Aops online preA class

[Roadrunner]

I am not sure if I should post this here or on k-8 board, but I am hoping I will get more feedback here. I think we have outgrown SM. As much as we love Beast, it's just not being published at a fast enough pace, so I have decided to spend the rest of 2014 doing some enrichment from various books and then sign up my DS for Aops preA class. He is nine, never had an online class, and is not very strong on typing, so I will make sure we practice typing before plunging into it. Here is my question. I know preA class moves at a regular pace, but what happens if we start in January? Is there a way to take preA 2 over the summer at a regular pace? Or are we going to face a several month hiatus? I wouldn't want to have a break longer than a month in math class. I am just planning.

[wapiti]

You can get a good idea of next summer's schedule by looking at the current summer schedule.

[snowbeltmom]

I am not sure if I should post this here or on k-8 board, but I am hoping I will get more feedback here. I think we have outgrown SM. As much as we love Beast, it's just not being published at a fast enough pace, so I have decided to spend the rest of 2014 doing some enrichment from various books and then sign up my DS for Aops preA class. He is nine, never had an online class, and is not very strong on typing, so I will make sure we practice typing before plunging into it. Here is my question. I know preA class moves at a regular pace, but what happens if we start in January? Is there a way to take preA 2 over the summer at a regular pace? Or are we going to face a several month hiatus? I wouldn't want to have a break longer than a month in math class. I am just planning.

 

The pacing of the classes is the same regardless of when they are taken.  Summer classes do not move at a quicker pace.

 

You might want to email AoPS and ask them if they plan to offer a preA 2 next summer.

 

[Kathy in Richmond]

The AoPS prealgebra 2 class is offered at regular intervals year round, including summers (there were 3 sections this summer with different starting dates). Summer courses at AoPS are always at the same pace as at any other time of the year.

[Roadrunner]

Thank you for responses. Glad to know we can start at mid-year and not deal with the summer interruption.

 

Anything you would recommend in preparation for the aops class? We are going through JA right now (way too easy), plan on covering couple of topics from SM 5B, and will work through BA 4B when it publishes. We also plan on spending a big chunk of math time on Lenchner's Math Contest Problems, volume 1.

[wapiti]

I would plan to do the lessons for a particular class prior to the actual class (I.e., I would get started ahead of time since you don't know how long it will take him, considering his young age. Note that ch 2 is especially difficult). There is additional homework - a weekly problem set plus Alcumus.

 

Also keep in mind that you can get a refund if you drop before the third class or something like that. The book can also be done without the class.

[snowbeltmom]

Thank you for responses. Glad to know we can start at mid-year and not deal with the summer interruption.

 

Anything you would recommend in preparation for the aops class? We are going through JA right now (way too easy), plan on covering couple of topics from SM 5B, and will work through BA 4B when it publishes. We also plan on spending a big chunk of math time on Lenchner's Math Contest Problems, volume 1.

Your son might want to begin working in the Pre-Algebra Alcumus section.  Each week's homework has an Alcumus component in addition to weekly problems,  and it is nice to get some of the topics mastered before the class begins.

[crazyforlatin]

We just finished Pre-A 2 class, the one that started from March and ended in June. There were a few sessions this year, but we ended up with the late March session as I wanted DD to finish up Chapter 7 and begin Chapter 8. But she never was able to stay ahead as we had to do their challenging problems and Alcumus in order to pass the course, and I needed her to do the homework in the book, so it was just a lot of work for an 8-year old, but we did get through it, admittedly with some relief. We had to skip some of the challenging problems in chapters 8-15 until after the class was over. The tutors (Kathy, was your daughter one of them?) put a lot of work reading the written answers and providing personal suggestions.

[Roadrunner]

I would plan to do the lessons for a particular class prior to the actual class (I.e., I would get started ahead of time since you don't know how long it will take him, considering his young age. Note that ch 2 is especially difficult). There is additional homework - a weekly problem set plus Alcumus.

Also keep in mind that you can get a refund if you drop before the third class or something like that. The book can also be done without the class.

  

Your son might want to begin working in the Pre-Algebra Alcumus section.  Each week's homework has an Alcumus component in addition to weekly problems,  and it is nice to get some of the topics mastered before the class begins.

Hmmmm, but if we work ahead of time, what would be the advantage of the class? How many hours of homework do you think the class will entail?

[Roadrunner]

We just finished Pre-A 2 class, the one that started from March and ended in June. There were a few sessions this year, but we ended up with the late March session as I wanted DD to finish up Chapter 7 and begin Chapter 8. But she never was able to stay ahead as we had to do their challenging problems and Alcumus in order to pass the course, and I needed her to do the homework in the book, so it was just a lot of work for an 8-year old, but we did get through it, admittedly with some relief. We had to skip some of the challenging problems in chapters 8-15 until after the class was over. The tutors (Kathy, was your daughter one of them?) put a lot of work reading the written answers and providing personal suggestions.

Would you not recommend the class for a nine year old? I don't want him to be overwhelmed. I just want him to "meet" other kids who like math. There isn't much available locally, so we are hoping online exposure will do him some good.

[crazyforlatin]

It's text based, not audio, so you have to be a fast reader and understand the concepts and examples. If you read ahead, it makes it easier to converse with the teacher or have a whisper conversation with a tutor should you have a question.

 

From what I read before and after class, most kids are in middle school, are currently taking pre-a, are solid typers, and seemed more mature overall. It helped to have some idea what would be happening in class as the teacher sometimes went beyond the book.

[snowbeltmom]

  

Hmmmm, but if we work ahead of time, what would be the advantage of the class? How many hours of homework do you think the class will entail?

 

In my kids' experiences, if they didn't get a chance to read about the topic before the class, they did not get as much out of the class.   My kids have found it best to read the section(s) in the book prior to class so they are not lost during the discussion. 

 

I can't remember how many hours of homework pre-Alg. required, but it was manageable. 

 

[snowbeltmom]

Would you not recommend the class for a nine year old? I don't want him to be overwhelmed. I just want him to "meet" other kids who like math. There isn't much available locally, so we are hoping online exposure will do him some good.

I don't think you will find that many other 9 year olds taking the class, but it is impossible to say how your son would like the class.  AoPS does give you three weeks to try out the class and if it is not a good fit, you can drop it for a full refund. 

 

Another option would be to take the Basic Mathcounts class.  Your son would be able to "meet" other kids who like math, but the class would not be as time consuming as the pre-algebra class.

[crazyforlatin]

Would you not recommend the class for a nine year old? I don't want him to be overwhelmed. I just want him to "meet" other kids who like math. There isn't much available locally, so we are hoping online exposure will do him some good.

DD is a laid back child, so I think I was more overwhelmed than she. I just saw all these problems we had to do (book, Alcumus, their challenging problems) but in fact, there is no need to actually do all the exercises in the book. So now we are working backwards to see what we skipped.

 

I signed up for the class for the same reason, to have DD meet other kids, have an AOPS teacher, get an experience of taking an online class, and apparently, I found out later, emails to remind her to do her online homework. See, DD is laid back and doesn't feel obligated to always finish everything on someone else's deadline.

[Kathy in Richmond]

Students will definitely get more out of class time if they've read & worked through the corresponding section in the textbook beforehand.

 

Between now & the start of class, play around with the prealgebra topics in Alcumus, work on typing skills, & maybe teach him some basic LaTeX for typesetting math formulas  (tutorial available on the AoPS website).

 

We just finished Pre-A 2 class, the one that started from March and ended in June. There were a few sessions this year, but we ended up with the late March session as I wanted DD to finish up Chapter 7 and begin Chapter 8. But she never was able to stay ahead as we had to do their challenging problems and Alcumus in order to pass the course, and I needed her to do the homework in the book, so it was just a lot of work for an 8-year old, but we did get through it, admittedly with some relief. We had to skip some of the challenging problems in chapters 8-15 until after the class was over. The tutors (Kathy, was your daughter one of them?) put a lot of work reading the written answers and providing personal suggestions.

 

Yep, dd was a grader and TA for the past four years. They do put a lot of effort into their written evaluations. She absolutely loved it, so much so that she just started working for them full time. Right now she's the lead teacher for an alg1 section. :001_smile:
 

[Roadrunner]

It's text based, not audio, so you have to be a fast reader and understand the concepts and examples. If you read ahead, it makes it easier to converse with the teacher or have a whisper conversation with a tutor should you have a question.

 

From what I read before and after class, most kids are in middle school, are currently taking pre-a, are solid typers, and seemed more mature overall. It helped to have some idea what would be happening in class as the teacher sometimes went beyond the book.

Sigh. He will be lost for sure. His typing skills are so very basic. I could sit in as support, but I wonder if it's worth it. I was hoping that since this is the only "normal" paced class, we would take advantage of it.

[Roadrunner]

Another option would be to take the Basic Mathcounts class. Your son would be able to "meet" other kids who like math, but the class would not be as time consuming as the pre-algebra class.

I was under assumption that even Basic Mathcounts would come after Intro to Algebra. I will into this one. Thanks.

[Roadrunner]

Students will definitely get more out of class time if they've read & worked through the corresponding section in the textbook beforehand.

 

Between now & the start of class, play around with the prealgebra topics in Alcumus, work on typing skills, & maybe teach him some basic LaTeX for typesetting math formulas (tutorial available on the AoPS website).

 

So would it make more sense to work on preA on our own this year and instead of taking the class this coming winter, wait and redo the book with the online class in the fall of 2015? That would put us in preA again in fifth grade. I am in no hurry at all.

[wapiti]

So would it make more sense to work on preA on our own this year and instead of taking the class this coming winter, wait and redo the book with the online class in the fall of 2015? That would put us in preA again in fifth grade. I am in no hurry at all.

If it were me, I would work through the book on your own this year. That way you can go at your own pace. I would not redo prealgebra with the online class the following year - that would be boring - unless it was a terrific struggle the first time through. (Eta, the classes are fun but by no means required to consider yourselves finished with a course!) Alcumus is always available for review. The Mathcounts class might be fun and probably isn't as difficult after having finishing the prealgebra book.

[Kathy in Richmond]

So would it make more sense to work on preA on our own this year and instead of taking the class this coming winter, wait and redo the book with the online class in the fall of 2015? That would put us in preA again in fifth grade. I am in no hurry at all.

 

You could always give it a try this winter. AoPS refunds in full before the third class if you find it isn't working out well. Prealgebra is a great starting place with the slower pace.

 

I agree with snowbeltmom about looking at the Basic MathCounts class, too. That's where my daughter started (though I think that there was only one level of MathCounts back then!), but she was a bit older than your son. Try the "Are You Ready?" placement quiz on the website. The problem-solving classes generally take less of a weekly time commitment.

[Roadrunner]

Thank you! So this is the plan. :) We will wait till January to get closer to 10 and try the class for three weeks. If we find it overwhelming, we will go for the Mathcounts class the following fall.

[Ravi B]

Sigh. He will be lost for sure. His typing skills are so very basic. I could sit in as support, but I wonder if it's worth it. I was hoping that since this is the only "normal" paced class, we would take advantage of it.

When my daughter was 10, she took her first AoPS course (in what's now called Advanced MathCounts/AMC 8).  Her typing skills were not strong then, so I acted as typist: she told me what to write, and I typed it close to verbatim.

[Roadrunner]

When my daughter was 10, she took her first AoPS course (in what's now called Advanced MathCounts/AMC 8). Her typing skills were not strong then, so I acted as typist: she told me what to write, and I typed it close to verbatim.

That's a very good suggestion. I can absolutely scribe for him. We will also work through some of the content in the first seven chapters so he doesn't feel too overwhelmed, although Beast Academy has done a terrific job prepping kids for the preA textbook. He is excited to join "big boys." :)

[EndOfOrdinary]

My son did not do BA, but he started PreA at eight. He had had a full year of traditional PreA with some beginning algebra. None of the concepts were new or challenging much. What was challenging was understanding and coming to terms with being overwhelmed. Since the book is designed to overwhelm, that was the hardest part. It was an emotional hurdle, not an academic one. That would be the largest caution I would present. It took a good six months of stilted starting and stopping for him to adjust. Once he got over it, chapters flew and he even added in Intro to Counting and Probability.

 

BA might have completely prepped your son for the transition. If he is not really clicking with the book layout in January, then I would not start the online classes till Intro to Algebra. Once he gets it, he will be golden!

[mliss]

Anything you would recommend in preparation for the aops class? We are going through JA right now (way too easy), plan on covering couple of topics from SM 5B, and will work through BA 4B when it publishes. We also plan on spending a big chunk of math time on Lenchner's Math Contest Problems, volume 1.

 

FYI, Beast Academy 4B recently published.

 

Also, thanks for starting this thread because I'm in a similar situation with DD.  Beast Academy isn't publishing fast enough so we've been considering AoPS pre-algebra and DD has been working on her typing skills in preparation.

 

Oh, I don't know if you've explored typing resources but, FWIW, my DS really likes Typing Instructor (I purchased their CD about 3 years ago - don't know if the content has changed much) and DD likes the free (and kind of weird) online lessons at Dance Mat Typing.

[Roadrunner]

FYI, Beast Academy 4B recently published.

 

Also, thanks for starting this thread because I'm in a similar situation with DD.  Beast Academy isn't publishing fast enough so we've been considering AoPS pre-algebra and DD has been working on her typing skills in preparation.

 

Oh, I don't know if you've explored typing resources but, FWIW, my DS really likes Typing Instructor (I purchased their CD about 3 years ago - don't know if the content has changed much) and DD likes the free (and kind of weird) online lessons at Dance Mat Typing.

Yes, I meant 4C. We gobbled up 4B as soon as it came out!  :laugh:

We do have the typing instructor software, but he simply hasn't worked enough with it. Lack of keyboard skills is a problem for math class as well as writing. He writes long "papers" on various topics and then I need to type it up for him so he can work on editing. Otherwise it's too much work to rewrite it by hand. He is certainly motivated this year to learn. Hard to believe people once survived without computers.  :D

[Roadrunner]

 

BA might have completely prepped your son for the transition. If he is not really clicking with the book layout in January, then I would not start the online classes till Intro to Algebra. Once he gets it, he will be golden!

 

Format and language. PreA doesn't treat you as a little kid. I am hoping though that BA has prepared him content wise. It seems like chapters like exponents, perfect squares… are written to directly lead you into preA. He has also internalized the lesson from BA that if you see big numbers and big calculations, there is an elegant solution hiding somewhere. SM supplements are rigorous, but that type of mathematical thinking simply isn't there. I had him work through couple of challenge problems in the preA book not that long ago and he did a beautiful job. He just knew how to tackle the problems and I know all of this is the credit to how good of a preparation he has gotten from Beast. I am really sad that we don't have the opportunity to finish up the entire BA series (although my little one hopefully won't outpace the publication dates), but we do need to move on. 

[Dmmetler]

I agree with EoO-my DD started AOPS PA at age 8, and struggled with the transition (she had done LoF PA and Key to Algebra after SM through 5B, but it just wasn't the same level of difficulty), but once she found her stride, flew through it. We haven't done the online classes because she hates Alumcus-she likes AOPS books, and likes online classes for other things, but not that. I'm interested in seeing how AOPS Algebra works this fall (she went back to Fred for the summer). 

 

 

[kohlby]

I was wondering about the overwhelming factor for your child as well.  My son moved out of a different curriculum for AoPS at Intro to Algebra.  He did not do the online class.  He started soon after turning 9.  There is no way he would have been able to handle the online class, just for the time element.  He had to shift gears in his thinking.  The hardest thing was that he was used to math being easy - and suddenly, it wasn't.  He had to learn to meet that challenge and wrestle with problems.  He did adapt to AoPS and loves it.  If he had done the online route, we wouldn't have had the time to work out the kinks.  A lot of advanced kids never learn to struggle - so though I love AoPS for the content and teaching methods, I love that he learned to actually like the struggle! 

Also, think about your child's personality.  Does he love to do math problems in his spare time?  Mine does not normally. (Number Theory was an exception).  He loves AoPS and refuses to move out of it - even though I think the Geometry might be a little too much of a challenge at 11, but he wants to stay with it.  He would rather have the more challenging math.  But he wants plenty of time to play Pokémon and Minecraft.  That was another reason I didn't want to do the online class - the time.  I wanted him to feel like he still had plenty of time to do what he wanted.  There are kids for whom math problems can be what they want to do in their extra time.  But mine is up for the challenge, as long as it doesn't cut into his play time too much!

[madteaparty]

Not addressing the AOPS online classes because I've already decided a text-only class does not work for my DS at this point.

However, I wanted to talk about the "what to do between now and prealgebra" question. I am completely winging it, but we are finishing up 5B  in the next couple of weeks, and finishing up MM Decimals and Fractions around the same time. We will then work through  MM ratio book combined with ratio word problems from "70 Word Problems you must know" level 5 (we solved the rest of the problems already but some of the ratio ones we find challenging, hence the deep dive with MM). Once that is over, we will finish CWP 5 and Process Skills 5 (already working on some of these). We then start tabletclass pre-A supplemented by AOPS pre-A. Whew. That's the plan, anyway.

[Roadrunner]

I was wondering about the overwhelming factor for your child as well.  My son moved out of a different curriculum for AoPS at Intro to Algebra.  He did not do the online class.  He started soon after turning 9.  There is no way he would have been able to handle the online class, just for the time element.  He had to shift gears in his thinking.  The hardest thing was that he was used to math being easy - and suddenly, it wasn't.  He had to learn to meet that challenge and wrestle with problems.  He did adapt to AoPS and loves it.  If he had done the online route, we wouldn't have had the time to work out the kinks.  A lot of advanced kids never learn to struggle - so though I love AoPS for the content and teaching methods, I love that he learned to actually like the struggle! 

 

Also, think about your child's personality.  Does he love to do math problems in his spare time?  Mine does not normally. (Number Theory was an exception).  He loves AoPS and refuses to move out of it - even though I think the Geometry might be a little too much of a challenge at 11, but he wants to stay with it.  He would rather have the more challenging math.  But he wants plenty of time to play Pokémon and Minecraft.  That was another reason I didn't want to do the online class - the time.  I wanted him to feel like he still had plenty of time to do what he wanted.  There are kids for whom math problems can be what they want to do in their extra time.  But mine is up for the challenge, as long as it doesn't cut into his play time too much!

He is my mature kid who really likes math. I would like to say he loves math, but he truly only looooooooves Beast. He loves every aspect of it - fact that he gets to try to come up with a solution before they teach it to him, challenge, "cool" things (his excitement over basic "proofs" in some Beast chapters was really something :) ), so I am thinking his love will extend into AoPS, since it's the same publisher and the same "thinking."  AoPS would have to come up with a Beast level every two months to keep up with with us and that's not happening. He would do Beast in his spare time, but again, we don't have enough of it and we can't find any other program that he truly enjoys. SM is drudgery to him and we use IP and CWP as a main program. We are doing Jousting Armadillos right now and it's simply tooooo easy. He has been rolling eyes the entire summer. I have no idea if AoPS will be the fit, but he pulls the book out every now and then and really wants to try it. 

I thought preA would be one class that we could actually do online, since it's the only one that's not at an accelerated pace. 

I don't know about his abilities either. Learning comes easy to him, but nothing was ever hard for me either, so I think that's normal. His dad is the one who used to sleep with math books when he was a teenager. 

[Roadrunner]

Not addressing the AOPS online classes because I've already decided a text-only class does not work for my DS at this point.

However, I wanted to talk about the "what to do between now and prealgebra" question. I am completely winging it, but we are finishing up 5B  in the next couple of weeks, and finishing up MM Decimals and Fractions around the same time. We will then work through  MM ratio book combined with ratio word problems from "70 Word Problems you must know" level 5 (we solved the rest of the problems already but some of the ratio ones we find challenging, hence the deep dive with MM). Once that is over, we will finish CWP 5 and Process Skills 5 (already working on some of these). We then start tabletclass pre-A supplemented by AOPS pre-A. Whew. That's the plan, anyway.

 

We are doing JA right now. Adorable program, but not if you are looking for a challenge. I can't get my kid to do anything that repetitious, so doubling up on SM and MM or another program that basically repeats content is out of question. We are eagerly awaiting BA 4C in October, so that will give us something to work with for a month or two, if I really try hard to stretch it. We will start CWP 5 sometime soon as well, but honestly, it looks like we are exhausting the possibilities. The only other option is to condense SM 6 since there isn't much new material there and then move on to 7. I am not sure I want to get that far ahead, so that's why we are hoping we slow down with AoPS preA. If I were you, I would just start it now. 

[madteaparty]

We are doing JA right now. Adorable program, but not if you are looking for a challenge. I can't get my kid to do anything that repetitious, so doubling up on SM and MM or another program that basically repeats content is out of question. We are eagerly awaiting BA 4C in October, so that will give us something to work with for a month or two, if I really try hard to stretch it. We will start CWP 5 sometime soon as well, but honestly, it looks like we are exhausting the possibilities. The only other option is to condense SM 6 since there isn't much new material there and then move on to 7. I am not sure I want to get that far ahead, so that's why we are hoping we slow down with AoPS preA. If I were you, I would just start it now. 

 

My DS hates repetition, too. He asks for and loves word problems. MM is nothing if not repetitive (in a good way!) so it kills me to assign it (he complies, the poor thing, but it's fairly joyless and the penance he has to pay in order to do word problems. Perverse :)). In any event, I thought one needed to be solid on decimals, fractions, percentages, etc before pre-Algebra, hence this cruel regime. I may start sooner though, you are right. I am hoping to eliminate some math books because I am not loving the juggling; I'm not that organized.

[Roadrunner]

My DS hates repetition, too. He asks for and loves word problems. MM is nothing if not repetitive (in a good way!) so it kills me to assign it (he complies, the poor thing, but it's fairly joyless and the penance he has to pay in order to do word problems. Perverse :)). In any event, I thought one needed to be solid on decimals, fractions, percentages, etc before pre-Algebra, hence this cruel regime. I may start sooner though, you are right. I am hoping to eliminate some math books because I am not loving the juggling; I'm not that organized.

Russian Math 6 is another option for preA. The problem is it doesn't come with solutions. 

[slackermom]

We are using the Aops pre-A book at dd's pace, rather than the online class, for reasons mentioned by other posters, but we rely on their free online videos. They are especially helpful when dd wants guidance from someone other than me. She likes to pause the videos and work out the problems before seeing the answers.

[madteaparty]

 The problem is it doesn't come with solutions. 

Lawyer mom that cannot calculate tips needs the solutions :) Thank you!

[crazyforlatin]

Lawyer mom that cannot calculate tips needs the solutions :) Thank you!

No solutions, just an answer key, and for Russian Math 6, it may be good enough.

[Roadrunner]

No solutions, just an answer key, and for Russian Math 6, it may be good enough.

I thought the solutions weren't available for all the chapters. I believe chapters 4 and 5 lack answers, at least according to their website.

[crazyforlatin]

I thought the solutions weren't available for all the chapters. I believe chapters 4 and 5 lack answers, at least according to their website.

The PDF comes with selected answers for all chapters, but the website does give an answer key for chapter 1-3 and now 6. I don't think there was an answer key for chapter 6 the last time I looked which was last year when I purchased it. Or maybe it was there, and I didn't download it. I don't usually need answer keys unless I'm using AOPS.

 

http://www.perpendicularpress.com/math6.html

[MamaSprout]

Thank you for responses. Glad to know we can start at mid-year and not deal with the summer interruption.

 

Anything you would recommend in preparation for the aops class? We are going through JA right now (way too easy), plan on covering couple of topics from SM 5B, and will work through BA 4B when it publishes. We also plan on spending a big chunk of math time on Lenchner's Math Contest Problems, volume 1.

We found 5B a bit more meaty than it first appears. Dd (who loves the Lenchner books) did slow down a bit in 5B after doing 3b 4a/b and 5a in 6 weeks or less each. We're doing Alcumus alongside b/c she likes it better than Beast. She also choose Singapore DMCC over AoPS Pre A. We are in Eastern time, so the class really is late for us- after swim practice her brain is done for the day.

 

I would say the Lenchner book and maybe Alcumus to prepare. At the minimum, I would do all of the reviews in 5b to catch potential gaps.

HTH

[MamaSprout]

The PDF comes with selected answers for all chapters, but the website does give an answer key for chapter 1-3 and now 6. I don't think there was an answer key for chapter 6 the last time I looked which was last year when I purchased it. Or maybe it was there, and I didn't download it. I don't usually need answer keys unless I'm using AOPS.

 

http://www.perpendicularpress.com/math6.html

There is one chapter missing even after searching around on the internet for strays. We own it, I love the looks of it, but this Liberal Arts mom needs solutions, too. One of the reasons we're doing Singapore DMCC instead. I'd pay another $20 for a solutions manual.

[madteaparty]

We found 5B a bit more meaty than it first appears. Dd (who loves the Lenchner books) did slow down a bit in 5B after doing 3b 4a/b and 5a in 6 weeks or less each. We're doing Alcumus alongside b/c she likes it better than Beast. She also choose Singapore DMCC over AoPS Pre A. We are in Eastern time, so the class really is late for us- after swim practice her brain is done for the day.

 

I would say the Lenchner book and maybe Alcumus to prepare. At the minimum, I would do all of the reviews in 5b to catch potential gaps.

HTH

Our experience with 5B is similar. It is taking us much longer; I thought it was because it was summer and after 6 hours of tennis camp he is pretty fried (literally and figuratively :)) too. I also found that at least to us, decimals, fractions, and percentages are not necessarily intuitive concepts, so we had to take time and for the first time supplement Singapore with something other than word problems so we can drill these. My DS also prefers Alcumus to Beast.

[Roadrunner]

I am a bit confused about Alcumus. Don't you need to be working through AoPS books to be able to solve problems in Alcumus? It corresponds with preA chapters (I worked through some of it myself), so it's more of an extra practice for kids studying with AoPS books. I don't see how I could expect him to advance through Alcumus without textbooks. 

[Arcadia]

... so it's more of an extra practice for kids studying with AoPS books. I don't see how I could expect him to advance through Alcumus without textbooks.

It can be use as a supplement with any other math books or prior knowledge. Like you could cover Prob & Stats with MEP and use the Prob & Stats questions in Alcumus for fun practice.

 

Not all the Alcumus problems are hard, the easy ones can be done with prior knowledge.

[crazyforlatin]

Alcumus adjusts the level of difficulty until you can pass the topic. It has solutions for each problem, almost as good as the AOPS solutions book, and selected videos. Of course, there is also another step of mastering a topic.

[MamaSprout]

We've been using it without AoPS books. It's not a problem. There are videos if you don't understand something. I wouldn't use it as our only curriculum, but it works really well for a supplement.

[MamaSprout]

I thought the solutions weren't available for all the chapters. I believe chapters 4 and 5 lack answers, at least according to their website.

I looked at my saved copy. The only chapter I'm lacking is 5- negative numbers and coordinates- that would be easy to check with a calculator. I think I found 4 and 6 answer keys as a direct link from here on the forum somewhere. They may not be linked from the website. The more I look at RM 6, the less I think I need a solutions manual.

 

ETA: here is 4: http://www.perpendicularpress.com/ChapterFourKey.pdf

[kiwik]

In my kids' experiences, if they didn't get a chance to read about the topic before the class, they did not get as much out of the class. My kids have found it best to read the section(s) in the book prior to class so they are not lost during the discussion.

 

I can't remember how many hours of homework pre-Alg. required, but it was manageable.

 

Think of it as preparation. Like at university where you were supposed to read the chapter before class but never did because you were too busy doing assignments and lab reports.

[madteaparty]

I looked at my saved copy. The only chapter I'm lacking is 5- negative numbers and coordinates- that would be easy to check with a calculator. I think I found 4 and 6 answer keys as a direct link from here on the forum somewhere. They may not be linked from the website. The more I look at RM 6, the less I think I need a solutions manual.

 

ETA: here is 4: http://www.perpendicularpress.com/ChapterFourKey.pdf

 

Roadrunner and Elladarcy, what math would you say RM 6 is, compared to say AOPS pre-A or Singapore 5B? Is it pre-algebra? Just integrated elem math? I don't mind getting this because it's not expensive, and since I went to school in Eastern Europe it's probably similar to my pre-gymnasium math, but I've blocked that out ;) It's just I cannot permit myself one more curriculum as we are becoming mired and I will have mutiny in my hands.

[MamaSprout]

It's a step up from Singapore 5B, although there doesn't seem to be a lot of new material coming from 5B standards, it has more depth and is wordier. I haven't seen AoPS PreA IRL, but in the sense you can "hear" the authors, it it's like it or other books such as Dolciani or Jacobs.

 

I would say the content is rigorous 6th grade-- I know people would use RM 6 between SM 6 US edition and AoPS Algebra before there were so many other options. So it does cover some "PreA" content.

 

I think it will be our main math this year. Dd could move into Singapore 7 (wants to, and could do it, but slowly). RM 6 seems to hit most of her weakest areas. I'd rather she do a year of RM then move through the DM books more quickly.