Anonymous wrote:

Because kids who are prepped: (1) bloat the size of the program, and create a situations where parents argue it is not a true GT program and (2) slow the entire class down Because they cannot perform at the same level in an u prepped setting.

Far better to have bloated GT programs rather than bloated prisons. There is no downside to the habits of mental, intellectual, and academic prepping. If there are any issues, it's certainly not related to prepping but rather the goals, mission, and administration of the GT program. Far better to have a bloat of highly prepared and performing children than a society of poorly performing misfits!

Wow! So what you're saying is that all of the GE kids in the county are going to end up in prison? Really? Can you not see how ridiculous thiS claim is?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Because kids who are prepped: (1) bloat the size of the program, and create a situations where parents argue it is not a true GT program and (2) slow the entire class down Because they cannot perform at the same level in an u prepped setting.

Far better to have bloated GT programs rather than bloated prisons. There is no downside to the habits of mental, intellectual, and academic prepping. If there are any issues, it's certainly not related to prepping but rather the goals, mission, and administration of the GT program. Far better to have a bloat of highly prepared and performing children than a society of poorly performing misfits!

So very, very true. What is it with this board that tries to devalue study and preparation....

I'm lost. Not prepping for AAP leads to people being destined for prison? if the parents weren't prepping their kids, they'd leading them down the wrong path? They wouldn't be involved with their kids? I'm missing the connection.

Anonymous wrote:

Because kids who are prepped: (1) bloat the size of the program, and create a situations where parents argue it is not a true GT program and (2) slow the entire class down Because they cannot perform at the same level in an u prepped setting.

Far better to have bloated GT programs rather than bloated prisons. There is no downside to the habits of mental, intellectual, and academic prepping. If there are any issues, it's certainly not related to prepping but rather the goals, mission, and administration of the GT program. Far better to have a bloat of highly prepared and performing children than a society of poorly performing misfits!

So very, very true. What is it with this board that tries to devalue study and preparation....

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Because kids who are prepped: (1) bloat the size of the program, and create a situations where parents argue it is not a true GT program and (2) slow the entire class down Because they cannot perform at the same level in an u prepped setting.

Far better to have bloated GT programs rather than bloated prisons. There is no downside to the habits of mental, intellectual, and academic prepping. If there are any issues, it's certainly not related to prepping but rather the goals, mission, and administration of the GT program. Far better to have a bloat of highly prepared and performing children than a society of poorly performing misfits!

Because anyone who doesn't prep will most definitely end up a "poorly performing misfit." Those are the only two possibilities in life.

Fortunately, those are not our only two choices. It is perfectly possible to do well in life without test prepping, and I know plenty of people who are proof of that.

I like what I read in another thread:"People can work hard and get good grades, but you can't teach smart." In other words, all the hard work in the world will get you nowhere if you don't have the intelligence underlying it. You can prep and prep kids, but if they aren't smart, they are limited as to how far they can go in the long run. If they're smart, they don't need test prepping.

You know, I used to believe this because I was one of the naturally smart ones growing up. I thought if I was in GT, got into the best undergrad, the best grade school, the best job, I would be ahead of everyone else. You know what, a lot of kids from growing up who were never in the GT/AP/advanced classes are doing GREAT now. Some were never great students, but they had high EQ or were really hard workers and this has paid off for them more than it ever did for me who was academic "smart."

I have been thinking about this topic a lot lately because I have an older child in AAP and a younger child in 2nd who I know is not destined for AAP. He just doesn't get things easily like my older child did. I have prepped him a bit (Amazon workbook), but I know the program is not really right for him. That said, my second grader has fantastic EQ and personality and will probably be every bit as successful as my child in AAP who happened to get a bit more natural ability.

Anonymous wrote:

Because kids who are prepped: (1) bloat the size of the program, and create a situations where parents argue it is not a true GT program and (2) slow the entire class down Because they cannot perform at the same level in an u prepped setting.

Far better to have bloated GT programs rather than bloated prisons. There is no downside to the habits of mental, intellectual, and academic prepping. If there are any issues, it's certainly not related to prepping but rather the goals, mission, and administration of the GT program. Far better to have a bloat of highly prepared and performing children than a society of poorly performing misfits!

Because anyone who doesn't prep will most definitely end up a "poorly performing misfit." Those are the only two possibilities in life.

Fortunately, those are not our only two choices. It is perfectly possible to do well in life without test prepping, and I know plenty of people who are proof of that.

I like what I read in another thread:"People can work hard and get good grades, but you can't teach smart." In other words, all the hard work in the world will get you nowhere if you don't have the intelligence underlying it. You can prep and prep kids, but if they aren't smart, they are limited as to how far they can go in the long run. If they're smart, they don't need test prepping.

Because kids who are prepped: (1) bloat the size of the program, and create a situations where parents argue it is not a true GT program and (2) slow the entire class down Because they cannot perform at the same level in an u prepped setting.

Far better to have bloated GT programs rather than bloated prisons. There is no downside to the habits of mental, intellectual, and academic prepping. If there are any issues, it's certainly not related to prepping but rather the goals, mission, and administration of the GT program. Far better to have a bloat of highly prepared and performing children than a society of poorly performing misfits!

It isn't a one off if you have to prep for AAP. If your child needs to prep for entry they (and you) will have to sustain that added effort to keep up and stay ahead for 7 years and then they get to HS and beyond, where that kind of effort is more important. It doesn't stop

Far better in life to model the habit of prepping than not. This is why prepping is preferable in every instance. Better to start early. It's never too late even for procrastinating, lazy, and laggard adult parents.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since when do you have to have a 4.0 GPA to get into AAP?

You don't need it to get in, but 4.0 is an indication that the standard syllabus is probably too easy for them and they might need something more challenging which is offered through AAP.

To the OP: There is nothing wrong with prepping. If your child is an over achiever, indicated by 4.0 GPA, it is your/child's decision to seek advanced programs. If the public school system has made testing a prerequisite to get into these advanced programs, you should not hesitate to help your child prepare for the test. Don't go by what sounds good socially. For test preparation, some parents think a workbook or two is all that is needed, few other might think a few weeks would be good, and a few more might decide to allow a few months of formal coaching. You be the judge - if your child needs extended test preparation, then make that investment to your satisfaction.

Anyone who has a 4.0 is not in FCPS, unless they mean all 4's -- different than a 4.0. It means they mastered the curriculum. I could additionally point out that is a kid doing fine without AAP.

Thank you to this PP who has pointed out rightly that there is no "4.0 GPA" in elementary in FCPS. Parents are confusing 4s on report cards with "4.0." This is not high school GPAs, folks.

There is a very recent, separate thread where a parent whose child has 3s on report cards is wondering if his or her kid can get into AAP. I would really hope that all these parents stressing about grades now, and AAP that their child isn't even in yet, would talk directly with their AARTs at their schools -- the people who are supposed to be able to answer exactly these questions, including prepping questions. OP, go to your AART and, if you have a good relationship with them, your kid's teachers and ask about this. My daughter's first grade teacher was great about explaining AAP and the kinds of kids she saw in first grade who usually would do well in it by third grade.

Glad my child is done with AAP. We did the full third grade through eighth grade and my kid had a terrific experience with good teachers and peers who were mostly engaged and interested in being in school and learning. But these days it seems there is infinitely more obsession before a kid ever enters AAP, about testing, prepping and pressuring kids than there was back when my kid was in second grade. There wasn't this insane competition and discussion among parents about this or that specific test, getting kids tested by outside organizations, gaming grades plus tests to slip into the program.... Or are those insanities just here on DCUM?

We were told that the program was about aptitude for learning, not about what a kid already knew in second grade. Nor was it about a kid's grades in early elementary. There were plenty of kids in AAP in both ES and MS who did not make perfect grades, and were not geniuses, but who could definitely cope well with challenging academics. That was how the program was always depicted to us by the schools and the teachers -- AAP was never about being a tiny, highly exclusive "special needs program" for the super-gifted, as some AAP-bashers on DCUM want it to be. Instead, it's a program to provide advanced (as in faster-moving and in-depth) academics for kids who do have the capability to do that kind of work.

Anonymous wrote:Something, something, truly gifted . . . destroys neighborhoods . . . good breakfast . . . yellow peril . . . get off my lawn . . . zzzz.

I actually hate the arms race that AAP has become in this area. That said, PP, you made me laugh out loud!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because AAP is not a gold star you get for having a good kid, or even an enrichment program. It is a special needs program for kids whose innate, unprepped needs cannot be met in the regular classroom.



Or at least that's what it's supposed to be.

+1. And it's not just a "few posters." It is many, many people and the prepping is why the program is bloated, under attack and likely to end in parts of the county.

Level IV AAP will not end in some parts of the county.

Prepard = prepared

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Why are a few parents on this forum against the practice of prepping for entry into the AAP program? If the child and their parent are willing to put the required effort to achieve a 99+ percentile in NNAT/CoGAT and maintain a 4.0 GPA, what are they doing wrong?

It isn't a one off if you have to prep for AAP. If your child needs to prep for entry they (and you) will have to sustain that added effort to keep up and stay ahead for 7 years and then they get to HS and beyond, where that kind of effort is more important. It doesn't stop.

Not necessarily true. Prepard my DS and AAP is a piece of cake. I suspect it'll continue on this track.

Anonymous wrote:Because AAP is not a gold star you get for having a good kid, or even an enrichment program. It is a special needs program for kids whose innate, unprepped needs cannot be met in the regular classroom.

Or at least that's what it's supposed to be.

Hahahahahaha... wait, were you serious?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because AAP is not a gold star you get for having a good kid, or even an enrichment program. It is a special needs program for kids whose innate, unprepped needs cannot be met in the regular classroom.

Or at least that's what it's supposed to be.

Um...no it's not. Citation please.

Citation: http://www.doe.virginia.gov/instruction/gifted_ed/gifted_regulations.pdf

Um, your citation doesn't remotely support your position.

Because kids who are prepped: (1) bloat the size of the program, and create a situations where parents argue it is not a true GT program and (2) slow the entire class down Because they cannot perform at the same level in an u prepped setting.