Can a sixth grader take algebra 1?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There were only a handful of 6th graders taking Alg1 at Frost last year. 2 in my kids class. Definitely not a whole class of 6th graders. And it’s not listed in any of the course bulletins as an official option you can select. Maybe it used to be, but not anymore.

At our school, they are mixed in with 7th graders. Its not a separate class.

OK, so it sounds like Frost is handling it the same way as Eastern, TPMS, and Newport Mill. Maybe MCPS has taken some steps to standardize this process, which means that folks commenting about what their child did two/three/seven years ago is not relevant.

Yes, both Eastern and TPMS are making these accommodations just for the Cold Spring kids that took AIM in 5th. Don't know about any other schools offering this aside from Frost.

But we just heard from a current Frost parent that they are NOT offering a separate class just for Cold Spring kids. Those handful of kids are being mixed in with 7th graders. Which means Frost is the same.

This is how the other schools have done it. Usually they try to keep them with 7th graders, but sometimes its a mixed 6-8th class. The issue comes in with Algebra 2 and will the school offer an Algebra 2 class or do you have to go to the high school or virtual for it.

A big reason its easier to offer Alg 1 at Frost is that for Alg 2 they can just walk to Wootton next door. Not sure if any other middles are that close to high schools.

That makes a lot of sense. Newport Mills is next to Einstein so maybe that is why people are naming it.

That's the first we've heard about this. Didn't know this was true. Only MS people had named that provide this up until now was Frost.

Its been discussed in the past on here. However the schools our kids attend aren't schools you'd consider so why do they need to be named? Shouldn't "lesser" schools have the same opportunities for their gifted kids? Our school has about a dozen, sometimes more kids doing it.

The only one who keeps harping on it being a “lesser” school or a school you assume others wouldn’t send their kids to is you! You have repeated this! No one else is saying negative things about certain schools or saying students shouldn’t have access to appropriate opportunities. You imagined that.

That's very true in fact I think the concern has largely been that these opportunities only exist at wealthy schools and seem to be few and far between everywhere else.

[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:There were only a handful of 6th graders taking Alg1 at Frost last year. 2 in my kids class. Definitely not a whole class of 6th graders. And it’s not listed in any of the course bulletins as an official option you can select. Maybe it used to be, but not anymore.

At our school, they are mixed in with 7th graders. Its not a separate class.

OK, so it sounds like Frost is handling it the same way as Eastern, TPMS, and Newport Mill. Maybe MCPS has taken some steps to standardize this process, which means that folks commenting about what their child did two/three/seven years ago is not relevant.

Yes, both Eastern and TPMS are making these accommodations just for the Cold Spring kids that took AIM in 5th. Don't know about any other schools offering this aside from Frost.

But we just heard from a current Frost parent that they are NOT offering a separate class just for Cold Spring kids. Those handful of kids are being mixed in with 7th graders. Which means Frost is the same.

This is how the other schools have done it. Usually they try to keep them with 7th graders, but sometimes its a mixed 6-8th class. The issue comes in with Algebra 2 and will the school offer an Algebra 2 class or do you have to go to the high school or virtual for it.

A big reason its easier to offer Alg 1 at Frost is that for Alg 2 they can just walk to Wootton next door. Not sure if any other middles are that close to high schools.

That makes a lot of sense. Newport Mills is next to Einstein so maybe that is why people are naming it.

That's the first we've heard about this. Didn't know this was true. Only MS people had named that provide this up until now was Frost.

Its been discussed in the past on here. However the schools our kids attend aren't schools you'd consider so why do they need to be named? Shouldn't "lesser" schools have the same opportunities for their gifted kids? Our school has about a dozen, sometimes more kids doing it.

The only one who keeps harping on it being a “lesser” school or a school you assume others wouldn’t send their kids to is you! You have repeated this! No one else is saying negative things about certain schools or saying students shouldn’t have access to appropriate opportunities. You imagined that.

Is your child going to a high farms school?

The ever-FARMS rate at my child’s school is 32 percent. So I wouldn’t say it is high FARMS, no.

Exactly. Try double that.

This is neither a competition, nor something to brag about. I don’t understand what your point is. The discussion is about access to Algebra. Why are you making it about you and the FARMS rate at your school?

It's just a smoke screen. They're trying to draw attention away from the fact that this is mostly something that is available to wealthier schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP who was contacted by the math specialist for more testing at TPMS do you have an update? I don't know why one PP is so stuck on thinking you are confused. I don't think anything you were told is particularly confusing.

I know a student, also DCC but not at TPMS, who was asked to come in for further testing because they were home schooled. It was just so they could make sure they were at the right level in the MCPS curriculum. They had been put in AIM originally but after testing they were put in Alg. 1. This is not a path at our DCC school and Alg. 1 is not "offered" in 6th but this friend was given an exception.

Yep, update:
- yes, they took the test and yes, it was unusual, and they only did it for a small handful (4) kids, so I’m damn close to outing myself. The kids would go into alg 1 with a 7th grade class. I won’t tell the you what we’re doing since there are so few data points. Also, I am not sure if the other kids tested were magnet or not.

Congrat's on your child being selected!

I
I have a child at that school in the 6th grade who scored in the i-290s on their map last year and they were not tested. This seems kind of odd.

[Anonymous]

The procedures change constantly. We have been in MCPS 10 years with three kids and it's been different at different schools and different at the same schools each year.

I was one of the PPs who believed the TPMS parent because that's how it's done at our child's school a few years ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP who was contacted by the math specialist for more testing at TPMS do you have an update? I don't know why one PP is so stuck on thinking you are confused. I don't think anything you were told is particularly confusing.

I know a student, also DCC but not at TPMS, who was asked to come in for further testing because they were home schooled. It was just so they could make sure they were at the right level in the MCPS curriculum. They had been put in AIM originally but after testing they were put in Alg. 1. This is not a path at our DCC school and Alg. 1 is not "offered" in 6th but this friend was given an exception.

Yep, update:
- yes, they took the test and yes, it was unusual, and they only did it for a small handful (4) kids, so I’m damn close to outing myself. The kids would go into alg 1 with a 7th grade class. I won’t tell the you what we’re doing since there are so few data points. Also, I am not sure if the other kids tested were magnet or not.

Thank you for posting because there are a lot of crazies on this thread and only a few people actually providing real information.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There were only a handful of 6th graders taking Alg1 at Frost last year. 2 in my kids class. Definitely not a whole class of 6th graders. And it’s not listed in any of the course bulletins as an official option you can select. Maybe it used to be, but not anymore.

At our school, they are mixed in with 7th graders. Its not a separate class.

OK, so it sounds like Frost is handling it the same way as Eastern, TPMS, and Newport Mill. Maybe MCPS has taken some steps to standardize this process, which means that folks commenting about what their child did two/three/seven years ago is not relevant.

Not surprising. With the change in admissions to the Cold Spring CES and all CESes to lottery there is not this concentrated cohort that tries to oneup each other in math and supplement until they all get accelerated. Without that cohort coming in from Cold Spring there are fewer accelerated kids by the time they make it to Frost.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I haven't read the thread beyond the first pages, but my 7th grader at Westland MS is taking Honors Geometry. There are 3 7th graders in a class of 8th graders. I don't know if there are other 7th graders in other Honors Geo classes.

It's not particularly hard, but these kids are curious about math and don't mind figuring it out on their own. Don't push your math-hating kid to do this.

Also, and I cannot emphasize this enough as a research scientist:

K-12 math, unless it's taught in special magnet environment, will never teach "WHY" in math. Which is the entire point of mathematics. All the acceleration does in a regular MCPS classroom is cater to easily-bored, math-curious kids. It does not usually teach them to think critically about the subject, it just teaches them more subject.

This type of math instruction will eventually trip up the student who wishes to specialize in math-heavy disciplines in college. At some point, with a rigorous high school teacher, or a college prof, they will find out they need to actually rethink how to solve math problems.

Acceleration does not necessarily equal higher-order critical thinking. If you care at all about this, be aware that your kid will have to get math-oriented problem-solving skills elsewhere.

Absolutely agree. PP with a kid who went into Alg1 in 6th after homeschooling for 5th. I’m pretty sure our math curriculum played a huge factor (Beast Academy). I kind of wish we’d stuck with the regular math pathway but supplemented with more Beast or AoPS. If you’re looking for “why” or problem solving skills, there’s nothing better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP who was contacted by the math specialist for more testing at TPMS do you have an update? I don't know why one PP is so stuck on thinking you are confused. I don't think anything you were told is particularly confusing.

I know a student, also DCC but not at TPMS, who was asked to come in for further testing because they were home schooled. It was just so they could make sure they were at the right level in the MCPS curriculum. They had been put in AIM originally but after testing they were put in Alg. 1. This is not a path at our DCC school and Alg. 1 is not "offered" in 6th but this friend was given an exception.

Yep, update:
- yes, they took the test and yes, it was unusual, and they only did it for a small handful (4) kids, so I’m damn close to outing myself. The kids would go into alg 1 with a 7th grade class. I won’t tell the you what we’re doing since there are so few data points. Also, I am not sure if the other kids tested were magnet or not.

Thank you for posting because there are a lot of crazies on this thread and only a few people actually providing real information.

The information they're providing seems suspect. I have a 6th grader at that school, and just wrote the administration about this and was told this wasn't done.

[Anonymous]

If you are only focusing on TPMS, then everyone knows they only do it on a very very rare occasion and those aren't the DCC schools we are talking about. Every school handles it differently. Some test, some go by map scores, some go by teacher recommendation, some go by parent request on the registration form and it changes year to year. Bottomline is some schools allow it, some don't and if yours does't its ok to wait till 7th for algebra and its still far ahead of many other kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP who was contacted by the math specialist for more testing at TPMS do you have an update? I don't know why one PP is so stuck on thinking you are confused. I don't think anything you were told is particularly confusing.

I know a student, also DCC but not at TPMS, who was asked to come in for further testing because they were home schooled. It was just so they could make sure they were at the right level in the MCPS curriculum. They had been put in AIM originally but after testing they were put in Alg. 1. This is not a path at our DCC school and Alg. 1 is not "offered" in 6th but this friend was given an exception.

Yep, update:
- yes, they took the test and yes, it was unusual, and they only did it for a small handful (4) kids, so I’m damn close to outing myself. The kids would go into alg 1 with a 7th grade class. I won’t tell the you what we’re doing since there are so few data points. Also, I am not sure if the other kids tested were magnet or not.

Thank you for posting because there are a lot of crazies on this thread and only a few people actually providing real information.

The information they're providing seems suspect. I have a 6th grader at that school, and just wrote the administration about this and was told this wasn't done.

Tpms?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you are only focusing on TPMS, then everyone knows they only do it on a very very rare occasion and those aren't the DCC schools we are talking about. Every school handles it differently. Some test, some go by map scores, some go by teacher recommendation, some go by parent request on the registration form and it changes year to year. Bottomline is some schools allow it, some don't and if yours does't its ok to wait till 7th for algebra and its still far ahead of many other kids.

Yes we've been over this everyone understands the wealthy schools in Potomac provide enrichment whereas others do not. Got it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you are only focusing on TPMS, then everyone knows they only do it on a very very rare occasion and those aren't the DCC schools we are talking about. Every school handles it differently. Some test, some go by map scores, some go by teacher recommendation, some go by parent request on the registration form and it changes year to year. Bottomline is some schools allow it, some don't and if yours does't its ok to wait till 7th for algebra and its still far ahead of many other kids.

Yes we've been over this everyone understands the wealthy schools in Potomac provide enrichment whereas others do not. Got it

You are really close-minded. Hate to tell you that because the other schools don't offer enrichment so this is their way of enrichment. You can pretend its only in Potomac schools but its untrue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP who was contacted by the math specialist for more testing at TPMS do you have an update? I don't know why one PP is so stuck on thinking you are confused. I don't think anything you were told is particularly confusing.

I know a student, also DCC but not at TPMS, who was asked to come in for further testing because they were home schooled. It was just so they could make sure they were at the right level in the MCPS curriculum. They had been put in AIM originally but after testing they were put in Alg. 1. This is not a path at our DCC school and Alg. 1 is not "offered" in 6th but this friend was given an exception.

Yep, update:
- yes, they took the test and yes, it was unusual, and they only did it for a small handful (4) kids, so I’m damn close to outing myself. The kids would go into alg 1 with a 7th grade class. I won’t tell the you what we’re doing since there are so few data points. Also, I am not sure if the other kids tested were magnet or not.

Thank you for posting because there are a lot of crazies on this thread and only a few people actually providing real information.

The information they're providing seems suspect. I have a 6th grader at that school, and just wrote the administration about this and was told this wasn't done.

DC is currently in the 7th grade but they and several other mathy kids in their grade would've without a doubt had this option if it had existed last year, but it did not. I'd be very surprised if this is true since it goes against everything they've been saying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP who was contacted by the math specialist for more testing at TPMS do you have an update? I don't know why one PP is so stuck on thinking you are confused. I don't think anything you were told is particularly confusing.

I know a student, also DCC but not at TPMS, who was asked to come in for further testing because they were home schooled. It was just so they could make sure they were at the right level in the MCPS curriculum. They had been put in AIM originally but after testing they were put in Alg. 1. This is not a path at our DCC school and Alg. 1 is not "offered" in 6th but this friend was given an exception.

Yep, update:
- yes, they took the test and yes, it was unusual, and they only did it for a small handful (4) kids, so I’m damn close to outing myself. The kids would go into alg 1 with a 7th grade class. I won’t tell the you what we’re doing since there are so few data points. Also, I am not sure if the other kids tested were magnet or not.

Thank you for posting because there are a lot of crazies on this thread and only a few people actually providing real information.

The information they're providing seems suspect. I have a 6th grader at that school, and just wrote the administration about this and was told this wasn't done.

Tpms?

Yes TPMS, and they seemed proud of the fact they don't do this but focus on providing a strong math foundation instead.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP who was contacted by the math specialist for more testing at TPMS do you have an update? I don't know why one PP is so stuck on thinking you are confused. I don't think anything you were told is particularly confusing.

I know a student, also DCC but not at TPMS, who was asked to come in for further testing because they were home schooled. It was just so they could make sure they were at the right level in the MCPS curriculum. They had been put in AIM originally but after testing they were put in Alg. 1. This is not a path at our DCC school and Alg. 1 is not "offered" in 6th but this friend was given an exception.

Yep, update:
- yes, they took the test and yes, it was unusual, and they only did it for a small handful (4) kids, so I’m damn close to outing myself. The kids would go into alg 1 with a 7th grade class. I won’t tell the you what we’re doing since there are so few data points. Also, I am not sure if the other kids tested were magnet or not.

Thank you for posting because there are a lot of crazies on this thread and only a few people actually providing real information.

The information they're providing seems suspect. I have a 6th grader at that school, and just wrote the administration about this and was told this wasn't done.

DC is currently in the 7th grade but they and several other mathy kids in their grade would've without a doubt had this option if it had existed last year, but it did not. I'd be very surprised if this is true since it goes against everything they've been saying.

Tpms has never done it. They do it to keep kids at their home schools or to have them lottery in.