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Math U See users, need some info!


lovinmykids
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O.K., so I see a ton of people use MUS and seem to love it.

I'm still trying to decide which math to go with for my 3rd grader.

I can't view the demo on MUS website due to the lack of High-speed.

So, I can only get up the S&S pages for Beta and Gama.

I think my child might get bored in Beta really fast cuz we've done most of it, except borrowing to the hundrends place. Not to diffecult to teach quick tho!

I looked at the S&S for Gamma, but I'm wondering..do they review stuff that was learned in Beta? It didn't say that.

I am suprised that a child has to learn multiplication like this 3453

x 212

 

by the end of it. WOW, do they make it easy for a child to actually be able to do that? Do they work on single multiplation for awhile before they move on to double didget?

I just don't know much about MUS but am very interested in it!

Please give me more info. if you can.

Would you say this could be better than Saxon? Or less intimidating?

I'm assuming MUS is mastery, is that right?

My child isn't a fan of math, so it can be a battle everyday but she can learn it...it just might take her longer for some things.

INFO PLEASE!!!!

Thanks

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So far I've only used MUS Primer so my advice will be limited here. I know with the Primer you can continue to move on even if they have difficulty because Primer is just a "taste" of math. The other levels I'm not so sure that you can just move on without them mastering.

Are you able to pull up the placement tests for MUS? If you can I would start there. You can also request a demo of MUS to be sent to you in the mail so you can check it out too.

 

From my understanding of the program it moves on assuming your child has mastered concepts. It does contain review from previous levels. But it doesn't focus on reteaching them if that makes any sense. I'm sure someone here that has MUS much longer then I have will comment on that one.

 

I wouldn't say that MUS is better then Saxon per say. The better program is the one that works for your child. MUS can be less intimidating for some children. Some children like to focus on one concept at a time. MUS will focus on adding and subtracting first in Alpha and Beta until they have mastered it ( you are not supposed to move on until they do) , then in Gamma it focuses on just multiplication and Delta Division and so on.

 

MUS works great with kids who need to learn math hands on and are visual learners. It has been highly recommended for those that struggle with mathematics. The only way you will know it works is if you give it

a try. The first step though is not to assume you know what your daughter knows. Have her take the placement and then go from there.

Edited by TracyR
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I am suprised that a child has to learn multiplication like this 3453

x 212

 

by the end of it. WOW, do they make it easy for a child to actually be able to do that? Do they work on single multiplation for awhile before they move on to double didget?

 

 

Hmmm...this was a BIG hump in Gamma for B to get over. It does start off w/single-digit multiplication and work it's way up. The sample problem you gave wouldn't be worked until the end of the year. When B got to the multiple-digit multiplication w/carrying, it was quite a leap, as I said. In fact, we ended up taking some time off of MUS and doing some other stuff (Math Mammoth worksheets and TT) for several months. When we came back to MUS (at the beginning of last school year), he was able to do the tougher multiplication problems and finish Gamma.

 

This past year, we hit the same hump with Delta, when he got to long division. We've taken some time off of school this summer (not planned, but happened due to surprise pregnancy & constant "morning" sickness ;)), so we'll be starting this school year w/ long division. :D Hopefully he'll master it & be able to move on to Epsilon soon. Even though we've hit these tough spots (& form what I've read, many students have trouble in the same parts of the course) he'll continue w/ MUS. I tried having him do Saxon for a bit last year, but he's super resistant to anything non-MUS, so we'll keep plugging along.

 

T will be doing Saxon, though. He learns differently than his brother does, and like things to be changed up a bit--I think the incremental approach will fit him quite well. The only part of MUS he did was Primer, and he really disliked it. As others have said, your child has a lot to do with what program is "best". :)

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Lovinmykids,

I just saw that you asked some other questions on another thread. I hope I can remember them all. There are 6 sheets per lesson. Say, lesson 14a, 14b, c, d, e, and f. The first 3 are just dealing with the new concept learned, with some (2-3) word problems on almost every page. Then the d,e, and f sheets have some problems on the concept learned that week, and review from concepts already learned.

 

We do a 4 day week. So Monday, they watch the video, which takes 5-10 minutes. Then the do worksheet A. Tues. they do sheets B & C. Wed. they do sheets D & E. Thur. they do sheet F. This is how we do it. I do make them do all the sheets. I think some may let their children move on to another lesson if the "get it." I think there is just too much great review in there to skip.

 

The new revised books that MUS has just released this summer has some honors-type extra sheets. I think this is right. I haven't had much time to look at them yet.

 

The sheets usually have anywhere from 7-20 problems each.

I am going to pm you too.

Hope this helped,

Katie

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I haven't posted my review in a while. Maybe you will find it useful.

 

Math-U-See website is: http://www.mathusee.com. There is a placement test at the website.

 

I think MUS is terrific in the elementary years! We completed MUS from K through Algebra.

 

The advantage for the teacher is that the program is laid out so well. I spend a maximum of 15 minutes a week preparing for the lesson. Each teacher's book comes with a DVD or video, where Steve Demme teaches each lesson in front of a small group of kids. This helps me with ideas on how to present the lesson to my son. The DVD basically repeats what is said in the teacher's manual, but somehow it helps me to see it. I watched the video religiously for the first few years. Now, I just read the teacher’s lesson, which has the same information, and present the lesson to my son. Some parents have their kids watch the DVD with them. Some parents have their kids watch the DVD without them.

 

The advantage for the children is that each lesson works on a particular skill and yet lays the foundation for advanced material. While they are teaching addition, they have problems like 5+A=12. Because of problems like this, when it came time to do subtraction, my son already knew it. They teach skip counting in K-1st. After they teach skip counting by 5s, they teach reading a clock to the 5-10-15... minutes. After they teach skip counting by 7s, they ask how many days in x number of weeks. So, they apply skip counting right away. While they teach skip counting, they have the children figure out the area of a rectangle using their skip counting. So, they are teaching multiplication before they have even heard the word or seen 5x3=15. While they are formally teaching multiplication, they have problems like 6xA=24. Because of problems like this, when it came time to do division, my son already knew it. In fact, he said 'This is the easiest thing I've ever learned'. Throughout Alpha through Zeta, they are solving for the unknown, which is preparing them for algebra.

 

They use blocks as manipulatives. The blocks are kind of like legos in that it is easy to tell the number of each block. When they add 5+7, they take a 5 block, stack a 7 block on top of it, then side by side, they put a 10 block and a 2 block. It's easy to SEE the answer. They use the blocks to teach multiplication. When they multiply 12x13, they use a red 100 block with 2 blue 10 blocks on the right hand side to show 12 columns. They use 3 more blue 10 blocks on top to make 13 rows. They fill in the 6 blocks in the corner to make a rectangle. It's easy to SEE that 12x13=156. My son would use the blocks a bit at first, then he wouldn't need to use them anymore. He just knew how to do it in his head.

 

Epsilon (5th grade) works with fractions. They have fraction overlays that really help the kids SEE fractions. They are a little difficult to describe, but I'll try. On the bottom, there is a white background piece. On the top there is a clear plastic piece with lines dividing the white background piece into halves or thirds or fourths or fifths ... In the middle is a colored piece that represents 1/2 or 2/2 or 1/3 or 2/3 or 3/3 or 1/4 or 2/4 or ... When you add 2/3 + 1/4, you set up the 2/3, set up the 1/4, then take the extra clear plastic piece divided into 4 and place it crosswise over the 2/3, SEEing that 2/3 is the same as 8/12. You take the extra clear plastic piece divided into 3 and place it crosswise over the 1/4, SEEing that 1/4 is the same as 3/12. Adding, 8/12 + 3/12 is easy then.

 

I have found the balance of new material vs. review to be just right for us in the new program. There are 30 lessons in each book Each lesson has 3 lesson pages (new concept) and 3 review pages. The first review page had a “quick review†of a particular topic. This helps to refresh my son’s memory if he has forgotten the topic. The review of earlier concepts is very methodical.

 

Sometimes, people ask about testing. Here is my experience. When my son was about ½ way through Epsilon (5th grade), I had to have him evaluated due to state law. He took the Woodcock Johnson test (national test which only took 30 minutes total), and the results were startling. His math calculation came out upper 8th grade and his math reasoning came out mid 9th grade! It took me a while to understand this. It does not mean that he is doing 8th/9th grade math work. It means that my son, working at 5.5 grade level, does as well as the average 8th/9th grader. When he was ½ way through Zeta (6th grade), he took the Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement and scored post high school in math. After MUS Pre-Algebra, he scored 11.4 on the math total of the ITBS.

 

Sometimes, people are concerned about the scope & sequence of MUS. If you look at the scope & sequence of some other math curriculums or what is being taught in your local elementary school, you may find it different from MUS. MUS uses a "mastery" approach. It focuses on single digit addition and subtraction in alpha, multiple digit addition and subtraction in beta, multiplication in gamma, division in delta, fractions in epsilon, and decimals in zeta, roughly 1st-6th grade. Other curriculums use a "spiral" approach. They do a little bit of addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, fractions in each grade with each year getting progressively more difficult. This concerns some people. If they put their child in school in 3rd grade, their child may have not seen fractions at all, whereas the ps'ers would have seen simple fractions. This does not mean that the 3rd graders who have been taught simple fractions actually understand them, just that they have seen them.

 

But, because MUS focuses on one concept each year, I see that as one of its strengths. I think it really helps the child to know multiplication (for example) until they know it forwards, backwards, sideways, and upside down. I think it helps to CEMENT it in the child's head.

 

Here are some of the negatives I've heard over the years: (1) It has no color, pictures, or games to make it “funâ€. That’s true. It’s more of a solid, straightforward approach. (2) The word problems aren't as challenging as they could be. We do supplement with Singapore’s Challenging Word Problems.

 

I have a degree in math. My son picks math up very quickly. But, this program is so well laid out that most of the time, the learning is easy. Once in a while, it’s a little difficult, like multiple digit multiplication and long division. But, the approach is so incremental, that they learn little by little until they know a whole lot.

 

I hope this has been helpful. Believe it or not, I'm not a rep. Just a very happy user.

 

Final note: I was not as impressed with Algebra as with the previous levels. It did not cover as much material as traditional Algebra texts (ex. quadratic formula was not presented). We will not continue with MUS through high school.

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Gamma is all multiplication. It introduces it quite nicely and, yes, you need the blocks!

 

In Gamma, I found that I had to stop near the end of the "learn the multiplication tables" part and really make sure that they were mastered.

 

I also have to stop when we move to 24 x 59 multiplication and practice, practice, practice.

 

Beyond those two spots, Gamma was a great experience for all 4 kids.

 

MUS is mastery so you will need to monitor the child's work at the beginning of the unit. This isn't a view the video, do six pages of problems, do the test, and move on curriculum.

 

Some weeks, it IS that easy. Other weeks, you view the video and practice with the blocks. Then, do the video again and more block practicing. Then, spend a day or two working with the blocks and having the child teach YOU and THEN, do the six pages of problems and the test.

 

However, teaching this program is NOT difficulty and many, many days, I spend less than 10 minutes of mom-time with the child on math.

 

HTH!!

 

MUS is the one and only hs curriculum that we started with 11 years ago and have never changed from (until high school).

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