Is anyone else concerned about their kid being in AAP?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m the poster who kept DD out of the AAP Center. I know that my daughter is smart, but brilliant or exceptional - no. She is organized, kind, mature for her age, a hard worker and people-pleaser. Does that make her “gifted”? I don’t think so.
After talking to DD and her teachers, I am confident that she will be properly challenged at her base school. I support my decision not to send her to the center because she has an older sibling who attended for a while. I was not impressed with the high level of stress and competition among the students, or the attitude fostered by the school that AAP students were treated as “special”. Personally, I thought DD would burn out. She is happy, well-adjusted, and excelling at her base school and I feel I made the right decision for her. Each family is entitled to their own opinion.

I also have a DD who qualified for AAP but kept herself out of the center. We've had a fairly similar experience to yours, and we also have no regrets. She has enjoyed being a big fish in a small pond, being able to compete on academic teams (center would have had limited spots for a lot of interested students), and being able to hold leadership positions at her base school. AAP just isn't as big of a deal as so many people make it out to be, providing that your base school is good and makes a point of challenging advanced students.

Part of the decision for us was that the center school is overcrowded with 30 students per class, whereas the base school has class sizes in the low 20s.

[Anonymous]

I kept my son from going to an AAP middle school after the experience my first son had with the AAP middle school. There was a lot of busy work and kids just doing things joylessly to try to get into TJ. Very high stress. I think it's better to put off that atmosphere until high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m the poster who kept DD out of the AAP Center. I know that my daughter is smart, but brilliant or exceptional - no. She is organized, kind, mature for her age, a hard worker and people-pleaser. Does that make her “gifted”? I don’t think so.
After talking to DD and her teachers, I am confident that she will be properly challenged at her base school. I support my decision not to send her to the center because she has an older sibling who attended for a while. I was not impressed with the high level of stress and competition among the students, or the attitude fostered by the school that AAP students were treated as “special”. Personally, I thought DD would burn out. She is happy, well-adjusted, and excelling at her base school and I feel I made the right decision for her. Each family is entitled to their own opinion.

I also have a DD who qualified for AAP but kept herself out of the center. We've had a fairly similar experience to yours, and we also have no regrets. She has enjoyed being a big fish in a small pond, being able to compete on academic teams (center would have had limited spots for a lot of interested students), and being able to hold leadership positions at her base school. AAP just isn't as big of a deal as so many people make it out to be, providing that your base school is good and makes a point of challenging advanced students.

Part of the decision for us was that the center school is overcrowded with 30 students per class, whereas the base school has class sizes in the low 20s.

This sounds like a great decision, but how would it work when your base school is a center school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
This sounds like a great decision, but how would it work when your base school is a center school?

If someone dislikes a center school that much, they could move or pupil place (language, arts magnet, etc.).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This sounds like a great decision, but how would it work when your base school is a center school?

If someone dislikes a center school that much, they could move or pupil place (language, arts magnet, etc.).

Look at the pupil placement form on the FCPS website for details. People pupil place for many reasons. If you think your child would not be well served as a gen ed student at an AAP center when most of his/her friends will be in AAP, that is a valid social/emotional concern. Talk to the principal of the school you want to attend to see if space is available.