Anonymous wrote:I struggle with what should be the right solution here. Fact: There are kids that are just naturally good at math. They just *get* it. These kind of kids would have had more opportunities for challenge before than they do now. In terms of the end goal, I don't need my 9th grader in Calculus, but if he could handle it why limit him These are our future scientists and engineers. Has the move to not accelerate too much swung too far for these kids?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not PP - but I think the issue is that there are a lot of kid in K-2 math who are learning nothing and not being challenged. The premise of 2.0 and Common Core is that these kids will get deeper more challenging problems using the basic concepts covered at grade level - but the reality is that this is not happening. And to be honest - you can only go "so deep" into addition and subtraction even with multistep word problems that use logic.

If they are learning nothing and not being challenged, then they already learned it somewhere else. Where and why?
If they didn't already learn it somewhere else, then they are learning something. Maybe not as much as their parents might want, but something.

Another question is -- what is the goal here? The "appalling K-2 math" is going to get on-grade-level kids to Algebra I in 8th grade and Calculus I in 12th grade, and accelerated kids to Algebra I in 7th grade and Calculus I in 11th grade. How many years of college math do you think kids should get in high school?

It is not uncommon for children coming from Montessori to be fully comfortable with addition and subtraction through 100. There are many children who go to Montessori programs in this county.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not PP - but I think the issue is that there are a lot of kid in K-2 math who are learning nothing and not being challenged. The premise of 2.0 and Common Core is that these kids will get deeper more challenging problems using the basic concepts covered at grade level - but the reality is that this is not happening. And to be honest - you can only go "so deep" into addition and subtraction even with multistep word problems that use logic.

If they are learning nothing and not being challenged, then they already learned it somewhere else. Where and why?
If they didn't already learn it somewhere else, then they are learning something. Maybe not as much as their parents might want, but something.

Another question is -- what is the goal here? The "appalling K-2 math" is going to get on-grade-level kids to Algebra I in 8th grade and Calculus I in 12th grade, and accelerated kids to Algebra I in 7th grade and Calculus I in 11th grade. How many years of college math do you think kids should get in high school?

Anonymous wrote:I'm not PP - but I think the issue is that there are a lot of kid in K-2 math who are learning nothing and not being challenged. The premise of 2.0 and Common Core is that these kids will get deeper more challenging problems using the basic concepts covered at grade level - but the reality is that this is not happening. And to be honest - you can only go "so deep" into addition and subtraction even with multistep word problems that use logic.

Anonymous wrote:

True - except back when acceleration was allowed, our child would have benefitted greatly from that. I know too many were being accelerated too far before but they have gone too much in the other direction with 2.0. I don't need my child to be so far ahead - which is why we didn't supplement these past 3 years - but at this point, is sad to see DC's math interests being squashed and discouraged. So - will let DC start doing extra math at home.

I agree. It seems that since acceleration isn't offered anymore the school does nothing to introduce any more advanced to concepts to kids to see if they would be eligible for acceleration in the future. K-2 math is appalling now.

True - except back when acceleration was allowed, our child would have benefitted greatly from that. I know too many were being accelerated too far before but they have gone too much in the other direction with 2.0. I don't need my child to be so far ahead - which is why we didn't supplement these past 3 years - but at this point, is sad to see DC's math interests being squashed and discouraged. So - will let DC start doing extra math at home.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sad, but true. I think DC might have learned about money? About how to write out an answer in words in frist grade. And probably how to borrow doing subtraction algorithms - even though could have figured out the answer mentally. All could have been learned in a week.

DC already had a good understanding of addition, subtraction, mulitplication and division operations and facts 0-12 from a Montessori program that allowed DC to go at own pace through their mateiral. DC has very good number sense and has always been able to manipulate numbers mentally. First grade was addition/subtraction to 20 - already knew that. Second grade expanded addition and subtraction to 100 - like I said - maybe learned algorithm to borrow in subtraction but that wasn't hard and could have verbally answered already. Third grade has been 0-12 basic multiplcation and divsion facts with some fractions - already knows these. So, yes, DC has basically learned nothing considering all the time spent in class.

DC maybe learned to follow some instructions - which is good. But otherwise, DC has mostly learned to be patient (which is also a good skill, no doubt)

If your child was able to learn four years' worth of math in Montessori preschool before starting kindergarten (or first grade?), then I think that probably your child would be bored, and you would be supplementing, under any curriculum in any school, except homeschool.

(For accuracy -- there is more in the MCPS math curriculum in grades 1-3 than you describe.)