This issue is all over FCPS and is one of the reasons our neighbors chose private school to get away from all the AAP hype. Our local school had to go to integrated classes last year because the bullying was getting bad between separated LLIV children and general ed children. It's funny when you hear that chess club and math club have the biggest bullies, something I wasn't expecting. I haven't heard if it's better now or not. Does Haycock have integrated classes? How many general ed classes do they have per grade and how easily do those children mix in with the AAP children. Some schools seem to cater more to parents of AAP children and others are focussed on general ed children more and then parents of AAP children complain. Others strike a good balance between everyone. Luckily, the school's overcrowding will hopefully be resolved somewhat once your children start there.

Anonymous wrote:This is yet another reason I love Spring Hill. Virtually all of the aap eligiable kids stay at the school, so its a super smooth transition. My kids are both in AAP and really have no idea there is anything different between their classes and those of their friends.

Of course they do. That's a load of crap.

Anonymous wrote:This is yet another reason I love Spring Hill. Virtually all of the aap eligiable kids stay at the school, so its a super smooth transition. My kids are both in AAP and really have no idea there is anything different between their classes and those of their friends.

Of course they do. That's a load of crap.

This is yet another reason I love Spring Hill. Virtually all of the aap eligiable kids stay at the school, so its a super smooth transition. My kids are both in AAP and really have no idea there is anything different between their classes and those of their friends.

Anonymous wrote:Why did I think that some portion of the AAP center at Haycock was being transferred to Lemon Rd soon? or no?

In the fall of 2013, third grade AAP students from Cluster 2 (Marshall pyramid) who previously would have attended Haycock will likely go to Lemon Road. Those already at Haycock will likely be grandfathered.

Anonymous wrote:Why did I think that some portion of the AAP center at Haycock was being transferred to Lemon Rd soon? or no?

The county's current recommendation is to grandfather all current 3rd-5th graders, and open the new center starting with next year's rising 3rd graders.

Why did I think that some portion of the AAP center at Haycock was being transferred to Lemon Rd soon? or no?

Anonymous wrote:
There are too many now in AAP to call it serving a need. I have been a parent of a child at a large center so please stop with the BS. Haycock and Longfellow were/are the center of the world for some. I would not be surprised if some schools remain at Longfellow and don't have to go to AAP at Cooper. Franklin Sherman despite being a split feeder to Langley [plus closer] didn't get sent to Churchill. Odd.

Of course, some schools will continue to feed into Longfellow AAP. Why wouldn't they? However, if a new AAP center is opened at Cooper, as seems likely, the projections are that it will take the kids from the Langley pyramid currently at Longfellow and Kilmer, eventually be larger than the AAP centers at Longfellow or Kilmer.

Sherman is a split McLean/Langley feeder, but it's in the McLean pyramid, so it's not surprising that Sherman kids would be assigned to Haycock AAP. Kent Gardens was reassigned to Churchill Road AAP when Haycock got overcrowded a few years ago. Kent Gardens is also in the McLean pyramid, but it's a much larger school than Sherman, so moving the KG AAP kids to Churchill Road provided more relief to Haycock.

We could debate about whether the requirements for AAP programs should be stricter, but why are you so nasty about the entire topic? Talk about odd!

Anonymous wrote:They are great. They are taught by excellent teachers. They are supported by an active parent community and PTA. Many parents have no idea who is center and who is gen. ed. In a school that big, your kid will not know all the kids anyway, so they know their classmates, whoever they might be.
The whole school benefits from the resources and energy brought by the center.

Being in the center is not elitist or a badge of honor. It is just a placement to serve a need.

I feel there is a very small, but very vocal group of non-center parents who spread the rumor that non-center kids are stigmatized at Haycock.

By the way, Haycock is not the only center and neighborhood school. This is a well-established system in FCPS.

There are too many now in AAP to call it serving a need. I have been a parent of a child at a large center so please stop with the BS. Haycock and Longfellow were/are the center of the world for some. I would not be surprised if some schools remain at Longfellow and don't have to go to AAP at Cooper. Franklin Sherman despite being a split feeder to Langley [plus closer] didn't get sent to Churchill. Odd.

every center school is also a neighborhood school. That is how FCPS does business.

They are great. They are taught by excellent teachers. They are supported by an active parent community and PTA. Many parents have no idea who is center and who is gen. ed. In a school that big, your kid will not know all the kids anyway, so they know their classmates, whoever they might be.
The whole school benefits from the resources and energy brought by the center.

Being in the center is not elitist or a badge of honor. It is just a placement to serve a need.

I feel there is a very small, but very vocal group of non-center parents who spread the rumor that non-center kids are stigmatized at Haycock.

By the way, Haycock is not the only center and neighborhood school. This is a well-established system in FCPS.

I agree. Kids at a center school who are not a part of the program often feel as though they are not as smart as the program kids.

It makes them feel bad. Read what some of the AAP parents write. So many kids from Mclean are in the program they must really dominate and Queen Bee the other students and families. As is French Immersion at Kent Gardens.

The school will tell you that they work hard to integrate the AAP kids and the non AAP kids, but I have not seen it in action. I have a 6th grader and a 4th grader in the program, and this is our first year at Haycock (just moved into the boundaries from out of state). My kids don't know anyone that isn't in the AAP program. There are no integrated activities, and my kids refer to non AAP kids as "gen Ed kids," which is a term they must have learned at the school. It's a great school, but I can see why people on this board complain about elitist attitudes there.

Mom of two preschoolers here. The eldest will be in kindergarten in a year and a half, and we're in a neighborhood that feeds into Haycock. In talking to neighbors, I've learned of the crowding issues and the current AAP proposals. It's making me think more about whether we want to stay in this district or look at other areas before my kids start school. One of my main concerns is just the whole concept of having a massive gifted program housed at a neighborhood school. To parents with kids at Haycock, how do you feel the presence of the center affects your kids in ways beyond academic instruction? Do you feel kids not in the program are stigmatized? What about the kids who are in the program? Do they seem to have a view that they're somehow smarter or more likely to be successful than the other kids? What other social dynamics exist at the school related to the gifts vs. non-gifted separation? TIA for your thoughts!