MiF

[IfIOnly]

I'm going to be switching my 2nd and 4th grader over and need some advice. Looking at the TOC, I think it'll be fine to just pick up midyear at grade level for them. We can slow down if necessary and go over concepts that are expected to have been learned before progressing though. Advice there?

 

I'm also thinking about starting my 6th grader in MiF Course 1 while he continues with TT. What do you think? I'm not sure which will end up being the supplement, but I'm thinking he can just do every other problem in TT or whatever if it's overkill.

 

About my 7th grader, I'm thinking it's to late to jump into MiF? Should I start him in Course 1 too or just forget it? He's not doing prealgerba this year but is doing TT7. Thoughts?

 

Edited November 26, 2015 by LavenderGirl

[IfIOnly]

A couple more questions, if you don't mind? :)

 

What system do you have for recording the answers since it's a textbook based curriculum?

 

Does your child also use the additional workbook/extra practice?

 

I'm planning on having my children continue TT, as well. Should TT be summer work? If you do two math curricula during the school year, how do you implement that practically speaking?

 

TIA!

[SparklyUnicorn]

You should get the workbooks.  There aren't that many problems in the textbook.  I worked those problems with my son on separate paper, and then he did the workbook pages on his own. 

 

I don't know that I'd jump in with a 7th grader.  I've never seen the levels beyond 5th though.

 

 

[IfIOnly]

You should get the workbooks.  There aren't that many problems in the textbook.  I worked those problems with my son on separate paper, and then he did the workbook pages on his own. 

 

I don't know that I'd jump in with a 7th grader.  I've never seen the levels beyond 5th though.

 

Thank you! I'm finding the students texts used and for a great price at Amazon. The workbooks aren't too expensive at RR. I'm9 thinking I can do without the TMs in the lower grades but will look online at the free sample pages or order one in the future, if necessary. 

 

 

About the middle school levels, there isn't a ton of information out there about them. It sounds like maybe the first two books cover prealgebra pretty well and the Course 3 is more algebra lite? I'm thinking if my DS did TT plut Mif Course 1 and 2, that he'd be set for algebra and in 9th and can maybe even finish the series his 9th year. 

Edited November 26, 2015 by LavenderGirl

[SparklyUnicorn]

Thank you! I'm finding the students texts used and for a great price at Amazon. The workbooks aren't too expensive at RR. I'm9 thinking I can do without the TMs in the lower grades but will look online at the free sample pages or order one in the future, if necessary. 

 

 

About the middle school levels, there isn't a ton of information out there about them. It sounds like maybe the first two books cover prealgebra pretty well and the Course 3 is more algebra lite? I'm thinking if my DS did TT plut Mif Course 1 and 2, that he'd be set for algebra and in 9th and can maybe even finish the series his 9th year. 

 

I found the workbooks on Amazon too sometimes.  And sometimes they are cheaper than RR.

 

I never used the TMs.  Too expensive.  I think the explanations in the books are so step by step that you may never need the TM. 

 

I haven't used the middle school levels.  Not sure if I will. 

[ondreeuh]

The middle school levels don't have regular workbooks, just "extra practice" which should be fine.

 

I tried moving my older son to MiF 5 after he did CLE 5, and he couldn't do it. The program uses bar models to solve word problems of increasing complexity from the youngest grades. CLE is not remotely close to preparing a student for the problems in MiF 5, and I would assume TT is the same way. If you want to try it, I would do course 1 with both kids and go slow. If you want to compress the 3 middle school levels, I really don't know which level to leave out.

 

I started my younger son in MiF at level 1, and since he has "grown up" with the program it is a great fit. He is accelerated in the program so we will have time for all 3 middle school books.

[Chelli]

I think you need to be really careful about putting your 4th grader in at grade level in MIF if they've been using TT only.

 

When my dd finished MIF Grade 1, I contemplated putting her in TT and she almost tested out of TT3 after finishing only MIF 1. 

 

I would at least go back a grade level from TT to move them to MIF. Your 2nd grader should be fine going in at grade level.

 

I have MIF Level 1 with all the workbooks, teacher's guides, etc. I think your 6th grader would be fine as long as you take it slow. If you need to know specifics of what is taught at that level or what you might need, just ask and I'll look through my stuff.

[IfIOnly]

The middle school levels don't have regular workbooks, just "extra practice" which should be fine.

 

I tried moving my older son to MiF 5 after he did CLE 5, and he couldn't do it. The program uses bar models to solve word problems of increasing complexity from the youngest grades. CLE is not remotely close to preparing a student for the problems in MiF 5, and I would assume TT is the same way. If you want to try it, I would do course 1 with both kids and go slow. If you want to compress the 3 middle school levels, I really don't know which level to leave out.

 

I started my younger son in MiF at level 1, and since he has "grown up" with the program it is a great fit. He is accelerated in the program so we will have time for all 3 middle school books.

 

 

I think you need to be really careful about putting your 4th grader in at grade level in MIF if they've been using TT only.

 

When my dd finished MIF Grade 1, I contemplated putting her in TT and she almost tested out of TT3 after finishing only MIF 1. 

 

I would at least go back a grade level from TT to move them to MIF. Your 2nd grader should be fine going in at grade level.

 

I have MIF Level 1 with all the workbooks, teacher's guides, etc. I think your 6th grader would be fine as long as you take it slow. If you need to know specifics of what is taught at that level or what you might need, just ask and I'll look through my stuff.

 

Thank you! I looked at the TOC and problem samples and the work looks doable for my 4th grader. Hmmm.  Is there maybe a big jump between level 4 and 5?

[IfIOnly]

Id there an online rather than textbook version for MiF or other online resources? I keep running into comments about there being online resources but can't actually find any.

Edited November 26, 2015 by LavenderGirl

[cintinative]

Lavender Girl there is an online sampling site where you can look at any of the text books or teacher manuals. I have used it quite a bit. 

 

You do have to register but they don't spam you.  http://samples.hmhco.com/math_in_focus/index.php

 

 

 

[IfIOnly]

Lavender Girl there is an online sampling site where you can look at any of the text books or teacher manuals. I have used it quite a bit. 

 

You do have to register but they don't spam you.  http://samples.hmhco.com/math_in_focus/index.php

 

Thank you! I had found this. DH and I have spent probably hours now looking at it together. We're really excited about the switch. He works from home now and wants to help with math when we're stuck or someone needs extra tutoring on a lesson,etc.  I don't think I would be able to carry this switch, esp. mid year, without his enthusiasm and willingness to help. 

Edited November 26, 2015 by LavenderGirl

[IfIOnly]

The middle school levels don't have regular workbooks, just "extra practice" which should be fine.

 

I tried moving my older son to MiF 5 after he did CLE 5, and he couldn't do it. The program uses bar models to solve word problems of increasing complexity from the youngest grades. CLE is not remotely close to preparing a student for the problems in MiF 5, and I would assume TT is the same way. If you want to try it, I would do course 1 with both kids and go slow. If you want to compress the 3 middle school levels, I really don't know which level to leave out.

 

I started my younger son in MiF at level 1, and since he has "grown up" with the program it is a great fit. He is accelerated in the program so we will have time for all 3 middle school books.

 

What grade do you expect your son to start algebra (assuming he's going into it after MiF)?

[ondreeuh]

What grade do you expect your son to start algebra (assuming he's going into it after MiF)?

 

I don't know - he is on track to finish the 3rd grade books by the end of the first semester of 2nd grade. We could move on to grade 4, but I think we will go through Beast Academy grade 3 to push the problem solving. I don't think it will take longer than a semester since we have been supplementing with additional problem solving supplements and he thrives with those. If he just stays a year ahead, then he will do algebra in 8th - but if he keeps completing more than a year's worth of math in a year, it could be sooner. I try not to look too far ahead.

 

[IfIOnly]

Okay, so I'm starting to think it would be dumb of me to go with MiF at grade level for most of my kids. If my 4, 6, and 7 grader all did it a year behind, what's likelihood of catching up to their grade level, or how hard is MiF to advance? It seems like there are quite a bit of lessons and they're long. It just doesn't seem like it would be an easy curriculum to cover more than one grade in a year. Thoughts?

[sbgrace]

The word problems might be an issue with the kids starting later. You could run through FAN math Process Skills by Singapore workbooks if the word problems are just too much. If they don't have any exposure to Singapore word problems previously, I would expect to need some work with their methods.

 

I do think they might not be ready for MIF at grade level from TT. But you could certainly let them test out of any mastered material. If they know how to do x or y (and why), let them go to the next section. I wouldn't worry about supplementing with TT, unless there is some reason that's important to you. MIF will be a stronger program. If something is pretty easy, work through some of the text problems together and then assign the workbook. You'll know when to slow down.

 

We did move through MIF faster than one book a year, but I do school year round. I jumped ship from MIF in 5B, so I don't have middle school book experience.

 

 

 

Edited November 27, 2015 by sbgrace

[IfIOnly]

Re TT:  My kids are doing well with it, so I hesitate to drop it. I also spent about $250 on it for just this year. Ugh. I guess my main concern though is that some kids might need additional review. I have one especially that seems to do well with a spiral approach.  I'd love to make just one program work though, and even though MiF is more mastery based, there do seem to be a LOT of lessons and problems in MiF, so maybe this won't be a problem. And there is some review right? It's not like MUS with only doing one operation a year and no or very little review of previous years.  WE won't be able to advance though if I try to add in TT though, at least not without burning my kids out, which I absolutely do not want to do. Thoughts? Sorry, I just want to make sure I set us up for success!

Edited November 27, 2015 by LavenderGirl

[Farrar]

I guess I don't fully get why you're switching to MiF. Right now you have (an expensive) program that's working. It's working and it's radically different in almost every way from MiF. If you feel like TT is working and you already have it then why not just do a little supplementing for whatever aspects you think are missing instead of totally changing gears? I really second those Fan Math Process Skills books for word problems mentioned above, for example and even if you don't switch to MiF, you could still buy and use those (and they'd be a lot less than a total curriculum change). Or there are other things as well that you could add depending on what you think is lacking.

 

MiF does have some review... but it's pretty mastery based. Each section just focuses on that one topic and then, IIRC there's a little review sections tossed in some places. But it's not like there's a ton of super regular review.

 

There are a good number of problems, but MiF isn't like, say, Saxon, where there's a ton of drill or Math Mammoth where there's just pages and pages of dense practice to ensure that kids get it. In many ways it's more of a less is more kind of program. There might be just a dozen word problems for a whole section in the workbook. Good, meaty problems, but still just a dozen.

 

The topics will likely be misleading as a way to judge readiness - the word problems are hard if you're not used to Asian style word problems and you'll need to do a good bit of scaffolding.

 

Ds did about a year of MiF. There were some good things about it but it turned out to not work for him so well. He was a bit of a tricky math customer for awhile. He's now doing MEP and some Khan on the side and that has been suiting him for awhile. (Which is not to say you should consider that... just providing a sense of where we are and our experience.)

 

 

[sbgrace]

Re TT:  My kids are doing well with it, so I hesitate to drop it. I also spent about $250 on it for just this year. Ugh. I guess my main concern though is that some kids might need additional review. I have one especially that seems to do well with a spiral approach.  I'd love to make just one program work though, and even though MiF is more mastery based, there do seem to be a LOT of lessons and problems in MiF, so maybe this won't be a problem. And there is some review right? It's not like MUS with only doing one operation a year and no or very little review of previous years.  WE won't be able to advance though if I try to add in TT though, at least not without burning my kids out, which I absolutely do not want to do. Thoughts? Sorry, I just want to make sure I set us up for success!

 

While they do have periodic comprehensive type reviews, it's not spiral at all. And part of why MIF worked for one of mine was because it had just enough problems. Not a lot in other words. It did work for us, but I switched in 5th partly because I thought one of mine would do best with a spiral, and I wanted something more independent for him as well. I really like spiral learning for math.

 

I agree with Farrar, in that you might try to supplement what's already working (TT).

What were you hoping go get from MIF? Maybe someone could suggest a more doable way to get that while still using TT as your base?

[OneStepAtATime]

Agree with pretty much everything posted up thread.

 

What if you bought one MiF textbook and workbook at maybe 3A and just tried it with all three?  Have them do that on the side while they continue with TT.  You should be able to get them pretty cheaply used but like new on Amazon.  Do it on the side as an experiment.  Yes it will probably be behind for your older kids but it would introduce them to the method.  See if it fits them.  TT and MiF, as mentioned above, are waaaaayyyyyy different.  Like night and day.  And you (or your DH) are going to need to be heavily involved in helping them understand this program, especially compared to TT.  It is a great program, but a full blown switch mid-year from TT to MiF for upper elementary/middle school kids who have never done anything like it before might end up being a total nightmare without a lot of scaffolding and gentle easing into it.  If you end up not liking it then you haven't invested much time or money.  If it seems a great fit, then you can start ordering additional materials.

 

Oh, and if you have a child that needs spiral, not mastery, this really may be a terrible fit.   

[elmerRex]

I'm going to be switching my 2nd and 4th grader over and need some advice. Looking at the TOC, I think it'll be fine to just pick up midyear at grade level for them. We can slow down if necessary and go over concepts that are expected to have been learned before progressing though. Advice there?

 

I'm also thinking about starting my 6th grader in MiF Course 1 while he continues with TT. What do you think? I'm not sure which will end up being the supplement, but I'm thinking he can just do every other problem in TT or whatever if it's overkill.

 

About my 7th grader, I'm thinking it's to late to jump into MiF? Should I start him in Course 1 too or just forget it? He's not doing prealgerba this year but is doing TT7. Thoughts?

For your 6th and 7th grader, I suggest that you look over the table of contents and rank each topic based on how familiar it is too your 6th and 7th grader now. Then use these rankings to make your own syllabus/schedule for them and then use the MiF textbook and teach your 6th and 7th grader based on what they need if they come to MiF from TT. You can consider making the 6th and 7th grader be together as a "class"

 

For the topics that your sons is familiar with, start those chapters with the chapter review/test, then focus on individual lessons based on the test result. So far, this has allowed us to go very quickly through low-rank topics that my son is familiar with.

 

If it is a section that your sons needs, then go through the lesson together at the marker boards, walk with them for ALL of the guided-practice problems in the student text book, and use the practice problems from the student text.

 

I like Math in Focus, it may not be best fit for your son after the other curriculum, but it is a good math text. The biggest problem so far is that it does not include the spiraled review that we like for our son, we have all of the workbooks: Extra Practice, Reteach, Enrichment, Activity Book and Assessments.

 

We use the activity and enrichment book a lot because my son likes the activities and the enrichment is a good level for him. I create spiral review from the Extra Practice, Reteach and Enrichment problem sets. It is a lot of work since I am making a more Saxon-like program out of the problem sets, but it is a good text, very solid math program.

 

 

Edited November 28, 2015 by elmerRex