5sweeties Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 Ok, after lots of board searching, I'm now seeing that I may have one more option, in addition to TT, Chalkdust and VT. I see that Lial's has DVT's and a thorough solutions guide. I've googled Lial's, and am not coming up with where I can buy all of the pieces to this program, that people are discussing here. Is there anywhere to see samples? Can someone explain Lial's Algebra to me? How the program works, where it comes from (as in public schools or a homeschool publisher) and if it is a program that is highly recommended for going all the way through high school? I keep seeing so many positive comments about it, but am having a really hard time finding any solid info. TIA!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claire Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 The publisher or distributor changed recently, so my old links don't work. Hopefully someone will give you a link to the new source. Unfortunately, the Value Packs (textbook, DVTs and solutions manual sold in a package at the same price as the textbook new) have been discontinued and the new website is not as informative as the old one. Anyway, here's a link to the 7th edition textbook on Amazon. There is an 8th edition out now, but having the newest edition doesn't matter (math doesn't change much from year to year!) as long as you can get the solutions manual for your edition. It is helpful to get the ISBNs if you are looking for older editions. The DVTs apply to all of the newer editions, as the changes in the text are minor. Introductory Algebra is the equivalent of high school Algebra I. Intermediate Algebra is the equivalent of high school Algebra II. Lial has her name on many different series of books. The one usually discussed here is the paperback series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan in IL Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 See if your library can get it on Interlibrary Loan. I looked at several history texts using that method to help me decide which one I wanted. Saved me a bunch of money because I knew what I needed to look for when getting ready to buy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5sweeties Posted February 24, 2008 Author Share Posted February 24, 2008 I can't find the dvd's at all, and all the solutions books that I find are used. Does anyone have the current publisher info? I'm going to keep looking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claire Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 I can't find the dvd's at all, and all the solutions books that I find are used. Does anyone have the current publisher info? I'm going to keep looking! Okay, I did a search of the old boards and came up with this website. I linked to the newest edition of Introductory Algebra with all the supplemental materials including the DVTs. All of the ISBNs are listed too so that, if you want to buy used, you could search for the corresponding ISBNs for the 7th edition or 6th edition. I don't see that they sell the Value Packs anymore, though. (These were the textbook, solutions manual, and DVTs all bundled together for the price of the textbook alone.) Here's the link to the 7th edition of Introductory Algebra. The website is very hard to navigate, IMO, so I'd probably have to go back to the old boards to scrounge up a link to Intermediate Algebra (which would be the Algebra II book). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jann in TX Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 Margaret Lial has been a major math author for well over 25 years. She is WELL respected in her field--especially noted for her clear explanations. The most commonly used text for home schoolers by Margaret Lial is her developmental paperback series. This particular series (as most of her current series are) was specifically developed for community college use. The SAME material is covered in these texts that you would find in a strong PS text--but you do not have the 'social studies' element (pictures and such). What you do have is a SELF-TEACHING text. ALL of the teaching is in the student text. The explanations are clear and the type face in very comfortable. Lessons may take a few pages to get through--but I like the 'not rushed' feeling. Also note that this series is based on a 'block' schedule...so each lesson was intended to be used over 2-3 days. The odds are the only problems normally assigned...MORE than enough practice. The student text has all answers to the odd problems, ALL answers to the Chapter Reviews (takes 2-3 days to work out these excellent reviews) and ALL answers to the Tests and Cumulative Reviews. Like most college texts there is a demand to have a 'new' edition every 2 years or so. This helps the college book stores raise money...the products only change by cover and maybe a few other minor changes. There is very little difference between the 7th edition and the 8th edition. The "OLDER" 7th edition came out in 2001---I don't think that is very old! All of the supplements are easy to find--if you know where to look. This is one of the most popular series for community college/college use and used copies are easy to find. Amazon.com and Half.com are two popular sources for the student text, teacher's ed (VERY optional--no new information other than the answers to the evens) and the student solutions manuals. Occasionally you find the DVTs--but not that often. DVTs for the 7th edition and above can be found at sites such as http://www.ecampus.com Sometimes it helps to call them because their search engine is hard to navigate. Also even though the DVTs have ISBN numbers many re-sellers do not use ISBN numbers on non-text items even if they are supplements. Most of my students (and my dd) are getting along quite well with just the student text. I did purchase the DVTs for Intermediate Algebra but my dd has not used them yet. Yesterday my sister scored a 'like new' set of 7th edtion Intermediate Algebra--including student text, solutions manual and DVTs...for the grand price of less than $8 including shipping! She used Half.com If anything the Lial's texts make an excellent 'reference' text--sometimes it helps to see a lesson from a different viewpoint...and the cost is great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5sweeties Posted February 25, 2008 Author Share Posted February 25, 2008 Wow!! Thanks so much for all that great info! I'm starting to understand better. One thing I wanted to clarify is the statement below... If anything the Lial's texts make an excellent 'reference' text--sometimes it helps to see a lesson from a different viewpoint...and the cost is great! Does this mean that Lial's is mostly used as a suppliment, but not a stand-alone course? Perhaps I'm just misunderstanding? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claire Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 If anything the Lial's texts make an excellent 'reference' text--sometimes it helps to see a lesson from a different viewpoint...and the cost is great! Does this mean that Lial's is mostly used as a suppliment, but not a stand-alone course? Perhaps I'm just misunderstanding? No, no. Lial's is a standalone course. It's just that the approach of thoroughly developing a topic in every chapter makes it very easy to use as a reference book also. It explains *everything* about a topic, so you can read a chapter and fill in whatever blank was causing a problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jann in TX Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 nt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5sweeties Posted February 25, 2008 Author Share Posted February 25, 2008 All of this upper level math stuff is starting to make more sense to me. Dd and Dh have decided to try out VT first, this spring, and see how it goes. If it isn't what we are hoping, then I think we'll try Lial's! Many thanks! Kelly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmskchic Posted February 26, 2008 Share Posted February 26, 2008 My daughter has just finished Saxon Algebra I and I would like a 'summer reinforcement' before we head into Algebra II. To clarify - Lial's Introductory Algebra is Algebra I? and there is an Intermediate that corresponds roughly with Algebra II? TIA - I so appreciate this thread! I am getting questions answered I didn't even know I had. Michelle in VA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claire Posted February 27, 2008 Share Posted February 27, 2008 My daughter has just finished Saxon Algebra I and I would like a 'summer reinforcement' before we head into Algebra II. To clarify - Lial's Introductory Algebra is Algebra I? and there is an Intermediate that corresponds roughly with Algebra II? TIA - I so appreciate this thread! I am getting questions answered I didn't even know I had. Michelle in VA Life of Fred would be a good summer program, I think. That's what I plan to use with dd for complete algebra review this summer. Yes, Introductory Algebra is the equivalent of a thorough high school Algebra I course. Intermediate Algebra is the equivalent of a thorough high school Algebra II course. You do have to make sure you are looking at the right series, as there are several books with these titles. The ones discussed here come as 8x11 paperback books (not hardbacks). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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