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My initial impression of BA 2A

kesmom

By kesmom,
in K-8 Curriculum Board

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kesmom

kesmom

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I ordered this for my 1st grader, who is very strong in math. He's about a year ahead in Singapore and is at a point where he needs to go deeper before accelerating further. He really does like a challenge and enjoys "puzzling" through things as he puts it.

 

It is really right at his level. Some pages start out pretty easy but build up appropriately. We read the first section of the guide today and he did the first two practice pages and only needed help with the challenge problem. He loved it too - writing in "pirate" numbers! The addition section later in the book is similar in level to Singapore 1B/2A. (I will rotate between BA and SM so we don't go through the book too quickly.)

 

My oldest (also strong in math but slightly less intuitive) did some of level 3 a few years ago and this is definitely a bit "gentler" than 3A, which she found a little overwhelming. Now hopefully they won't be too slow getting the other parts of level 2 published.

 

 

 

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Soror

Soror

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We did our first lesson today and it was very gentle. DD was confused when she first looked at it as she looked at the practice book first but once we read the guide book it was very simple and although easy for her to extra reinforcement with place value is not a bad thing IMO.  I can 't remember the requirements for starting this level but so far I'd say I'd want to make sure my child could count to 100, including by 5s and 10s.

Edited by soror
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Soror

Soror

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I am feeling slightly disappointed. Mine hasn't arrived, but it sounds like it is going to be way below my 2nd grader's level.

 

ETA: Just checked tracking and it arrived in our town this morning, so maybe tomorrow I will be able to look through it and get a feel.

It is very basic but knowing where it ends up at 3A it will have to pick up in difficulty. Considering this is the first book and there aren't supposed to be any before this one I guess it is to be expected to be pretty gentle. 

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shawthorne44

shawthorne44

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So, where are you guys buying Beast 2A?  

I don't see it on Amazon, Rainbow Resource won't let me order because it is out of stock, and beastacademy wants to charge me $5.   

 

I'm not in an all-fire hurry because I'd like DD to finish SM IP 1A and and the regular workbook for 1b first.  We got behind.  Meant to do more math over the summer than we did.  

P.S.  Thank you for starting this thread.  I'd been wondering.  

8FillTheHeart, I wouldn't be too disappointed.   With 3a, they said to start with 3a even for a kid in 4th or 5th, because it went deep quickly and they'd still get something out of it.  I imagine that 2a is the same.  

Edited by shawthorne44
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SilverMoon

SilverMoon

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It sounds like a great Beast introduction for my just turned 7yo. Horizons is super easy for him. He does two grade 1 lessons in less than 20 minutes every day. Yesterday he got it back out to sit beside DD9 with her Horizons book and did three more lessons just for fun. I've been throwing Singapore at him once a week just to shake things up and keep him interested. :p

Edited by SilverMoon
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Soror

Soror

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Well, as much as I love AoPS, I am not an advocate of the books w/o qualification. Doing an upper level book when she already knew the material made my older dd not want to continue with AoPS. Challenge they like. Repetition of mastered concepts, not so much.

 

The cartoony aspect of it might be BA's saving grace.

I agree with you but I'm willing to try it out for awhile and see how it goes. I know in the past using BA books what can look easy from the description ends up much harder than I thought and it can ramp up quickly.

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YodaGirl

YodaGirl

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So, where are you guys buying Beast 2A?

 

I don't see it on Amazon, Rainbow Resource won't let me order because it is out of stock, and beastacademy wants to charge me $5.

 

I'm not in an all-fire hurry because I'd like DD to finish SM IP 1A and and the regular workbook for 1b first. We got behind. Meant to do more math over the summer than we did.

 

P.S. Thank you for starting this thread. I'd been wondering.

 

8FillTheHeart, I wouldn't be too disappointed. With 3a, they said to start with 3a even for a kid in 4th or 5th, because it went deep quickly and they'd still get something out of it. I imagine that 2a is the same.

I bought ours through AoPS' website. I ordered it Saturday, I think, and it came today.

 

I paid $10 for upgraded shipping instead of the $5 shipping.

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8filltheheart

8filltheheart

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Our books ended up coming yesterday afternoon.  After looking through them, I am disappointed, but that is bc of my own expectations, not the curriculum.  My dd has almost finished her 2nd grade math book and there is absolutely nothing in 2A that isn't way below her level.  It doesn't introduce anything new or teach anything any differently than the way we have been doing things.

 

On the flip side, she LOVES the way the book looks.  She wants to do it simply bc she likes the characters and the colors.  (She loves purple....lots of purple in the book.)  It is also no loss, bc I'll just pass the books on to my grandkids when she finishes it (which won't take long). They are younger, so they can use them when actually doing 2nd grade level work vs using them behind.  (That is where my expectations were off.  I expected them to actually work from behind, and this book at least isn't going to work that way for us.)  

 

It has made me decide that I should just order level 3 and use them alongside her 3rd texts.  I think that will work more appropriately for her.

 

FWIW, I have some really strong math kids and based on 2A (the only elementary book I have seen), I would not use it as stand alone.  The concepts are pretty narrow in focus in 2A.   My ds used the high school texts as completely self-standing.  I wouldn't have even used 2A independently for him (and he completely skipped 2nd grade math).  But, I also don't like mastery programs when they are little, so that bias might be skewing my perception.  I like covering lots of concepts all of the time.

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nixpix5

nixpix5

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It sounds like a great Beast introduction for my just turned 7yo. Horizons is super easy for him. He does two grade 1 lessons in less than 20 minutes every day. Yesterday he got it back out to sit beside DD9 with her Horizons book and did three more lessons just for fun. I've been throwing Singapore at him once a week just to shake things up and keep him interested. :p

This was my daughter last year at the same age. She flew through Horizon book 1 and 2 in a matter of a few months. I threw Singspore into the mix (book b) and that made her think a bit more but she blew through that and 2A before the year was out. She ended up grabbing my other sons MUS Beta off the shelf and doing 18 weeks in June and July. I had to up her singapore and moved her to BJU math as well and now finally, she feels challenged. Even so she has been asking to try BA so I ordered one set to see how it goes.

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MistyMountain

MistyMountain

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Our books ended up coming yesterday afternoon. After looking through them, I am disappointed, but that is bc of my own expectations, not the curriculum. My dd has almost finished her 2nd grade math book and there is absolutely nothing in 2A that isn't way below her level. It doesn't introduce anything new or teach anything any differently than the way we have been doing things.

 

On the flip side, she LOVES the way the book looks. She wants to do it simply bc she likes the characters and the colors. (She loves purple....lots of purple in the book.) It is also no loss, bc I'll just pass the books on to my grandkids when she finishes it (which won't take long). They are younger, so they can use them when actually doing 2nd grade level work vs using them behind. (That is where my expectations were off. I expected them to actually work from behind, and this book at least isn't going to work that way for us.)

 

It has made me decide that I should just order level 3 and use them alongside her 3rd texts. I think that will work more appropriately for her.

 

FWIW, I have some really strong math kids and based on 2A (the only elementary book I have seen), I would not use it as stand alone. The concepts are pretty narrow in focus in 2A. My ds used the high school texts as completely self-standing. I wouldn't have even used 2A independently for him (and he completely skipped 2nd grade math). But, I also don't like mastery programs when they are little, so that bias might be skewing my perception. I like covering lots of concepts all of the time.

Thanks for the description. I am trying to decide whether or not this would be a good level for my youngest. I am moving into year 3 math in MEP with her but she is not ready for Signapore 3rd grade yet but in some curriculums she would be 3rd grade level. She is a really good at fraction type stuff, she can multiply and divide, add and subtract 2 digit numbers in her head. She is good at breaking things down in to other things to solve them and problems written algebraically but there are things she has not been introduced to yet. We just played around with Gattegno and things they do in Education Unboxed videos last year not a formal curriculum. Edited by MistyMountain
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YodaGirl

YodaGirl

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We received 2A yesterday and have gone through the first few pages.

 

He completed Math in Focus 1A/1B in K last year. While he did okay, he just wasn't as solid on it as I would've liked in order for him to move on to 2A/2B.

 

BA 2A looks like it will be perfect for him. It'll be challenging, and we can take it slowly since we're just using it as a supplement.

 

(Just for reference my 5th grader is doing MiF 5A/5B this year, and we are supplementing with BA 4A-D. It really depends on the kid.)

Edited by YodaGirl
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nature girl

nature girl

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Does 2A have challenge problems? That's what I was hoping for, at least some depth compared to Go Math DD7 just started at ps, which seems very surface-y, doesn't make her think at all. She finished MIF 2A and some of 2B the summer before she started ps in 1st, and is reasonably mathy, loves math puzzles, so I was really hoping there might be problems that would make her use her brain more.

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Shoes+Ships+SealingWax

Shoes+Ships+SealingWax

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Does 2A have challenge problems? That's what I was hoping for, at least some depth compared to Go Math DD7 just started at ps, which seems very surface-y, doesn't make her think at all. She finished MIF 2A and some of 2B the summer before she started ps in 1st, and is reasonably mathy, loves math puzzles, so I was really hoping there might be problems that would make her use her brain more.

Yes, it has challenge problems like all BA Guides. You can see sample pages here: https://beastacademy.com/books/2A

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My4arrows

My4arrows

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I am anxiously awaiting my copy but it's backordered at Rainbow Resource!

I asked on Friday when they would be sending them (I pre-orders) and they said they we're expecting to receive them this week. So I suspect th back order is just because they don't have them yet, but will send them once they are there. My little guy can't wait to get his hands on his.

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MeaganS

MeaganS

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Our RR order of BA 2A arrived today. It looks like it is perfect for dd5 who is almost done with Miquon Red (the second half of the first grade level). Dd7, who is almost done with Miquon and is on BA 3B is a bit beyond it, but I think she'll enjoy it anyways. And I think she'll even occasionally be challenged by it.

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Fertigjc

Fertigjc

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So we got 2a last week. My son has been doing Singapore 2a but is really have trouble with the digit difference grids on pg 28-29. Anyone elses kiddo having trouble but doing well in Singapore and knows the math on the preassessment for 2a. With a younger student would you just do some of the problems to supplement and skip the challenge problems or just hold of completely. I just thought he would like the way it is taught and be a break now and then from Singapore.

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nature girl

nature girl

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We've had 2A for about a week...My DD7 read the entire guide in two afternoons, and did several problems in the practice book, a couple of regular problems in each section, and then the star/challenge problems. She's reasonably mathy, and has known these concepts for a couple of years, but the challenge problems do use her brain...Some were actually challenging, but in a good way! She's been enjoying them, and I'm glad I got the books.

 

 

So we got 2a last week. My son has been doing Singapore 2a but is really have trouble with the digit difference grids on pg 28-29. Anyone elses kiddo having trouble but doing well in Singapore and knows the math on the preassessment for 2a. With a younger student would you just do some of the problems to supplement and skip the challenge problems or just hold of completely. I just thought he would like the way it is taught and be a break now and then from Singapore.

 

 

 

I don't think the digit difference problems really test mastery of anything, they're just a fun puzzle. I wouldn't hesitate to move on without finishing them.

Edited by nature girl
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