Some things are put in motion early in a kids life, even in middle school. For example, 11-year old son wasn’t orginally put in an accelerated program for math and english for 6th grade even though he tested in and had a recommendation from his 5th grade elementary school teacher. Apparently his middle school had many qualified students this year and they only wanted to have 1 class in each accelerated subject. We had to fight hard and petition the principal to let my kid in to these classes. They finally agreed and he is getting A’s in both classes, clearly showing he could handle the course work. Sometimes you need to be an advocate for your kids and put them in an environment to challenge them.