Does anyone regret using Teaching Textbooks?

[MamaNurse]

After having gone through their program (or part of it), I'm wondering if anyone wishes they would have used something else.

 

I'm getting conflicting reports of it's strength as a math program upon searching old threads.

 

I've got a son (10) who struggles with ADD-ish issues. I don't use the term lightly and don't follow the argument that all boys struggle with it. He's seeing an OT for it. He has always easily grasped all math concepts presented, but is behind because he has difficulty concentrating on written work.

 

We are have used Right Start Math from the beginning. It's so teacher intensive (I've got 2 younger boys, as well). It has given him a fabulous foundation. For that, I'm thrilled, but we're lagging.

 

We use a Charlotte Mason approach to learning and the lesson time for Right Start is getting longer and longer as it goes up in level, which doesn't fall in line with our goals.

 

Why am I looking at Teaching Textbooks? Well...he LOVES and thrives on anything computer-related. It captures his attention better than sitting down at a desk with a math book.

 

Some folks here are saying that TT is not for those "strong" in math. It's for "average" math students. Well...what else is there out there for those who enjoy math, but can't concentrate on lots of worksheet problems? My son loves math...just can't focus on worksheets and drill and kill. :confused: He can read for hours upon hours, though. :001_huh:

 

I appreciate any thoughts.

 

Thanks so much! :)

 

Amy

[KidsHappen]

I used it with one of mine and we were both happy with it. The other teen used Math-U-See and she was happy with it. Their SAT score were only ten points apart on the math section so I think that they were both equally prepared using those two different programs.

 

Now their scores weren't fabulous but neither of them are mathy kids nor had they finished Geometry yet and this was their first test but I am pretty happy with their scores and I am confident they will be even better on the next test. I have no regrets about using either of these programs and would use them again for these type students.

 

If I had a mathy kid or one considering a career in the maths or sciences then I might consider something more intensive. For your average student most careers this would work just fine. And as an example, my hubby is a computer analyst and makes a pretty good living and he never took anything past Algebra in college. I guess it just depends on your student and his goals.

[MamaNurse]

Thank you so much for your input! :D

 

I like that you used different programs and both tested similarly. This was exactly the kind of input I was hoping for.

 

I'm still a little worried about the strength of the program. DS leans heavily toward the sciences and comes by it naturally - I'm an RN and DH is a physician, but as you stated, not all careers need tons of math. I just don't want to short-change him.

 

What "stronger" programs are out recommended for "mathy" kids? I'd like to be thorough in my research, but I'm still thinking TT will work well for him.

[mrs.m]

I researched it a lot and was practically about to lose my mind over it because I worried I picked the wrong thing. I have a mathy kid and we just started it. It seems ok for now. She enjoys it. But she tested 2 years beyond her grade level. Make sure you use the placement test to get the right level. I think their scopes are off for the grade levels.

 

I'm looking at it from a different perspective. She's only 9 (almost 10 :)). I don't know if she plans to be an engineer or scientist. I would rather she enjoy math right now and later we can focus on college prep. I am certain that it will give her the base she needs because I compared the scope to her gifted math text from Connections Academy. The chapters where pretty much the same just in a different order introducing a few things not included in the other text because it is a higher grade level. But the CA text was not spiral so it was hard to compare the problem sets.

 

Editing to add: we are supplementing with MEP.

[Chris in VA]

I wish I had sat with my son for math--I used TT Geometry, and he just didn't get it. It had too many proofs for him.

I am considering putting dd in it, tho--at a higher level. ;)

We use Saxon, and I'm always looking around...just the grass is greener syndrome, as we like Saxon just fine.

[SandBeach]

I very much regret using teaching textbooks with my 4th grader last year. We had used singapore until last year, then put him in TT6. We went back to singapore this year, and it seems he lost his logical thinking and abililty to think through problems. He can't seem to remember his mental math, and I feel like he is farther behind than he was at the beginning of the year. It was a total waste of the year, but he enjoyed it. I don't think any math program is worth it, just because it is fun. He lost a whole year. I am very disappointed in TT.

 

Sandy

mom to 3 sons: 5th, 2nd, K

[HomeOnTheRanch]

My now 7th grader has sensory issues. We were using Saxon and I was pulling my hair out every day.We used TT7 last year. It was exactly what we needed and it was a welcome break from the tension. I was ready to order TT again this year. I was debating on which one to get when he asked to go back to Saxon. That was HUGE that he asked. He's doing Algebra 1/2 this year.

 

To clarify--Saxon 65 in 5th, TT 7 in 6th, Saxon Algebra 1/2 in 7th. TT definitely isn't as strong, but it allowed him to continue and advance without the stress.

[AngelaNYC]

My ds8 is using TT5 and is doing really well. I feel it has improved his mental math and reasoning ability. It constantly goes over what what learned in previous lessons and this has him doing all the review in his head at lightning speed. He loves math more than ever. And we also follow a Charlotte Mason approach (AO Yr 2).

 

But, although my ds loves the heavy recap of previous lessons, your dc may not. Basically it gives about 10 problems to do on what you just learned, then about 20 on older stuff. Ds is good with concentration loves workbooks and worksheets.

 

OTOH, Dd (now 13) used TT7 last year (mainly as a review) and had a hard time focusing and remembering one lesson to the next. She has mild ADD and did better with books and me right there with her.

 

So, it really depends on the child. Yours may do better with something like Math U See done on the computer. It's more visual and tactile than TT. That's what my next purchase would be if TT didn't work out.

[Corraleno]

.Some folks here are saying that TT is not for those "strong" in math. It's for "average" math students. Well...what else is there out there for those who enjoy math, but can't concentrate on lots of worksheet problems? My son loves math...just can't focus on worksheets and drill and kill. :confused: He can read for hours upon hours, though. :001_huh:

Have you looked at Life of Fred? It seems ideal for a mathy kid who loves to read and but who hates worksheets and drill-&-kill.

 

I'd see if he likes LoF Fractions, and if he does, you can finish the current level of TT and either switch to LoF (Fractions + Decimals + the new Prealgebra and Biology book would make a pretty complete prealgebra program) or continue with TT, supplemented with Fred.

 

I have a DS11 with ADD issues, and we are using TT supplemented with Fred. In the past we used Math Mammoth, but it only goes up to 5th grade (6th grade will be out next year).

 

Jackie

[Sputterduck]

What "stronger" programs are out recommended for "mathy" kids?

 

Singapore

[usetoschool]

I very much regret using teaching textbooks with my 4th grader last year. We had used singapore until last year, then put him in TT6. We went back to singapore this year, and it seems he lost his logical thinking and abililty to think through problems. He can't seem to remember his mental math, and I feel like he is farther behind than he was at the beginning of the year. It was a total waste of the year, but he enjoyed it. I don't think any math program is worth it, just because it is fun. He lost a whole year. I am very disappointed in TT.

 

Sandy

mom to 3 sons: 5th, 2nd, K

 

We used TT7 for my 10yo ds and said the same things many times. It felt like brain cells were being destroyed every time he used it. He does great with Singapore and is usually able to figure out mathy stuff but it was like he lost his ability to think. Maybe because it relies more on plugging the numbers into the algorithm and Singapore is more "why" oriented. I used it because I wanted to introduce him to American style pre-algebra wording and methods and he did get some things out of it, but it was really weird how he lost his ability to think mathematically when we used it. We stopped after finishing TT7 and went back to exclusively Singapore. We are just finishing 6B and he is doing fine.

 

Not to disparage TT. It is a fine program and I believe it really does work well for a lot of people, just wanted to mention that we had the same brain drain problem when we used it.

[KathyBC]

My middle ds seems to grasp math more easily than his big brother, and we enjoyed our time with Miquon and Singapore. I wanted to introduce him to the more traditional logarithms and moved him to a Canadian curriculum for the past couple years. We now appear to have the same issue: he's lost the ability to mentally add double digit numbers, etc.

 

If we go back to Singapore or something like it my guess is he can recover that ability. And it *is* important, IMO, for him to be familiar with traditional methods. But ya, it's a little disheartening.

[6packofun]

Well, I'm 90% satisfied and for the remaining 10% we're very satisfied with ALEKS as a supplement/gap-filler/teach concepts differently option. :) Our older kids just really like having ALEKS to see/hear an alternative method to do certain problems and benefit from having another resource. My teens both *asked* to add ALEKS back in to our schoolwork this year.

[Julie in CA]

Depending on what level your ds is ready for, Thinkwell might be a good choice. It only begins at Pre-Algebra though.

 

Things I like about Thinkwell:

The math professor is very, very funny, but not so much so that it interferes with the lessons.

Computer-based, and automatically scores exercises and tests.

If they need a bit more practice on a particular lesson, they can click on "exercises" again, and get a new set of problems.

There are plenty enough courses to carry my kids through high school.

[Lilymax]

DS1 has done wonderfully with Teaching Textbooks. He hated math until we started using it. This is our second year and I plan to continue with it as long as it seems to be working for him.

 

When I pulled him out of private school in the middle of third grade, he couldn't do multiplication at all. I had to spend the second half of that year and part of the next school year catching him up. The standardized test he took at the end of that year ranked him in the 50th percentile in math.

 

After one year of TT, he scored in the 90th percentile. And there are no more struggles to get him to do math--he loves it all being on the computer. I know that not every curriculum is a good fit for every kid, but I have nothing but good things to say about our experience with Teaching Textbooks. :D

[Samiam]

We used TT7 last year for DS who was 10/5th grade. He tested into the PreAlgebra, but I didn't feel the need to rush him, plus he was already freaking out about "Prealgebra", that is was going to be too hard, as if he had any idea what that word even means

 

I can't necessarily say he or I didn't like it. It was easy for him. Easy meanning that he did most of the work in his head. All year I was constantly telling him he needed to do the work on paper, as he would get into harder problems that he would need to work out on paper. That never happened for him all year. He almost got everything correct the whole year. The few he got wrong were mostly due to his math errors, not because he didn't know how to do it (see I told you to use paper!!)

 

He is a mathy child, has always been. It's always been easy for him. He's always scored in the high 90's on annual testing.

 

I was getting a little worried, as I have read the good and bad reviews, and although I liked TT, I started to worry that it wasn't going to be strong enough for him. I can see him going to college for something that will need a higher math. I ended up jumping TT's ship and going with Videotext for this year. He did LOF this past few months and will start VT in January.

[Donnado]

I used TT Pre-Algebra with my son and very much regret it. He lost that year of math and he is excellent in math. It might be because he was not motivated by the computer teacher and could be different with your child.

[tdeveson]

We love TT. It's ds's favorite math program. It moves very quickly for him - 2 lessons a day. We supplement with other things according to his current need, but we'd do that with any program.

 

TT is NOT an inferior program. It moves as fast and as thoroughly as your child is capable of moving. We're doing double time, and ds has learned more math with TT than he ever did with Singapore Math or any other problem. His math skills are amazing.

 

Also, a previous poster said her child lost his/her critical thinking skills because she switched to TT. I have found the opposite to be true, so your mileage may vary. Ds can think much faster on his feet now that he's been doing TT for the better part of the academic year. When we've segued back to SM, he can do all the problems without any help.

[Dayle in Guatemala]

We LOVE it here. I use it for both my dds after completing Saxon 87 moving into Algebra 1. We have used Algebra 1 and Geometry so far, and it's been really good for them. It's been especially good for me, because I'm so math-challenged, it's not even funny.

 

I have to say that both my girls are about 2 years above grade level in math and they are both doing well in it. They've always been above grade level. I don't feel that it's not been challenging enough at all. It's been a blessing for us.