Underwhelmed by AAP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

OP here: I'm questioning my decision to send my child to the AAP center for a number of reasons. Unfortunately, I don't have a crystal ball to see into the future, but right now I don't see much benefit. He misses his neighborhood friends and just doesn't seem happy. He's keeping up with the work, but grumbles a lot. He's also had to adjust to not being one of the smartest kids in his grade. Now he's just one of many smart kids. Instead of helping him grow, I think it's done some damage. To each his/her own, but I don't think AAP is all that parents are told it will be.

I have twins in a LLIV school in the AAP program. One of them was the constantly told by his 2nd grade teacher that he was the "smartest" in the class, the kid never studied for a test or practiced his spelling much and received 4s on everything. This year has been a rude awakening in 3rd grade AAP. He realizes he's not the "smartest" and that everyone in the class is equally or smarter than him including his sibling. He has had a rough time with it. I have talked to the teacher and she has worked with him specifically and continues to do so in order for him to adjust. One of his biggest challenges is that he doesn't like to show his work for math, he does it in his head and writes the answer down. The teacher demands he show his work and to him it's frustrating as he has already worked it in his head. So not all AAP kids are on the same track, and it's important to form a relationship with the teacher if one is really concerned about the education of their child. AAP kids have struggles and challenges as well and they should be addressed either by the teacher or with the appropriate administration. OP, if you are not satisfied, voice your concerns; and hopefully they will be heard and addressed. GL

Showing your work is critical to getting good grades in Math and really helps later on. Doing it all in your head is a bad habit -- math teacher.

+1. Not a math teacher, but an applied mathematician/computational physicist. Sure, there are degrees of showing the work, but often there are stupid errors (e.g., 1+1=1) and there are conceptual errors. Either can result in the wrong answer. But one is a lesson to be more careful, and one indicates an problem understanding, which is far more serious.

[Anonymous]

The application of advanced math in the gen. ed elementary schools is site-based. Our school does no special advanced math until 6th grade. The other grades are simply differentiated and do pretty much the same things as everyone in class.

This is very frustrating for my kids who excel in math, they are bored to tears and hate math time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:All kids (GenEd and AAP) have one homeroom teacher and several other teachers for different subjects, starting in 3rd grade. This is certainly not AAP-specific.

I have two kids in FCPS - one in an AAP center and one in GenEd. One in 1st, one in 5th. They both have one single teacher for all subjects. Changing teachers for different subjects must vary from school to school.

What I am concerned with, though is having a child in a GenEd class at an AAP center once the ratio of GenEd classes to AAP classes gets askew. Even though a small percentage of kids are pulled into the AAP program, when you're a GenEd kids at an AAP center with more than half the kids in AAP, it's hard to know that. It's tough when the majority of kids at your school are 'gifted', and you're not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tomorrow is the Iowa test, she's dreading it (she thinks it is silly to make students test into Algebra, she suggested making it open enrollment - no, she would opt not to enroll), but will probably ace it.

Yes, lots of kids do extremely well on the IAAT. Thankfully the more recently updated and more rigorous Math SOL tends to reduce the number of students that take Algebra in 7th grade.

Only if they are prepped in the AAP centers. Gen Ed does nothing to prepare students for the IAAT. In fact, IMO, they seem to "dumb" down their curriculum so students are not successful on this test.

"Only if they are prepped in the AAP centers"? Nope, our AAP kid (and her classmates) were not prepped for the Iowa test. You're making a sweeping generalization. Maybe your kid is at a center school where you think the AAP kids get prepped and general ed kids don't but that wasn't the case at our center. Kids and parents were told, "You can't really prep for this; it is an aptitude test, not really a test of knowledge the kid already has learned." My kid and many others did just fine on the Iowa test without any specific prep.

If you are referring to parents getting outside prep for their kids for this test, that does not translate into the centers prepping them. The centers sure aren't telling parents to go out and find prep for their kids for this, at least not where we were.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I am going to guess Continental Math League was used. It is used as early as 2nd grade:

http://www.fcps.edu/is/aap/pdfs/famework/Grade2.pdf

NP here- this is in 2nd grade? I thought AAP started in 3rd grade? My child gets pull outs by ART and is the highest math grouping (2nd grade is divided by level on subject matter which is tested at the beginning of each month) but this doesn't look familiar at all. Is it because we are not at a center?

Both my Gen Ed and AAP kids did Continental Math League all through elementary school, in three different FCPS schools. They also started timed testing of math facts from at least second grade, maybe even first. No prep for IAAT at the AAP center and the teacher specifically told us that the kids should not prep for this test.

Similar experience here.

For us as well

I am the one that asked this- my kids do get timed math (I forgot what DC called it but it was maybe minute math) - that was 1st grade. I guess I don't know how continental math is implemented or incorporated in 2nd grade.. I have to ask DC - did you learn about this through the teacher? dot he kids call it continental math?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All kids (GenEd and AAP) have one homeroom teacher and several other teachers for different subjects, starting in 3rd grade. This is certainly not AAP-specific.

I have two kids in FCPS - one in an AAP center and one in GenEd. One in 1st, one in 5th. They both have one single teacher for all subjects. Changing teachers for different subjects must vary from school to school.

What I am concerned with, though is having a child in a GenEd class at an AAP center once the ratio of GenEd classes to AAP classes gets askew. Even though a small percentage of kids are pulled into the AAP program, when you're a GenEd kids at an AAP center with more than half the kids in AAP, it's hard to know that. It's tough when the majority of kids at your school are 'gifted', and you're not.

Yes, this is exactly our experience. Our DC is a GenEd student at a center school and the ratio of AAP to GenEd is most definitely skewed. While I know that because it is a center, it draws students from many other base schools, hence the high number of AAP students, the fact remains that it is not a lot of fun to be the GenEd student in a center environment. To the GenEd students at a center, the majority of kids are AAP, which just doesn't reflect reality. I think GenEd students whose base school happens to be a center should have the option of attending another school within their pyramid, and be bused there, just as AAP students can choose to attend a center school. It is incomprehensible that in one grade alone at our center, there are 2 GenEd classes and 4 AAP. Imagine how the GenEd students feel, seeing this imbalance. Attending a center school, if the student isn't in AAP, is not ideal by any stretch of the imagination, and should not be required.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tomorrow is the Iowa test, she's dreading it (she thinks it is silly to make students test into Algebra, she suggested making it open enrollment - no, she would opt not to enroll), but will probably ace it.

Yes, lots of kids do extremely well on the IAAT. Thankfully the more recently updated and more rigorous Math SOL tends to reduce the number of students that take Algebra in 7th grade.

Only if they are prepped in the AAP centers. Gen Ed does nothing to prepare students for the IAAT. In fact, IMO, they seem to "dumb" down their curriculum so students are not successful on this test.

"Only if they are prepped in the AAP centers"? Nope, our AAP kid (and her classmates) were not prepped for the Iowa test. You're making a sweeping generalization. Maybe your kid is at a center school where you think the AAP kids get prepped and general ed kids don't but that wasn't the case at our center. Kids and parents were told, "You can't really prep for this; it is an aptitude test, not really a test of knowledge the kid already has learned." My kid and many others did just fine on the Iowa test without any specific prep.

If you are referring to parents getting outside prep for their kids for this test, that does not translate into the centers prepping them. The centers sure aren't telling parents to go out and find prep for their kids for this, at least not where we were.

My DC is in AAP at Haycock. They got a huge math packet over the holiday break. It was prep for the 8th grade SOL. They have spent the last week going over it. I have to think that was prep for the IAAT they will be taking next week. I'm not complaining, but I don't particularly care if my DC gets into Algebra in 7th grade because I don;t think DC is ready.

[Anonymous]

Our AAP center (in cluster 8) did not have timed tests or anything in advance of the IAAT for AAP kids. Interesting how Haycock has a packet for the kids over the holiday break. The supplementary materials should be similar across FCPS. Doesn't seem right that there is so much varying when it comes to the Curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Yes, those poor Haycock kids being given a math packet over Christmas break for something which they should have already been prepared for from their regar math classes.

They should have been prepared for the test from what they learned in class, and not requiring additional work to make them ready for this test. It is a shame those poor Haycock kids required the extra remediation and could not enjoy break like the rest of the kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Our AAP center (in cluster 8) did not have timed tests or anything in advance of the IAAT for AAP kids. Interesting how Haycock has a packet for the kids over the holiday break. The supplementary materials should be similar across FCPS. Doesn't seem right that there is so much varying when it comes to the Curriculum.

[Anonymous]

My kid said they did not prep for the test or talk about it in advance other to mention it was on the schedule, everyone in their class thought it was easy, and afterwards the teachers didn't talk about it other than to tell them when the scores came in.

In my kid's words, it was if the test never happened.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, those poor Haycock kids being given a math packet over Christmas break for something which they should have already been prepared for from their regar math classes.

They should have been prepared for the test from what they learned in class, and not requiring additional work to make them ready for this test. It is a shame those poor Haycock kids required the extra remediation and could not enjoy break like the rest of the kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Our AAP center (in cluster 8) did not have timed tests or anything in advance of the IAAT for AAP kids. Interesting how Haycock has a packet for the kids over the holiday break. The supplementary materials should be similar across FCPS. Doesn't seem right that there is so much varying when it comes to the Curriculum.

Haycock poster again. My DC talked all week about IAAT prep, so they were clearly prepped. That said, I heard it was "easy."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, those poor Haycock kids being given a math packet over Christmas break for something which they should have already been prepared for from their regar math classes.

They should have been prepared for the test from what they learned in class, and not requiring additional work to make them ready for this test. It is a shame those poor Haycock kids required the extra remediation and could not enjoy break like the rest of the kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Our AAP center (in cluster 8) did not have timed tests or anything in advance of the IAAT for AAP kids. Interesting how Haycock has a packet for the kids over the holiday break. The supplementary materials should be similar across FCPS. Doesn't seem right that there is so much varying when it comes to the Curriculum.

Haycock poster again. My DC talked all week about IAAT prep, so they were clearly prepped. That said, I heard it was "easy."

I believe that you misread my original post or, perhaps, misunderstood the intended meaning. It is very unfair that certain schools have teachers preparing the AAP kids for IAAT; and other schools do nothing. This is my main beef with FCPS - seems that the kids in the 'better' schools get a 'better' education. AAP kids should be getting identical-like materials, opportunities, and instruction. If this is not the case, this needs to be fixed as it really is broken!

[Anonymous]

Agreed - my son is in 5th grade taking 7th grade. They received a letter last week stating they were taking IAAT this week. No in class prep what so ever. Son said test was easy. He does AoPS all of the time. But totally unfair that one school preps and otehrs don't

[Anonymous]

FCPS instructs teachers specifically to do NO PREP for the test. Shocking that Haycock doesn't follow those guidelines. (Just a smidge of sarcasm )

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, those poor Haycock kids being given a math packet over Christmas break for something which they should have already been prepared for from their regar math classes.

They should have been prepared for the test from what they learned in class, and not requiring additional work to make them ready for this test. It is a shame those poor Haycock kids required the extra remediation and could not enjoy break like the rest of the kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Our AAP center (in cluster 8) did not have timed tests or anything in advance of the IAAT for AAP kids. Interesting how Haycock has a packet for the kids over the holiday break. The supplementary materials should be similar across FCPS. Doesn't seem right that there is so much varying when it comes to the Curriculum.

Haycock poster again. My DC talked all week about IAAT prep, so they were clearly prepped. That said, I heard it was "easy."

I believe that you misread my original post or, perhaps, misunderstood the intended meaning. It is very unfair that certain schools have teachers preparing the AAP kids for IAAT; and other schools do nothing. This is my main beef with FCPS - seems that the kids in the 'better' schools get a 'better' education. AAP kids should be getting identical-like materials, opportunities, and instruction. If this is not the case, this needs to be fixed as it really is broken!

I'm the "Haycock" poster. I totally agree. I have one in AAP and one not (and at another school). The disparity of what they get really bothers me.