Do you think Teaching Textbooks Algebra is appropriate for kids with ld's?

[DianeJM]

Is TT Alg. 1 appropriate for kids with poor working memory, slow processing speed, and other language type ld's (oh, someone mentioned she has visual-spatial difficulties too, and receptive & expressive language difficulties)?

 

I'm wondering what would be the best avenue for math for her, she's going into 9th next year. This year she is doing pre-algebra in a Christian school, and when reviewing or doing homework it's almost like she has never seen the stuff before, ugh. I am not looking forward to it, but we are going to go for broke and do high school at home together, b/c there is no schooling option appropriate or accessible for her/us. I have written about her before, sorry if I'm being a pain. I just feel at a loss about what her issues are, like I can't get my hands around it, even though we have a neuropsych report and a speech/language report. I should go see a speech & language therapist and get some helps for myself, maybe go back to the psychologist and get more info. (I have some of the same issues she has, so there's my difficulty with this, lol. We both have executive functioning problems.)

 

Thanks,

[Claire]

Math is such an individual thing, I'm not sure it's possible to say.

 

TT has some very good aspects to it, so I certainly think it would be worth a try. My advice, though, is for you to do the lessons along with your dd. That way, if she runs into difficulty, you will know how to explain things to her in the way that TT does. TT explanations are very good, but they are also quite different from traditional approaches. I did not do this. My dd liked TT Algebra 1 and did very well with it at first. However, about one-fourth way into the book (I'm thinking about lesson #30, but I could be wrong about that) she started having difficulty. Because I had not done the lessons with her, my explanations of what to do and why were completely different from TT's and she ended up more confused. If I had done the lessons, I would have known how to get her over that hump. As it was, we abandoned TT.

 

The other thing I would say about TT is that I would be *sure* to have your dd work through the solutions for every problem she gets wrong before moving on in the book. It's not enough to have her read the solution and then say she understands. She needs to work the program out herself, after examining the solution. (This was another mistake I made with my dd.)

 

I wish I could say I found an effective Algebra I course for dd, but I did not. She went to public high school and took Algebra I in 9th grade. This was a block-scheduled school, so she had to complete the course in half a school year. She managed to make it through with a B-average by spending an average of 3 hours per night on algebra homework -- at least half of that time with her father helping her. The one thing that really helped her, IMO, was that she had completed Lial's BCM in 8th grade. Without BCM, I don't think she would have had the basic skills to make it through algebra in high school. (She completed Algebra II with a C-average but doesn't really understand it.) My advice is to spend 9th grade doing Lial's BCM. This still gives you time to get through Algebra I and II and Geometry in high school. That is enough to prepare for community college. We are planning on cc for two years before transfer to a 4-year school. (My dd will be taking a "college algebra" course in 12th grade that is recommended for students who will be going on to college but not majoring in math or science. Colleges like to see 4 years of math, 4 years of science, and 2 years of a foreign language. As long as the student is not planning on a math or science major, I don't think they mind too much if the math and science courses are less rigorous ones.)

 

I would also recommend getting Life of Fred, starting with fractions, and see if you can work through that. I am planning to do this with my dd this summer (working through algebra and geometry). This program is great for review. He has a wonderful way of phrasing definitions and concepts so they "stick" in memory. It's not strong enough for a math spine, though, IMO.

[DianeJM]

Yes, I plan on doing it right along with her -- hey, I'll learn it too (not math-minded here!). In fact, I think I am going to start out doing every subject together with her, like I'd do with a younger kid. She can work independently if she understands what to do, so when we get to the point of understanding, she can work on her own. I will plan on doing every lesson together, then discussing, then working some problems together, then sending her off to finish a lesson independently. Re-working each missed one to see the correct solution -- thanks.

 

From what I've heard about TT, they aren't quite as rigorous as other algebra programs, and that, along with hand-holding from a real math teacher, well, that sounded like just the ticket.

 

I can definitely understand why you would recommend doing Lial BCM before we tackle algebra. That is excellent counsel. She does have lots of holes in her math learning. I bet we could do it in one year. I have the 6th edition already, and I think I will use it with her. That sounds great. I will be doing that with her as well. My guess is that I'll be spending probably 4 hours directly with her each school day on her major subjects; that is quite a lot for a high schooler, and I don't think there is going to be much time for school with my rising 4th grader. I have been working on how all this can actually be done.

 

BTW, from the website of the ld school that was recommended for her, and which she is not going to attend, I have gotten some tips on how to work with her like they do. Actually doing it may be another story.

 

Thanks!