Graph paper (with LARGE squares, if he writes messily) may work, as may turning the notebook paper sideways. Another thing I would suggest is having him redo the problems he has done incorrectly, until they are correct. You do not have to assign points for this, but being able to do them correctly on the second try is a good sign that he does indeed get it. If he does not manage to correct them on the second or third try, work them with him.

I don't see anything wrong with doing every single problem that way for a while. I really, really don't. He's only seven. Asynchrony is common. Keep going *gently*.

When he misses a problem due to arithmetic errors, are you counting off the whole problem or assigning half credit? In other words, is the 70% due to 70% of the problems being completely correct and the other 30% with minor errors, or does that include partial credit?

There is nothing wrong with doing geometry in 9th, but I don't see why to do a second year of algebra if she is doing well this first year. Foerster is not THAT much more challenging. If you want to postpone, I'd do something like the AOPS number theory/counting and probability books instead. Or maybe Jacobs Mathematics:A human endeavor, if she suddenly loves math now and really loves Jacobs.

This error is so common that it's often called 'The freshman's dream' or 'the freshman's mistake' -- so she's in good company. If she can manage to consistently remember not to do this, she'll be ahead of about 50% of college students. (seriously)

The real benefit is the learning. I know it sounds trite, but it's true. If the work is done through an accredited university or the AP program, it may transfer or qualify the child for more advanced work. It may also, though, qualify them for a serious honors version of the regular course. For example, Cornell/MIT/Harvard/many others have a freshman calculus course which is extremely challenging, as well as their standard calculus course. For most students, it would be to their advantage to take Calculus for CrazyMathy Freshmen instead of skipping that and taking standard sophomore courses. In general, I don't think a student should be accelerating (in recorded grade level, NOT in material!) unless they are prepared to be working at a high level in their new grade. I don't see the point in a student being 14 years old and average for a freshman when they could have been 16 and going to an extremely good school with a full ride. Enrolling for individual courses is entirely different from entering school full-time.

Using digit sums is especially important for people who plan to own small businesses and need to do their own accounting without the aid of calculators or other technology. It is a neat trick but not necessary for higher level math.

I really think that AOPS intermediate algebra/precalculus/calculus texts would fit the bill for your younger two perfectly. For the older one, did your dh keep records of your dd's work? If so, could he just assign the same work to your ds? That would simplify his prep a lot.

If you are looking at jumping to AOPS, I would definitely, definitely do their pre-algebra before their algebra. I would tell him that pre-algebra is the beginning part of algebra, I would buy both books and put the algebra one on a high shelf and tell him we're going there as soon as we finish the pre-algebra book. If he really is desperate to do 'algebra', I would look into getting Zaccaro's real world algebra and doing that on Fridays or something. I think it's a great intro to algebra for younger kids.

I would not count computer science as a science. I think he would be better served by taking a high school physics course for tenth grade. Taking physics C as the first physics course in a while (since you said he had bio in 9th and conceptual chem in 8th) will be excessively difficult. Remember, he has to not only get into engineering school but stay there. The math schedule looks okay. Assuming that 10th grade goes excellently with alg 2/some sort of physics, that would leave the door open for precalc/ap chem and then calculus/ap phys -- but if it's a struggle, be ready to drop back to honors chem for 11th. The math is more important.

Implausible -- not just because "they won't let her" but legal/certification reasons relating to having taken the courses she is supposed to have before student teaching.

It is certainly a cautionary tale as to why checking (and not just trusting your advisor) is a good idea. There is nothing you can do about it at this point. I would look for maybe an interesting educational or internship opportunity for the missed semester. Maybe she could get a job tutoring for her major, or volunteer?

But the problem is, M2B, many curricula are NOT designed to allow a student who has not taken geometry to be successful in precalculus. Students who have forgotten their high school geometry classes are the students who struggle in my precalculus classes, as they forget things such as areas of circles/triangles/trapezoids, what the sum of the angles in a triangle is, what a complementary/supplementary angle is and when you might use such a thing, what it means to be parallel/perpendicular, how to use similar triangles and the pythagorean theorem, and many other topics. There is review in the algebra/precalculus textbooks, but for most students who have genuinely never seen geometry it isn't enough. I'm glad you've been able to be successful without taking geometry. But really, recommending this as a course of action is setting students up for unnecessary difficulty in their precalculus classes and on the SAT/ACT. Most students who are not naturally talented in mathematics and need extra practice will not be able to do what you did. The OP's student is struggling with algebra 1. The likelihood of him being able to skip a course and intuit the missing parts is not high.

I think for remembering English I'd pick up something like Jensen's series. If you took both trig and stats I'd be astounded if neither transferred, unless the grades were very low. (I assume they were not).

What Saxon level does the charter school use for 6th grade?

Corduroy, it sounds so simple, but the key is NOT GIVING UP when you struggle with something. Learning something new is hard! Make sure you start with the practice problems in the pre-algebra area. If Alcumus is too challenging (it may well be, to someone who has had an algorithmic education), try the Singapore book recommended and come back to it. Also, don't forget to give yourself time to think very hard about the problems. These are not the sort of problems you can glance at and immediately know how to do! Good luck!

There is no way I would put a student who just struggled through algebra 1 into a college-level chemistry textbook. College-level chemistry requires a THOROUGH understanding of algebra 1 (being able to manipulate those rather simple inequalities and unit conversions backwards, forwards, upside down, and in your sleep). Most students do not attain that level of proficiency after only taking algebra 1, and the kinds of students who do are not the ones who struggled through the course.

Right, I guess what I'm meaning is that a lot could change between now and geometry. :) I agree 100% with the rest of your post and that's exactly what my thinking was.

Booo-ring. Really, I'd rather watch paint dry than do Saxon. Strongly encourages a procedural approach, where algorithms are learned by relentless practice rather than by teaching the concepts beneath. The disadvantage to this is that the procedural approach fades more quickly with lack of use. That being said, the incremental problem sets are excellent for students who need the repeated application. Some students also DO NOT DO WELL with a conceptual approach, and the procedural approach will give them enough fluency to be able to pass exams. Finally, some students are naturally gifted at intuiting the concepts from the procedures, and those students will do fine -- but frankly, they would do fine with almost any curriculum.

I wouldn't switch now if it's going well -- in general I would prefer to at least finish out the Horizons curriculum and then switch. When she's halfway through Algebra 1, then start worrying about Geometry. Who knows? Maybe Horizons will decide to bring one out by then?

Another vote for Conceptual Chemistry.

Third the recommendation for AP Chem + independent reading in Astronomy/Physics.

Some course sequences are set up so that someone could succeed in them without taking a separate course in Geometry. (For example, Saxon, where it's integrated, or the college developmental math sequences). TT is not set up that way, and geometry should be done before precalculus. If your student has struggled with algebra, I would go ahead and move into geometry. Maybe the difference will be a breath of fresh air for him. You might consider, though, doing occasional algebra 1 review assignments to reduce forgetting.

A student with good arithmetic and critical thinking skills is likely to place deceptively high at the CC. They can frequently puzzle out problems that they don't actually know how to solve. Singapore/NEM is excellent at building both. This does not actually mean that they are ready for said class. The skills they are able to puzzle through on the placement test are necessary. NEM is 4 years starting after singapore 6. CC math is usually 5 semesters starting at pre-algebra (Some have 6). In general I would say that a student who has finished singapore 6 should take pre-algebra, and move up by one semester for each year of NEM completed. So someone who did NEM2 should probably take intermediate algebra, while someone who did NEM3 should probably take college algebra. My guess (just a guess) is that Nan's community college has precalc1 and precalc2 instead of college algebra and precalc? That would explain the placement better.

Frankly, I stayed 'in the closet' through a lot of my undergrad. I wanted to be judged for who I was, and not on other people's perceptions of homeschooling, whether positive or negative. I am sorry he met such an ass, but I agree with the others who said that he is much better off not working for him and getting 'exposed' later. At least now he has not gotten fired on some trumped-up offense.