Do you really need to use IP and CWP to get the full benefit of Singapore.

[Blessedfamily]

I have heard people say this, especially for kids who are flying through it.

 

We are in Singapore PM Standards Edition level 2(textbook and workbook). We just finished 2a and I got the CWP to slow down DD5 before going into 2B.

 

CWP is a great extension. I like the illustrations as they are similar to how I introduce concepts and word problems.

 

She is doing one CWP chapter a day. I know it sounds like a lot, but it only takes 1/2 hour, she enjoys the heck out of it, and we aren't doing any other math right now. (I bought a neat balance scale and numerous measuring tools and we've been playing with those.)

 

To be honest, some of the regular problems in the book are too predictable. The Challenging problems are better.

 

This is how I handle them:

 

She reads the problem.

 

I have her explain the problem in words so I know she's comprehending. For instance, she says " I need to find the total weight of Sue and John, but they didn't give me Sue's weight, so I'll have to figure that first then add it to John's." Etc..

 

Would IP provide something different, or would it be more of the same?

Is there anything that would be on the same level but cover different topics?

 

BTW- Thank you all for the support and understanding of homeschooling a gifted kid.

Edited December 9, 2008 by Blessedfamily

[Tree House Academy]

We absolutely do! We use all of the extras including IP, CWP, EP, and even Miquon workbooks up to a certain point. I schedule them based on what I think he needs to work on. For instance, sometimes we are doing addition practice in EP while learning division in the regular book and doing word problems or graphs in CWP. This morning, for instance, he is doing two graphs in CWP, Mental Math (3 and 4), and his workbook/textbook exercises. He is in Singapore 3B.

 

IP covers more of the same...but it ups the difficulty by a bit. My son is a good math student (though is only in 3B thanks to what he did NOT learn in ps) and IP is a challenge for him at times. Miquon can REALLY be a challenge depending on what you run upon. I would check out Miquon to use with her. They are really "think outside the box" type worksheets and they really go well with Singapore.

Edited December 9, 2008 by Tree House Academy

[Blessedfamily]

O.K. I actually ordered the first Miquon book and teacher guide and used a little of them with cuisenarie rods when she was first learning to manipulate numbers.

 

We drifted from them because the Singapore fit her so well. I'll pull the Miquon back out. I think I have red and orange.

[Desert Rat]

We use IP and CWP here as well. I wish I would have used them MORE when my ds8 was in the lower maths. We're having issues now that he's in Singapore 6, mostly with retention and recall.

[Jen500]

We use both the IP and CWP books, but just do the more challenging parts of each.

[nmoira]

We use IP instead of the workbook. No new material is introduced, but mastery is assumed (in all the but the revision section), and problems are often presented in a novel manner relative to the workbook. On the days we use CWP (two or three days a week -- I also supplement with Primary Challenge Math and some other books) I give DD a choice to do three regular CWP problems, or one Challenging Problem. She usually takes second option. After the Challenging section is finished, she moves on to the next topic.

[fractalgal]

I have heard people say this, especially for kids who are flying through it.

 

We are in Singapore PM Standards Edition level 2(textbook and workbook). We just finished 2a and I got the CWP to slow down DD5 before going into 2B.

 

CWP is a great extension. I like the illustrations as they are similar to how I introduce concepts and word problems.

 

She is doing one CWP chapter a day. I know it sounds like a lot, but it only takes 1/2 hour, she enjoys the heck out of it, and we aren't doing any other math right now. (I bought a neat balance scale and numerous measuring tools and we've been playing with those.)

 

To be honest, some of the regular problems in the book are too predictable. The Challenging problems are better.

 

This is how I handle them:

 

She reads the problem.

 

I have her explain the problem in words so I know she's comprehending. For instance, she says " I need to find the total weight of Sue and John, but they didn't give me Sue's weight, so I'll have to figure that first then add it to John's." Etc..

 

Would IP provide something different, or would it be more of the same?

Is there anything that would be on the same level but cover different topics?

 

BTW- Thank you all for the support and understanding of homeschooling a gifted kid.

 

My daughter does the workbook, intensive practice and the CWP. I find the IP to be more interesting/challenging than the workbook.

 

Singapore is an excellent program. The more we use it, the more I like it.

[chai]

I wish that I had started with IP and CWP earlier. We used Miquon in grades 1-3, which I liked. Then I tried Horizons--that was a bust. This year, we have followed up with IP. I am seeing the concepts being cemented in dd's brain. Some of these problems are really hard! I don't see as much of a need for CWP. There are quite a few good word problems in IP--and CWP is fairly easy for dd. I could see us not using the regular workbooks at all, except that I now have everything through 6B.

[Storm Bay]

We love SM, and I have nothing to add to that part. We also have the first three Miquon books, but the only advantage that gave ds was the ability to use the rods. It wasn't a good fit for his learning style. He has done some MUS and that worked better as far as the visualizing was concerned.

 

We love CWP and I hope to add IP next year. Primarily for my ds as my dd, 10, is visual spatial and HATES showing her work (her giftedness doesn't extend to all branches of math, at least not yet--she's more of an artist/historian/writer due to her interests, but a whiz in certain areas of math.) For my 10 yo we're doing CWP at an easier level to get her to practice showing her work. She's finally doing textbook problems in 6B for the same reason--she needs to learn to write the equations (number sentences like take a word problem and translate it into something like 300*3/4*2/5=, or a series of steps rather than just do it in her head) this before she gets to Algebra.

[abbeyej]

Yeah, I think IP and CWP both add a great deal of depth to the basic Singapore program. IP is more like the regular workbook, but amped *way* up.

[Blessedfamily]

We use IP instead of the workbook. No new material is introduced, but mastery is assumed (in all the but the revision section), and problems are often presented in a novel manner relative to the workbook. On the days we use CWP (two or three days a week -- I also supplement with Primary Challenge Math and some other books) I give DD a choice to do three regular CWP problems, or one Challenging Problem. She usually takes second option. After the Challenging section is finished, she moves on to the next topic.

 

My daughter does the workbook, intensive practice and the CWP. I find the IP to be more interesting/challenging than the workbook.

 

Singapore is an excellent program. The more we use it, the more I like it.

 

I didn't know that IP included some word problems. I figured it was just more of the addition/sub carrying borrowing, etc.

 

I like word problems becasue she has to reason out what to do first, which operation to use, and then she still uses carrying/borrowing or whatever in solving the problem.

 

I'm just wondering if IP is significantly different from the new workbooks in the Standards Edition. I'll have to buy it at least once to try.

 

FWIW- I was told the CWP would still correlate with the Standards Edition and that it absolutely true so I guess IP will too.

 

I can't resist. I.JUST.LOVE.THIS.PROGRAM!

[cdgni]

We use both the IP and CWP books, but just do the more challenging parts of each.

 

What do you do when you don't understand the question yourself? We recently ran into a problem with CWP 3 and I couldn't help her. (I am not any good in math.) Our solution was to move to 4a regular books.

 

Are there any teacher books for CWP yet? (I bought 6 years of books when dd was 6- there weren't teacher books 4 years ago for the early grades.)

[Jen500]

What do you do when you don't understand the question yourself? We recently ran into a problem with CWP 3 and I couldn't help her. (I am not any good in math.) Our solution was to move to 4a regular books.

 

Are there any teacher books for CWP yet? (I bought 6 years of books when dd was 6- there weren't teacher books 4 years ago for the early grades.)

 

These are some ideas to try when you are stuck-

Try the problem another day. Go back over the sample problems. We do CWP on dry erase boards so it's easy to change our models and try different ideas.

Ask at the singapore math forums at http://www.singaporemath.com/Forum_s/11.htm

or ask here on this board.

[nmoira]

Ask at the singapore math forums at www.singaporemath.com/Forum_s/11.htm

 

This Singapore Forum is very helpful. Jenny Hoerst (the HIG author) answers questions there.

[cdgni]

Thanks to both of your posts, I joined the singapore forum.

 

Thank you,

 

Cathy

[Storm Bay]

I'm not sure what the CWP books are.

 

.

CWP=Challenging Word Problems.

[phathui5]

We are on Primary Math 3 with ds1 and use all of the extra books that go with it.

[Blessedfamily]

We use the CWP and don't have to skip as much now. Before, I think we had to skip so many of the practice problems in it becasue I got the book after we were almost finished the textbook. She already knew the material ,and it got too repetitive.

 

Now, I'm using the CWP at the same time as the text, and the practice problems are fine along with the challenging problems.

 

We're finishing mental math and she got it quickly, but I could use more practice problems. For the first time, I wish I had IP.

 

I think I'll get them all for 3A and use IP only as needed. I won't overkill.

[Blessedfamily]

Can anyone tell me the benefits of the instructors guides? Would you buy them for level3?

[Tree House Academy]

I use the HIGs. They schedule it out for you in lessons (which you cover at her pace...not necessarily one per day). In the front of the HIG, it tells you where to schedule Mental Math, Vroot and Vroom, and so on. I love my HIG! It also gives you some examples for other ways to teach the concept. There are a lot of card games and such that are suggested to help the child cement the concepts.

 

I have them for level 3...but I also have them for level 1. I wouldn't do without the HIG, personally.

[fractalgal]

We use the CWP and don't have to skip as much now. Before, I think we had to skip so many of the practice problems in it becasue I got the book after we were almost finished the textbook. She already knew the material ,and it got too repetitive.

 

Now, I'm using the CWP at the same time as the text, and the practice problems are fine along with the challenging problems.

 

We're finishing mental math and she got it quickly, but I could use more practice problems. For the first time, I wish I had IP.

 

I think I'll get them all for 3A and use IP only as needed. I won't overkill.

 

We use the CWP at the same level as well.

 

I recommend the HIG, and I highly recommend the IP for extra practice. The IP helps solidify what was done in the workbook. I give my daughter the IP as review right before her exams. She usually does well, and her exams seem easy to her after a trip through the IP topic.

[Storm Bay]

Can anyone tell me the benefits of the instructors guides? Would you buy them for level3?

 

We don't have the HiG, but I highly recommend The Essential Parents' Guide to Primary Maths by Dr. Fong Ho Kheong for anyone who uses Singapore Math, and particularly anyone who uses CWP. Ignore the red--I did a search to find the name in a post because I was too lazy to go downstairs and look at my copy.

[Blessedfamily]

We don't have the HiG, but I highly recommend The Essential Parents' Guide to Primary Maths by Dr. Fong Ho Kheong for anyone who uses Singapore Math, and particularly anyone who uses CWP. Ignore the red--I did a search to find the name in a post because I was too lazy to go downstairs and look at my copy.

 

I can't find anywhere that sells this book. In fact, when I searched it on the internet, the only result that came up was a post you made on these boards in may. How funny. Where do you get it?

[Blessedfamily]

My daughter does the workbook, intensive practice and the CWP. I find the IP to be more interesting/challenging than the workbook.

 

.

 

We use IP instead of the workbook. ...

 

I wish that I had started with IP and CWP earlier. ... I could see us not using the regular workbooks at all, except that I now have everything through 6B.

 

The more I look online at IP, the more I think it might replace the workbook also for my dd.

[Storm Bay]

I can't find anywhere that sells this book. In fact, when I searched it on the internet, the only result that came up was a post you made on these boards in may. How funny. Where do you get it?

 

I found it at Rainbow Resouce Center when I was looking up the SM books we'd be buying in the spring, but just in case I made a typo, I just did a google with the title only and found over 100 references. Here are the publication details http://www.acis.nie.edu.sg/nie-acis/libris/publication/publication_details.do?id=2261041 .

[Blessedfamily]

I found it at Rainbow by just using part of the title. I think it's out of print. Shame really, because I go very broad in teaching concepts different ways, and it looks like this book would be beneficial.

 

I'll keep my eyes open for a used copy.

Edited December 22, 2008 by Blessedfamily