I am looking forward to being done. I'm trying to get everything ordered before we go on vacation on Friday... :seeya::seeya::seeya::seeya::seeya::seeya:

:iagree: The same here. My only alteration is doing the Saxon level one year ahead. For example, my second grader completed Saxon 3 and Singapore level 2.

:iagree: If you have the Saxon manipulatives, which my children love, you could have your child practice on the one hundred number chart a few times. Then have him say it back to you without the chart complete with "Blast Off!"

Emily, I'm fairly new to homeschooling as you are. I afterschooled and homeschool one child last year. I can give you my opinion on Saxon Math: I strongly recommend it. It is complete and thorough. You may end up skipping some things and moving faster than the book recommends, but of all the math programs I have looked at; it is the best. I do encourage you to look at all the programs and compare what works best for you. I also use Singapore (Primary Math) as a supplement. One thing to keep in mind it about Singapore: I read on a website that sells Singapore Math that using just the text and workbook alone is not the complete program that they actually use in Singapore. The parents do a lot of drill at home, so you would need to do a lot of extra drill. There are good things about it, but I'd combine it with another curriculum - like Saxon. Good luck in your curriculum search. :)

Hi, I use two. Math formation is critical, and I wouldn't trust it to just one curriculum. I use one curriculum as the core, but I still use the other if I think the other has explained the topic in a clearer way or goes a bit deeper into a topic. I do the same for science and reading. It is more work, but it is also more thorough. Good luck! :)

:iagree: Saxon is one of my favorites, and for phonics, ETC.

I am not familiar with MUS, although many people on this board have said great things about it. Singapore 2B would be more like what a 3rd grader would do. At age 9 that would be about right. It would be better for her to build her base now than to struggle in junior high and college. What I did for my 8 year old (who will be 9 in Februrary) daughter was Saxon 3 combined with Singapore Workbook 2B. Others that I know have used Singapore CWP to supplement with programs like MUS or Saxon. I would encourage you to do a lot of drill if you use Singapore alone [and use the Singapore supplemental materials]. The drill builds confidence and solidifies the student knowledge of the basics. Saxon is a solid program with plenty of repetition and is a more spiralling approach which may work well for her. The problem is that Saxon is expensive and time consuming for K-3. I personally think it is worth the money and the extra effort. I think Singapore is good, too. It is more of a mastery program. For this reason it is good to occasionally quiz your daughter from the previous sections to see if she is retaining it. It is easy for children to forget things they haven't seen for awhile.

I would suggest that you try it for awhile. Then, after you've covered a few sections, quiz your kids on the previous section. Just take a blank piece of white paper and make up some similar problems. I used to teach math at a the college level, and quizzes are a good way to tell if they're retaining it. I like to use a combination of programs, but I sometimes think I spend too much time on Math and should focus more on other subjects :).

I think ours would be the "math-centered curriculum" because Math comes first, and everything else is secondary...;)

For complete, I mean I want to cover all the bases: phonics, grammar, reading, writing, in a way that is friendly to a boy who is sometimes reluctant to read. :001_smile:

HI, My son will be in first grade in the fall. I was wondering if you could recommend a good language arts (complete) program. Thanks!

I have combined Singapore with Saxon, but work a year ahead for Saxon. For example, for second grade I used Saxon 3. We find it doable because Saxon has so much repetition. Then I supplement with Singapore at the correct grade level (so Singapore 2 level for a second grader.) For some this may seem like too much math, but I really enjoy it. We did slow down a little more towards the end of Saxon 3, because Saxon tends to save the "fun stuff" for the last quarter of the book. I think the Singapore solutions manuals could be useful, but I've never used one. Last year, all I supplemented with were the workbooks from Singapore, but (after reading many posts on this website :)) for this fall I purchased Challenging Word Problems. For your daughter, I would periodically quiz her on older topics that you covered in the previous two sections. Then after this, I would quiz her back to the beginning of the book if the material has not been built upon from section to section. Then you are spiralling a little, and you should be able to tell if she's retaining it.

:iagree: I did the Saxon Math a year ahead of the grade level. I also supplemented with Singapore Math workbooks (no textbook or teacher guide). It has worked pretty well for us.

Mastery.

I use both Saxon and Singapore. Each program has its strengths, and I combine what I think is beneficial from each. If you do switch to Singapore alone, I'd encourage you to use some extra practice math drills. Most children benefit from the reinforcement.

http://www.math-drills.com/

I traveled to both Moscow and St. Petersburg when I was 16 years old. I brought back a lacquer box (very popular) and a Russian fur hat for my dad. I remember the kids in Russia wanting to buy my blue jeans right off my body. They were a hot commodity on the "black market". I remember that there was no drinking age, but that wasn't a problem for me because I didn't particularly like the tast of Russian vodka. I still have the lacquer box. It is beautiful and still looks brand new. It was a great experience for me. I'm sure your mom will learn a lot.

I vote for cookie dough! :drool:

Have you tried the Key to Fractions series? That may address the weakness your daughter is having. I think it is good to use multiple sources for Math curriculum. I have been happy using a combination of Saxon and Singapore. Saxon for the repetition (I know this annoys some people, but repetition is very good for young kids...) and Singapore for word problems and thinking mathematically.

Hi, Has anyone here had any experience with Phonics Pathways. I'm thinking of using it for my first grader. Thanks.

My skeptisism is based on that the Singapore Math program worked fine before and has many years of experience and proven results as evidence to back it up. Perhaps the California Standards should conform to the Singapore program than vice versa. That is what the evidence says to me. Why fix something that is not broken?

It is too bad that a program that has worked so well has conformed to "standards" which generally means its quality goes down. Perhaps not always, but usually.

Are you looking for this site: http://www.angelicum.net Our entire curriculum - consisting of books, lesson plans and tests for each course, and Great Books study guides [for high school levels] - are organized in our bookstore by subject, and grade level. Only books used in our courses are carried by our bookstore. What one sees in the bookstore is our entire curriculum. We have available free placement tests we can email, for optional guidance in selecting grade levels, for each course. Testing may be done using our optional quarterly tests, or parents may grade as they wish (parentally-provided grading is accepted, and is simply footnoted as such on the transcript).

FYI I am in Minnesota, and I was told [in a phone conversation] that you can get a type of non-public school accreditation from the State which enables you to have official transcripts and an official diploma. This is the process: You pay an accrediation fee. Then you attend a workshop where you learn about running your school. Next there is a meeting in your home with (in this case) homeschoolers acting as liasons between the homeschooler and the state. Then you send the liason report cards every quarter. They phone you and discuss any concerns with you (4 times per year). Then you have met your requirements, and they keep the records on file for you. Then when you need it, they send out official transcripts to you. It didn't sound too bad to me because they don't tell you what curriculum you have to use, nor do they grade your children's work for you. They outline a generic scope and sequence, talk to you about record keeping and recording all your hours in the day. Now I have not personally done this, so my knowledge is a bit limited, but I think it could be an option for someone if they chose to do it, but definately not something that should be required of all who homeschool.