Summer Math Acceleration Program at Deal

[Anonymous]

We were emailed the invitation around 5 p.m. yesterday (Monday).

[Anonymous]

The invite was in the junk mail

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our kid just got invited to the Deal Math 8 summer math acceleration camp (she wasn't invited at the mid-year point but apparently did well on the end of year test they gave last Friday).

I was surprised at the dates -- in past years the camp was four weeks during July, but now the camp is planned for June 15-July 9. It means only a week off before starting the camp. Have others who have gone found that they assign homework or is it just instruction from 9 am -12 noon and the kids can enjoy the afternoons off?

I'm also not sure it is the best idea to accelerate at all. Our kid is already a year ahead -- is it smart to cram all of Math 8 into four 3-day weeks (48 hours of instruction at most), versus at least 135 hours over 180 school days that they would get over the course of next school year?

My kid did it last year. There is a significant amount of homework via Khan and worksheets as well. Probably 6-8 hours a week in addition to the school hours. Your kid has to be prepared to do math in the class and then on their own.

The other thing to consider is that Algebra at Deal isn't an easy A. There were about 40 7th graders put in Algebra this year and I know many who were getting Bs in quarters 1 and 2. At least half the classes.
My son worked very hard for A minuses and in had a very high A in 7th grade math at Deal without trying. He was set to get another A- in Algebra quarter 3 but distance learning raised that (as it has all grades).

Algebra is put on a kid's high school transcript and many colleges calculate it into the GPA even if it is taken in middle school. It's kind of ironic that the many of the most advanced math kids at Deal end up with a B in 7th grade Algebra when they would have had a very easy A in 8th grade math.
So take that into consideration as well---if you push your kid up they better be REALLY good at math.

I don't mean to be negative but these are a few things I wish I had known. I hope it helps!

I have a high schooler that did this and received As in Alebra I and Geometry at Deal. I learned in high school (SWW) that the credits count but the grades do not. My seance dcicld is planing to take the class this summer, my older child actually did Khan academy online and passed the test in the fall.

Since SMAC is online also I m wondering how that will change the teaching of the class. Will it be 3 hours of instruction on Microsoft Teams every day?

[Anonymous]

I don't know much about the qualifications of the program but as an upper level math teacher who comes across these kids in 10th and 11th grade I must say they are pretty well prepared. I think Deal seems to do a good job choosing kids who can handle to acceleration.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all this useful feedback. I totally agree Deal has a great math program. That said, I am starting to think the math camp might be more trouble than it is worth. I felt like my 6th grade kid worked pretty hard for A grades in Math 7 -- I'm super proud of it but would not have wanted anything more rigorous. My kid is already an overly serious student by nature, and I kept urging the importance of fun with friends and after school activities and not having to compete all the time. It sounds like a big sacrifice mentally and emotionally to spend a month in the summer doing 3 hours a day of online math instruction followed by another hour or two of homework each afternoon. Not to mention that the reward will be an even more difficult and stressful Algebra class in 7th grade.

[Anonymous]

I also wanted to ask if any parents were thrown off by the new dates. As recently as March it was being advertised for July 6 - 30. All of a sudden it's now June 15 through July 9?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I also wanted to ask if any parents were thrown off by the new dates. As recently as March it was being advertised for July 6 - 30. All of a sudden it's now June 15 through July 9?

My guess - they need flexibility right now.
If DCPS starts school earlier than currently announced, teachers can not be in back to school professional development and teach SMAC.

[Anonymous]

Does any other public middle school in DC offer this type of summer acceleration? Hardy? How about the charters? How about a DCPS-wide one? DCPS summer school is an ambiguous blend of remediation and continuity in elementary. Do they offer, system-wide, acceleration in middle or high school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks for all this useful feedback. I totally agree Deal has a great math program. That said, I am starting to think the math camp might be more trouble than it is worth. I felt like my 6th grade kid worked pretty hard for A grades in Math 7 -- I'm super proud of it but would not have wanted anything more rigorous. My kid is already an overly serious student by nature, and I kept urging the importance of fun with friends and after school activities and not having to compete all the time. It sounds like a big sacrifice mentally and emotionally to spend a month in the summer doing 3 hours a day of online math instruction followed by another hour or two of homework each afternoon. Not to mention that the reward will be an even more difficult and stressful Algebra class in 7th grade.

I would talk to your son’s math teacher. I have a child that accelerated and it was good for her. The funny thing is she is not a stem kid at all, she is a humanities kid who will probably be happy to never have to take another math class in her life even though she is really good at it. In 8th grade it gives you at least one class where almost all the kids work hard. It is a good cohort. I have another child doing the program this summer.

[Anonymous]

Do you have a kid who went through this program, while simultaneously participating in a summer intensive of their extracurricular - sports, dance, etc?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

What was the summer program like? That is my question. Was it worth it? Did you child feel like they learned enough to go on to the next level? The day is 4 hours. What happened in the four hours? what was the homework quantity and quality? did they have quizzes and tests?

Want to add: I have read on here in passing that some parents wished their kid didn't participate in the summer math because they missed critical info. I do not care what DC decides but want to share details so the decision is informed. Make sense?

The summer program is too new for anyone to know whether the material will be sufficiently retained when the kids see it again on the SAT five years from now. Will they remember the stuff they learned on that beautiful summer morning when they were 12 and wanted to go to the pool? Maybe. But it will probably be fine if you plan to do SAT prep anyway.

They take the SAT in 10th (and some take the SSAT in 8th) and the answer is ... make sure you get a tutor who can tell what concepts your kid is missing. That's the only way to really know if they are missing something.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thanks for all this useful feedback. I totally agree Deal has a great math program. That said, I am starting to think the math camp might be more trouble than it is worth. I felt like my 6th grade kid worked pretty hard for A grades in Math 7 -- I'm super proud of it but would not have wanted anything more rigorous. My kid is already an overly serious student by nature, and I kept urging the importance of fun with friends and after school activities and not having to compete all the time. It sounds like a big sacrifice mentally and emotionally to spend a month in the summer doing 3 hours a day of online math instruction followed by another hour or two of homework each afternoon. Not to mention that the reward will be an even more difficult and stressful Algebra class in 7th grade.

I would talk to your son’s math teacher. I have a child that accelerated and it was good for her. The funny thing is she is not a stem kid at all, she is a humanities kid who will probably be happy to never have to take another math class in her life even though she is really good at it. In 8th grade it gives you at least one class where almost all the kids work hard. It is a good cohort. I have another child doing the program this summer.

So how did she feel about having to go past Calculus in high school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I understand the desire to equip kids with strong math skills -- it would be great to set them up for going to college for engineering. But is it really necessary to take Algebra and Geometry in middle school?

I also wonder if four weeks of nonstop math is the best thing for a 12 year old.

In my experience, no. I have a 10th grader taking Calc BC (and doing very well). But truly there is no reason to go as far as he is going to have to go in math while still in HS. We did not encourage our younger kids to accelerate more than one year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you have a kid who went through this program, while simultaneously participating in a summer intensive of their extracurricular - sports, dance, etc?

Is anyone having summer sports this summer?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you have a kid who went through this program, while simultaneously participating in a summer intensive of their extracurricular - sports, dance, etc?

Is anyone having summer sports this summer?

My question was looking a couple of years ahead for a kid who is still too young.