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Finding a better math curriculum (early elementary)


anabelneri
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Hello!  My girls just had GDC testing, and so I now have the great joy of finding curricula that meet them better.

 

My younger dd needs a different math program.  We were using Right Start, which I love for its building-of-mathematical-thinking style.  She hates, it however, and after reflection on her test scores and consulting with my husband (whose brain works similarly), it seems that we need something more visual, with more pictures.  Dd has strong verbal skills, but also has really strong pattern recognition skills.  Lately it's looked like she's trying to intuit answers using her pattern recognition skills, but she's still fine-tuning it.

 

Here's what dh described as being ideal: a math book with clear illustrations of the math concepts, that can be looked at and grokked, then move on to the next section.  He would then like a unit test covering several lessons to see if he got them, and then be able to move on to the next unit (or go back to a specific section if needed).  Is there anything like that?  I've used MEP and Right Start, but it's been a long time since I've seen anything else.

 

I'm also open to suggestions.

 

Thanks!

Anabel

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Like Singapore?

 

When your DH says look at and grok a a section and then move on, does that include doing practice problems on the concept before moving on?  Singapore is strong in "building-of-mathematical-thinking" and the textbook is full color (at least Standard edition is, I guess I don't know for sure about the others) and has lots of illustrations.

 

The Singapore methods is the teacher introduces the concept to the student first using manipulatives then the concept is shown pictorially in the textbook.  Finally, teacher and student work some practice problems in the textbook that show the concept symbolically before the student does similar independent practice in the workbook. 

 

ETA: yeah, what EKS said.

 

Wendy

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For my extremely visual child in elementary we used 2 things-

 

Math u See because it is manipulative heavy and was just the thing the visual thinker needed- but it isn't thorough enough nor deep enough.  

Mathematical reasoning by the Critical thinking company.  Mathematical Reasoning didn't have tests but it was easy enough to make them myself.  

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Another plug for Singapore Math.  It works just like your dh describes.  Manipulative introduction, then pictures of same concept, practice in the textbook to do with tutor, more practice problems in the workbook to do independently.  Many multistep word problems, some of which use bar diagrams to introduce algebraic thinking.  Reviews and practice exercises dispersed after each group of concepts, and more cumulative reviews throughout the course.  Extra Practice and Word problem supplements are available, but not necessary.

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