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[quote=Anonymous]For those on the fence about AAP for your child, let me give you a perspective you may not get from others on here.

My DD was in AAP from 3rd grade on at a highly regarded center.  We later relocated out of state during middle school.  She's now in high school.  She does very well, but has extreme anxiety/depression and perfectionist tendencies and is in therapy.  She dates it back to AAP.  She is convinced that AAP is the problem.  Now I don't think she is 100% right, but I do think there's something there.  The culture of perfection and being top was fully present at her center.  She never felt good enough, even though she is very bright and kept up just fine (not the top, not the bottom, just in the pack).  Also, I feel that the kids were constantly told how smart they are and now she is just like that old New York Magazine article that talked about praising effort not intelligence.  She's just like the kids in the study -- afraid to do anything she won't be the best at doing.  As a family, we have never pushed that and were always careful to raise effort not intelligence and I'm not a so-called tiger parent (in fact, I was surprised by her scores and surprised she got in).

Looking back, she says she would not choose an AAP center if she could go back and do it over.  She's an introverted math, science, artsy kid -- exactly who I would have thought would be a good choice for a center.  Seeing the pain she is in now, I feel we probably made the wrong choice.

I'm sure others will disagree and I think maybe the center is the right choice for some.  I just post this so that if your child doesn't get in or in your heart you wonder if it's the wrong choice, you realize it's not necessarily all good.  [/quote]

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