Why do you all supplement programs?

[JulieJ]

My question is mainly about math, but I notice it with language as well. Why do you supplement the math program you are using to teach your child with another program?

 

 

 

 

 

By the way I am fairly new to homeschooling (last November) and very new to this board. I love this board and all the knowledge I am gaining from all your wonderful posts!!:001_smile:

[freerange]

In our case, for 2 reasons - we use Life Of Fred because it's fun, and because adding an alternative way of thinking about maths is useful.

[nono]

Julie,

 

I'm new to homeschooling too, but have several homeschoolers scattered throughout my family.

 

In addition to choosing my own curriculum, when these homeschooling relatives realized I was starting K this year with my older dd, I had some packages of books/materials arrive on my doorstep!

 

Pretty quickly I realized that my dd loved "doing school." I didn't want her careening ahead and running into a brick wall where she simply hadn't developed enough to handle the material. So, using multiples of the same subject has made it easy to approach the same material from different angles, while staying well within her capabilities. And, due to the generosity of my extended family, I had items available right on my bookshelf. :)

[Laura Corin]

I found that if I just used a single maths programme, my sons got very used to that one format. They were easily flummoxed by other styles of question and even layout. Each boy now has one main programme and one or more supplementary/review programme.

 

Laura

[lulubelle]

As you move forward, you will see that every program has "holes". They can't fit every approach into one curriculum. Just as we pick and choose our curriculum, those that write them have to pick and choose theirs. Currently we are taking some review time between Saxon 2 and Saxon 3, by using Singapore 2b. It has been great for my son to see things in a a completely different way.

[Closeacademy]

I use Singapore math because I like the way it teaches and we all like the visual aspect of the program but my children need more review on some concepts so I use Rod and Staff for review work.:001_smile:

[TKDmom]

My question is mainly about math, but I notice it with language as well. Why do you supplement the math program you are using to teach your child with another program?

 

 

 

Because there are too many wonderful programs out there! And it's too hard to choose just one.... :tongue_smilie:

[JulieJ]

Thank you so much for your answers. I really do not mean to sound like I am completely lost but lol I am ...when you are using 2 or more programs ( again I will use math for an example) you have them complete the work for both programs at the same time? Or just when they need extra work for certain areas?

[elegantlion]

We used Singapore because my ds thrived with the program. We added LOF because it made math fun. I also like LOF because it shows how math can come up in real life. Unfortunately it's never on a neatly formatted page with problems sorted by category.

 

Currently we use LOF as our main program as ds grasps math concepts easily, but I have several more programs to use for refresher and when he gets stuck.

[PeterPan]

I think you have an intuitive gut feeling about what your dc needs. If he needs more drill, more practice, more enrichment, more whatever, you give it. I can't think of anything "complete" I've bought that ever fit us exactly. If your dc is doing well with his complete LA course or math, there's NO need to supplement or tweak! And the best way to get to feeling better about that is to do some standardized testing. Spring is a good time for it. It's the best way to get honest about where he is, and 2nd grade is a good time to start. Just get something short and sweet like the CAT.

[mcconnellboys]

Well, Singapore has been my primary elementary program because I like the way it teaches children to think mathematically. It can't be beat for its challenging word problems.

 

In first and second grades, I used some things from Saxon and some other workbooks, such as McGraw Hill's Complete Book of Time and Money, to supplement all the areas of math that younger kids are learning at those ages because Singapore spends little time on those things. I'm thinking of extra practice with just counting, skip counting, place value, calendar math, time, money, etc.

 

In fourth and fifth grades, I used Math-U-See level Gamma and Delta as drill work for multiplication and division in order to cement those skills.

 

Earlier this year, I used some Key to..... series books to provide extra practice in decimals and percents, as well as some practice in areas of geometry that Singapore does not cover.

 

So overall, I've used other things to provide extra practice, or drill work, over the years.

[chadzwife]

Cuz we're HSlers who are doing it cuz we LOVE learning! :0

Really...we seem to be the ones who research more and think about it more as compared to someone who buys SOS and says 'go to it' and then you can 'go play'. It's just a different way of thinking about education. It kind of grows on u until ur caught in the web... LOL

I wish I could just get one program and be satisfied the kid could read and write and cipher *fairly* well. I'm too inquisitive tho...maybe too competitive too? :blush:

[JulieJ]

Thanks again for all your wonderful anwsers!

 

My dc has actually taken the 2nd grade SAT test this past week at his old private school in another state. He is now just enjoying a spring break with his grandma. I am looking forward to receiving the test results as a starting point for me since we have just begun our journey.

[Karis]

We love to learn!!

 

I like to "layer." There are so many great resources available - if they teach the same things (what I'm teaching) in an engaging and fun way... why not?

 

It's reinforcement.

 

Some times it's good to switch it up. Keeps me and them out of a rut.

 

Also you'll find that what works with one child may not work for each of them.

 

Homeschooling has come a long way. There are so many choices. As long as your children are getting it and enjoying the ride (even through the challenging seasons) It's a good thing!

[maryanne]

Another reason many homeschoolers use two curricula to teach a subject is that there is no perfect curriculum out there.

 

There are great curricula for many different situations, but every curricula has its strengths and its weaknesses. Homeschoolers often have the flexibility to borrow or buy a second curriculum to shore up a weakness in the first curricula even when the first curricula is very strong in many areas. Some times the weaknesses are only evident in the way individual families or children use the curriculum; other times the weaknesses are recognized by many.

[....]

We love to learn!!

 

I like to "layer." There are so many great resources available - if they teach the same things (what I'm teaching) in an engaging and fun way... why not?

 

It's reinforcement.

 

Some times it's good to switch it up. Keeps me and them out of a rut.

 

Also you'll find that what works with one child may not work for each of them.

 

 

:iagree: I could not have said it better myself.

[usetoschool]

Thank you so much for your answers. I really do not mean to sound like I am completely lost but lol I am ...when you are using 2 or more programs ( again I will use math for an example) you have them complete the work for both programs at the same time? Or just when they need extra work for certain areas?

 

If it is two complete programs we treat it like two different subjects and work on them at different times of the day. When it is extra practice on a particular topic, like using the Key To... series to supplement learning fractions, we do it at the same time as the regular math lesson, or even instead of on different days. I tried for a little crazy time a few years back to correlate two different programs. Don't do that anymore :)

[lovemykids]

You know, it’s actually because we are all insane, insecure, and we also suffer from a severe curricula shopping disorder. Run away, quickly, while you still have your wits about you. :tongue_smilie:

Just kidding, of course. I agree with most of the stated reasons above. I am also a little curricula crazy, so I thought I’d joke about it. :D

:lol:

[Carol in Cal.]

It's because I want to teach my child, not my curriculum. I respond to the needs of my child in a specific, targetted way that curricula are just not designed to do. I make sure that we get all the way through math books, for instance, but I also stop and review along the way, present the material differently, summarize it every so often, and provide logic and some other source material to get at the math from a different POV from time to time. This is what my specific child needs to learn to apply that math in different situations--but another child would be likely to need something quite different.

 

Also, some curricula are great but incomplete somehow. Or they don't take into account some opportunities that pop up locally. I like field trips to science museums, and whenever we do one, I try to build some broader or more specific learning out of what is done there. I like field trips to see plays, so whenever we watch one I try to build some literature work into that experience. If I just focussed on getting through the science or literature curriculum, we would miss so much enrichment.

 

Also, curricula are, to some extent, a crutch for lack of broad knowledge on the teacher's part. You can see that in comparing IEW with the original Classical Writing curriculum, for instance. IEW is very detailed and specific in what it requires. it's full of checklists and formulae. CW assumes considerable knowledge on the part of the teacher, and assumes that the teacher will work that knowledge into instruction (or at least it did until the workbooks were introduced). Because of that, CW was difficult for many homeschoolers to implement, but a great boon to those who have a lot of background knowledge and don't want to have their hand held.

 

Another example. For me, teaching middle school chemistry is very easy and I like to combine different books so that I can get good things out of each one. If I didn't know so much about chemistry, I would never attempt this. I would find a one true curriculum and teach that, and just get through it. If I did that, my child would have a decent grounding in chemistry even if I did not have one myself, and it would be fine. But I can do better than that because I have a lot of knowledge coming in. The fact that I don't need that curricular crutch means that I probably sound like we are doing several chemistry curricula at once, when actually I'm probably covering more or less the same amount of material but just doing better at it than one curriculum would do. I do this with language arts a lot. It sounds like a ton when we use aspects of Writing Strands, an IEW coop class, and a Bravewriter essay class all in the same year, along with subject area writing, but in fact, DD is not doing them all at once. We are using the assignments for the subject area writing. WS fills in the gaps between the other classes. If the classes stack up too much, we back off on something else. That's the kind of combining of curricula that I do--it's far less work than actually doing all the curricula simultaneously at full speed.

Edited April 2, 2010 by Carol in Cal.

[nmoira]

DD the Elder is in a holding pattern until we move her into algebra. Multiple programs are used not to reinforce concepts so much as to keep things interesting and hone problem solving and mental math techniques. I'm picking and choosing from a variety of topics, with an eye to both challenge and breadth.

 

DD the Younger (K5) -- doing first grade math, but keeping to a relatively slow progression. Using two programs is a way to keep things slow but not do the same thing every day. This is the same reason I'm using two Latin programs with DD the Elder.

[Lori D.]

You know, it’s actually because we are all insane, insecure, and we also suffer from a severe curricula shopping disorder. Run away, quickly, while you still have your wits about you

 

 

Laughed out loud and snorted at this witty truism!! :smilielol5:

[2cents]

I started seeing the value of supplementing when we started LOF as a fun addition. I found being able to present some of the different ways/approaches to solving a mathematical problem help children understand the concepts better. It gives a more rounded math education IMO.