Reply to "AAP is not a gifted program"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I have to agree with this.  I have one DC who is making high As while coasting in a competitive  TJ feeder MS-- and doing very little homework or studying. He needs someone to push him harder, challenge him more. And have higher expectations.  On the other hand, DC2 works hard in her ES center for good grades, and I think the level of challenge is about right. I would love DC 2 to keep her current program, while DC1 was was moved up to a higher level, like the LV some parents mention. It does DC1 no favor to be allowed to coast academically-- at some point: HS, college, grad school, smart will not be enough. He needs a situation where things stop coming so easily, and he has to learn to really work academically. He is just not learning those skills now. [/quote]

What is he doing with the time he doesn't need for homework? Being able to coast in school gives a kid the opportunity to be more involved in an outside activity. I know some TJ kids that used that time to be deeply involved in sports, dance, music, theatre...something the child loved that was different from what he or she was doing in school all day. The ability to do so well in a challenging curriculum while spending many hours on a non-academic activity gives the child a chance to really to grow and develop many different aspects of his or her character: leadership, organizational skills, ability to work with others, communication skills and more of the areas that sometimes can be neglected when  a child needs to spend all his time on academics. As long as he is having no trouble with the AAP curriculum, I would encourage him to use that extra time he has in a productive way to deeply explore an interest he has.

Best wishes to you- we had the same situation at our house and that is how we managed it. Kid went to TJ and is now at a top ten college and very happy there. Still spends  a lot of time on that outside, non-academic activity. 
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DS is definitely doing extracurriculars-- a music ensemble that meets after school& performs on weekends/ etc. (along with private music lessons), an academic team that practices 15 hours a week and travels on weekends, a sport that he plays, but not at a highly competitive level (no athletic talent!), NJHS, peer tutoring, etc.  He also spends a lot of free time reading and has to help pout around the house.   But it worries me that, despite being in the AAP Center in a school that has a reputation of being the most challenging in FCPS, he doesn't have to push himself academically.  I know he can't get through life this way, and it worries me that he is just not learning things like tenacity, grit, perseverance & hard work (like my DC2 does, in order to succeed in her AAP class).  So yes, I wish AAP would revert back to highly selective-- and then teach at that level and raise expectations.[/quote]

I really wouldn't worry about it at this point if he is only in eighth grade. He'll have the chance to take APs in high school and it will be even more important in high school to have the time available for outside, non-academic pursuits. It might be that he is smart enough that school work will be relatively easy for him until he gets to college, but he can benefit by all he can learn in different areas outside of school.

Maybe some outside activities are more difficult for him than school is? Maybe those are areas where he can learn about working hard at something that is not easy- you mention that he is not a natural athlete, but maybe spending more time on the sport would help him to see what it takes to do well when you are not naturally talented at a particular skill. Sports are an ideal activity for learning about tenacity, grit, perseverance, and hard work. Even more so when the skill does not come easily to the participant. He can learn about overcoming difficulties in any venue, it does not only have to be at school or in activities related to academics.

You never know where an outside interest will lead. Two young people in my neighborhood graduated from high school with AP diplomas and have since graduated from college but are now working in fields directly related to their outside of school activities. One, who was also a National Merit student, is a professional athlete. Yes, school should be challenging, but some kids are so smart that school is just not going to eat up all their time, so they can take advantage of the opportunity to get involved with worthwhile activities.

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