Bob Jones & Christian Light

[Homeschooling6]

Can someone compare BJ math with CLE? I don't know much about BJ math. Am interested in grades 2-6.

 

I'm considering using it with a 2nd grader next year and maybe my 3rd grade ds.

 

I currently own CLE 3rd and 4th and at one time owned 1st-2nd, so I know some about CLE.

 

Is it spiral, mastery, workbook or textbook, teacher intensive etc.? I see at Christianbook BJ has 3rd edition not sure if that makes any difference.

 

Appreciate your time :)

Edited April 4, 2010 by Homeschooling6

[TracyR]

I do like BJU for mathy kids :>) I used BJU for K,1,2,and 3rd for my oldest daughter when I began homeschooling.

Its bright and cheerful. Is similar to Singapore math in how it teaches concepts though it does not teach Number Bonds like Singapore. More like fact families.

The pages contain something like 6-10 problems on a page, they have themes (similar to CLE) and the front page is to be worked on with the parent and child then the second page is to be worked on with the child. The work usually is minimal. There is good and bad to that though. Its good for younger children but not so good the older they get. My oldest came to learn to only do the minimal amount of work and now that she is older she tried to barter with me and say " Can I just do 6 problems today, Mom? " When at age 12 she is more than capable of doing more than that.

My other girls (whom I used Saxon and CLE with) don't mind doing the problems assigned to them. They don't balk and they don't try to barter with me. They just do it.

 

If you have a child that much rather would focus on one thing at a time, BJU math is a good program. If they like math and understand the hows and whys to math , BJU is a good math program. If you can remember everyday to throw in the drill and review that are in the extra workbooks that BJU sells , then its a good math program. If you have a child that likes the frills and color and cartoonish characters and such , then BJU math is a good math program. I did enjoy using it with my oldest because it fit her well at the time. I will admit after trying to go back to it this year with her for 6th she did not enjoy it as much as she did with the lower grades.

 

There are some cons to BJU math.

After 4th grade the workbooks turn to textbooks. Fine if you have a child that doesn't have difficulty writing outside of a book. Some children just aren't ready for that. Some are.

The teachers manual is quite cluttered and you have to dig through the lessons to find what you need. This is because its set up for a brick and mortar classroom set up. Just because it says homeschool on the front cover does not mean that its been adapted for homeschoolers. Its not hard to weed through it but some people just don't want to do that , do not have the time to do that or whatever else reason there maybe for them not wanting to do that. I'll admit CLE's manuals, though I rarely used them are more homeschool friendly than BJU's. Oh yes, you do need the manuals. Some people think they can teach with out them. Not at all, your child will miss out on a huge bulk of the program if you do not have and use the manual.

I also found that though it was super great for me in the beginning when I first homeschooled. I also had one child to homeschool. So I had the time to go through the manual like I did. Fastforward to today and I have 4 children to homeschool with my younger two needing the bulk of my attention. I do not have the time to teach BJU math. I know I had to use the BJU DVD program for math for my oldest at the beginning of the year because I just didn't have the time to teach the math to her. In the end we found that after using CLE 400 the year before that the BJU 6th grade math was just a repeat of CLE's 400 level! Well with the exception of their prealgebra at the end of the book. So I had to use something else because it actually was boring to her after that.

 

I guess it all just depends on what you want. You won't know if BJU is a better fit than CLE unless you give it a try. Neither one is better than the other. CLE definitely works faster than BJU math and you will see concepts brought up much later then you do CLE. In the end it all evens out anyways once you hit high school math.

 

I guess in my longwinded response is I did enjoy BJU math when I first started homeschooling and had the time to teach it, but as time has gone on CLE has become my favorite math since my time is so limited now.

Edited April 5, 2010 by TracyR

[thowell]

I am using BJU 5 for dd11 who has struggled in math. I like the fact that each chapter concentrates on one topic. Dd11 tends to get confused by doing different operations at the same time. we do tend to split the lessons since she needs alot of practice. I will say that the wasy BJU breaks things down and explains it that she is really getting it for the first time. The TM is BIG but there is ALOT of great ideas and extra resources in there. My dd6 is using CLE 1 and she loves it and has really blazed through it. This style fits her but would not have worked for dd11 who struggles. I think both are really great programs and it depends on how your child learns best.

[SnowWhite]

BJU Math is mastery, but the chapters spiral in topics if that makes any sense. For example, you would spend a chapter on addition, then subtraction, then shapes, then measurement, then go back to addition but with renaming then, subtraction with renaming... you get my drift.

 

It is fairly teacher intensive for the new topics intro lessons. People think there is not enough review because the Reviews workbook is separate, but if you do everything (we don't, because ds gets 100%s on tests without it) you could do four pages a day. You are the one in the driver's seat, assigning what you want to.

 

We have done years K, 2 and 3, and I have 1 and 4 in hand for next year. All of these are available in third edition. It DOES make a difference. The TM lesson is on a two page spread in this new edition, and there is a CD included for remedial or enrichment work, plus the teacher's visuals, charts, etc.

 

One of the reasons I am thinking of letting ds follow his CLE desire in fifth grade if he still has it is that BJU goes from workbook to textbook at fifth grade. I know copying problems will make ds crazy unless he makes a huge leap in maturity over the next year and a half.

 

What I like about BJU is the visual approach (they visually demonstrate renaming, etc) and hands on, and the word problems they use, plus the approach used to solve them. It's colorful and appealing and has little stories and puzzles which spice things up. I also like the option to use the DVD or online classes when ds gets older if he wants to or I need to.

 

As a matter of fact, I will probably present CLE over the summer between fourth and fifth grade and give ds the option to go with the online class if that appeals to him instead of CLE (I'm betting he will find CLE not as fun as it looks from watching his friend breeze through the lessons).

[TracyR]

Oh yes. I keep forgetting that the never BJU versions are out. I bet the CDs make it easier to present the review and such rather than the 'old fashioned' way of giving them the enrichment worksbooks like you use to.

 

I agree. I did leave out that BJU is a visual type of program and for the lower grades more hands on.

[Homeschooling6]

Do you all think that my ds who will be in 3rd grade will be able to start BJ 3? He currently is using Spunky Math from R&S (schoolaid).

 

I do see the Extra Practice workbook for 4th, I'll be sure to get that just in case. Is there extra practice books for 3rd grade?

 

Also once they hit 5th grade do you think switching to CLE would be okay? I like the workbooks. Wish more publishers would give an option to use workbooks.

 

Thank you for your help ladies. Appreciate it.

[mom31257]

We started the year with BJU 2nd and switched to CLE right after Christmas. Most of the review was built into the teacher's part of the lesson, which was too much for me. I felt like it was not visual enough review for my ds. He is doing really well with CLE. He is a "mathy" kid and understands concepts very well. However, at this age, he still needs a spiral approach.

 

My dd used BJU 6th and 7th for her 5th and 6th grade math, but honestly I wish that I had used something else. She makes good grades in math, but it did not develop much critical thinking in math.

 

With my ds we will continue CLE as long as it is working. I am using some LoF stuff next year with my dd, so I may supplement with those books later just because they seem fun.

[SnowWhite]

I don't know the scope and sequence of Spunky math. BJU 2 pretty much covers numeration to 9,999, addition and subtraction to 4 figures with renaming, shapes (both two and three dimensional) to geometry with perimeter, measurement in metric and customary units, patterns, problem solving to two-step problems and some "extra information", money to $20 bills, time to 5 minute increments, visually illustrated multiplication and division in single digits, the calendar, and several kinds of graphs.

 

Yes, there is a Reviews workbook for grade 3.

 

I plan to give ds Joshua the diagnostic test for CLE and make him do any "gap" lightunits over the summer if he wants to switch for fifth grade.

 

I considered doing Math Mammoth, which continues in worktexts for grade 5, but it would be for just one year, so if we want workbooks CLE will probably be our choice.