Honors Classes

[Radiant1]

First off, let me say that I have already emailed the Guidance Counselor and will follow up with a phone call in the next day or two if I get no response from the email but I'd like your thoughts on this...

My son's Course Request list came in the mail yesterday and I noticed that he isn't taking an English course. Is that normal for 7th grade in Calvert County? And last year, he was taking 8 classes and this coming year, only 6 unless Advisory and Core Honors are considered classes which I doubt they are. I will assume everything is on the up and up because his Guidance Counselor had to sign off on his request.

Honors Social Studies
Honors Science
Honors Algebra I
Music Appreciation
PE
Spanish I

I don't know about Calvert, but I've never heard of any grade not having an English class in St. Mary's.

 

[RareBreed]

I don't know about Calvert, but I've never heard of any grade not having an English class in St. Mary's.

Me either. Sounded strange so that's why I contacted the school. Need to get it changed in time.

 

[Bann]

Me either. Sounded strange so that's why I contacted the school. Need to get it changed in time.

Yeah, sounds like a (huuuge) oversight - hopefully, they get back to you soon - otherwise, follow up for sure! I'm sure there's probably just a glitch somewhere and they'll be able to straighten in out.

 

[RareBreed]

Yeah, sounds like a (huuuge) oversight - hopefully, they get back to you soon - otherwise, follow up for sure! I'm sure there's probably just a glitch somewhere and they'll be able to straighten in out.

I will assume that since parents are supposed to write in any changes to the Guidance Department, somebody will be checking the email too so hopefully I'll get a response. If not, I'll call around 3pm.

 

[RareBreed]

First off, let me say that I have already emailed the Guidance Counselor and will follow up with a phone call in the next day or two if I get no response from the email but I'd like your thoughts on this...

My son's Course Request list came in the mail yesterday and I noticed that he isn't taking an English course. Is that normal for 7th grade in Calvert County? And last year, he was taking 8 classes and this coming year, only 6 unless Advisory and Core Honors are considered classes which I doubt they are. I will assume everything is on the up and up because his Guidance Counselor had to sign off on his request.

Honors Social Studies
Honors Science
Honors Algebra I
Music Appreciation
PE
Spanish I

Apparently Core Honors is the "code" for Reading/Language Arts so he does in fact have an English class. I didn't get any response to my emails so I called the school.

 

[RareBreed]

Oldest is taking all Honors again in 8th grade and youngest (5th grader) got a letter on Friday from his school saying he qualifed for Honors Reading.

 

[RPMDAD]

Oldest is taking all Honors again in 8th grade and youngest (5th grader) got a letter on Friday from his school saying he qualifed for Honors Reading.

Congrats RareBreed, that is great news, sounds like some smart kiddoes you got there.

 

[RareBreed]

Oldest said that his teacher recommended him for AP World History next year (9th grade). He said it's a step above Honors and it's a college level course, but doesn't appear to be for college credit. He will have to take an assessment test next month to see if he can get into the AP class. I just hope that he's not taking on too much because he strives for perfection on everything and I'm afraid something will have to give if he over-extends himself. He wants to do the AP class (and probably other Honors/AP classes), ROTC, and try out for the soccer team next year. I'm glad he's motivated but worried too.

 

[KDENISE977]

My 3 year old got bumped up to the 4 year old room 4 months early... is that like honors?

 

[lucky_bee]

Oldest said that his teacher recommended him for AP World History next year (9th grade). He said it's a step above Honors and it's a college level course, but doesn't appear to be for college credit. He will have to take an assessment test next month to see if he can get into the AP class. I just hope that he's not taking on too much because he strives for perfection on everything and I'm afraid something will have to give if he over-extends himself. He wants to do the AP class (and probably other Honors/AP classes), ROTC, and try out for the soccer team next year. I'm glad he's motivated but worried too.

I really wouldn't worry about this too much. Being in several Honors/AP courses and 2-3 after-school activities is 1. fairly average for a good student and 2. makes for a well-rounded individual and more appealing to colleges. My brother and I both followed these Honors/AP tracks and were a part of 2-3 of the same school-related groups throughout HS. Colleges and jobs would much rather see a student push themselves and get a B than take all the easy courses for a guaranteed A. There's also something to be said that he's interested in these classes so early on. This will really help him with this time management skills and help him narrow down which studies he's like to pursue. Tell him to keep in touch with all his teachers, they're usually aware of all their students schedules and those that move around from Honors to Honors courses, so most of them collaborate and try to ensure no huge tests/papers are all due on the same day. The counselor, or whoever takes care of his schedule wouldn't let him overload his schedule so early on if they didn't think he could handle it!

 

[Radiant1]

My 3 year old got bumped up to the 4 year old room 4 months early... is that like honors?

Absolutely!!

 

[KDENISE977]

Absolutely!!

Yay, I thought so too !!

Next he'll be taking his MCAT !!!

 

[RareBreed]

I really wouldn't worry about this too much. Being in several Honors/AP courses and 2-3 after-school activities is 1. fairly average for a good student and 2. makes for a well-rounded individual and more appealing to colleges. My brother and I both followed these Honors/AP tracks and were a part of 2-3 of the same school-related groups throughout HS. Colleges and jobs would much rather see a student push themselves and get a B than take all the easy courses for a guaranteed A. There's also something to be said that he's interested in these classes so early on. This will really help him with this time management skills and help him narrow down which studies he's like to pursue. Tell him to keep in touch with all his teachers, they're usually aware of all their students schedules and those that move around from Honors to Honors courses, so most of them collaborate and try to ensure no huge tests/papers are all due on the same day. The counselor, or whoever takes care of his schedule wouldn't let him overload his schedule so early on if they didn't think he could handle it!

Thanks. I know in my heart he can handle it but I'm still going to worry. I'm a mom. That's what we do!

 

[kwillia]

Oldest said that his teacher recommended him for AP World History next year (9th grade). He said it's a step above Honors and it's a college level course, but doesn't appear to be for college credit. He will have to take an assessment test next month to see if he can get into the AP class. I just hope that he's not taking on too much because he strives for perfection on everything and I'm afraid something will have to give if he over-extends himself. He wants to do the AP class (and probably other Honors/AP classes), ROTC, and try out for the soccer team next year. I'm glad he's motivated but worried too.

Many colleges recognize AP credits especially if he scores 4s and 5s on his final exams. My daughter graduated HS with 43 AP credits all of which were recognized by all the colleges she applied to. This allowed her to start college with the standard required classes already done which freed up space for specific classes required for her degrees. Because of the extra room she can double degree in math and science in 4 years. Without the AP classes it would have been tough to meet the required classes in four years for just one of those degrees. Not only that, starting college with all of those credits completed qualified her as a sophomore when it came to registering for classes. This means she was able to secure a spot in necessary classes before the freshmen students were allowed to register.

AP classes were most definitely worth it for my daughter.

 

[RareBreed]

Many colleges recognize AP credits especially if he scores 4s and 5s on his final exams. My daughter graduated HS with 43 AP credits all of which were recognized by all the colleges she applied to. This allowed her to start college with the standard required classes already done which freed up space for specific classes required for her degrees. Because of the extra room she can double degree in math and science in 4 years. Without the AP classes it would have been tough to meet the required classes in four years for just one of those degrees. Not only that, starting college with all of those credits completed qualified her as a sophomore when it came to registering for classes. This means she was able to secure a spot in necessary classes before the freshmen students were allowed to register.

AP classes were most definitely worth it for my daughter.

That's very helpful. So AP classes do count for college credit as long as they do well on the final exams? That makes sense.

 

[RareBreed]

Also, I was told that the assessment test to see if he qualifies for the AP class cost about $90 regardless if your kid gets into the class. Is that true?