Saturday, September 24, 2011

Open thread

It's a few weeks into the new school year. How's it going, APP parents?

14 comments:

Steve said...

Pretty good. Our son has adapted well to Lincoln, which I think is a better physical facility than Lowell (other than the playground). The building is closer to where we live, and I feel that my wife and I have been more involved and engaged in activities around the school. It's impressive how much all the parents and staff did in such a short period of time, and how flexible the kids are in putting up with all of it.

Shannon said...

We've also adjusted to life at Lincoln. However, bus 770 just takes too long to travel 2.5 miles (45 minutes) so I have been driving my son to school everyday which is a change of pace.

I remain concerned about rumors that Hamilton will be over capacity for Fall 2012 and "APP won't fit". Ahem. I hope someone is anticipating this and gives us heads up if its true.

My son likes his teacher and some of the issues around lunch/cafeteria are resolved (for him) so things are going better than expected for such a big change.

Thanks to everyone who worked on it and contributed.

Anonymous said...

Are the busses lined up and waiting when the kids are released, or does the delay happen because they are waiting for the bus to show up? Our child's bus is still running late in the afternoon, though right on time in the morning.

bus rider

Maureen said...

Open thread topic: The Advanced Learning Page says: Eighth grade students not currently enrolled in APP at Hamilton or Washington may test for eligibility to enroll in the APP/IB Program at Ingraham. Applications are due October 6, 2011.

I'd be interested to hear how APP/IB is going. I hear there are 47 students enrolled. Is that one big class or two small ones? Are non APP students in the same classes as the APP kids? Is the work at a level that qualified kids who would come in from private or Spectrum would not be able to catch and keep up? Thanks!

Maureen said...

One more bit of info from the Advanced Learning Application: Spring 2011 MAP data will be reviewed for all applicants in grades 1-8.....8th graders applying for the APP/IB program at Ingraham must have MAP scores at the 95th percentile or higher. Does anyone know if that applies to kids who are enrolled in APP already if they want to enroll in APP/IB or at GHS?

Anonymous said...

The MSP scores from last spring are on the source, as are the MAP scores. Does anyone know where I can find the percentile ranking for the MSP scores?
Pulley

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the heads up on MSP scores. The score ranges are posted here:

http://www.k12.wa.us/assessment/StateTesting/ScaleScores.aspx

Shannon said...

Dear Lowell Elementary families:



Today I am pleased to announce that Rina Geoghagan has been appointed as co-principal of Lowell Elementary.



In this role, she will be responsible for overseeing Lowell APP at Lincoln. Rina and Principal Gregory King will continue to work together as necessary to help ensure success at both school sites. Rina comes to Lowell APP at Lincoln with experience working with advanced learning students at Shoreline School District and has had extensive professional development in gifted education. In addition, Marella Francois will not be joining the Lowell staff.



I want to thank both Gregory and Rina for their leadership during the summer to ensure both Lowell locations were ready for the first day of school.



As always, please let me know if you have any questions. And congratulations to Rina!





Noel Treat

Deputy Superintendent

Seattle Public Schools

206-252-0169

Transportation hater said...

My big issue is transportation. On July 6th, I requested an alternate transportation address for my son in the afternoons. When his transportation assignment arrived on the Friday before school started, it had our home address as his address for both the morning and afternoon. I called immediately and was told it would take 3-5 business days to correct. After a couple of weeks, several phone calls, and several email messages, my son was assigned to a bus stop 1.2 miles away from our alternate address. The transportation office refuses to re-route the bus, even though our stop should have been included in the route when it was designed and even though my daughter used the same alternate address when she attended Lowell two years ago. Appealing to the head of transportation was useless.

Methyl said...

What's the deal with busing? My son still has a 45 min commute each way, with about 12 stops on his route 772. And he gets sick when he reads on the bus. I think the North Beach Route has only 4 stops? I'm annoyed that his stop is 0.9 of a mile away from our house (according to google), uphill (both ways? < grin > ) and requires my waking the youngest kid from a nap, and getting him into a car to pick up the eldest. I suppose I should be grateful that it isn't the hour+ that it was last year to/from Capitol Hill? What tack should I take with the transportation department? Can they publish the stops for the other routes so I can choose a better one ... if I have to drive him to a stop, I might as well pick one that is more convenient.

lendlees said...

Methyl-

Kathy in the office has a binder with all of the bus routes/stops.

Anonymous said...

Hey West Seattle Parents of APP students:

Has anyone heard about alternative transporation routes/times for the upcoming Viaduct closure?

Promises to be a mess, I'm sure, (remembering the 2+ hour commute over the Bridge after the Nisqually Earthquake)so I am trying to plan ahead.

More of us driving our kids during the closure dates will only make things worse, so I'm hoping the district can come up with a plan!

Please share any info, even if it's a lack thereof (so we know that we need to nag the transportation department)!

Anonymous said...

How are things at Hamilton this year? Are there still issues with math classes?

ugh said...

Yes, there are still issues with math at Hamilton. 8th graders are on their own, doing whatever their parents have managed to come up with. No help or even support from the district/school, but that was expected.

Worse than that, the 6th graders have been blocked from taking Algebra I again this year. There are at least a handful of kids ready for this each and every year. Why does district staff that feel the overwhelming need to hold our kids back?!