Reply to APS MS ELA curriculum and differentiation?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]The 7th grade intensified reading isn't elective. They read, take notes as they go, and write essays. Last year at DHMS, the intensified students read The Outsiders, House Arrest, their favorite book, and a book from a list, in addition to other daily assignments. Our student chose Salt to the Sea. I read the books with him and House Arrest and Salt to the Sea are serious books with a lot in them to write about. For the 8th grade intensified class, they've already written three essays and have taken several grammar quizzes. So far, my 8th grade student has read two books that he chose himself, and both are 500+ pages long. There's a ton of data on allowing kids to have some reasonable choice on what they read.

I am not a cheerleader for APS, but we do have experience in DCPS and the difference between the two systems is vast. Be honest with yourself as to what you value and can compromise on with a move. Fairfax is a ways out there. Unless you're coming from the far NW or maybe Brookland, even McLean feels very distant if you're used to being in the city.

Not every parent or student wants a TJ/STEM experience. I don't see my student thriving in a STEM heavy environment at all.

College acceptances are loosely tracked and reported on: https://www.arlingtonmagazine.com/ivy-league-elite-college-admissions/; https://www.arlingtonmagazine.com/most-popular-colleges-arlington-va-class-of-2025/; https://www.arlingtonmagazine.com/college-applications-arlington-va-2024/....[/quote]

7th grade winter [url=https://hub.lexile.com/lexile-grade-level-charts/]Lexile score range[/url]
25% = 925L, 50% = 1080L, 75% = 1230

For a 7th grade intensified English class, think maybe 1230+ ??
[i]House Arrest[/i] by K.A. Holt has a Lexile of [url=https://kaholt.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/HouseArrest_TeachersGuide_digital.pdf]610L[/url]
[i]Salt to the Sea[/i] by Ruta Sepetys has a Lexile of [url=https://lightsailed.com/catalog/book/salt-to-the-sea/9780698172623/]560L[/url]

3rd grade winter Lexile score range
25% = 480L, 50% = 645L, 75% = 810L

Please question [u]every single assignment[/u] your kids are doing in these so-called intensified classes. The teacher should never have allowed these books and should probably be sued for malpractice if that were actually a thing. Or else please don't complain that AP/SAT scores in the future are lower than you thought.[/quote]
I dont think those Lexile ranges work the way you're asserting.  The Outsiders is a totally classic 7th grade novel and it has a Lexile of 750L.  It would be 100% inappropriate for 3rd graders.[/quote]

Content is not the same thing as reading level. Of course age-appropriateness should be considered. However, if you don't care about the complexity of a book then why not just watch a movie with complex themes, with subtitles, and discuss as a class? The purpose of English class should be to improve language level and fluency while also developing critical reasoning skills. It [u]should[/u] be hard, especially if it's an honors/intensified class.[/quote] Hemingway is in the 700s for Lexile and his work is plenty challenging.  I don't think Lexile is the only way to define challenging literature.  And I certainly wouldn't want my kid assigned Harry Potter over Hemingway, just because Harry Potter has a higher Lexile level.[/quote]

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