Wilson Hill Academy PreAlgebra, anyone?

[Shay]

After my 6th/7th mini math meltdown http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/544308-6th7th-math-pshs-math-mini-meltdown/I am considering WIlson Hill Academy online class for 7th PreAlgebra.

 

As I said in the thread, ds (going into 7th) is a quite able math student. He likes to wrestle with a hard problem, and then work lots of problems until it is smooth and he feels confident. R&S 6 has been great with that for him, although at times on the easy side (but certainly not always).

 

I have Dolciani PreAlgebra here, and it is the favorite book that I purchased or have viewed online in terms of layout. He can go into that with the missing topics since he didn't do something like MM. The text doesn't appear to assume he knows order of operation, negative numbers, etc. that is just what we need. Dolciani reminds me of R&S with a tad more color and visual, but not to the distracting point. (Ds is distracted easily.). I like the review section at the end of each lesson, and the general size of the book. I know that shouldn't be a big deal, but for us it just is.

 

With that said, I saw that Wilson Hill Academy is using Dolciani for PreAlgebra. Has anyone had experience wih that particular course? It is supposed to be taught by a "Mystery teacher" (to be announced later.) Ds would love the idea of a mystery teacher, lol. He is distracted, generally, at even being on a computer. Sometimes it is hard for preteens to separate the work/play aspect. I saw that a great deal in ps (I taught). So, this is just as important for me to consider as text, readiness, etc.

 

This year has been our first year hs'ing, and while ds is respectful and a great kid, I think he needs someone other than me to push him. Plus, he does miss the comraderie of a class (but not all. day. long. ). So, I'm thinking about enrolling.

 

I've searched other threads and have seen a general positive experience with WHA, but didn't see any post specifically with the PreAlgebra.

[annabanana1992]

This is the first year that WHA has offered Prealgebra, so you will not find any specific feedback on that course.  Please feel free to PM if if you have other questions about the course.

[fourisenough]

This is the first year that WHA has offered Prealgebra, so you will not find any specific feedback on that course.  Please feel free to PM if if you have other questions about the course.

 

Will you share info about the course on this thread (rather than via PM) because I'd love to hear any information you can offer, too? I'm considering either the Pre-Algebra class at WHA or the Singapore/AoPS Pre-Algebra via WTM Academy. Since both are new, I'm having a hard time deciding between them. My student is wrapping up Math Mammoth 6B now, and we may just roll right into MM 7A this spring/summer, so we don't have any down-time before an online class begins. (We'll take a couple weeks in August off, but will continue working through July, at least). My student is young (10), but she picks up math quickly without any difficulty. I'd sort of LIKE for her to encounter at least a little difficulty so that she learns to struggle through things a bit. I'm wondering which course would provide more challenge?

[crazyforlatin]

Well, I would say that AOPS Pre-A is more challenging than Dolciani's Pre-A. I have both, used the former only, looked through the latter but didn't think it would provide the level of challenge that DD needed. Dolciani is similar to MM which is good because it's straightforward and feels safe compared to AOPS which is just at another level considering the source of some of its problems, not that it is necessary for a STEM kid. You still get an excellent Pre-A foundation with Dolciani. I'm not sure I would be willing to pay that much for an online class for DD to use Dolciani, but I am for WHA's Geometry course, which I plan to have DD enroll in a couple of years. OTOH, WTMA's pre-A is actually kind of reasonable considering what it costs at AOPS. I would certainly have considered this a couple of years ago. I did enroll DD in AOPS Pre-A 2 class, and she did enjoy it immensely.

 

ETA: I was responding to the above PP, not to the OP.

 

OP, DD does better with an outside teacher which is why I enrolled her in a few online classes for 2015.

[dereksurfs]

After my 6th/7th mini math meltdown http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/544308-6th7th-math-pshs-math-mini-meltdown/I am considering WIlson Hill Academy online class for 7th PreAlgebra.

 

As I said in the thread, ds (going into 7th) is a quite able math student. He likes to wrestle with a hard problem, and then work lots of problems until it is smooth and he feels confident. R&S 6 has been great with that for him, although at times on the easy side (but certainly not always).

 

I have Dolciani PreAlgebra here, and it is the favorite book that I purchased or have viewed online in terms of layout. He can go into that with the missing topics since he didn't do something like MM. The text doesn't appear to assume he knows order of operation, negative numbers, etc. that is just what we need. Dolciani reminds me of R&S with a tad more color and visual, but not to the distracting point. (Ds is distracted easily.). I like the review section at the end of each lesson, and the general size of the book. I know that shouldn't be a big deal, but for us it just is.

 

With that said, I saw that Wilson Hill Academy is using Dolciani for PreAlgebra. Has anyone had experience wih that particular course? It is supposed to be taught by a "Mystery teacher" (to be announced later.) Ds would love the idea of a mystery teacher, lol. He is distracted, generally, at even being on a computer. Sometimes it is hard for preteens to separate the work/play aspect. I saw that a great deal in ps (I taught). So, this is just as important for me to consider as text, readiness, etc.

 

This year has been our first year hs'ing, and while ds is respectful and a great kid, I think he needs someone other than me to push him. Plus, he does miss the comraderie of a class (but not all. day. long. ). So, I'm thinking about enrolling.

 

I've searched other threads and have seen a general positive experience with WHA, but didn't see any post specifically with the PreAlgebra.

 

Shay,

 

Based on what you've shared about your ds it sounds like Dolciani may be a very good fit.  Combine that with the excellent instructors at WHA and you have a winning combination.  We are very pleased with the WHA math courses including their interactive nature with both teacher and fellow students.  Our son really thrives in this sort of environment which we have discovered.

 

Regarding the 'Mystery Teacher' I recommend PM'ing annabanana1992.  There is only so much they can share in open forums such as this.  But via private discussions I understand they can provide more details.

[Shay]

There is enough information about the "mystery teacher" online that I feel confident since he has experience. I didn't know this was the first year, so that makes sense why there haven't been comments.

 

About spending the money for a Dolciani class---I would do just about anything to keep my son from wanting to go back to middle school. Those are completely wasted years, from what I saw, and then all of the sudden you have a high school kid within underdeveloped skills trying to perform. I refuse to let that be our path. My older children were the kind who thrived with whatever happened, but this child really has to have structure.

 

dereksurfs--your opinion means a lot, as I know you are very knowledgable about what is out there for math. Planning to sign up! one decision down, 5 more to go! 😜😫

[BobDonaldson-WHA]

Looks like everything has been said already, but I wanted to jump into this thread to make it easier to follow.  Biased as I am, I think that both the text and the teacher will make this a good class ... definitely one that will lay a solid foundation whether or not the student is a budding math-o-holic.