Thoughts for the "appealers"!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hey Everyone,

If you are reading this, you are likely one of three categories:

1) Planning an appeal
2) Wondering if you should plan an appeal, or
3) One of the mindless rabble who discourage people from appealing for reasons which continue to escape me.

Group #3 is summarily dismissed and I STRONGLY encourage Groups #1 and #2 to ignore them.

First, I am sorry you are in the position to appeal. That said, yesterday was NOT a final decision. First, DEEP BREATH! Think about what you believe will most benefit you child and let that be your guide. If you decide to appeal, you are entering a period that will be stressful. Do what you can to keep the stress from your child. I had a successful appeal for my son two years ago. It seemed obvious he needed AAP to me. He had the test scores plus some. He could do mental gymnastics that escape most adults like multiplying 2 or 3 digit numbers in his head. However, his AART and 2nd grade teacher decided that despite this, he needed a low GBRS and didn't get in.

Remember, first, DEEP BREATH! After that, start to work on your strategy and go request a copy of the package that was submitted. It may be obvious why your child didn't get in from the package! Low GBRS? Poor work sample? Who knows, but make sure your strategy addresses the weaknesses and highlights the strengths.

Step #2, you need a WISC test. GMU offers them as do some other places. It is really hard to know what score you are looking for but 120 likely won't do it. 130 likely will. Two years ago, the accepted benchmark when I read EVERY post was WISC 126. Almost no one lower got in that year. I don't know about last year.

Step #3, work your strategy and make your appeal package as strong as possible. Ask questions on the board, most people will really try to help you. Ignore those that don't. I really believe that being positive helps a lot. If there is something in your package that you think is just wrong, don't argue against it (i.e. The teacher doesn't like, doesn't know, doesn't car, etc.), instead focus on positive. My child can do, whatever, and give an example. Use all of the pages they give you for letters, samples, whatever.

What ever happens, it is OK. GOOD LUCK!

Oh, and a note about the people who say there is a stigma for the appealers. There isn't. No one ever asked or knew for us. The biggest problem is that you miss orientation. So what! If you get a positive result to your appeal, call the Principal. Ours gave us a private tour during the last week of school.

Remember DEEP BREATH!

Please...you're taking yourself too seriously.

Stop taking deep breaths.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just get over the fact that your kid is intellectually mediocre, and move on with your lives.

I was prepared to do that if our kid didn't get in, but so few are.
Know one parent who appealed three times til her kid finally got in.

so few are what? not getting in?

garbled the sentence , meant so few are prepared to get over it if their kid doesn't get in.

agreed. and I never get this. my oldest got in easily. I didn't think twice after my two others weren't in the pool. Somehow they all managed to be straight A students through middle and most of high school. I just don't get the madness.

Why are you on a board like this for elementary aged kids when yours are older? odd

Not for someone who's BTDT and remains involved with the school system and community. Is it odd that I care about what's best for all kids and not just my own? Perhaps on this thread.

Yes, it's odd. It's akin to frequenting trying to conceive, wedding planning or similar type forums. The rose has bloomed and died on those chapters of your life. Move on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just get over the fact that your kid is intellectually mediocre, and move on with your lives.

I was prepared to do that if our kid didn't get in, but so few are.
Know one parent who appealed three times til her kid finally got in.

so few are what? not getting in?

garbled the sentence , meant so few are prepared to get over it if their kid doesn't get in.

agreed. and I never get this. my oldest got in easily. I didn't think twice after my two others weren't in the pool. Somehow they all managed to be straight A students through middle and most of high school. I just don't get the madness.

Why are you on a board like this for elementary aged kids when yours are older? odd

Not for someone who's BTDT and remains involved with the school system and community. Is it odd that I care about what's best for all kids and not just my own? Perhaps on this thread.

Seriously! And a lot of us have BTDT with older children and still have younger ones in elementary. So this discussion is very relevant to us, especially as we're the ones who can vouch for how things turn out in high school. So many of these parents of only younger children have no idea just how unimportant AAP is in the whole scheme of things. Once high school rolls around, it makes no difference who was in it and who wasn't. It's pretty sad how much anxiety this program causes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So many of these parents of only younger children have no idea just how unimportant AAP is in the whole scheme of things. Once high school rolls around, it makes no difference who was in it and who wasn't. It's pretty sad how much anxiety this program causes.

I agree. What happens to children is really irrelevant overall. Once your parent or parents have died, you realize that your kids will truly be just fine no matter if they are doctors or plumbers or bankers. Overall, where they went to school just doesn't matter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just get over the fact that your kid is intellectually mediocre, and move on with your lives.

I was prepared to do that if our kid didn't get in, but so few are.
Know one parent who appealed three times til her kid finally got in.

so few are what? not getting in?

garbled the sentence , meant so few are prepared to get over it if their kid doesn't get in.

agreed. and I never get this. my oldest got in easily. I didn't think twice after my two others weren't in the pool. Somehow they all managed to be straight A students through middle and most of high school. I just don't get the madness.

Why are you on a board like this for elementary aged kids when yours are older? odd

Not for someone who's BTDT and remains involved with the school system and community. Is it odd that I care about what's best for all kids and not just my own? Perhaps on this thread.

Yes, it's odd. It's akin to frequenting trying to conceive, wedding planning or similar type forums. The rose has bloomed and died on those chapters of your life. Move on.

Poor analogy, not akin to that at all as a mismanaged school system can cause a heckuva lot more harm than someone's tacky wedding. Again, try to see past the nose on your own face -- COMMUNITY. How we educate children affects us all. If people don't want to hear from folks who have BTDT, why come to this board asking questions?

[Anonymous]

So much depends on your child and how well they know you at school. If you are a recent arrival, with no PTA, haven't been there since K, you are in the pool to be "overlooked" When you see the c***p they turn in to represent your kid, you will be glad of the appeals process. It merely corrects mistakes -- and there are many, many who get in who don't meet the standard, and many who don't get in who should. It is a very large group of children overall, so there is room for many mistakes. There are just not that many kids with WISC score of +130. That is a myth --most have WISC 120+

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just get over the fact that your kid is intellectually mediocre, and move on with your lives.

I was prepared to do that if our kid didn't get in, but so few are.
Know one parent who appealed three times til her kid finally got in.

so few are what? not getting in?

garbled the sentence , meant so few are prepared to get over it if their kid doesn't get in.

agreed. and I never get this. my oldest got in easily. I didn't think twice after my two others weren't in the pool. Somehow they all managed to be straight A students through middle and most of high school. I just don't get the madness.

Why are you on a board like this for elementary aged kids when yours are older? odd

Not for someone who's BTDT and remains involved with the school system and community. Is it odd that I care about what's best for all kids and not just my own? Perhaps on this thread.

Yes, it's odd. It's akin to frequenting trying to conceive, wedding planning or similar type forums. The rose has bloomed and died on those chapters of your life. Move on.

Poor analogy, not akin to that at all as a mismanaged school system can cause a heckuva lot more harm than someone's tacky wedding. Again, try to see past the nose on your own face -- COMMUNITY. How we educate children affects us all. If people don't want to hear from folks who have BTDT, why come to this board asking questions?

THIS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So much depends on your child and how well they know you at school. If you are a recent arrival, with no PTA, haven't been there since K, you are in the pool to be "overlooked" When you see the c***p they turn in to represent your kid, you will be glad of the appeals process. It merely corrects mistakes -- and there are many, many who get in who don't meet the standard, and many who don't get in who should. It is a very large group of children overall, so there is room for many mistakes. There are just not that many kids with WISC score of +130. That is a myth --most have WISC 120+

Please explain how you came to that calculation. Of the in-pool kids who were accepted, how many even had a WISC done? My guess is very few. Mine certainly didn't--no reason to pay for a WISC if potentially it wasn't needed.

I am also the poster who parent-referred with a WISC of 129, and my DC did not get in. I didn't see DC's GBRS, but since DC has always gotten good marks for both academics and behavior, I doubt it was a huge factor. My thought is the scores--WISC and CoGAT/NNAT--were just too low.

[Anonymous]

Seems that sometimes Wisc on appeal can be lower than if submitted first round. How low were the NNAT/COGAT?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
3) One of the mindless rabble who discourage people from appealing for reasons which continue to escape me.

Group #3 is summarily dismissed and I STRONGLY encourage Groups #1 and #2 to ignore them.

Your arrogance is amusing. I'll give you that.

Seriously. I strongly encourage OP to back off. I also find it amusing that some posters refer to those who have very valid grievances about AAP as "trolls". Anyone who is paying taxes to FCPS should have a say in how that money is spent and MANY people feel AAP is one program that needs to be cut, or at the very least, massively overhauled. I'll speak up whenever I please about this issue and I hope others who feel likewise do the same and not feel they have been "dismissed" by the OP or anyone else. FCPS is not made up solely of AAP kids and their parents.

Ok - you have the freedom to express your opinion but why voice to folks that DON"T REALLY CARE? We are not discussing anything around funding or money that isn't already in place- but HEY - write your flipping Congressman or show up at every school board meeting - you seem to have a lot of time on your hands. More importantly stop wasting our time filtering out your nonsense in a forum that clearly you don't support or contribute meaningfully.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you use words like "appealers" in subject lines when the proper word is "appellants," then you had better hope your precious little snowflake didn't inherent your intellectual genes.

+10000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
3) One of the mindless rabble who discourage people from appealing for reasons which continue to escape me.

Group #3 is summarily dismissed and I STRONGLY encourage Groups #1 and #2 to ignore them.

Your arrogance is amusing. I'll give you that.

Seriously. I strongly encourage OP to back off. I also find it amusing that some posters refer to those who have very valid grievances about AAP as "trolls". Anyone who is paying taxes to FCPS should have a say in how that money is spent and MANY people feel AAP is one program that needs to be cut, or at the very least, massively overhauled. I'll speak up whenever I please about this issue and I hope others who feel likewise do the same and not feel they have been "dismissed" by the OP or anyone else. FCPS is not made up solely of AAP kids and their parents.

Ok - you have the freedom to express your opinion but why voice to folks that DON"T REALLY CARE? We are not discussing anything around funding or money that isn't already in place- but HEY - write your flipping Congressman or show up at every school board meeting - you seem to have a lot of time on your hands. More importantly stop wasting our time filtering out your nonsense in a forum that clearly you don't support or contribute meaningfully.

Um, it seems you are the one who has just a little too much time on your hands. See below. You seem inordinately angry that others would feel much differently about AAP than you. It's kind of entertaining to see you actually try and order people to "stop wasting your time". I could turn that around and tell you to stop wasting our time with your ridiculous angst over something as trivial as AAP. Oh, and remember: DEEP BREATH!

Anonymous wrote:Hey Everyone,

If you are reading this, you are likely one of three categories:

1) Planning an appeal
2) Wondering if you should plan an appeal, or
3) One of the mindless rabble who discourage people from appealing for reasons which continue to escape me.

Group #3 is summarily dismissed and I STRONGLY encourage Groups #1 and #2 to ignore them.

First, I am sorry you are in the position to appeal. That said, yesterday was NOT a final decision. First, DEEP BREATH! Think about what you believe will most benefit you child and let that be your guide. If you decide to appeal, you are entering a period that will be stressful. Do what you can to keep the stress from your child. I had a successful appeal for my son two years ago. It seemed obvious he needed AAP to me. He had the test scores plus some. He could do mental gymnastics that escape most adults like multiplying 2 or 3 digit numbers in his head. However, his AART and 2nd grade teacher decided that despite this, he needed a low GBRS and didn't get in.

Remember, first, DEEP BREATH! After that, start to work on your strategy and go request a copy of the package that was submitted. It may be obvious why your child didn't get in from the package! Low GBRS? Poor work sample? Who knows, but make sure your strategy addresses the weaknesses and highlights the strengths.

Step #2, you need a WISC test. GMU offers them as do some other places. It is really hard to know what score you are looking for but 120 likely won't do it. 130 likely will. Two years ago, the accepted benchmark when I read EVERY post was WISC 126. Almost no one lower got in that year. I don't know about last year.

Step #3, work your strategy and make your appeal package as strong as possible. Ask questions on the board, most people will really try to help you. Ignore those that don't. I really believe that being positive helps a lot. If there is something in your package that you think is just wrong, don't argue against it (i.e. The teacher doesn't like, doesn't know, doesn't car, etc.), instead focus on positive. My child can do, whatever, and give an example. Use all of the pages they give you for letters, samples, whatever.

What ever happens, it is OK. GOOD LUCK!

Oh, and a note about the people who say there is a stigma for the appealers. There isn't. No one ever asked or knew for us. The biggest problem is that you miss orientation. So what! If you get a positive result to your appeal, call the Principal. Ours gave us a private tour during the last week of school.

Remember DEEP BREATH!