How many kids in elementary school are independently in halls switching classes with older or younger kids? |
They are on a school bus if interaction with other kids is the concern. |
Has your K kid been abused by a sixth grader? |
Do you really not understand the price tag and disruption associated with converting to a 6-8 model when almost all the middle schools have been built, and their boundaries established, based on a 7-8 model? No one cares where you grew up. We care about what’s worked here. |
And most FCPS ES don't have pre-K. That's not a grade here. |
Because there's not enough space in the middle schools, dummy. |
I didn't grow up around here either - where I'm from, we had K-6 elementary schools, 7-8 junior highs, and 9-12 high schools. My husband is from a completely different part of the country and it was the same for him, too. I don't know why you think 7-8 middle school is uncommon, it's VERY common across the entire nation. |
Disrespectable |
The problem isn’t 6-8 middle school. It’s not having a uniform model across the district. Which has proven to be problematic in such an intertwined district. All the elementary schools should contain the same grades. Since the vast majority of the district follows K-6 with secondary starting at 7th, that’s the model they should stick with. If the school population contracts to the point that middle schools can house 3 grades, or they develop a plan to expand all middle schools to hold three grades, then 6-8 could be considered. But the county has designed its infrastructure around the 7-8 model. |
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| Somehow, Reid likes the 6-8 model. I don't. |
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The 6-8 MS model makes it a lot easier to do 6th grade algebra, which is a big push at the moment. It also makes instrumental music easier logistically and gives the 6th graders access to a full time strings/band program.
Parents don’t like it because there are obviously more behavioral issues in middle school vs. elementary, and it’s a less nurturing environment. Middle schoolers are expected to be more responsible for their own success and have to manage taking more classes from a larger number of teachers. Probably the biggest factor as to why no one likes the 6-8 middle schools is because MS is on the worst schedule having to start super early in the morning. I don’t expect the rumblings of “6th to middle” to stop any time soon, especially if they continue to push to expand the pre-K programs, but I think the logistics and family resistance will be too hard to overcome. |
The difference developmentally between a 6th grader still playing with nerf and legos, and a middle schooler experimenting with drugs, alcohol, dating and sex is fairly dramatic. My home district had elementary K-4th, middle school 5th-6th, junior high 7th-8th and high school 9th-12th. There were around 10-12 elementary schools, 4 middle schools, 2 junior highs and one high school. It was the most developmentally appropriate breakdown I have seen. |
Generally, 6th graders are still doing "kid" things, not experimenting with teen things like sex, alcohol, drugs, social media, etc. |
PreK is not a thing in FCPS If they are located on a FC elementary campus, PreK is separate from the real students and are kept in their own little bubble, not actually part of the school. |