3rd grade and hoping to get into compact 4/5.

No. Our school informs after the end of the school year so parents can't lobby teachers and has to deal with the administration.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child just finished AIM after compacted math in ES. It moves so fast. I wish we had stuck with on-level math in ES and started the acceleration in middle school. My kid has now been accelerated two years -- just seems like a lot of foundational skills were missed. They skipped SO MANY Eureka units in ES, and the Curriculum 2.0 AIM course moves fast but also has subpar curricular materials. My kid is doing fine because we supplement outside of class (particularly over the summer, when my kid does Khan, which seems to help with the missing skills from the accereated path).

OP, your child can still be accelerated in MS. There is 6+ and 7+ in middle school -- that will get your child to Algebra 1 in 8th and still be able to get to Calculus in high school. In fact, based on MAP scores and district assessments, a substantial number of students who did compacted math in ES were put in 6+ this year in middle school regardless. I'll bet their parents wish they had stuck with on-grade level math.

+1. 6th grader just finishing AMP 7+ with Bs and occasional As. Clearly not a good placement because DC is merely hanging on (and has no interest anyway, just kind of plugs along without complaining but without really learning anything). We want to drop DC down and now have to figure out what class will contain willing students of the right ages and stages and not be anarchy (which is possible at our school).

Retake AMP 7+

Or take Math 8.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If we haven’t heard anything by now, does that mean our DC was not selected? In 3rd grade and hoping to get into compact 4/5.

No. Our school informs after the end of the school year so parents can't lobby teachers and has to deal with the administration.

Some schools don't say until August.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m feeling bummed my 3rd grader wasn’t selected for accelerated math. He’s more than capable but he didn’t meet all the metrics based on MAP scores (grades and district assessment were high) and the school won’t budge on the decision. I know this isn’t a huge deal but I do worry about him being in grade level and not having the opportunity to take more challenging classes in MS and high school since this basically locks you in on a certain path now. My DD is 9th and grade level because he has a math LD which is perfect for her but it does feel like a true separation from kids who are on a more accelerated track and you’re basically shut out of that at a young age. Anyone else feeling or has felt this way?

There are many opportunities. We unenrolled our son for fourth grade for health issues. He was slated for compacted math. When we re-enrolled him in December, they denied him compacted math because in his test, he lacked some earlier knowledge. He was just fine on more advanced concepts, though. The whole thing was a sham, since the students in compacted math would have scored the same…

He had regular math for 4th and 5th grades. When he went to middle school for 6th, they put him in advanced/AMP6+. Next year he will be in algebra for 7th grade.

If he took 6+ in 6th, he should be in 7+ for 7th—is your school having him skip learning the 8th grade material and putting him straight in Algebra for 7th? That is surprising.

6th, 7th, and 8th grade material is all just slow ramp up into Algebra and Geometry. Faster or more dedicated leaners use a shorter steeper ramp

Not allowed in MCPS typically, which is why I am interested in what school allows this.

Every school in MCPS has acceleration. See the whole content of this thread and the weekly similar threads.

DP. Acceleration, yes. Skipping, not so much. Spotty, which is why PP wanted to know the school -- others can use the example when dealing with a less amenable admin of their own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child just finished AIM after compacted math in ES. It moves so fast. I wish we had stuck with on-level math in ES and started the acceleration in middle school. My kid has now been accelerated two years -- just seems like a lot of foundational skills were missed. They skipped SO MANY Eureka units in ES, and the Curriculum 2.0 AIM course moves fast but also has subpar curricular materials. My kid is doing fine because we supplement outside of class (particularly over the summer, when my kid does Khan, which seems to help with the missing skills from the accereated path).

OP, your child can still be accelerated in MS. There is 6+ and 7+ in middle school -- that will get your child to Algebra 1 in 8th and still be able to get to Calculus in high school. In fact, based on MAP scores and district assessments, a substantial number of students who did compacted math in ES were put in 6+ this year in middle school regardless. I'll bet their parents wish they had stuck with on-grade level math.

Algebra 1 in 8th, Geometry in summer school after 8th, then Precal in summer school after 9th etc. They will soon be super advanced.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child just finished AIM after compacted math in ES. It moves so fast. I wish we had stuck with on-level math in ES and started the acceleration in middle school. My kid has now been accelerated two years -- just seems like a lot of foundational skills were missed. They skipped SO MANY Eureka units in ES, and the Curriculum 2.0 AIM course moves fast but also has subpar curricular materials. My kid is doing fine because we supplement outside of class (particularly over the summer, when my kid does Khan, which seems to help with the missing skills from the accereated path).

OP, your child can still be accelerated in MS. There is 6+ and 7+ in middle school -- that will get your child to Algebra 1 in 8th and still be able to get to Calculus in high school. In fact, based on MAP scores and district assessments, a substantial number of students who did compacted math in ES were put in 6+ this year in middle school regardless. I'll bet their parents wish they had stuck with on-grade level math.

Algebra 1 in 8th, Geometry in summer school after 8th, then Precal in summer school after 9th etc. They will soon be super advanced.

Taking math for original credit in the summer is a terrible idea. Compressing a years' worth of content into 6 weeks is a recipe for not learning the material. Much better to stick with a regular acceleration path leading to algebra 1 in 8th grade and a solid foundation. It is not a race; taking geometry in 9th is perfectly fine (and is still one year accelerated).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child just finished AIM after compacted math in ES. It moves so fast. I wish we had stuck with on-level math in ES and started the acceleration in middle school. My kid has now been accelerated two years -- just seems like a lot of foundational skills were missed. They skipped SO MANY Eureka units in ES, and the Curriculum 2.0 AIM course moves fast but also has subpar curricular materials. My kid is doing fine because we supplement outside of class (particularly over the summer, when my kid does Khan, which seems to help with the missing skills from the accereated path).

OP, your child can still be accelerated in MS. There is 6+ and 7+ in middle school -- that will get your child to Algebra 1 in 8th and still be able to get to Calculus in high school. In fact, based on MAP scores and district assessments, a substantial number of students who did compacted math in ES were put in 6+ this year in middle school regardless. I'll bet their parents wish they had stuck with on-grade level math.

Algebra 1 in 8th, Geometry in summer school after 8th, then Precal in summer school after 9th etc. They will soon be super advanced.

Taking math for original credit in the summer is a terrible idea. Compressing a years' worth of content into 6 weeks is a recipe for not learning the material. Much better to stick with a regular acceleration path leading to algebra 1 in 8th grade and a solid foundation. It is not a race; taking geometry in 9th is perfectly fine (and is still one year accelerated).

DP. I think PP forgot to sign off with "/sarcasm."

[Anonymous]

OP - we were in a similar situation. In 3rd grade, my kid's teacher told him all year (and me in conferences/emails) that he would be in compacted math for 4/5, that he had a "mind for math" etc. He did poorly on one benchmark/performance matters exam (that apparently the whole class did less well on than other benchmark exams). His MAP-M scores and grades were all good, but because last year they switched to a central district review, he was placed in regular grade 4 math.

I talked to his 3rd grade teacher and the math placement specialist. The 3rd grade teacher HEAVILY advocated for him but the math placement specialist wouldn't budge and said that they would reassess after the fall MAP-M and performance matters tests. On the advice of a fellow parent, I escalated to the principal. Due to the timing of the letter plus me trying to go through each channel and only use the principal as a last resort, we didn't get to talk until July. She agreed to let my son into compacted 4/5 math, but said they'd be monitoring him and put him down to grade 4 math if he was struggling. (She also suggested that some of the kids that are good at math do poorly on the benchmark/performance matters tests because they do too much "mental math" because it's a computerized test and they don't use scratch paper, which may be the case for my son).

Turns out he did fine, his grades were all good, and when I mentioned to his 4th grade teacher that we were worried about putting him in compacted math due to the recommendation at the end of the previous year, she immediately said, "Oh, he's DEFINITELY in the right math placement - he's really good at math!"

My point is that you know your child best and should advocate if you think it's the best course of action for him. I didn't want to wait until the fall and have him miss a quarter or a half a year and then have to catch up. I personally thought it was better for him to try it and then move down than be super behind if he had to move up. I probably wouldn't make the same choice for my younger child who would be devastated to be moved downward, but would be willing to work really hard to catch up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child just finished AIM after compacted math in ES. It moves so fast. I wish we had stuck with on-level math in ES and started the acceleration in middle school. My kid has now been accelerated two years -- just seems like a lot of foundational skills were missed. They skipped SO MANY Eureka units in ES, and the Curriculum 2.0 AIM course moves fast but also has subpar curricular materials. My kid is doing fine because we supplement outside of class (particularly over the summer, when my kid does Khan, which seems to help with the missing skills from the accereated path).

OP, your child can still be accelerated in MS. There is 6+ and 7+ in middle school -- that will get your child to Algebra 1 in 8th and still be able to get to Calculus in high school. In fact, based on MAP scores and district assessments, a substantial number of students who did compacted math in ES were put in 6+ this year in middle school regardless. I'll bet their parents wish they had stuck with on-grade level math.

Algebra 1 in 8th, Geometry in summer school after 8th, then Precal in summer school after 9th etc. They will soon be super advanced.

Taking math for original credit in the summer is a terrible idea. Compressing a years' worth of content into 6 weeks is a recipe for not learning the material. Much better to stick with a regular acceleration path leading to algebra 1 in 8th grade and a solid foundation. It is not a race; taking geometry in 9th is perfectly fine (and is still one year accelerated).

DP. I think PP forgot to sign off with "/sarcasm."

Around here I would not assume sarcasm. There are definitely people who are pushing for as much acceleration as possible in any way possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child just finished AIM after compacted math in ES. It moves so fast. I wish we had stuck with on-level math in ES and started the acceleration in middle school. My kid has now been accelerated two years -- just seems like a lot of foundational skills were missed. They skipped SO MANY Eureka units in ES, and the Curriculum 2.0 AIM course moves fast but also has subpar curricular materials. My kid is doing fine because we supplement outside of class (particularly over the summer, when my kid does Khan, which seems to help with the missing skills from the accereated path).

OP, your child can still be accelerated in MS. There is 6+ and 7+ in middle school -- that will get your child to Algebra 1 in 8th and still be able to get to Calculus in high school. In fact, based on MAP scores and district assessments, a substantial number of students who did compacted math in ES were put in 6+ this year in middle school regardless. I'll bet their parents wish they had stuck with on-grade level math.

Algebra 1 in 8th, Geometry in summer school after 8th, then Precal in summer school after 9th etc. They will soon be super advanced.

Taking math for original credit in the summer is a terrible idea. Compressing a years' worth of content into 6 weeks is a recipe for not learning the material. Much better to stick with a regular acceleration path leading to algebra 1 in 8th grade and a solid foundation. It is not a race; taking geometry in 9th is perfectly fine (and is still one year accelerated).

DP. I think PP forgot to sign off with "/sarcasm."

Around here I would not assume sarcasm. There are definitely people who are pushing for as much acceleration as possible in any way possible.

Agreed. This is why I sit with my children and explain how it generally provides no benefit to be multiple grade levels ahead in any subject. I describe how when they go to college, it's likely their level won't be honored, resulting in repeating courses. If the level is honored, they will most likely still have to take some credit anyway in the same subject. Also, being 5 grade levels ahead in math won't yield any course or time savings in any major except math or adjacent fields like astrophysics.

[Anonymous]

Taking Algebra in 8th via the traditional math route is still considered advanced in other regions. Unless your child knows for sure that he wants to be a STEM major that heavily leans into math, then he will be fine. My DD got into compacted math, and while she’s not struggling, I want to pull back because she’s not at all interested in STEM. But I feel like now we’re stuck because she will have to repeat a year in math. She is going to take algebra in 7th next year so either we repeat pre algebra or algebra next year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Taking Algebra in 8th via the traditional math route is still considered advanced in other regions. Unless your child knows for sure that he wants to be a STEM major that heavily leans into math, then he will be fine. My DD got into compacted math, and while she’s not struggling, I want to pull back because she’s not at all interested in STEM. But I feel like now we’re stuck because she will have to repeat a year in math. She is going to take algebra in 7th next year so either we repeat pre algebra or algebra next year.

How are you stuck? If your didn't take prealgebra in 6th then you would have repeated the material anyway, just stretched across 2 years instead of 1. If the math is getting too hard, repeating is exactly what you should want to do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child just finished AIM after compacted math in ES. It moves so fast. I wish we had stuck with on-level math in ES and started the acceleration in middle school. My kid has now been accelerated two years -- just seems like a lot of foundational skills were missed. They skipped SO MANY Eureka units in ES, and the Curriculum 2.0 AIM course moves fast but also has subpar curricular materials. My kid is doing fine because we supplement outside of class (particularly over the summer, when my kid does Khan, which seems to help with the missing skills from the accereated path).

OP, your child can still be accelerated in MS. There is 6+ and 7+ in middle school -- that will get your child to Algebra 1 in 8th and still be able to get to Calculus in high school. In fact, based on MAP scores and district assessments, a substantial number of students who did compacted math in ES were put in 6+ this year in middle school regardless. I'll bet their parents wish they had stuck with on-grade level math.

Algebra 1 in 8th, Geometry in summer school after 8th, then Precal in summer school after 9th etc. They will soon be super advanced.

Taking math for original credit in the summer is a terrible idea. Compressing a years' worth of content into 6 weeks is a recipe for not learning the material. Much better to stick with a regular acceleration path leading to algebra 1 in 8th grade and a solid foundation. It is not a race; taking geometry in 9th is perfectly fine (and is still one year accelerated).

DP. I think PP forgot to sign off with "/sarcasm."

Around here I would not assume sarcasm. There are definitely people who are pushing for as much acceleration as possible in any way possible.

Agreed. This is why I sit with my children and explain how it generally provides no benefit to be multiple grade levels ahead in any subject. I describe how when they go to college, it's likely their level won't be honored, resulting in repeating courses. If the level is honored, they will most likely still have to take some credit anyway in the same subject. Also, being 5 grade levels ahead in math won't yield any course or time savings in any major except math or adjacent fields like astrophysics.

Ignorant comment. Acceleration frees up time for elective math courses like statistics and discrete math, and gives a head start on college courses to smother a challenging transition from HS to college.
And, far more important, it's rewarding for its own sake for students who are interested and able.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Taking Algebra in 8th via the traditional math route is still considered advanced in other regions. Unless your child knows for sure that he wants to be a STEM major that heavily leans into math, then he will be fine. My DD got into compacted math, and while she’s not struggling, I want to pull back because she’s not at all interested in STEM. But I feel like now we’re stuck because she will have to repeat a year in math. She is going to take algebra in 7th next year so either we repeat pre algebra or algebra next year.

How are you stuck? If your didn't take prealgebra in 6th then you would have repeated the material anyway, just stretched across 2 years instead of 1. If the math is getting too hard, repeating is exactly what you should want to do.

She took pre algebra in 6th but if I don’t send her to algebra next year, she will have to repeat prealgebra. She did fine in it and had As and a high Map but she doesn’t want a career in STEM. Now she will have to repeat pre algebra or continue the accelerated path so hence we feel stuck. To OP, acceleration is not all that it’s cracked up to be and you might end up counting your blessings staying in the traditional math program down the road.