SparklyUnicorn Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 DS is working through Saxon Algebra 2. He is doing well with it, but I feel like it is too easy. I don't want to switch though. We worked through an AoPS math competition prep book. I know AoPS has problems on-line, but I'd like something in book form. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 3, 2015 Author Share Posted March 3, 2015 Geesh, sorry about the spacing. I don't know how that happened and I can't figure out how to fix it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 The MathCounts Math Club in a box has a nice set of problems. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 Have you tried AoPS volume 1 and volume 2? "Volume 1 Sandor Lehoczky and Richard Rusczyk Paperback Text: 288 pages. Solutions: 144 pages. A classic problem solving textbook for students in grades 7-10 who are preparing for contests like MATHCOUNTS and the AMC 8/10/12." 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 3, 2015 Author Share Posted March 3, 2015 Have you tried AoPS volume 1 and volume 2? "Volume 1 Sandor Lehoczky and Richard Rusczyk Paperback Text: 288 pages. Solutions: 144 pages. A classic problem solving textbook for students in grades 7-10 who are preparing for contests like MATHCOUNTS and the AMC 8/10/12." We did volume 1. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 3, 2015 Author Share Posted March 3, 2015 The MathCounts Math Club in a box has a nice set of problems. ohh math club in a box sounds cool Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 3, 2015 Author Share Posted March 3, 2015 The MathCounts Math Club in a box has a nice set of problems. Hm seems like I have to form a club for this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBM Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 Here are some books my son has that could possibly work. I'm not 100% sure they're all appropriate but maybe someone will offer opinions about them if not. Challenging Problems in Algebra / Posementier, Salkind Problems From the Book / Andreescu, Dospinescu Mathematical Gems / Honsberger Martin Gardner's books Ian Stewart's books Math Olympiad books including Jr. Math Olympiad books which might not be as difficult. How to Solve It / Polya Problem-Solving Through Problems / Larson The Art and Craft of Problem Solving / Zeitz Your library might carry some of these. Look for the really dusty sections. LOL. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 3, 2015 Author Share Posted March 3, 2015 Here are some books my son has that could possibly work. I'm not 100% sure they're all appropriate but maybe someone will offer opinions about them if not. Challenging Problems in Algebra / Posementier, Salkind Problems From the Book / Andreescu, Dospinescu Mathematical Gems / Honsberger Martin Gardner's books Ian Stewart's books Math Olympiad books including Jr. Math Olympiad books which might not be as difficult. How to Solve It / Polya Problem-Solving Through Problems / Larson The Art and Craft of Problem Solving / Zeitz Your library might carry some of these. Look for the really dusty sections. LOL. Cool. I have not heard of any of these before. My library is pretty lame. They seem to only have a few elementary math related picture books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 The books are worth using Link+/ILL to request for. The styles are different in each book, some more dry some more conversation style. Here are some books my son has that could possibly work. I'm not 100% sure they're all appropriate but maybe someone will offer opinions about them if not. ..... Your library might carry some of these. Look for the really dusty sections. LOL. My local libraries carry them and they look almost brand new :lol: 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBM Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 The books are worth using Link+/ILL to request for. The styles are different in each book, some more dry some more conversation style. My local libraries carry them and they look almost brand new :lol: Yeah, when my youngest checks out math books, the librarians give him the full six months because they're rarely borrowed. My youngest wants to work in the math library when he goes to college. I don't think the job would be too stressful. He might be able to catch a few winks, too. LOL 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBM Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 Cool. I have not heard of any of these before. My library is pretty lame. They seem to only have a few elementary math related picture books. I'll ask my son for his suggestions when he gets home. He has more books but I'm not so sure what the really good ones are. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 3, 2015 Author Share Posted March 3, 2015 The books are worth using Link+/ILL to request for. The styles are different in each book, some more dry some more conversation style. My local libraries carry them and they look almost brand new :lol: I'll look into it, but my library system is truly terrible. I used to pay to use another one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 3, 2015 Author Share Posted March 3, 2015 Not one single one of those. Even searching "algebra" only yielded stuff like Algebra for Dummies or Cliff's Guide to Algebra. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quark Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Do you have the AoPS Intro to or Intermediate Algebra books laying around? (I might be remembering wrongly but I think you mentioned trying Intro Alg at some point right?). DS picked selected problems from the books instead of using them religiously from cover to cover. Might that work? Since your DS already knows the AoPS style through the Volume 1, it might be more suited to his taste? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 4, 2015 Author Share Posted March 4, 2015 Do you have the AoPS Intro to or Intermediate Algebra books laying around? (I might be remembering wrongly but I think you mentioned trying Intro Alg at some point right?). DS picked selected problems from the books instead of using them religiously from cover to cover. Might that work? Since your DS already knows the AoPS style through the Volume 1, it might be more suited to his taste? We did several chapters in that book already. I did thumb through today (Intro to Algebra) and I was not seeing anything that I thought would challenge him all that much. Which was pretty exciting. When we went through that book I was so overwhelmed (and so was he). Now it seems a lot easier to me. Wish there was something like Zaccaro, but a slightly higher level. We went through 2 of his books already. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EndOfOrdinary Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Art and Craft of Problem Solving by Zeitz is frequently on Ebay for less than ten dollars. It always comes up when I am lurking about for AoPS books. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegs Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Geesh, sorry about the spacing. I don't know how that happened and I can't figure out how to fix it. I kept scrolling down for the punchline!! I think you'd get your money's worth from Art of Problem Solving Volume 2. And can you print at a reasonable price? There are some really fun materials available from past math competitions - oftentimes you can get solutions too. Sometimes when I feel like a break from AoPS, I print off a few pages of questions from past competitions. It's a bit fiddlier than just buying a book, but the content is worth it, for me. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewelma Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 The Art and Craft of Problem Solving / Zeitz This is an excellent book but seriously hard. We used the first 5 chapters based on Kathy's recommendation and they were very useful in understanding *how* to think about problem solving. However, the problem sets in those chapters and the problem sets for the second half of the book are designed for IMO prep and my ds even now would struggle with most of them. Also, there is no solutions guide (there is a document with hints and a list of where you might look for ideas), which in my book is a big minus. My ds will be using this book this year, having finished all the intermediate AoPS classes and the AoPS volume 2 book. Ruth in NZ 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 4, 2015 Author Share Posted March 4, 2015 Oh yes I need solutions! Maybe I'll get the AoPS volume 2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lilaclady Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 You may want to look at the books from awesome math. I haven't used one personally but think they should be on the same level as AOPS https://www.awesomemath.org/shopthe books all come with solutions according to the site. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBM Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 My son came home late last night so I asked him this morning what he would recommend. Besides more AoPS books (of course, LOL), he thought the following might be worth a try: Problem-Solving Through Problems / Larson Glimpses of Algebra and Geometry / Toth If at all possible, I think you'd want to look through them because they might be a bit too advanced at this point and your son might want to work on number theory and other math topics a bit more. Another idea is to ask posters on the AoPS forums for recommendations. My son did that at one point and got some helpful suggestions. Awesome Math, suggested by Lilaclady, is also really good. It was started by Titu Andreescu who was involved in the IMO and MOSP (Mathematical Olympiad Summer Program). He also runs math summer camps. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Incognito Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Wish there was something like Zaccaro, but a slightly higher level. We went through 2 of his books already. Have you looked on Amazon? Zaccaro has quite a few books, some of which appear to me as if they might suit your needs. Like this one: http://www.amazon.com/Real-World-Algebra-Edward-Zaccaro/dp/0967991528/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1425484450&sr=1-4&keywords=zaccaro 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 4, 2015 Author Share Posted March 4, 2015 Have you looked on Amazon? Zaccaro has quite a few books, some of which appear to me as if they might suit your needs. Like this one: http://www.amazon.com/Real-World-Algebra-Edward-Zaccaro/dp/0967991528/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1425484450&sr=1-4&keywords=zaccaro Seems like most of these aren't for beyond middle school though. We used Real World Algebra and Challenge Math for the Elementary and Middle Grades. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 4, 2015 Author Share Posted March 4, 2015 Hm..maybe AoPS Intro to Counting and Probability.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBM Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Hm..maybe AoPS Intro to Counting and Probability.... Yeah, that might be a good choice. You already know what AoPS is like, too. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaConquest Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 My son came home late last night so I asked him this morning what he would recommend. Besides more AoPS books (of course, LOL), he thought the following might be worth a try: Problem-Solving Through Problems / Larson Glimpses of Algebra and Geometry / Toth If at all possible, I think you'd want to look through them because they might be a bit too advanced at this point and your son might want to work on number theory and other math topics a bit more. Another idea is to ask posters on the AoPS forums for recommendations. My son did that at one point and got some helpful suggestions. Awesome Math, suggested by Lilaclady, is also really good. It was started by Titu Andreescu who was involved in the IMO and MOSP (Mathematical Olympiad Summer Program). He also runs math summer camps. MBM, How was your son's experience with the Awesome Math year-round program? Did it add anything to AOPS? Do you recommend it? Sorry for the hijack. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 4, 2015 Author Share Posted March 4, 2015 Yeah, that might be a good choice. You already know what AoPS is like, too. And that one isn't too long. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBM Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 MBM, How was your son's experience with the Awesome Math year-round program? Did it add anything to AOPS? Do you recommend it? Sorry for the hijack. Awesome Math Year-round (AMY) was challenging for my son. He signed up his freshman year in high school but couldn't work on the material much during the school year and had to wait until the following summer. Even then, he had to skip over some of it and come back to it later because it was too difficult for him at the time. My son tends to hop around when he's studying different math topics. I would recommend it for someone who wants the challenge. The Awesome Math books are worth a look if your child likes math. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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