DD already stuggling with 8th grade Geometry Honors

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My 8th grader is also taking Geometry and most of the kids are challenged by it, including my own. The teacher goes through the material quickly. There are quizzes every week. No hand holding. The teacher got exasperated with how many parents were calling him asking why their kids got low grades yada yada.

It’s a 10th grade class. It takes maturity, high level thinking and determination.

Cmon, it's not a 10th grade class, be reasonable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 8th grader is also taking Geometry and most of the kids are challenged by it, including my own. The teacher goes through the material quickly. There are quizzes every week. No hand holding. The teacher got exasperated with how many parents were calling him asking why their kids got low grades yada yada.

It’s a 10th grade class. It takes maturity, high level thinking and determination.

Cmon, it's not a 10th grade class, be reasonable.

You don’t think so? I believe geometry is traditionally taken by 10th graders.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 8th grader is also taking Geometry and most of the kids are challenged by it, including my own. The teacher goes through the material quickly. There are quizzes every week. No hand holding. The teacher got exasperated with how many parents were calling him asking why their kids got low grades yada yada.

It’s a 10th grade class. It takes maturity, high level thinking and determination.

Cmon, it's not a 10th grade class, be reasonable.

You don’t think so? I believe geometry is traditionally taken by 10th graders.

Many of the early topics such as angles can easily be taught as early as 4th grade. Most of the rest of the material can be handled by middle schoolers, assuming they can do a decent amount of algebra.

America actually has a problem with geometry. Geometry isn't some standalone subject that is only taught in one arbitrary year, then forgotten. It should be taught in an integrated fashion starting in elementary school, (which is exactly what is done in many European countries). But since that isn't done here, kids in middle school don't know the most basic facts about angles and triangles, (not to mention circles). They then do geometry for a year, find it overbearing and difficult, then proceed to promptly completely forget about it.

[Anonymous]

Geometry is included in every ES grade spiral. They have a place on the report card for it and you can see specific questions on the SOLs that deal with geometry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Geometry is included in every ES grade spiral. They have a place on the report card for it and you can see specific questions on the SOLs that deal with geometry.

Yes, I was going to say this as well. The trouble with geometry is the theorems and logic, it’s tricky! But my kid is really enjoying it.

[Anonymous]

I hated Geometry because of the proofs but I am not a math person, it never came easy for me. I managed a B and was proud of that grade but it was hard. I also took geometry in 11th grade. Because of my math issues, I took Algebra in 9th, Algebra II in 10th, and ended with Geometry in 11th.

I can easily see where Geometry would trip a kid who has been solid in math up to that point because it is very different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I hated Geometry because of the proofs but I am not a math person, it never came easy for me. I managed a B and was proud of that grade but it was hard. I also took geometry in 11th grade. Because of my math issues, I took Algebra in 9th, Algebra II in 10th, and ended with Geometry in 11th.

I can easily see where Geometry would trip a kid who has been solid in math up to that point because it is very different.

That's because they didn't learn anything close to what passes for math. Math is about proofs, logic, and reasoning. It is not about memorizing algorithms and doing endless calculations without understanding.

Geometry is the first time (in US schools) where a kid actually gets to try to reason deductively, from A to B to C. Think about that... not being exposed to this until high school!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I hated Geometry because of the proofs but I am not a math person, it never came easy for me. I managed a B and was proud of that grade but it was hard. I also took geometry in 11th grade. Because of my math issues, I took Algebra in 9th, Algebra II in 10th, and ended with Geometry in 11th.

I can easily see where Geometry would trip a kid who has been solid in math up to that point because it is very different.

The only reason geometry feels different is because they literally do not teach logical reasoning in schools, as I said earlier. They could teach logical reasoning in a million ways starting in elementary school and apply it to problems in numbers, integers, and algebra. Or give them literally any puzzle that requires some reasoning. But they don't. And that leads to a huge problem where kids can't think on their own and of course find it difficult when they have to try to reason for the first time in their life.

Geometry is just the study of the properties of space, it's not some mysterious abstract object. For kids to not even see a hint of it until high school would be a travesty.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Geometry is included in every ES grade spiral. They have a place on the report card for it and you can see specific questions on the SOLs that deal with geometry.

What passes for geometry is included. Believe me, they are not doing anything resembling geometry. Classifying shapes as triangles and squares and counting polygons by their number of sides is NOT what geometry is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Geometry is included in every ES grade spiral. They have a place on the report card for it and you can see specific questions on the SOLs that deal with geometry.

What passes for geometry is included. Believe me, they are not doing anything resembling geometry. Classifying shapes as triangles and squares and counting polygons by their number of sides is NOT what geometry is.

My third grader was doing things with area, angles and the like last year. I am not going to argue that it is an amazing approach but they are doing more then shape recognition and counting sides.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's barely been 5 days in MS if you follow Odd/Even days. How do you know she is struggling? Did they have a unit test already?

Not a unit test. They took a quiz and she scored 15/20. We will look for a tutor. I cannot help her. I was terrible with geometry.

In what world is 15/20 a bad score? It's not. It's her first quiz, in person, during a pandemic. Give her a freakin break. Ask her how SHE feels about it and if SHE feels like a tutor would help HER. YOU need to call a therapist and get Xanax.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Geometry is included in every ES grade spiral. They have a place on the report card for it and you can see specific questions on the SOLs that deal with geometry.

What passes for geometry is included. Believe me, they are not doing anything resembling geometry. Classifying shapes as triangles and squares and counting polygons by their number of sides is NOT what geometry is.

My third grader was doing things with area, angles and the like last year. I am not going to argue that it is an amazing approach but they are doing more then shape recognition and counting sides.

I agree with the 2nd poster. This is what I saw at my DC's elementary (in McLean) for 6 years.
Believe me, they did NOT do anything resembling geometry. Also, want to add that DC was in AAP program!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 8th grader is also taking Geometry and most of the kids are challenged by it, including my own. The teacher goes through the material quickly. There are quizzes every week. No hand holding. The teacher got exasperated with how many parents were calling him asking why their kids got low grades yada yada.

It’s a 10th grade class. It takes maturity, high level thinking and determination.

Cmon, it's not a 10th grade class, be reasonable.

not on a college track. The standard college track is geometry as a freshman, Algebra 2 as a sophomore, pre calc as a junior and calc as a senior. Tons of kids in AAP will push that a year forward and take a post-calc math class

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 8th grader is also taking Geometry and most of the kids are challenged by it, including my own. The teacher goes through the material quickly. There are quizzes every week. No hand holding. The teacher got exasperated with how many parents were calling him asking why their kids got low grades yada yada.

It’s a 10th grade class. It takes maturity, high level thinking and determination.

Cmon, it's not a 10th grade class, be reasonable.

not on a college track. The standard college track is geometry as a freshman, Algebra 2 as a sophomore, pre calc as a junior and calc as a senior. Tons of kids in AAP will push that a year forward and take a post-calc math class

In this area, but not nationally. Geometry in 10th is still standard for most college-bound students. There’s a reason that Algebra 1 earns HS credit in MS —it’s a HS course.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 8th grader is also taking Geometry and most of the kids are challenged by it, including my own. The teacher goes through the material quickly. There are quizzes every week. No hand holding. The teacher got exasperated with how many parents were calling him asking why their kids got low grades yada yada.

It’s a 10th grade class. It takes maturity, high level thinking and determination.

Cmon, it's not a 10th grade class, be reasonable.

not on a college track. The standard college track is geometry as a freshman, Algebra 2 as a sophomore, pre calc as a junior and calc as a senior. Tons of kids in AAP will push that a year forward and take a post-calc math class

In this area, but not nationally. Geometry in 10th is still standard for most college-bound students. There’s a reason that Algebra 1 earns HS credit in MS —it’s a HS course.

And I say this as the parent of a 10th grader in pre-calc.