Starting a languarge in 6th grade and taking 8th grade algebra is not acceleration.

Ask your counselor. I was told not taking the Semester exam and not asking for a waiver will wipe that grade from your transcript.

However, this was a few years back.

Be very careful in MS, when you are given a chance to earn HS credits for them. Be your own advocate and make sure that the class is right for your kid. Have an exit strategy in place.

And if you take such a class, make sure you are capable of earning an "A" on it.

There are some good benefits in the long run of taking such classes in MS, provided you can earn As in them.

No, B is not an acceptable grade when you are accelerating a child.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:IMHO,
If your kid does not get an "A" in the HS credit course taken in MS, you should just not take the Semester exams and get that completely wiped out from the transcript.

Why start HS with a bad grade that will ensure that you will never have a 4.0?

How many kids graduate with a 4.0? Unless your kid has a 4.0 in MS, I would not make that a factor. Repeat algebra for a B and have one year less math overall? And for langauages as PP described you can not always repeat the segments? I don't consider a B a bad grade.

Not the PP, but my kid had fallen behind in a HS language course in 6th and had a C for awhile. After that I watched the grades on Edline like a hawk. If my kid had not brought the class grade up to an A before the semester exam, I would have pulled my kid out of class before the exam. I don't consider a B a fine grade, not if it means that three years later, in HS, my more mature kid might look back and rue that 3.0 on the HS transcript. My kid has since earned straight As. Why let an 11-year-old's carelessness end a high-schooler's aspirations for a 4.0 or better?

I think you are focusing on grades rather than learning. That small boost of a GPA might be over shadowed by ending up a year behind in math/language when college time comes.

My kid has no trouble learning, but is disorganized and doesn't always get the work turned in on time. Time management and responsibility have to be learned in MS (especially with the meaningless "P" system in ES), but if classes count for the HS GPA, it can be a steep learning curve for 6th graders. I wasn't a terribly mature 6th grader myself, but I ended up graduating top of my class, and I am glad I didn't have an 11-year-old me mucking up my chances in MS. Luckily, there's no falling behind if you drop a semester in language when you start in 6th grade. My kid would have moved from the 1A/1B class into the slower version.

So just a few months later in September he was able to handle a class that went 2x as fast...I would not count on that result for my child.

How do you just pull your kid out? I remember having to take a certain number of classes in MS - there wasn't really an option of pulling out. I guess my parents could have pulled me out but I would have gotten an I. Is that the trick. Get an I and it doesn't show up on the HS transcript because you didn't finish the course?

If my MS language grades were considered in HS, I would have been sunk. Worst subject. I think my DS would have the same fate and he has been in advanced classes thus far in ES so want to know options for MS.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:IMHO,
If your kid does not get an "A" in the HS credit course taken in MS, you should just not take the Semester exams and get that completely wiped out from the transcript.

Why start HS with a bad grade that will ensure that you will never have a 4.0?

How many kids graduate with a 4.0? Unless your kid has a 4.0 in MS, I would not make that a factor. Repeat algebra for a B and have one year less math overall? And for langauages as PP described you can not always repeat the segments? I don't consider a B a bad grade.

Not the PP, but my kid had fallen behind in a HS language course in 6th and had a C for awhile. After that I watched the grades on Edline like a hawk. If my kid had not brought the class grade up to an A before the semester exam, I would have pulled my kid out of class before the exam. I don't consider a B a fine grade, not if it means that three years later, in HS, my more mature kid might look back and rue that 3.0 on the HS transcript. My kid has since earned straight As. Why let an 11-year-old's carelessness end a high-schooler's aspirations for a 4.0 or better?

I think you are focusing on grades rather than learning. That small boost of a GPA might be over shadowed by ending up a year behind in math/language when college time comes.

My kid has no trouble learning, but is disorganized and doesn't always get the work turned in on time. Time management and responsibility have to be learned in MS (especially with the meaningless "P" system in ES), but if classes count for the HS GPA, it can be a steep learning curve for 6th graders. I wasn't a terribly mature 6th grader myself, but I ended up graduating top of my class, and I am glad I didn't have an 11-year-old me mucking up my chances in MS. Luckily, there's no falling behind if you drop a semester in language when you start in 6th grade. My kid would have moved from the 1A/1B class into the slower version.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:IMHO,
If your kid does not get an "A" in the HS credit course taken in MS, you should just not take the Semester exams and get that completely wiped out from the transcript.

Why start HS with a bad grade that will ensure that you will never have a 4.0?

How many kids graduate with a 4.0? Unless your kid has a 4.0 in MS, I would not make that a factor. Repeat algebra for a B and have one year less math overall? And for langauages as PP described you can not always repeat the segments? I don't consider a B a bad grade.

Not the PP, but my kid had fallen behind in a HS language course in 6th and had a C for awhile. After that I watched the grades on Edline like a hawk. If my kid had not brought the class grade up to an A before the semester exam, I would have pulled my kid out of class before the exam. I don't consider a B a fine grade, not if it means that three years later, in HS, my more mature kid might look back and rue that 3.0 on the HS transcript. My kid has since earned straight As. Why let an 11-year-old's carelessness end a high-schooler's aspirations for a 4.0 or better?

I think you are focusing on grades rather than learning. That small boost of a GPA might be over shadowed by ending up a year behind in math/language when college time comes.

I think it is great if you are taking HS courses in MS. However, if you are not motivated or have a incompetent teacher then it is best to have an exit strategy. In this way - you learn in the class but do not earn a grade. You can always take that class in HS with the majority of kids and you already have some exposure to the subject matter in MS. Ask your counselor if not taking the semester exams wipes the slate clean for you.

At the end of the day, colleges look at the GPA first.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:IMHO,
If your kid does not get an "A" in the HS credit course taken in MS, you should just not take the Semester exams and get that completely wiped out from the transcript.

Why start HS with a bad grade that will ensure that you will never have a 4.0?

How many kids graduate with a 4.0? Unless your kid has a 4.0 in MS, I would not make that a factor. Repeat algebra for a B and have one year less math overall? And for langauages as PP described you can not always repeat the segments? I don't consider a B a bad grade.

Not the PP, but my kid had fallen behind in a HS language course in 6th and had a C for awhile. After that I watched the grades on Edline like a hawk. If my kid had not brought the class grade up to an A before the semester exam, I would have pulled my kid out of class before the exam. I don't consider a B a fine grade, not if it means that three years later, in HS, my more mature kid might look back and rue that 3.0 on the HS transcript. My kid has since earned straight As. Why let an 11-year-old's carelessness end a high-schooler's aspirations for a 4.0 or better?

I think you are focusing on grades rather than learning. That small boost of a GPA might be over shadowed by ending up a year behind in math/language when college time comes.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:IMHO,
If your kid does not get an "A" in the HS credit course taken in MS, you should just not take the Semester exams and get that completely wiped out from the transcript.

Why start HS with a bad grade that will ensure that you will never have a 4.0?

So how do you know that the child will or will not get an A? When is the Semester exam given?

Sorry for these simplistic questions- I have a 5th grader.

OK. Here is a 101 on how grades work and get reported in MS.

The academic year is divided into two semesters. Each of these two semesters have two quarters each. So Semester 1 is made of quarter 1 and 2 and Semester 2 is made of quarter 3 and quarter 4.

In MS, every grade - from tests, HW, projects etc, is posted on a website called Edline. A parent and student can go into the account of their student and see what their grades are. Most students and parents keep a track of how the student is doing by looking at the reports on edline.

Quarter grades are calculated based on hw, tests, projects etc. And Semester exam grades are calculated based on the exam.

Your final grade is calculated based on the two quarter grades as well as an end of semester exam. The Quarter grades are given a weightage of roughly 40% each. So, the two quarters will comprise roughly 80% of your final grade for that semester for that course. The semester exam is roughly 20% weightage. (Someone please chime in to tell the exact weight that the quarters and semester exam carry, because I do not remember)

Thus, if you get A in the first and second quarters, and get a C in the semester exam, you will still get an A in that course.

(Yeah, this is an odd grading system. And that is the reason Washington Post keeps running stories about how kids game the system and get A's on quarters but actually fail on Semester exams for Algebra, because they do not know their subject content.)

Here is the table which breaks it down for you...this is what is being used to game the system...

www.mccpta.com/resolutions/GradeConfigurationTable.pdf

Anonymous wrote:Are there high school level/advanced courses other than math and foreign language available in middle school? Upper elementary kids don't receive grades in 3-5th under the new 2.0 system. Middle school will be the first time they have ever seen a grade other than P for whatever they turned in. The range of P is so broad in ES that C level work is a P and A level is a P.

I worry less about math because there is an inherent motivation to get the right answer but the lack of grading in upper elementary really affects the quality of writing and other subjects. The kids just don't have any knowledge whether they are above or below expectations and no motivation anyway if they did.

This is why I think HS classes taken in MS should be weighted if they're going to count for the HS GPA. The P/I/N system reinforces terrible study habits. Kids learn that the same mark is given for any range of effort from A-C, so even the smart kids start to do just what's necessary and don't put in the rigor to get what would have been marked as an A (the ES is so rarely and arbitrarily awarded as to be meaningless...even my perfectionist kid doesn't bother with it because there is no understandable way to earn it). I've found that the teachers don't even correct tests and HW with much precision because most everything can be lumped into a "P."

Now in middle school, the A-E system is introduced, and suddenly it can matter a great deal if you got something wrong on a 10-point quiz. Wouldn't be that big a deal except for those kids taking HS level courses in 6th grade (and there are fair number of them). Let's just say it was a very very rude awakening for our 6th grader.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:IMHO,
If your kid does not get an "A" in the HS credit course taken in MS, you should just not take the Semester exams and get that completely wiped out from the transcript.

Why start HS with a bad grade that will ensure that you will never have a 4.0?

How many kids graduate with a 4.0? Unless your kid has a 4.0 in MS, I would not make that a factor. Repeat algebra for a B and have one year less math overall? And for langauages as PP described you can not always repeat the segments? I don't consider a B a bad grade.

Not the PP, but my kid had fallen behind in a HS language course in 6th and had a C for awhile. After that I watched the grades on Edline like a hawk. If my kid had not brought the class grade up to an A before the semester exam, I would have pulled my kid out of class before the exam. I don't consider a B a fine grade, not if it means that three years later, in HS, my more mature kid might look back and rue that 3.0 on the HS transcript. My kid has since earned straight As. Why let an 11-year-old's carelessness end a high-schooler's aspirations for a 4.0 or better?

Anonymous wrote:Are there high school level/advanced courses other than math and foreign language available in middle school? Upper elementary kids don't receive grades in 3-5th under the new 2.0 system. Middle school will be the first time they have ever seen a grade other than P for whatever they turned in. The range of P is so broad in ES that C level work is a P and A level is a P.

I worry less about math because there is an inherent motivation to get the right answer but the lack of grading in upper elementary really affects the quality of writing and other subjects. The kids just don't have any knowledge whether they are above or below expectations and no motivation anyway if they did.

Yes, Introduction to Engineering Design is a high-school level class you can take in the MS my son attends.

Anonymous wrote:IMHO,
If your kid does not get an "A" in the HS credit course taken in MS, you should just not take the Semester exams and get that completely wiped out from the transcript.

Why start HS with a bad grade that will ensure that you will never have a 4.0?

How many kids graduate with a 4.0? Unless your kid has a 4.0 in MS, I would not make that a factor. Repeat algebra for a B and have one year less math overall? And for langauages as PP described you can not always repeat the segments? I don't consider a B a bad grade.

Anonymous wrote:IMHO,
If your kid does not get an "A" in the HS credit course taken in MS, you should just not take the Semester exams and get that completely wiped out from the transcript.

Why start HS with a bad grade that will ensure that you will never have a 4.0?

So how do you know that the child will or will not get an A? When is the Semester exam given?

Sorry for these simplistic questions- I have a 5th grader.

IMHO,
If your kid does not get an "A" in the HS credit course taken in MS, you should just not take the Semester exams and get that completely wiped out from the transcript.

Why start HS with a bad grade that will ensure that you will never have a 4.0?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wrong. Here's how it works:

1. The super smart kids start a foreign language in 6th.

2. The average to bright kids start in 7th.

3. The kids who are barely getting by and those with behavior issues don't start until HS. And Spanish 1 in HS is a zoo. Those are the low performing kids. That's the class where the teacher has to call security every day to deal with the hoodlums (at our otherwise good school).

This depends on the school At Eastern, the really bright kids don't have enough electives to take language in grade 6.

If by "really bright kids" you mean the magnet students, it's true that many of them opt to start foreign language in 7th grade, so that they can take the Magnet Reading class with Ms. Ray. Everyone hears she is a great teacher, but if a magnet student wants to opt out of Magnet Reading to start foreign language in 6th grade, they CAN do so. Not many do so because they want to stay with friends and because of the buzz about the class.

Also, many of the magnet kids took the reading class and then ALSO took afterschool foreign language for which they received credit and then they went into 2nd year foreign language in 7th grade.

Eastern magnet students are not allowed to opt out of Ms. Ray's class. Apparently so few students opted out that they have now made the class mandatory.