Sure, Math U See would be great, but...

[SproutMamaK]

My kids are colour blind! :001_huh: How big of a role do the colours play in the lessons, and are there any similar math programs that don't involve colour?

[Jenny Piaaree]

My kids are colour blind! :001_huh: How big of a role do the colours play in the lessons, and are there any similar math programs that don't involve colour?

 

I have MUS Delta. There is not a single spot of color in it. Not in the student book nor in the teacher's manual. The blocks are colored, of course, but the color is not necessary, just an enhancement. It's the different lengths that matter. (If I remember correctly (and I may not, as it has been many years), Montessori did not even believe in using colored rods; she felt there should be only one variable - the length. So you could even possibly get Montessori rods if you wanted. Just a thought)

 

So I say, go for it!!

 

ETA: I don't know if it's more of an issue in the earlier levels. I do know that I don't use MUS blocks, because I had some cheap number blocks from a school supply store already, and I didn't want to spend the extra $. My blocks are colored, but the colors do not match MUS's colors for the various lengths. It has not hindered us in the slightest.)

Edited February 27, 2010 by Jenny Piaaree

[SproutMamaK]

Does anyone know if MUS (or anyone else that sells similar blocks) sells bright colours? Most of what I've seen from Math U See involves lighter colours. My boys can tell the difference between the primary colours, but not secondary colours or pastels.

[Dinsfamily]

Does anyone know if MUS (or anyone else that sells similar blocks) sells bright colours? Most of what I've seen from Math U See involves lighter colours. My boys can tell the difference between the primary colours, but not secondary colours or pastels.

 

My ds is red/green color blind and doesn't have any trouble with Cuisinaire Rods. He can tell the difference between both the red/green rods and the blue/purple rods which are all problematic color combinations for him.

 

We even have the wooden ones and I'm told that the plastic version's colors are even brighter.

 

HTH,

[Katie.Louise]

I have used MUS from the beginning. The Primer book does do a lot with the colors of the blocks, mostly count the units and color it to match the block. But, I think it is mostly for them to learn to identify the blocks quickly. Also, you could skip the Primer level if you wanted to. My youngest is 1st grade, doing Alpha, and there really is not much to do with the colors of the blocks. Ocassionally, the instructions ask them to color them, but we don't do that unless she wants to. He may mention colors of the blocks in the video lessons some, usually he says the number and the color. You could maybe write on a set of them the number that each block represents with a sharpie.

 

Overall, the reliance on the blocks goes away quickly, I am thinking by the end of Alpha. There are other manipulatives for fractions later that are colored, but we didn't even buy those. You could make your own, and they don't have much to do with the colors of them. I really like the simplicity of the pages. They are very neat and clean. There are not too many problems on the pages either.

 

Does this sound right to other users?

 

Hope I have helped,

Katie

[Quad Shot Academy]

We have used Alpha through Zeta and I think you will be fine. They will learn to recognize the block length w/o the color.

[anotherbrother]

My boys favorite part of the blocks is playing with them. We rarely if ever use the blocks for the lessons. Mr. Demme does use the blocks in almost all video lessons.

[Harriet Vane]

Color is absolutely not an issue with MUS. You can easily use the blocks without knowing their colors.

[chiguirre]

The color isn't a big deal. It does make it easier to grab the block you need quickly, but you could get the same result by presorting the blocks before the lesson.

[Dmmetler]

Unifix and multilink cubes are in bright colors, and you could make them into rods of the desired length of a given color, and use only those colors for that length. The only problem I can see here is that multilink cubes have a tendency to be used as building material ;).

[kewb]

My dh is red/green color blind and he has no problems with the MUS blocks. Overall, the color is not that important.

[Lightly Salted]

I have used MUS from the beginning. The Primer book does do a lot with the colors of the blocks, mostly count the units and color it to match the block. But, I think it is mostly for them to learn to identify the blocks quickly. Also, you could skip the Primer level if you wanted to. My youngest is 1st grade, doing Alpha, and there really is not much to do with the colors of the blocks. Ocassionally, the instructions ask them to color them, but we don't do that unless she wants to. He may mention colors of the blocks in the video lessons some, usually he says the number and the color. You could maybe write on a set of them the number that each block represents with a sharpie.

 

Overall, the reliance on the blocks goes away quickly, I am thinking by the end of Alpha. There are other manipulatives for fractions later that are colored, but we didn't even buy those. You could make your own, and they don't have much to do with the colors of them. I really like the simplicity of the pages. They are very neat and clean. There are not too many problems on the pages either.

 

Does this sound right to other users?

 

Hope I have helped,

Katie

 

:iagree: