Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Learning Environments Acceleration - inputs and insights, please...

I hope so too, but you won't know until you ask around. Some high school have heterogeneous classes, so if that were the case, it might be time for another skip. Also - in high school there is usually enough flexibility to do some classes at one grade level and others at another. If there are honors classes then there will be a step up, but will that step be an intellectual one or a work load step - hard to know and probably depends on the teachers/school culture.

My son is in 9th grade at a private school this year, and did 9th grade in a public school last year. The work load is a bit more this year, but he's much more able to handle it at the expected age. The public school introduced leveled classes for the first time in non-math subjects and the 9th grade Honors teachers appeared to be 'in charge' of weeding out the 'not Honors Material' kids(forgive me - their tone, not mine!) kids. I wish I had a nickle for every time my son heard from a teacher or guidance counselor "Well of course the kids are all overwhelmed - it's the first time they have had any real competion after cruising for K-8! If it's too difficult, just drop down to the college prep classes!"

If you can ask around parents of older kids (say in the Robotics or Debate Team) and get the inside story, that's the best.

Love and More Love,
Grinity

Thanks. I'm working on getting more info. Dd will be doubling up in science and taking pre-AP Bio along with another science class b/c she wants to accelerate in science. She has another pre-AP class planned (lit) and then the std fare. Math isn't leveled except that the kids who are subject accelerated in math would be in Algebra II and the kids who are needing extra support there would be in Algebra I. Dd, who is in the middle (accelerated in grade classes but not subject acceleration) will be in Geometry.

She's opting not to do the pre-AP history course b/c she really doesn't love history & b/c she has a pretty heavy load of other stuff planned. The guidance counselor told the group at the registration info night something like what you said about expecting to be overwhelmed. She said that kids who are taking all three pre-APs (history, lit, and bio) should expect 5 hrs of homework a night. Since dd will only be in two of those, who knows, but that sounds truly unreasonable to me.

That's because you aren't counting the non-'pre-AP' classes that might well work as study halls for the 'pre-AP' classes.

Srry, didn't mean to scare you. Keep checking around, but that sounds totally reasonable with the double sciences and the preAP lit. In the public 9th grade, my son took one elective that wasn't honors level, and he said about it: 'Now I know why I used to pound my head against the desk in elementary school.' ((pout/sad/sputtery laughter)) Seriously - he go 99s on every test and assignment in there, and did use it as a study hall for his other classes.

It's just so hard to know....
Grinity

So, you think that 5 hrs a night is a reasonable expectation for high school? I took every AP class available in high school (bio, chem, physics, lit, history...) and I had very little homework as I recall. I don't know how kids sleep or have any social lives or part-time jobs like we all did if they are in school for 7 hrs/day and then expected to do 5 hrs of homework when they get home!

No, but I think the threat of 5 hours of homework a night is reasonable. There is a huge different.

While looking for schools, we found one with an enforced 2 hour/night study hall. I steered towards that one and away from the ones with enforced 3 hour a night study halls. Some kids are going to need to spend more than aloted time, but I doubt more than a very few need less.

((shrugs))
Grinity