babysparkler
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Posts posted by babysparkler
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So maybe if you could find one subject you could all do together and then find some structured activities your littler one can get involved in, that would help. I will say that it has gotten much easier from last year to this year. My daughter has much more to keep her occupied and I never really feel like she's just off on her own now.
Lisa
This is what we plan to do... We will have science and history together as a family (ds9 & dd7 with little ds4 & ds2 around if they want to listen & watch). All of the LA and Math work will be individualized for each child.
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My ds (age 9) will be starting Jacobs Elementary Algebra either in the fall or spring. I have heard rave reviews from many people, including my FIL who was a hs math teacher before retirement a few years ago. It is worth looking into :)
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Another vote for All About Spelling. I've tried at least four other spelling programs: ACSI Spelling, Spelling Power, Spelling Workout, and Spell to Write and Read/Wise Guide for Spelling), and AAS has been the best for my kids. The only one of the others I tried that actually worked was SWR/WG, but that wasn't easy to use. I started 9yod in level 1 of AAS at the beginning of the school year, and she's now in level 3. I started 7yos in level 1, and he's almost finished with it. AAS is very easy to use, very thorough, and good for all types of learners. There is continual review of past info, and it's personalized for the child through the use of a filing system. The lessons can be as long or as short as you want them each day. There are 24-28 "steps" in the books, but you decide how much of a step to do each day. My dd did a step every 1-2 days for the first book (she already knew most of the info from SWR/Wise Guide). She took 2 or more days for each step in book 2.
I highly recommend All About Spelling.
If I go with AAS, what do you recommend I buy to start? Do you purchase a couple of levels at once or one at a time?
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My older ds is using spelling power, but I was thinking that I would start dd in 3rd since that is where it is supposed to start. I never really considered using it for her in 2nd... how is that going for your dd?
I like Spelling Power. It takes you all the way through high school. My dd is in 2nd grade too. -
Thanks Brindee... I will check CLP out too!
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A couple questions for AAS users... thanks in advance!!!
What does a typical AAS lesson look like?
How long does a lesson take?
Do you start on level 1 with all children? (DD will be 2nd grade)
How many lessons are in each level?
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I have never heard of AAS... I'm so glad I asked! I'm going to check it and Spalding out. I appreciate your replies! Thanks! :)
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I would love to know too!
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I am looking for a good 2nd grade spelling program that teaches the spelling rules. Maybe with lists in "word families". Any recommendations?
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It is unusual for me to "swear by" one program only for something. Yet this I do for "Alpha Phonics".
I have used the CD-based program twice now. The first time was with a 5-year old son, who later was diagnosed with Asperger's. After we completed lesson 15 in the course, my husband quietly beckoned me to watch our son. The child had, with only that scant exposure to formal reading lessons, taught himself most of what else he needed to know. He was sitting alone, happily reading a book aloud. Finally I could believe my mother's assertions -- which I always had dismissed as impossible bologna -- that I taught myself how to read at barely age 4.
Now, for a distinct contrast in student ability, here is my experience a few years later with my daughter. She was not a "quick, eager" wannabe reader ! I maintained a very relaxed, easy-going approach with her. When she was nearly 6, I started her with the Alpha Phonics CDs. When we had completed fewer than thirty lessons, dd "took off", just as had her brother -- who had shown marked abilities absent in her !
The commonalities between these two of my children were (1) the Alpha Phonics and (2) my "teaching method" of typing up words and invented sentences which the child could, by extension from the material already covered in Alpha Phonics, read by himself (herself).
With one of our older boys, I attempted the Horizons Phonics program. I abandoned it as overly-detailed and pedantic. I had the same reaction to the Pathway Readers workbooks. Same old picky, pesky details which, rather than facilitate learning, derailed the child and killed interest. (So we just enjoyed the readers and ditched the workbooks !)
The BOB books are great fun, too !
Hope this helps, even a bit, with your deliberations.
I was glad to read this... we just decided to use Alpha-Phonics for our 4 year old in the fall... We have the book, but not the CD's... do you think they are necessary?
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I have used Saxon with dd11 and ds9. We liked the repetition and incremental learning. I supplemented with CalcuLadder and Daily Math Review.
One problem has come up though. My dd11 is interested in joining a middle homeschool math team. She is solid on the information that she has been taught. However, she somewhat struggles with algebra related questions because she hasn't received much exposure to these type of problems. She has done up to Saxon 6/7. So this summer, we are doing LOF Algebra and will follow up with Jacob's Algebra in the fall.
DS9 is entering the fifth grade. We are doing LOF fractions and decimals this summer. In the fall, I will skip Saxon 5/6 and put him in 6/7. Then, in 6th grade we will be able to either do 8/7 or Algebra 1/2. When he is rising 7th grader, he will do Jacob's Algebra.
I originally thought doing pre-algebra in 7th grade and algebra in 8th grade was okay. For math competitions, though, it is behind.
I think Saxon should have started introducing algebra type problems earlier too... our son has just finished 7/6 and had a touch of it, but is wanting more. We plan to do 8/7 this coming year (and move to Jacobs Algebra when we complete that... or if he gets bored by the slowness, we may just move on early).
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We both love and hate it all at the same time. I like that it is a good curriculum... the material is thorough and easy to teach/learn. What we don't like is all of the repetition and the spiraling seems to move too slowly. I would have liked the lessons to dig deeper with fewer "spirals". We tend to dig deeper with the lessons and find that we have already covered the new topic when it comes around again. We also skip a lot of the review since my son doesn't seem to need it. For someone who needs the repetition it would be perfect... but for our gifted son, it is a bit too slow.
What else for "Pre-Algebra" for rising 7th grader?
in K-8 Curriculum Board
Posted · Edited by babysparkler
Similar situation here... My ds is 9 and will be starting Saxon 8/7 w/pre-algebra in the fall for 4th grade (which I am sure he will fly through since he already has mastered much of what it covers, but I want to be sure that he doesn't miss anything)... we then plan to move to Jacobs Elementary Algebra, but he will only be 10. I am thinking that we may do a year of "fun math" between since he will be so young. I found the book "Beyond Base Ten" http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1593633297/ref=ord_cart_shr?_encoding=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&v=glance to fill that time, and it looks like it would be a fun unit to break out of the box. He is a pretty gifted little guy who loves math, but I worry that at some point that he will struggle not with the math, but with the developmental growth of his brain and how much he can physically learn. Does that make sense? Even with the "fun math" year in between, he would still only be 11 to start Algebra. I'm still just in the "thinking about" stage... any thoughts?