PP here whose child is in 5th grade and taking Algebra. In response to previous comments, he is taking the class at Langston Hughes Middle School. So no, we are not in a high socioeconomic pyramid. The county assessed him in 1st grade before placing him in the 3rd grade AAP class. They saw the need then, and that has been his track since.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC is not that precocious in math and took Algebra I in 7th grade, along with many other kids in his AAP class. However, what I have heard is that for the kids who are super-advanced, the logistical headaches make the grade acceleration more trouble than its worth. Several of them have said that if they could do it over again, they wouldn't have accelerated that much.

Think carefully before moving ahead so much in math. If your DC takes Algebra I in 5th grade, then takes Geo in 6th, Alg II in 7th, Precal in 8th, Calc in 9th, multivar in 10th. Then math at GMU for 11th and 12th?

I currently teach middle school Geometry and I can't imagine a 6th grader having the maturity to take Geometry - it's a lot more than being good at math - it requires organization, planning, and patience. It would be a struggle.

How much of this is due to the subject itself vs how the course is structured? Plenty of kids take AoPS geometry, which is far more challenging than even the honors geometry at TJ and other magnet programs: https://artofproblemsolving.com/community/c70h2719403_in_what_grade_did_you_take_geometry (ignore the spike at first grade - that's used as the "show me the results" option)

Not PP. As a middle school parent, I want and need the course to be structured so that my kid is increasing in organization and planning in 8th grade. I have an eye toward my kid heading off to college where she will be able to do well in courses with basically notes and tests (or papers/projects) and nothing else. That means that I want and need her teachers to be increasing not just the rigor of the coursework, but also removing the scaffolding slowly so she gets there. That's also true of my upper elementary schooler, but she needs a lot more scaffolding than my middle schooler even as they just start in on the process of handing more of her work and responsibilities over to her.

It's not appropriate to slow down the life skills progression of middle school - with a credit bearing class, to boot - just because a kid is precocious. The school should figure out another way to meet this student's needs.

Special ed focuses on the bottom end of the academic scale not on the top end.

Special Education focuses on kids with learning issues, some of whom are very smart and some of who are low IQ. The Twice Exceptional student is very real. Kids with high IQs who are struggling to grasp material due to learning issues, whether that is because of learning disabilities, ADHD, Autism or some other issue, receive services on a regular basis. There are kids who receive services who are low IQ who need different types of services but please don't think that there are not bright kids receiving services, there are a lot of them.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC is not that precocious in math and took Algebra I in 7th grade, along with many other kids in his AAP class. However, what I have heard is that for the kids who are super-advanced, the logistical headaches make the grade acceleration more trouble than its worth. Several of them have said that if they could do it over again, they wouldn't have accelerated that much.

Think carefully before moving ahead so much in math. If your DC takes Algebra I in 5th grade, then takes Geo in 6th, Alg II in 7th, Precal in 8th, Calc in 9th, multivar in 10th. Then math at GMU for 11th and 12th?

I currently teach middle school Geometry and I can't imagine a 6th grader having the maturity to take Geometry - it's a lot more than being good at math - it requires organization, planning, and patience. It would be a struggle.

How much of this is due to the subject itself vs how the course is structured? Plenty of kids take AoPS geometry, which is far more challenging than even the honors geometry at TJ and other magnet programs: https://artofproblemsolving.com/community/c70h2719403_in_what_grade_did_you_take_geometry (ignore the spike at first grade - that's used as the "show me the results" option)

Not PP. As a middle school parent, I want and need the course to be structured so that my kid is increasing in organization and planning in 8th grade. I have an eye toward my kid heading off to college where she will be able to do well in courses with basically notes and tests (or papers/projects) and nothing else. That means that I want and need her teachers to be increasing not just the rigor of the coursework, but also removing the scaffolding slowly so she gets there. That's also true of my upper elementary schooler, but she needs a lot more scaffolding than my middle schooler even as they just start in on the process of handing more of her work and responsibilities over to her.

It's not appropriate to slow down the life skills progression of middle school - with a credit bearing class, to boot - just because a kid is precocious. The school should figure out another way to meet this student's needs.

Special ed focuses on the bottom end of the academic scale not on the top end.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are there any 5th-grade students taking Algebra 1 in your school? If so, how is the process for acceleration handled for such advanced students?

My 8yo kid(3rd grader) has already mastered the elementary math curriculum and often feels unchallenged in her current AAP class. Given her interest and ability, I believe she would benefit from more advanced coursework, possibly even starting pre-Algebra early. I’d like to understand what options might be available for her to continue to grow academically, and if there’s a process we can follow to support this acceleration.

I reached out to the school, and they also recognized that my daughter excels in math. However, they informed me that there is no option for her to start early. The earliest pathway available is pre-algebra in 5th grade, followed by online Algebra 1 in 6th grade….

A very small number of kids are allowed to take Algebra I in 5th, but they're generally already skipped ahead a year or two in 1st or 2nd grade. Only 1 or 2 kids per grade level are skipped ahead like this, and they need to be way off the charts for FCPS to even consider allowing the skip. Unless your kid's 3rd grade iready math score is around 570-580+ your kid isn't in the ballpark for this level of acceleration. If your kid is around that level, I'd see if she can skip up to 4th grade AAP math right now.

FCPS is great for the middle 80% and the bottom 10% of students but not so great for a student that is not challenged by the current AAP.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC is not that precocious in math and took Algebra I in 7th grade, along with many other kids in his AAP class. However, what I have heard is that for the kids who are super-advanced, the logistical headaches make the grade acceleration more trouble than its worth. Several of them have said that if they could do it over again, they wouldn't have accelerated that much.

Think carefully before moving ahead so much in math. If your DC takes Algebra I in 5th grade, then takes Geo in 6th, Alg II in 7th, Precal in 8th, Calc in 9th, multivar in 10th. Then math at GMU for 11th and 12th?

I currently teach middle school Geometry and I can't imagine a 6th grader having the maturity to take Geometry - it's a lot more than being good at math - it requires organization, planning, and patience. It would be a struggle.

This is what's wrong with our schools. The low expectations.

What a ridiculous comment.

Questioning whether a student is mature enough to take a class 4 years early is absolutely a reasonable question. It’s also one that should be asked.

Talk to any college professors lately? This unnecessary push into math courses as early as possible is leading to a generation of students who can’t perform in a college Calc class.

As someone who went to TJ in the 90s and knew the very accelerated kids, there still do exist kids who can absolutely perform at a very accelerated level. I wasn't incredibly accelerated - just one of the half (at the time) my class in Algebra II/Trig in 9th and it was fine. The kids ahead of that were fine. The kids in Geometry in 9th were fine. We were all placed where we were capable. It nearly always worked out.

Also there are no very accelerated kids in college calc. If you take Algebra II in 9th (which is accelerated, but not out of the norm), then you take through Calc III in high school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC is not that precocious in math and took Algebra I in 7th grade, along with many other kids in his AAP class. However, what I have heard is that for the kids who are super-advanced, the logistical headaches make the grade acceleration more trouble than its worth. Several of them have said that if they could do it over again, they wouldn't have accelerated that much.

Think carefully before moving ahead so much in math. If your DC takes Algebra I in 5th grade, then takes Geo in 6th, Alg II in 7th, Precal in 8th, Calc in 9th, multivar in 10th. Then math at GMU for 11th and 12th?

I currently teach middle school Geometry and I can't imagine a 6th grader having the maturity to take Geometry - it's a lot more than being good at math - it requires organization, planning, and patience. It would be a struggle.

This is what's wrong with our schools. The low expectations.

What a ridiculous comment.

Questioning whether a student is mature enough to take a class 4 years early is absolutely a reasonable question. It’s also one that should be asked.

Talk to any college professors lately? This unnecessary push into math courses as early as possible is leading to a generation of students who can’t perform in a college Calc class.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a kid who was radically accelerated in math. The reality is that if your kid is that advanced, FCPS is not logistically equipped to meet your kid's needs. If your kid is skipped up in math in 1st or 2nd, you'll have many years of your kid needing to be pulled out of language arts class, specials, or even part of lunch to attend the next grade's math class.

If your kid starts Algebra in 5th, then for both 5th and 6th, you would need to either transport your child to the MS every day, which could be a nightmare, or your child would need to take the online class. But, that isn't the end of it. Very few middle schools offer Algebra II, and none offer pre-calc. So, you'd have another 2 years of trying to figure out how to transport your kid each day to another school, or you'd have another 2 years of online classes.

Your best bets are to accept that your kid will be bored out of their mind in school math while taking AoPS classes on the side, or pull your kid out of FCPS for elementary, and instead either homeschool or place your child in a private that is equipped for that level of acceleration.

Why don't they accept AoPS courses for credit? They're accredited and better than the FCPS online courses

Then they would have to accept Kumon, RSM, Curie, etc., courses too, which may be even better than AoPS courses.

Only if they're accredited. And what's wrong with that?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a kid who was radically accelerated in math. The reality is that if your kid is that advanced, FCPS is not logistically equipped to meet your kid's needs. If your kid is skipped up in math in 1st or 2nd, you'll have many years of your kid needing to be pulled out of language arts class, specials, or even part of lunch to attend the next grade's math class.

If your kid starts Algebra in 5th, then for both 5th and 6th, you would need to either transport your child to the MS every day, which could be a nightmare, or your child would need to take the online class. But, that isn't the end of it. Very few middle schools offer Algebra II, and none offer pre-calc. So, you'd have another 2 years of trying to figure out how to transport your kid each day to another school, or you'd have another 2 years of online classes.

Your best bets are to accept that your kid will be bored out of their mind in school math while taking AoPS classes on the side, or pull your kid out of FCPS for elementary, and instead either homeschool or place your child in a private that is equipped for that level of acceleration.

Why don't they accept AoPS courses for credit? They're accredited and better than the FCPS online courses

Then they would have to accept Kumon, RSM, Curie, etc., courses too, which may be even better than AoPS courses.

Anonymous wrote:I have a kid who was radically accelerated in math. The reality is that if your kid is that advanced, FCPS is not logistically equipped to meet your kid's needs. If your kid is skipped up in math in 1st or 2nd, you'll have many years of your kid needing to be pulled out of language arts class, specials, or even part of lunch to attend the next grade's math class.

If your kid starts Algebra in 5th, then for both 5th and 6th, you would need to either transport your child to the MS every day, which could be a nightmare, or your child would need to take the online class. But, that isn't the end of it. Very few middle schools offer Algebra II, and none offer pre-calc. So, you'd have another 2 years of trying to figure out how to transport your kid each day to another school, or you'd have another 2 years of online classes.

Your best bets are to accept that your kid will be bored out of their mind in school math while taking AoPS classes on the side, or pull your kid out of FCPS for elementary, and instead either homeschool or place your child in a private that is equipped for that level of acceleration.

Why don't they accept AoPS courses for credit? They're accredited and better than the FCPS online courses

Anonymous wrote:My child is in 5th grade, and goes to a middle school for his Algebra 1 class. It is a challenge logistically, but not impossible. I provide transportation to the middle school each day. His elementary school built the schedule so that his Algebra class would line up with the 5th grade math class (so that he doesn’t miss anything other than morning meeting). It was a challenge logistically, but it is possible.

When did they build the schedule like that? Did you ask them in advance to do so or were they on top of it? Is this the legendary Wealthy Potomac ES we've heard tales about?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC is not that precocious in math and took Algebra I in 7th grade, along with many other kids in his AAP class. However, what I have heard is that for the kids who are super-advanced, the logistical headaches make the grade acceleration more trouble than its worth. Several of them have said that if they could do it over again, they wouldn't have accelerated that much.

Think carefully before moving ahead so much in math. If your DC takes Algebra I in 5th grade, then takes Geo in 6th, Alg II in 7th, Precal in 8th, Calc in 9th, multivar in 10th. Then math at GMU for 11th and 12th?

I currently teach middle school Geometry and I can't imagine a 6th grader having the maturity to take Geometry - it's a lot more than being good at math - it requires organization, planning, and patience. It would be a struggle.

I had a 6th grader in class one year. He did fine mathematically, but it was awkward socially. Maybe he was awkward in his base elementary school too, but the difference between a bunch of 8th graders and a 6th grader was huge. Very Sheldon Cooper-esque, with the 8th graders staring at him bug eyed a lot for the things he said and did.

Why wasn't he in the same honors algebra class as the 7th graders?

There are a lot more sections of classes in MS. I think there are between 5-10 Algebra 1 H sections for the 7th grade at my sons MS this year. An ES student going to MS for math is getting up to take the MS bus and taking math in the first period. Then they are going to their ES for a full day of classes. Honestly, it sounds miserable and was one of the reasons we did not pursue Algebra in 6th grade.

? If there are 5-10 sections of 7th grade algebra 1, it's even stranger that he wasn't in one of them

Anonymous wrote:I am the previous poster who has a 5th grade child who is taking Algebra. He is in a FCPS school, so it is possible. His math ability was recognized in Kindergarten. In Kindergarten, he was pulled out by the AAP resource teacher, who was pulling materials 3-5 years ahead. Beginning in 1st grade, he pushed into the 3rd grade AAP class, and that has been his track ever since.

Cool. I can say the exact same thing about my kid, except that the AAP center made no efforts whatsoever to align the math classes and ensure that my kid wouldn't be pulled out of language arts, lunch, or other things to attend his math class. This is why I said that unless you have a wonderful principal, the logistics behind math grade skips are a nightmare. Generally, it either is not possible to align the math classes for two different grades, or the principal doesn't care to do so. Heck, when my kid was in 4th and pushed up to 6th AAP for math, he couldn't get his math to align simply because the 4th grade teacher decided that the one and only time she could do 4th grade math was right after morning meeting (no real reason. She just liked getting math out of the way first). Unfortunately, that was the one and only time there were no available 6th grade AAP math classes. This is the reality for many people who are less lucky than you are with your teachers and school administration.

Anonymous wrote:I am the previous poster who has a 5th grade child who is taking Algebra. He is in a FCPS school, so it is possible. His math ability was recognized in Kindergarten. In Kindergarten, he was pulled out by the AAP resource teacher, who was pulling materials 3-5 years ahead. Beginning in 1st grade, he pushed into the 3rd grade AAP class, and that has been his track ever since.

Which school ?

I am the previous poster who has a 5th grade child who is taking Algebra. He is in a FCPS school, so it is possible. His math ability was recognized in Kindergarten. In Kindergarten, he was pulled out by the AAP resource teacher, who was pulling materials 3-5 years ahead. Beginning in 1st grade, he pushed into the 3rd grade AAP class, and that has been his track ever since.

Anonymous wrote:My child is in 5th grade, and goes to a middle school for his Algebra 1 class. It is a challenge logistically, but not impossible. I provide transportation to the middle school each day. His elementary school built the schedule so that his Algebra class would line up with the 5th grade math class (so that he doesn’t miss anything other than morning meeting). It was a challenge logistically, but it is possible.

You're very lucky that your school was willing to make the schedules work out. My experience with a kid similarly skipped ahead: 2nd grade - missed half of language arts block to attend math, and then had to make up the work during 2nd grade math class. 3rd grade - missed part of language arts block and part of lunch/recess to attend math. 4th grade - despite the fact that there were 4 different 6th grade AAP classes who departmentalized, meaning that there were 4 different math timeslots, somehow they still couldn't make the schedule work out. The 4th grade teacher simply *had* to have her math time first thing in the morning, when 6th grade had specials, so my kid still couldn't take math at the same time as his classmates. When I suggested letting my kid test for Algebra, as he was already taking and acing Algebra at AoPS, had ludicrously high iready scores, etc., I was told by the central office that it was simply impossible. Then, we left FCPS, and things have been so much smoother. Kid finished AP calc in 8th grade, and has always been able to take math in person with an older grade level with no logistical problems whatsoever.

tl;dr. PP is incredibly fortunate. Normally, the logistics are a true nightmare, and FCPS will do everything in its power to make it challenging to skip even the kids who really need it. If your kid is that far ahead, unless you have the world's most awesome principal, FCPS will not serve your kid's needs. Homeschool or look for a private that accommodates outliers.