What is the specific name of the Algebra I text? Is it Algebra I: Concepts and Skills (2001) or something else? I am currently teaching Algebra I at my co-op. We are using the McDougal Littell Concepts and Skills 2004 edition. The Teacher's Edition has all the answers in it for the homework and the tests. I had to go to the Holt McDougal site and find my book. Once I clicked on the version I was using, it took me to a page with the resource materials and ISBN numbers. I copied the ISBN and looked it up on Amazon. They were selling it used from many different sellers. Try that! :001_smile:

I read Charlotte's Web to my 2nd grader and Kindergartener. They both loved it. Stuart Little and The Cricket in Times Square have also held their attention pretty well.

I buy them from CBD. They are usually about the same price as Rainbow Resources. Right now, CBD has free shipping for orders over $35 if you have a promotional code. It lasts through Tuesday, I think.

We just finished listening to Fantastic Mr. Fox today. Roald Dahl read the book. My kids really enjoyed it. We didn't listen to the collection you are talking about. We listened to the individual audiobook from the library. We also recently finished Charlie and the Chocolate Factory read by Eric Idle. His accent was strong, but we enjoyed his style. If you are concerned about the abridged versions of the books, I would suggest the library for individual audiobooks.

This thread made me go straight to Amazon and get Honey for a Child's Heart and The Read Aloud Handbook! :001_smile: I also took the time to start reading Charlotte's Web to my kids this evening. Lately, I hadn't been doing much reading aloud, but this really got me thinking. I also discovered that we have a bunch of great books from when my husband and I were kids. They had been sitting on a book shelf tucked away where I never see them. So, thank you for starting this thread!!! :)

We use the std. ed. HIG, textbook, and workbook on a regular basis. Then, I also add in the intensive practice books here and there. We are almost done with 2B and I have just begun the Challenging Word Problems book. I'm not completely sold on this book since I am using the intensive practice books. It really seems like there is plenty of challenge/word problems in the IP books. I know it costs more than some of the other math programs, but I absolutely love it!!!!! The HIGs are invaluable. I did Horizons when my son was in K and the teacher's manual basically just gave you a summary of what you would see on the workbook page. I didn't feel that it told you how to teach anything. The Singapore HIG definitely tells you how to teach each lesson!

My oldest has been complaining since about the age of two! ;) If it doesn't fit the schedule he has in mind for his day, he is going to be upset about it. Teaching him to read was torture because it meant doing work and taking time away from his playing. Writing was awful because it was boring and held no interest for him. Math has been a struggle because it requires a bit more thought than anything else he does. He is in 2nd grade now and does better than he used to, but he really just wants to play all day long!

I used RS A this year for the first time. We only have a few more lessons and we will be done. It is definitely teacher intensive! However, I don't have to do any prep work before teaching a lesson. I can just skim through the lesson as I begin to teach it. I used horizons when my oldest was in K and I didn't feel like I had to teach at all. He could just do the workbook completely on his own. RS is not at all like that! One thing about RS that my son did not like is the way they are told to count numbers. Twenty is called two ten, thirty is called three ten, and so on. He just wanted to say the numbers as we normally would. There were definitely some battles with that! Also, while RS is visual in the sense of using an abacus and manipulatives, there are not many worksheets that correspond with the lessons. I think my son really needs to see what is being taught on paper. Because of this I have begun to work in some math mammoth worksheets along with the Singapore 1a workbook. I have decided to continue on and give RS B a chance (I already own it), but I am not sure if I will stick it out. So far out of horizons, math mammoth, RS, and Singapore, I like Singapore the best!

I have MM 1 and 2 in addition to SM 1 and 2. I LOVE Singapore. We tried both and even though Singapore is much more expensive, I think it is worth it!

We completely skipped that lesson. I don't feel like my kindergartener needs to know how to use a calculator. I don't plan to introduce a calculator for a while yet.

Thanks for the help. I just listened to the songs. Once was plenty for me! ;) The other thing I'm trying to decide on is the math games book. Has anyone felt this was necessary or is it a waste of money to buy it?

I'm looking into getting some of the math manipulatives for Rightstart. I was wondering if the Yellow is the Sun CD was worth getting. I am assuming that we don't necessarily need it, but maybe I am wrong. Is this essential? Also, are there some Rightstart level A manipulatives that I just don't really need? I probably should have just bought the whole package together, but I already have an abacus and the level A lessons. Thanks for any help! :001_smile:

I have a two part question. 1. How am I going to get my son through math this summer to have him ready for 2nd grade math? 2. How do I get him to not hate everything that deals with math? Some background info about curriculum: My oldest son is just finishing up 1st grade. I chose to use Horizons for K and 1st grade. At first I really liked how advanced it seemed, but my son never liked the workbooks (too many problems per page/overwhelming for him, I think). After reading more about Singapore math and math mammoth, I decided to make the switch. He is almost finished with Horizons for 1st grade, but in order to get the concept that singapore teaches, I decided to put him into the middle of 1A. I'm feeling quite stressed about getting through the rest of 1A and all of 1B before the start of the next school year. We are involved in a homeschool co-op and I would really like him to be doing 2nd grade work when he is in 2nd grade! ;) How am I going to get to that point???? Some background info on my son: He is a quick learner and enjoys everything except math. When I tell him it is time to do math, he quickly starts complaining about how much he hates math. He doesn't seem to have any problem understanding each new concept, but he just absolutely despises it. Most of the time, I think it is because he doesn't like to do work and math always takes a bit more time than everything else. Also, when I try to teach him a new concept, he gets frustrated with me because he just wants to "do it and get it done" rather than listening to something new I might have to say. Ugh!!!! :mad: So while I first thought that changing curriculum might solve our problem, I have come to realize that he just doesn't want to put in the effort! Is there any way I can help him enjoy math? Thanks, Tara