Reply to Can ask for a placement test into Algebra 1 in 7th grade in middle school?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]The other option is to have her start taking an online algebra class at home like AOPS or there are plenty of really good homeschool algebra programs. She takes algebra at home while taking pre-algebra/math 7 next year. In 8th she takes honors algebra and gets an easy A since she will have already taken algebra and keeps studying topics into algebra 2.

Then she takes geometry the summer between 8th and 9th. In 9th she has caught up to the students who took algebra in 7th. Except she has taken more algebra without having a gap of a year like the student who took geometry in 8th. And has studied some topics from algebra 2. This worked for my child who then got an A in 9th honors algebra 2 while some other students struggled who were advanced into algebra in 7th. [/quote]I think this would require taking geometry at home in 8th grade so that she isn't expected to learn a year's worth of math over the summer. It's also a shame that a student who has already taken algebra and can demonstrate their knowledge would need to retake the class.[/quote]

This is true but not as bad as you think.

The Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2 sequence is absolutely terrible. You should do both Algebra and Geometry every year.
So you are in good shape to spend school time reviewing easy Algebra 1 for fluency, and spend home time learning Geometry (lots of high-quality low-cost options) before getting summer credit

Many of the top students do this. [b]It's also better, pedagogically, for your student to learn at their own pace first, and use the school pace later for review, instead of jumping ahead in school where now they have a high-stakes commitment to keep up with school pace[/b]. [/quote]

This is a strange way to look at school.  Where did this idea come from, that school is not for learning but is only for getting high grades?  Teachers teach material, kids don't have to prelearn it.  Their parents think they should so they preteach it (either through a class or at the kitchen table).  But why?  [/quote]

Because DS is bored with math at school and wants do dive deeper and move more quickly. Is it realy that different then allowing a kid who loves to read to read books above their grade level or a kid who loves music to take lessons outside of school or a kid who loves psorts to play a sport outside of PE? For some reason we have this weird idea that it is ok for kids to be really interested in doing a lot of activities outside of school but once those activities are math or science based people think it is pushy.

Encourage a kid to read or write for fun and all is well. Encourage a kid to do math for fun and you are a tiger parent.

It is easier for schools to deal with advanced readers and writers, you place the child in the top reading group and you allow them to read what they want when they finish their school work. It is harder to deal with a kid who is advanced in math because group work rarely is enough. But that doesn't mean that parents with kids who love math should not support that love. Or that parents with kids who are good at math and bored at school shouldn't find a way to engage their child in math.[/quote]

You are saying that your DC enjoys math classes and that's why he takes them.  But that's not what the PPP is about - it says that it is better pedagogically for a student to prelearn rather than learn in school because school is paced and graded.  That's anxiety-speak.  It's purely about not trusting schools or your children or their future.  It doesn't have anything to do with enjoying math enrichment.    [/quote]

Taking control of your own education and not blinding following the school's one-size-fits-all structure, which optimized for the convenience of teachers who don't understand math outside their narrow topic, is a good way to reduce anxiety and make math more enjoyable, yes. 
[/quote]

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