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Math Help - choosing between BCM, TT, MUS- crosspost


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I am trying to figure out Math for my dd who will be in grade 7 next year. She will be doing Pre-Algebra. She did TT 7 this year. My older dd is doing Chalkdust Pre-Algebra this year, but I know this would not work for the younger dd. I would like to keep her in whatever series I start in Pre-Algebra for the rest of her upper level math. So here are my thoughts:

 

1. I ordered and recieve Lials's BCM. I am afraid that there is just so much information on the pages that she would be completely overwelmed. It is not quite so much as CD, but close. I do have all the upper level math and DVT for Lial's, but this dd is just not a mathy kid.

 

2. She did well in TT 7 this year, but I wonder if it was because it was easy for her. She is almost done with the book and will do LOF Fractions and Decimal books the rest of the year and over the summer.

 

3. I compared the TOC to both BCM and TT Pre-Algebra. They both seem to cover the same material, with the exception of Lial's covering Ratio and Proportions. I am wondering if TT does not go in as much depth as BCM.

 

4. My last option is MUS. The TOC for Pre-Algebra seems alot less covered than BCM or TT, but it is hard to gauge by the Lesson titles.

 

Thanks if you have made it this far. I struggle with using a curriculum that she has more understanding, like TT, and making sure it is challenging enough, like BCM. I have a source for the TT to be able to buy all books I need for 1/2 off new price. If you have used any of these, or more than one and can offer comparisons, please let me know what your thought are.

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We've used BCM, TT, and MUS.

 

1. BCM was visually overwhelming for my kids. Even when I circled or highlighted only 25 problems in a set, they still SAW 60, 70, or even up to 100 problems.

 

2. My kids became dependent on the solutions CD with TT. Once they learned that they could go back and watch a problem solved for them, then they really didn't think it through for themselves. The reason I wanted to use TT was to free up some of MY time, so withholding the solutions CD from them until we had time to discuss certain problems became time consuming for me.

 

3. We finally settled on MUS. My children UNDERSTAND with MUS. It may not be the most challenging or "rigorous" program available, but my children DO learn math.

 

That's my 3 cents. LOL

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We have Lial's BCM and have also found it visually overwhelming.

 

DD chose to use MUS Pre-Alg, which she likes and is used to because we've done MUS starting with Gamma, and Life of Fred, which she prefers because she says she can see why you would use the math.

 

So MUS gave her the why of math, but LOF gives her the 'why would I use this' of the math. A good combo for her as she is doing well in Algebra this year.

 

Ava

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Just for what it's worth, my ds used Lial's Introductory Algebra when he was in 8th grade, and although I felt it was excellent, he could not transition from Lial's into Saxon Algebra 2, which I needed him to do; Lial's did not provide adequate background. So I had to put him into Saxon Algebra 1 after Lial's Introductory Algebra; I put down Lial's as a pre-algebra program. Part of the problem could have been that he was not able to finish the Lial's book; it is not divided into lessons.

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It is nearly IMPOSSIBLE to go from any Algebra 1 course into Saxon's Algebra 2.... Saxon teaches in its own 'unique' style and vocabulary. Saxon's Algebra 2 is PART 2 of their basic Algebra 1 program and it assumes you already know their methods/vocabulary so it does not review.

 

I've taught Saxon before and I would not accept any Algebra 2 students who had not completed Saxon's Algebra 1. PERIOD.

 

So I guess what I'm saying is that Lial (or any other series) is not at fault here... Lial's Introductory Algebra is up to national/college prep standards and IS also considered a 'rigorous' program. It is comparable to the Larson (Chalkdust) and Foersters texts in depth, scope and sequence... A student using either of these other texts would have had just as much difficulty transitioning into Saxon's Algebra 2.

 

Lial's is divided up into lessons--it was also designed on BLOCK scheuling--so each lesson takes 2 days to work and just the 'odds' are assigned (this is in the TE). This comes down to 20-30 problems (depending on problem type) per day... an average amount of work. There are a few lessons (especially in BCM) where the concept is SO SIMPLE (basic multiplication like 3(x+1) where there may be a few more than 20 problems assigned--but those problems should be worked QUICKLY--and the number of problems is not really a good judge of one-day's work.

 

I happen to like Saxon--but it is not a good fit for many students--which is why I no longer teach from that series. I needed a program that I could reach ANY student with (with simple modifications if necessary)--so I decided on a more traditional text.

 

The students I had who liked Saxon (program 'fit' them) scored very well on the ACT/SAT tests and they made the transition to college Maths very easily.

Edited by Jann in TX
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TT as a stand-alone math is not a good fit at our house. My eldest hated it, but my middle one likes the humour and does it as her second, easier math.

 

If you opt for MUS, I'd definitely add LoF as Ava mentioned and for the same reasons. Unless you have a dc who truly struggles with math I wouldn't rely on MUS alone for Algebra (I'm sure others have very strong and different opinions, but this is mine :)). I think many times the reason TT seems so successful is that it is easy. OTOH, apparently it does get dc results in high school and since we've only ever used TT Algebra 1, we're not the experts. Algebra 1 includes a lot of what my dd has already done in her Russian math from Perpendicular Press, which I would call pre-Algebra.

 

If you only want to do one math program, I'd try LoF as a standalone math over MUS for high school. We are MUS fans for arithmetic, and Mr. Demme has resolved more than one issue when my middle dd argued with me over math (I kid you not--eg she fought me tooth and nail over regrouping with SM until she saw Mr. Demme teach it in MUS.) We don't use anything as a standalone math here, however, because we're fairly mathy and I like to get the hows and the whys firmly entrenched.

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