Reply to 6th grade math placement letters posted

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Just FYI I emailed the math person from our middle school and detailed exactly why I thought my son should be in pre-algebra for 6th instead of math 6, and she agreed with my reasoning and he was put in pre-algebra for 6th graders. So changes are possible.

(Please don't come at me for this, we had good reasons and from an early age he seemed destined for STEM)[/quote]

How wild!  Our son was disappointed about his placement, so we did the same.  The math person indicated that there is nothing they can do, and that the placement is what it is.  And if he's still interested in being placed in Pre-Algebra, then the central APS Math Office is going to require him take a readiness test (on the day before school starts, after a summer of, well, being a kid having fun during the summer).

All of this seems extraordinary to me, particularly as at no point has anyone been measuring their capacity to learn or interest level, but rather what they were taught in the classroom.

Anyway, it makes sense to me that they'd want to set and enforce standards, but this feels fairly arbitrary. [/quote]

PP here and that sucks. I thought it would be a pretty easy ask, but I was surprised that the math coach said she thought the change made sense based on a very specific circumstance (DS somehow missed the memo that you can't skip questions and go back, presumably because he has ADHD. He now has a 504 requiring he be given written instructions in addition to verbal instructions, and we were able to get that accommodation because he missed so many instructions on the writing SOL that it couldn't even be considered complete by the state and I had to do a parent opt-out it).

But it sounds like what your math person said contradicts what the placement letter stated. Didn't it say that they would work with parents to ensure placement was appropriate? And why give the names and contact info of math coaches at each school if it really is set in stone and their hands are tied? In your shoes I would probably do some outside enrichment, see if you can make a more solid case for re-placement, and appeal. I know it sucks to do enrichment over the summer but my stem-loving kid actually enjoyed outside enrichment much more than I thought he would. We just did maybe 3 Khan academy lessons plus a little Singapore math lesson on dividing fractions. If your kid really can pick up things quickly and enjoys it, I don't think you need to be intense about enrichment in order for him to get a higher score. [/quote]

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