Which book after Saxon Algebra 1?

[stupidusername]

DS12 will finish up Saxon Algebra 1, 3rd ed., in a few months. He does well with Saxon and we plan on eventually proceeding to Saxon Algebra 2 and Saxon Advanced Mathematics. He has been doing fine, scoring 85 or so on most of his tests. I think his conceptual understanding is excellent, but he is prone to making sloppy mistakes.

 

After he finishes the Saxon Algebra 1 book, here are some options:

 

1. proceed directly to Saxon Algebra 2, assuming he scores 85 or higher on his last three tests;
2. spend a couple of months reviewing Algebra 1 using AoPS, Lial, Foerster, or Jacobs. 

I think he'd be fine proceeding to Saxon Algebra 2. However, he is quite young and I worry about him falling into the "Calculus Trap." At his current pace, he'll finish Calculus at age 15. I like the idea of building in some "detours" in between Saxon texts. He will probably tackle Jacobs Geometry after Saxon Algebra 2, for example. 

 

I am a little concerned about his sloppiness and would prefer to see him scoring a bit higher on his tests.

 

So I am leaning toward option #2. However, I am not sure which book to use for Algebra review. We tried AoPS a few years ago and it didn't go well. My son is not passionate about math and is not a math genius.

 

I own Jacobs' Algebra book; it looks relatively easy compared to Saxon Algebra 1. I don't know if this would be the right book for us.

 

I have not seen Lial or Foerster. I know they are popular here.

 

 

[SparklyUnicorn]

I'd move onto A2.  There is plenty of review in it.

 

 

[freesia]

You could also go on to Geometry and review Algebra over the course of the year, shoring up any area that you think may be weak.

[Hunter]

I had a 10 year old in Saxon Algebra 1 and know what you mean. Way back still in the 90's we played around with the NYC Amsco Integrated math series, and used some college remedial texts that had tons of word problems.

 

I looked up math in an encyclopedia and found out the names of all the strands of math. It was the 90's. I didn't know what I was doing. I discovered topology and found some lessons on that.

 

Later on he did lots of math in ancient Greek and Latin, since he knew those languages a bit.

 

We read biographies, learned math history, and read science fiction. We played with calculators. We did lots of odd math.

 

No advice. Just some BTDT stories with a kid moving upward faster than his handwriting, emotional level, and my ability to even afford calculus texts never mind learn alongside him.

 

Good luck!

[happypamama]

My eighth grader will finish Saxon Algebra 1 in the spring. She will move on to geometry for ninth grade, and I am planning to start her with Art of Problem Solving Geometry, and we will see how that goes.

 

AOPS has the most interesting sounding books! I don't think it'll be right for DD, but I'm hoping my oldest son gets a chance to try their book about number theory, partly because I want to work through it too. They seem to have lots of things for an advanced math student.

[Hunter]

I've never done a full course of geometry between Saxon Algebra 1 and 2. I cannot imagine having a reason to do that. There is so much geometry already integrated into the Saxon books.

 

My son mostly went wider when we deviated from Saxon. Other than some extra word problems, we were mostly adding other math strands and enrichment.

 

Most of his extra geometry was Euclid in the original Koine Greek. And some art projects.

[FloridaLisa]

We did a year of geometry using Life of Fred. LofF was a breath of fresh air. After many years of Saxon -- which we for the most part enjoy and do well with -- it was great to switch to a different way to approach math. My kids and I liked the zany stories and the way geometry was woven into the story. After a year of zaniness, thought, we were ready to go back to Alg. 2. Worked well for us!

 

[FriedClams]

We did 1 to 2 to AM with no problem. There is, as some have said, enough review built in.

[Beth S]

We school year round & tend to be ahead of the norm in Math (each kid has had time to do a year of Calculus).  Each of our kids have benefited from the full year of Geometry.  It really solidifies the step-by-step logic process, much more than the quick coverage of it in Saxon Alg 1 & 2.    It really is an important way to think, which will last them the rest of their lives--it's very practical, in my opinion.

 

Saxon now has a stand-alone Geometry textbook, which is great if your child loves the Saxon approach.

Three of our kids love solving puzzles, which made Jacob's Geometry a better fit.

 

If a STEM career is in their future, consider the full year of Geometry.

 

Lots of our homeschooling friends just go from Algebra 1 to 2 just fine, but if you all have extra time than I'd invest it in Geometry!  :)

Edited December 9, 2015 by Beth S

[happypamama]

Reasons we are going with a full course in geometry: I think my daughter will enjoy it, I want it on her transcript in case anyone expects to see it, and I'm tired of looking at Saxon and want her to try a different approach, since she's used Saxon for six years.