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7th grade math for very able, but "behind" student


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My oldest DS (12, 6th grade), through no fault of his own, is not working where he could be in math. He had done MEP since his first grade year until this past December when he stopped at the end of Year 5a. He was doing fine with it, but it just became too hard for me to teach (the lesson plans are a bit confusing for me sometimes and I've got several grade levels to teach) and I also felt he was missing certain topics (US specific stuff, especially) and he wasn't as strong with his math facts as I would have liked. So I switched him in Jan. to CLE grade 5 and he's been breezing through that (just finished 505 and waiting for the next books to come in the mail). It's got WAY too much review for him, but I find that's it easier for me to just cross out what I know he's solid on than it is to find an alternate source of review elsewhere. 

 

But we are missing the more out of the box type of problems from MEP and, though CLE has been great for review and filling in gaps, it's not a challenge to him at all. I've been looking at AOPS pre algebra and thinking that might be a good fit for him for next year (possibly even starting now). I do wonder, though, if he's had enough exposure to the topics that will be covered. Or does AOPS pre algebra effectively re-teach all arithmetic topics, just at a deeper level? I also think he would still benefit from the review from CLE, so I'm wondering if I should have him finish grade 5 this spring (crossing out the review he doesn't need) while also starting AOPS. Then maybe have him also do parts of CLE grade 6 as a straightforward intro to the remaining topics he hasn't yet covered, and as a continuous review to make sure he's solid on arithmetic, along with AOPS, aiming to finish both by the end of his 7th grade year. And then he could start Algebra I in 8th.

 

I suppose we could just rush through to the end of CLE 6 to make sure we cover all those topics before we start AOPS, but I do worry that he would lose the benefit of the continuous review that I think helps him, even if we do cross some out. Any thoughts would be appreciated. :) 

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Did you do the placement test for CLE? If he's breezing through 5th, he might should have started higher.

 

CLE's 700 series is considered pre-algebra, so finishing 600 should get you through all the major topics required for any pre-algebra program. You might consider continuing CLE through 600 and supplementing with a word problem program, such as Challenging Word Problems. 

 

I just searched for an online site, and I like the looks of these word problems. I think I might start using this with my son. 

 

http://www.mathbuddyonline.com/qotds/displayqotd/

 

 

Edited by mom31257
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Yes, we did the placement test and he only didn't pass because he had just not been exposed to certain topics yet because of the different order of topics that MEP has compared to CLE. But he's done great with every new topic presented so far in CLE with very little explanation needed from me. 

 

We've worked through some problems on Alcumus and ds really enjoyed those and wants to do more. That's why I think AOPS would probably be a great fit for him.

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Yes, we did the placement test and he only didn't pass because he had just not been exposed to certain topics yet because of the different order of topics that MEP has compared to CLE. But he's done great with every new topic presented so far in CLE with very little explanation needed from me. 

 

We've worked through some problems on Alcumus and ds really enjoyed those and wants to do more. That's why I think AOPS would probably be a great fit for him.

 

I'll have to check that out, too!

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I'd look at MEP years 7+ if MEP was working well for you. Years 7+ can be done very independently, and does review a fair bit so you don't need to worry about missing MEP 6. I'm using it next yeat....

 

My understanding.... Print the Practice Book. Choose a track for him... Standard, Academic or Express. I recommend trying Express unless he is a struggling student. Look at the Outline Lesson Plan for the track you choose.... those are the questions they need to do in the practice book. The other questions are for other tracks. Have a quick look at any overhead slides or activities listed in the lesson plan.

 

So generally the student reads the introduction on the practice sheet, works through the example given, then does the questions you circle from the lesson plan.... say questions 1, 4, 5 and 8. Occasionally there are a couple of mental questions you need to give, or an activity... but not often. Your time is maybe 2 or 3 minutes.

 

So,

 

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I have looked a bit at MEP 7, but I think I would like to take a more traditional path through high school math (we are not sure yet whether we'll be homeschooling high school or not) and I think it would be easier to make that switch for pre algebra as opposed to later. If AOPS pre algebra works well, I would like to try their algebra next, and so on, for as long as it keeps working (most likely using tutors when he gets further along, because math is not my strength).

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I'd look at MEP years 7+ if MEP was working well for you. Years 7+ can be done very independently, and does review a fair bit so you don't need to worry about missing MEP 6. I'm using it next yeat....

 

My understanding.... Print the Practice Book. Choose a track for him... Standard, Academic or Express. I recommend trying Express unless he is a struggling student. Look at the Outline Lesson Plan for the track you choose.... those are the questions they need to do in the practice book. The other questions are for other tracks. Have a quick look at any overhead slides or activities listed in the lesson plan.

 

So generally the student reads the introduction on the practice sheet, works through the example given, then does the questions you circle from the lesson plan.... say questions 1, 4, 5 and 8. Occasionally there are a couple of mental questions you need to give, or an activity... but not often. Your time is maybe 2 or 3 minutes.

 

So,

 

Sent from my SM-T530NU using Tapatalk

Tangential high-jack

Scoutingmom, is it possible to easily move into the MEP middle years (7+), and work as independently as you have described, without an MEP background? I'm looking for what to do for DS for 6th grade next year - he's good at math, has been successful in all (released so far) levels of BA, and is blowing through Singapore PM 5. I don't think he would like AOPS preA because of the wordiness - he's a Ready. Fire! Aim. kind of guy and has no patience for reading through solutions.

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Tangential high-jack

Scoutingmom, is it possible to easily move into the MEP middle years (7+), and work as independently as you have described, without an MEP background? I'm looking for what to do for DS for 6th grade next year - he's good at math, has been successful in all (released so far) levels of BA, and is blowing through Singapore PM 5. I don't think he would like AOPS preA because of the wordiness - he's a Ready. Fire! Aim. kind of guy and has no patience for reading through solutions.

From everything I have looked at and from friends I have talked to....

 

YES. MEP year 7 is a starting point, so to speak. It is referred to on the Yahoo group for MEP homeschoolers as an entry point for people that used other programs. I have looked through the practice book and everything. It is kind-of like a pre-algebra program in that it reviews the basics. The website makes it kook more confusing than it is.

 

You pick a track or stream for the student. Standard would be for a struggling student. Academic for average. Express for a quicker student.

 

Print the practice book for the first student, and then the Outline Lesson Plan for the track you are doing. The lesson plan might mention overhead slides or activities.... those are also on the website. Decide which you might want to do (I think many homeschoolers might just ignore them). Mark which questions the lesson plan says is for the track in the practice book.

 

Student reads the lesson in the practice book, then does first question. Check that it is right (you or them) for understanding, then complete lesson. Or if there is an activity, do that before the question. Some of the interesting stuff might be in activities... still looking at those.

 

After every unit there is a test. After every 5 units there is another.... that one will suggest other tracks if needed based on score.

 

I've read through most of it, and it looks great. Years 10-12 are a bit different... still looking at them. 10 and 11 (GCSE Prep for the UK testing) looks similar once you really get into it. A levels (year 12+), look a little different, and the student specializes.

 

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My advice would be to start AoPS Prealgebra as soon as he has mastered all operations with fractions and negative numbers and has done some decimals and percents.

Agreed.  

 

If you really like the review of CLE but he likes AoPS type math and wants that right now, then you could probably start AoPS Pre-Algebra right now but move slowly while he finishes CLE 500 series.  At that point you would have a better idea if doing at least parts of CLE 600 along with AoPS Pre-Algebra would be needed.  If you did go with the 600's, I would skip 601 since it is all review of previous levels.

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