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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]My son qualified to take Algebra in 7th but I heard the teacher was not that great and there wasn't a physical textbook but random pages online that they did. So I had my son do Honors 7 math plus AOPS Algebra after school. Honors 7 math was so easy he never really had homework so he had plenty of time to do AOPS instead.

So when he took Algebra in 8th it was a review and left him with really solid algebra skills. He took the next level algebra class in the evenings.[b] He then took geometry in between 8th and 9th.[/b] So when he was in 9th and doing Honors Algebra 2 he had already been exposed to it the year before. He noticed some of his classmates who did Algebra in 7th really struggled in algebra 2 because they were shaky in some algebra topics. [/quote]

This makes me sad. You had a great time with AoPS Algebra, and you noticed that school Algebra was insufficient for others. So why settle for the inferior summer version of school Geometry? I recommend doing something like AoPS Geometry to enhance that.

[/quote]

It kind of makes me laugh because their kid did SOOOO much outside tutoring to ensure math was easy.  The kids in Alg. 2  who took alg in 7 may have to do a little bit of tutoring and find it hard, but the time they put into math overall is probably less AND they learn how to do something difficult.  I see both as decent lessons about growing up.[/quote]

What's so funny about taking time to learn? 
"Finding it hard" isn't the gift you make it out to be, when it's a very basic level of material and it's a cracked foundation for the future. AoPS is a lot harder than school, but it builds the strong foundation you need to succeed. [/quote]

+1.  The AoPS curriculum (and probably RSM, too), is a lot harder.  Kids whose only exposure to math is getting an A in an accelerated school Alg IH/Geom IH class are orders of magnitude behind kids who get all blue in AoPS. In everything: reasoning, speed, mathematical writing, breadth...  In short, they don't know what they're missing - and unless they go in a mathy field, may never know.  And if they do, their college professors will wonder why they chose this field.[/quote]

DP.  For anyone who is taking this seriously, don't.  Taking Algebra privately the prior year is not necessary to learn and do well in Algebra.  Same for Algebra II.  And it's not necessary to do Aops or RSM before going into a math, science, or engineering field.  [/quote]

NP.
AoPS and RSM classes are not meant to be taught before doing the school version, and they're not meant to be a means for acceleration.  Ideally, they should be a supplement, where a kid is taking Algebra in school and simultaneously taking AoPS Algebra to give the extra rigor and fill in any foundational gaps.  I agree that it's not necessary to do AoPS or RSM before going into a STEM field, but it would undoubtedly help the kid have a greater understanding of the math and a much stronger foundation.  In school math, too many kids become experts at applying the right algorithms to get the right answers without having a real understanding of the material.  That will not work in AoPS classes.[/quote]

We do RSM, and it is on track with what my kid (in the advanced track in MCPS) is doing in school through 7th (though RSM is much more challenging than anything MCPS offers in the accelerated courses). But after that RSM is a year ahead.[b] The reason is that RSM breaks geometry into 3 years - you take it along with pre-algebra/algebra classes in 6th-8th. [/b]So in 8th grade my kid will finish geometry in RSM and also do algebra 2 in RSM, while in MCPS she will do Geometry that year. She won't take Algebra 2 until 9th in MCPS. [/quote]

Blended algebra and geometry? 
[/quote]

They recommend you sign up for an algebra class and a smaller geometry class each year. This also lets you move to another enrichment -level in one but not the other. [/quote]

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