Should I let my kids try to skip their current math class to move on to Algebra 1 in 7th grade so they can take more AP classes in high school?
What math are they currently in? Are they doing well? Please note that taking more APs is not the end all be all, the more important thing is understanding the math concepts and preparing for your future. On another note, it is up to you if your children are bored in math if moving to Algebra is a good option.
They are currently in High Ability Prealgebra, they have straight A’s.
In that case, Algebra does sound like a good option. I would say go for it and let them do Algebra.
What will the logistics be? Is Alg 1 offered in the middle school? How about geometry in 8th grade?
My friends had this option when their child was going into 6th grade and could have had him take alg 1 or 8th grade math. They picked 8th grade math because the middle school would have run out of math courses for him and it wasn’t convenient for him to go to the high school for math. He did end up getting ahead in math and took some courses at the university be that was easier to coordinate when he was 16 and could drive than when he was 13 or 14.
If your kids are very advanced in math, and their school is recommending that as the next course, then you should let them take it. But, please don’t do it so they can take more APs in high school. There is no prize for taking the most AP courses. You should not even be thinking about AP courses yet.
I recommend this summer looking into the a 9th grade or 10th grade math class. Then have the math department test out your child in August. This way he can start a 10th or 11th grade math curriculum with an AP class
Are they bored and clearly not being challenged where they are? Or are they where they are supposed to be? What’s the rush to push them ahead? Just because they are getting A’s where they are doesn’t mean they’re ready to jump ahead. It may very well be that building a solid foundation of knowledge now is just exactly what they need to be prepared for success in the next few years. As has been said, there is no prize given, or automatic admission to the elite college of your choice awarded, for middle school math classes or taking the most APs in high school. And there is much more to high school than taking as many AP classes as humanly possible. Why are you even thinking about AP classes?
Even if they ARE ahead…they are preteens…and there are so many things they could be doing this summer other than academics. There are so many things they cluld be doing to enjoy just growing up and maturing.
Do they have any other interests? Music, drama, sports, something? There are plenty of great summer options for those things too.
They will only be 12-13 once…why not let them BE preteens?
This may be your only option before high school to move your child up. If your child is bored and wants to do this go for it. I have been fighting for the past year to move one of my twins up a level and have hit nothing but road blocks.
I have identical twins in 7th grade, one is very self motivated and was very upset he could not take Algebra in 6th grade. It was his idea to take the SATs in October of 7th grade, he scored a 1330 and thought the school might allow him to test out of Algebra 1 or add Geometry. Nope, he is eligible to take courses at the CC at the end of this summer, but the school system will not accept those classes for HS credit. So he can get college credit but not HS. They do not allow middle school students to take HS summer school so he will have to wait until after 8th grade. After many e-mails they offered him enrichment in coding, physics and Algebra. In the past 2 month the enrichment has been one work sheet with 4 Algebra problems, took him about 15 minutes because he didn’t see he could use a computer. He is trying to take an MIT coding class on line for fun. He loves band and Mathcounts so keeping him in middle school and in 7th grade is important to him.
His brother is equally as smart, but has lots of interested outside of academics and is not bored or searching for more challenge at school. I am perfectly happy leaving him in his current classes. So, I would leave the decision about advancing your child up to them, just realize (at least in my state) both Algebra and Geometry require that a student sit in a class for a very specific number of hours and there is no way around it.
I fought to get my son advanced in math in middle school. I should have insisted on Algebra 1 in 6th grade, but just got him skipped to the honors 7th grade section, so he could do Algebra in 7th grade. It wasn’t about doing more APs in high school (though that did end up happening) - it was about him complaining every single day about being bored in math. For what it’s worth I had the 6th and 7th grade math books and compared them side by side. There was virtually no difference in the curriculum. We got the skip by having him do the final exam in the course we were asking him to skip and he did fine so they ended up agreeing to it. Two other kids in his class were able to do the same. I suspect there were more who were ready.
Middle schools are often very resistant to skipping. I got a lot of flack about not pushing my kid. I wasn’t! He was pulling me. The high school was much more receptive to actually placing him into academically appropriate classes.
He loved taking CTY courses in the summer, but they weren’t directly related to the school curriculum - he took one on Game Theory (where they also learned about price wars and the Cuban missile crisis along with the math) and one on Cryptography. They only took up three weeks of the summer, but he liked those three weeks far better than being dragged to go hiking in Vermont or other non-academic things.
Now, almost halfway through the school year, they would move from the High Ability Prealgebra class to Algebra 1?
My concerns would be what would they miss in the second semester of Prealgebra and what would they have already missed in the Algebra 1 class. If you’re confident that they already know the rest of the prealgebra material (having As does not indicate one way or the other) and that they already know the material from the first semester of algebra 1 (e.g. simultaneous equations?), then I’d consider it. But, if they don’t, then no. It’s too late in the school year to be switching into algebra 1, in my opinion, if they’d need to learn much of the material they’ve missed.
Having fought the battle of middle school math, I get it. If the school thinks they know the material, then it may be worth considering (it’s possible, depending on what topics the High Ability Prealgebra class covered), but the timing of the change seems odd.
Even if they take Algebra 1 in 8th grade, they will have time to take AP calc in high school.
Would you switch them in the middle of the year or would it be for next year?
Also, pay attention to the HS math sequence: Algebra1 in 7th, geometry in 8th are all fine but only if they can take algebra2H in 9th, precalculus in 10th, calculus AB in 11th, and BC in 12th. If the only choice is AB OR BC in 11th, what math can they take in 12th? Does a local cc offer linear algebra/discrete math or college statistics or will they be left without math classes for 12th?
In addition to the math sequence, you may want to look at the criteria to start foreign language in 7th grade as this, like math, is sequential.
Note that elite colleges are specifically against the AP arms race. UCs limit at 8 (total) the number that “count” and after 6-8 the law of diminishing returns applies at top schools. It’s more important to have the key ones (11th grade, if possible, should show AP lang and APUSH as well as 1-2 relevant to the student, 12th grade APs can be focused on APs entirely of the student’s choosing).
My kid took some advanced math classes in middle school. Now he is in 11th grade and taking the high stakes tests. Some of the material on the PSAT/SAT/ACT is stuff he covered so long ago that he is beginning to forget it. He is getting good grades in advanced calculus, how could his math ACT be so low?
It’s good to keep your kids in courses that challenge and excite them, but with math, make sure they’re actually learning and retaining it.
Can you clarify? Your kids are currently in 7th grade? How many kids do ou have in 7th grade?
yes
OP, if your user name is correct, I am assuming you’re Chinese. This may sound bad/offensive to you, but coming from an Asian parent with similar experiences, don’t be a tiger mom. Let the kids do what they want and nurture their interests.
Your other thread also mentioned that you wanted your kids to take AP classes in middle school. I wonder if you want your kids to take multiple high level classes for bragging rights/status in your immediate inner circle of your parents. You will end up burning your kids out and make them hate school with no guarantee that they will get into HYPS or MIT.
I am a little concerned because this is the second questions you have asked about pushing your middle school students into High School level courses. While there are a few exceptional children who are cognitively ready for this level of material, you have to be careful not to push your student beyond what he/she is ready to absorb. Many children at this age are able to excel at math or other subjects because they have exceptional memory skills. This is a very different from understanding the advanced concepts. I can give you examples of several students that I personally know who were pushed into math early and now have given up on math.They are students who excelled because of memory and as they got into the higher level math they could no longer rely on memory. They did poorly because they had failed to understand the concepts/reasons they were performing mathematical functions. I can only name 1 student who is excelling beyond grade level in a school of 1800 students over 4 years of being in that school. Brain development is key in mathematical understanding. My father was the head of Math curriculum and analysis for a state and is very worried about the trend of pushing students in higher levels of math before they are ready cognitively.
Taking Algebra in 7th grade probably won’t provide them the chance to take more APs in high school. There’s sort of a Catch-22 when it comes to high school math APs. Currently, the highest math AP is CalcBC, which with Algebra in 7th grade, your kids would probably be taking as sophomores. They need to take four years of math in high school if they are targeting selective universities. Make sure your high school has appropriate level math courses and/or provide DE opportunities for their post-AP math courses. I know many kids who have taken Algebra and Geometry in middle school, but our local high school had to augment their math curriculum with DE math from UIUC to accomodate them. Make sure your school is prepared to do so as well.
Is the kid currently in 6th grade or 7th grade?
If in 7th grade, it would not be a good idea to switch after nearly half of the school year.
Algebra 1 in 7th versus 8th grade is basically a choice between the +2 and +1 tracks, usually resulting in calculus in 11th versus 12th grade. It is not necessarily that advantageous, if there is no nearby college to conveniently take more advanced math courses at after completing calculus BC in 11th grade.