Anonymous wrote:For the posters calling the charter school PP a troll - my kids are in an online charter school in VA and the curriculum is far superior to FCPS AAP. Much deeper math instruction, actual grammar and punctuation, much better science and social studies.

I believe that a traditional charter school could be better, or at least "better", than some center schools. But if you think that post was reasonable, I don't know how to respond to that.

For the posters calling the charter school PP a troll - my kids are in an online charter school in VA and the curriculum is far superior to FCPS AAP. Much deeper math instruction, actual grammar and punctuation, much better science and social studies.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
If your unnamed charter school in the unnamed different state you live in is so awesome and AAP so not, why do you still even visit this board?

I'm here because it's fascinating how desperate DMV parents are to view their children as gifted and grub for labels or special programs. So many FCPS parents are so delusional, and AAP is like the crack that they need to convince themselves that their fairly average, privileged kids are "gifted."

We at least are on a message board that is relevant to us.

+100

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Moving from the state with failing education system to AAP Center School, the difference my kids experiencing is night and day. I just don’t understand all of the trash talk about this excellent program. My kids also feels sometimes that they are smarter than some of his friends, tell me if this is invalid feeling and they are not supposed to feel that way. He is not in the travel team like his buddy though, but he is totally fine with it.

I'm baffled. We moved from FCPS AAP to a charter school in a different state, and the charter blows AAP out of the water. It really opened my eyes to how pathetic my kids' AAP center was. My kids went from rotating through busywork stations including the dreaded Dreambox or Myon stations, being ignored by the teacher, no real grammar/writing/spelling instruction, mildly accelerated math, making 50,000 slide shows, and having science/social studies as an afterthought to a highly knowledge rich curriculum where they are learning grammar& writing, doing full class reading, analysis, and discussion, 1 hour of science instruction every day where they're doing real science and not just reading about science, 1 hour of history every day with rigorous reading and writing assignments, Latin, math that is both faster and deeper than AAP, and so on.

I'm stunned that anyone would find elementary AAP to be an "excellent program."

If your unnamed charter school in the unnamed different state you live in is so awesome and AAP so not, why do you still even visit this board?

+1

Sounds like a troll. They moved to another state and have nothing to do with FCPS let alone AAP but they visit this board. Yes sure.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
If your unnamed charter school in the unnamed different state you live in is so awesome and AAP so not, why do you still even visit this board?

I'm here because it's fascinating how desperate DMV parents are to view their children as gifted and grub for labels or special programs. So many FCPS parents are so delusional, and AAP is like the crack that they need to convince themselves that their fairly average, privileged kids are "gifted."

We at least are on a message board that is relevant to us.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
If your unnamed charter school in the unnamed different state you live in is so awesome and AAP so not, why do you still even visit this board?

I'm here because it's fascinating how desperate DMV parents are to view their children as gifted and grub for labels or special programs. So many FCPS parents are so delusional, and AAP is like the crack that they need to convince themselves that their fairly average, privileged kids are "gifted."

What a gross post.

I hope this poster is a troll. If they're not, then they really need to reflect on themselves.

Anonymous wrote:
If your unnamed charter school in the unnamed different state you live in is so awesome and AAP so not, why do you still even visit this board?

I'm here because it's fascinating how desperate DMV parents are to view their children as gifted and grub for labels or special programs. So many FCPS parents are so delusional, and AAP is like the crack that they need to convince themselves that their fairly average, privileged kids are "gifted."

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Moving from the state with failing education system to AAP Center School, the difference my kids experiencing is night and day. I just don’t understand all of the trash talk about this excellent program. My kids also feels sometimes that they are smarter than some of his friends, tell me if this is invalid feeling and they are not supposed to feel that way. He is not in the travel team like his buddy though, but he is totally fine with it.

I'm baffled. We moved from FCPS AAP to a charter school in a different state, and the charter blows AAP out of the water. It really opened my eyes to how pathetic my kids' AAP center was. My kids went from rotating through busywork stations including the dreaded Dreambox or Myon stations, being ignored by the teacher, no real grammar/writing/spelling instruction, mildly accelerated math, making 50,000 slide shows, and having science/social studies as an afterthought to a highly knowledge rich curriculum where they are learning grammar& writing, doing full class reading, analysis, and discussion, 1 hour of science instruction every day where they're doing real science and not just reading about science, 1 hour of history every day with rigorous reading and writing assignments, Latin, math that is both faster and deeper than AAP, and so on.

I'm stunned that anyone would find elementary AAP to be an "excellent program."

If your unnamed charter school in the unnamed different state you live in is so awesome and AAP so not, why do you still even visit this board?

Anonymous wrote:Moving from the state with failing education system to AAP Center School, the difference my kids experiencing is night and day. I just don’t understand all of the trash talk about this excellent program. My kids also feels sometimes that they are smarter than some of his friends, tell me if this is invalid feeling and they are not supposed to feel that way. He is not in the travel team like his buddy though, but he is totally fine with it.

I'm baffled. We moved from FCPS AAP to a charter school in a different state, and the charter blows AAP out of the water. It really opened my eyes to how pathetic my kids' AAP center was. My kids went from rotating through busywork stations including the dreaded Dreambox or Myon stations, being ignored by the teacher, no real grammar/writing/spelling instruction, mildly accelerated math, making 50,000 slide shows, and having science/social studies as an afterthought to a highly knowledge rich curriculum where they are learning grammar& writing, doing full class reading, analysis, and discussion, 1 hour of science instruction every day where they're doing real science and not just reading about science, 1 hour of history every day with rigorous reading and writing assignments, Latin, math that is both faster and deeper than AAP, and so on.

I'm stunned that anyone would find elementary AAP to be an "excellent program."

It depends on the center and the teacher. My kid attended a center that was so easy that basically nobody dropped back to gen ed. My kid's classroom spent an entire month at the beginning of 5th grade on negative numbers, because some of the kids weren't getting it. My kid was sent outside with the student teacher and half of the class for a bonus recess on many days while the teacher did math remediation for the other half of the class. My kid's reading group almost never saw the teacher, because she was working with lower groups all of the time. My kid was always partnered with kids who were below grade level in writing for projects. Even the AAP classes at the school spent an entire month doing dedicated SOL review and practice. The kids had absurd amounts of free reading time or unstructured free time when they supposedly were researching things on their own but really were just hanging out with friends. 5th and 6th grade AAP math were exactly identical to gen ed math, just given one year earlier. There were none of the special projects or M^3 or any differentiation upward. The principal hates AAP and doesn't want them to get anything at all special compared to gen ed. Feel fortunate that your kids attend a strong center. I know someone will ask. Mosby Woods/Mosaic.

This was our experience with Mosby Woods/Mosaic as well - and then factor in the overcrowded trailer classrooms. Not a good experience.

Anonymous wrote:I don’t understand what school your children are in where the not so advanced kids are slowing the AAP class down.

My child is in a center school in 4th grade and the teachers aren’t slowing down for anyone. They are going at the scheduled pace. Math unit tests are every two weeks and there’s a brand new topic every two weeks.

The kids who aren’t understanding the material don’t do well on tests and get a bad score. There’s no hand holding in AAP. I’m not sure I believe these people who are posting about how ‘watered down’ AAP is. It’s not. It’s a perfectly fine program for advanced kids who are focused on learning. If you feel your genius child deserves better it’s best to seek a private education. In an AAP class of 22 kids how many do you think are truly truly ‘gifted’. Probably 2 or 3? Maybe none. How do you expect to have such a small separate class? Even if there two or three AAP classes we are looking at most 8 kids!

Our school is the same way. Quiz the first week and now at least one test per week, usually with a few quizzes thrown in. The class stops or slows down for no one.

Also, it all depends on whether the principal's priority is providing a robust AAP program and letting kids wash out who don't belong, or whether the principal's priority is having the maximum number of kids pass the SOLs. When the principal is focused on SOLs, then even AAP turns into a lowest common denominator class where the priority is to make sure no one fails the SOL.

Anonymous wrote:I don’t understand what school your children are in where the not so advanced kids are slowing the AAP class down.

My child is in a center school in 4th grade and the teachers aren’t slowing down for anyone. They are going at the scheduled pace. Math unit tests are every two weeks and there’s a brand new topic every two weeks.

The kids who aren’t understanding the material don’t do well on tests and get a bad score. There’s no hand holding in AAP. I’m not sure I believe these people who are posting about how ‘watered down’ AAP is. It’s not. It’s a perfectly fine program for advanced kids who are focused on learning. If you feel your genius child deserves better it’s best to seek a private education. In an AAP class of 22 kids how many do you think are truly truly ‘gifted’. Probably 2 or 3? Maybe none. How do you expect to have such a small separate class? Even if there two or three AAP classes we are looking at most 8 kids!

It depends on the center and the teacher. My kid attended a center that was so easy that basically nobody dropped back to gen ed. My kid's classroom spent an entire month at the beginning of 5th grade on negative numbers, because some of the kids weren't getting it. My kid was sent outside with the student teacher and half of the class for a bonus recess on many days while the teacher did math remediation for the other half of the class. My kid's reading group almost never saw the teacher, because she was working with lower groups all of the time. My kid was always partnered with kids who were below grade level in writing for projects. Even the AAP classes at the school spent an entire month doing dedicated SOL review and practice. The kids had absurd amounts of free reading time or unstructured free time when they supposedly were researching things on their own but really were just hanging out with friends. 5th and 6th grade AAP math were exactly identical to gen ed math, just given one year earlier. There were none of the special projects or M^3 or any differentiation upward. The principal hates AAP and doesn't want them to get anything at all special compared to gen ed. Feel fortunate that your kids attend a strong center. I know someone will ask. Mosby Woods/Mosaic.

I don’t understand what school your children are in where the not so advanced kids are slowing the AAP class down.

My child is in a center school in 4th grade and the teachers aren’t slowing down for anyone. They are going at the scheduled pace. Math unit tests are every two weeks and there’s a brand new topic every two weeks.

The kids who aren’t understanding the material don’t do well on tests and get a bad score. There’s no hand holding in AAP. I’m not sure I believe these people who are posting about how ‘watered down’ AAP is. It’s not. It’s a perfectly fine program for advanced kids who are focused on learning. If you feel your genius child deserves better it’s best to seek a private education. In an AAP class of 22 kids how many do you think are truly truly ‘gifted’. Probably 2 or 3? Maybe none. How do you expect to have such a small separate class? Even if there two or three AAP classes we are looking at most 8 kids!

Anonymous wrote:Last year DC's teacher told me in writing that she hadn't been able to do a reading group with him (or others in his group) for FIVE WEEKS. Because she had to "focus where the need is."

In what world is this a free and appropriate education for my child or others in his group? This happened after they finally were able to resume inperson learning.

Meanwhile, in gen ed, the lower reading groups received daily meetings as well as help from an interventionist or reading specialist.

For those arguing that AAP should be tossed for bestowing special attention on some, you feel the same way about remedial services, which also result in special privileges to the detriment of others?

It's ridiculous that some kids are completely ignored while the classroom teacher focuses completely on other kids. Unfortunately, this still happens in AAP, where the kids who don't belong in advanced classes dominate the teacher's time.

To me, the classroom teacher should meet equally with all groups. Then, kids who are behind should get interventions with the reading specialist or free after school tutoring, and kids who are ahead should get pull outs with the AART. That way, everyone's needs would be met. This worked fine back in the day, and the excessive attention that low performers are receiving now doesn't seem to be leading to improved outcomes.