Do you use two complete math programs?

[Snowfall]

I know a lot of people use one program and supplement with another, but we've been doing MEP and are just getting back into RS B and I don't want to give up MEP or only use some of it, now that I think about it. It's because of MEP that DD knows her math facts, but I like RS and want to at least finish B before deciding whether to continue with it. I really don't think it's overkill at this point, since it's only maybe 45 minutes to an hour a day if we do both, and so much of RS is just games anyway.

 

How much math is "too much"? I'd love to hear from people who use two complete programs and hear why and how you do it. Do you try to line them up or just take them as they come? My plan is to go through each curriculum in its own order, not worrying about lining them up. I'll do MEP in the morning, then other things, then RS after lunch. That's been working well the last week or so. DD doesn't even notice that it's a lot of math because they're both so different.

 

I just got Horizons 1 and I might even throw some of those worksheets in since DD likes color, but I don't plan on using that whole curriculum. Oooohhhh, or maybe I'll use it whenever we travel, since we're out of town to visit family a fair bit and that would be easier for me to do on the road. lol

[JMDRAD]

I know a lot of people use one program and supplement with another, but we've been doing MEP and are just getting back into RS B and I don't want to give up MEP or only use some of it, now that I think about it. It's because of MEP that DD knows her math facts, but I like RS and want to at least finish B before deciding whether to continue with it. I really don't think it's overkill at this point, since it's only maybe 45 minutes to an hour a day if we do both, and so much of RS is just games anyway.

 

How much math is "too much"? I'd love to hear from people who use two complete programs and hear why and how you do it. Do you try to line them up or just take them as they come? My plan is to go through each curriculum in its own order, not worrying about lining them up. I'll do MEP in the morning, then other things, then RS after lunch. That's been working well the last week or so. DD doesn't even notice that it's a lot of math because they're both so different.

 

I just got Horizons 1 and I might even throw some of those worksheets in since DD likes color, but I don't plan on using that whole curriculum. Oooohhhh, or maybe I'll use it whenever we travel, since we're out of town to visit family a fair bit and that would be easier for me to do on the road. lol

 

I use MUS but I also got Singapore's Challenging Word Problems to supplement. I've thought about doing two complete programs (MUS and Singapore) but I'm not sure how to "do" it. :bigear:

[Dinsfamily]

We use three complete programs. We do both Singapore and Horizons everyday. I "teach" him with Singapore. We use the HIG, textbook, and workbook. Horizons is more of a review. He completes the workbooks, but I don't really do much teaching unless there's a new concept. My ds enjoys doing math and these two programs seem to be a good combo for him. I also add CWP at the end of a Singapore level. We'll do all of the related topics from CWP 2 when we finish 2A and the rest when we finish 2B.

 

I also use the complete Miquon program, but not systematically. We call it "fun" math. Ds does it when he wants to do it or I'll direct some labs when I see a need. On average, we do Miquon 1-2x per week, but he'll do 5-10 pages at a time.

 

Now, this is with my very mathy child. I'm not sure what things will look like for my other dc yet.

[Bayt ul-Hikmah]

We've recently started doing two complete programs, and we do each daily. We're in the middle of RightStart B, and that is our foundation. My ds does one lesson per day, excepting some of the lessons that suggest taking 2-3 days. Sometime after "school time" is done, ds will complete one page of MM 1, often independently. This is review for him (so far), and each page/lesson is quick and painless. We used to be doing this with MEP instead, but I prefer the layout and s&s of MM.

 

I think that combining RightStart and MEP would not make an unreasonable amount of math work.

[Closeacademy]

I do.

 

I use Waldorf stories to introduce new concepts.

 

Then I use Singapore to teach. We do 1 lesson a day and work through the text and workbook together.

 

Then I turn them loose on Rod and Staff math where they do indepenent work that contains lots of review to cement concepts. The lessons are varied so they don't get too bored with it.

 

:001_smile:

[Sweetest]

Singapore Math is the one program that I have been using since we started homeschooling. I love it, but as the concepts were getting more difficult I felt like my dd needed to be able to see things presented in different ways. I really want to make sure she understands math.

 

I had considered using another complete curriculum alongside, but I just couldn't figure out how to coordinate. Then I found the Key to Series and I haven't looked back :D

 

She works through the books independently, doing at least one page a day. This will be her light math work during the summer, too. She is working through the fraction and english measurement books currently - topics we've already covered in Singapore. Next year, she will start working on the decimals, metric measurement, percents, and geometry books (after we cover those concepts in Singapore).

 

I really think the fact that she can do these books independently helps to make it not seem like "too much math", she gets a sense of accomplishment from doing it herself (and when she finishes a workbook, I bring her to the bookstore and let her pick out a new reading book - we mostly use the library for non-school books, so that is a big treat!)

[fractalgal]

I know a lot of people use one program and supplement with another, but we've been doing MEP and are just getting back into RS B and I don't want to give up MEP or only use some of it, now that I think about it. It's because of MEP that DD knows her math facts, but I like RS and want to at least finish B before deciding whether to continue with it. I really don't think it's overkill at this point, since it's only maybe 45 minutes to an hour a day if we do both, and so much of RS is just games anyway.

 

How much math is "too much"? I'd love to hear from people who use two complete programs and hear why and how you do it. Do you try to line them up or just take them as they come? My plan is to go through each curriculum in its own order, not worrying about lining them up. I'll do MEP in the morning, then other things, then RS after lunch. That's been working well the last week or so. DD doesn't even notice that it's a lot of math because they're both so different.

 

I just got Horizons 1 and I might even throw some of those worksheets in since DD likes color, but I don't plan on using that whole curriculum. Oooohhhh, or maybe I'll use it whenever we travel, since we're out of town to visit family a fair bit and that would be easier for me to do on the road. lol

 

My 5yo does some MEP1, did all of Singapore EM, and now he's working through MM1. He really likes math and does Math fact sheets from Saxon on his own.

 

My 2nd grader did all of Saxon 3 and Singapore 2 (with IP) this year. He did excellent with this.

 

My 4th grader did Singapore 5 (Standards edition) with IP5 and now is working through Russian Math 6. I am amazed at some of the things she can figure out by studying patterns.

 

I don't try to line any of the subjects up. I do think you can do too much math. It really depends on the child and the frustration level of that child.

 

I try to make sure that one is done thoroughly and then, if there is time and the child is handling it okay, then two is fine. ETA: I forgot all about EPGY...my daughter completed this, also. :o

 

Good luck. :)

Edited May 27, 2010 by fractalgal

[Aoife]

I may be a bit newer to HSing but if your kids are not burnt out then there is no such thing as too much math! My sponge is math obsessed so we do 2 complete programs + extras and he still begs for more :lol: I haven't really used MEP that much past supplementing my DSDs but I hear it is a fabulous program! But we LOVE RS!!

[Zoo Keeper]

No, we don't use all of two math programs; we use three. I don't think everyone has to use three maths, but it works for us right now. I'm not a "mathy" person, far from it. But, I have one son who is, and another who just needs lots and lots of working at something from different angles before it sinks in. So, we combine MEP/Singapore/Miquon around here. I don't worry about trying to make the programs match up, and I also don't worry about finishing ___ book in ___ time. We spend about an hour or so on math every day. MEP is done daily, Singapore and Miquon rotate as time and topic demand. We also add in Singapore's IP and CWP.

 

Yes, it is a lot of math; but I feel my guys are getting what I never had--an understanding of the different relationships in math. There is more than one way to do it, and still get the right answer. The ability to think up, down, and across with numbers. Some folks seem to have the ability to do this naturally; the rest of us have to work at it.:) I'm finding it worth the work.

[momtolgd]

We haven't done it yet, but I'm trying to decide if I want to add Math Mammoth and Singapore CWP to CLE for next year. Not sure how it will work out.

[Beth in SW WA]

My tentative plan starting in June:

 

Dd7

 

Singapore 2

Horizons workbooks 1-2

TT3 for fun

RS games/abacus

 

Dd 6:

 

Saxon 1

Singapore 1

RS games/abacus

 

My girls seem to enjoy math & anything school'ish. Thankfully. :001_smile:

[Snowfall]

I'm glad that it's not so uncommon. I really want my DD to have a deeper understanding of math than I did growing up. I did well in math until I got to Algebra 2 in high school. At that point my problem was word problems. I could solve them correctly over 90% of the time, but I'd end up with half credit because I couldn't show my work. It always made me so angry that they just kept telling me over and over again what numbers to plug in where, but I didn't understand it, so I could never figure it out on my own. They didn't care that I could answer the questions without explaining it (which I always thought was my own brand of 'smart' back then, lol) because I couldn't write the stupid equations, so it didn't count...but I felt like it was their fault I didn't understand. I don't want that to happen to my DD, so I'd like to approach things from different ways to hopefully have a better chance of preventing that.

[Snowfall]

My girls seem to enjoy math & anything school'ish. Thankfully. :001_smile:

 

You are very lucky! My daughter is a complainer. No matter what the subject or how I cover it, she complains. I think it's because she's an extreme perfectionist, so when she isn't perfect at something she doesn't like to do it. Obviously, since education is all about learning and practicing things you don't already know or aren't already good at, it can be quite challenging for her to do her schoolwork willingly. It's very tiring sometimes. Lately I've really focused on reminding her of how much more she can do now than she could a few months ago and today she actually said, "Mom, I'm starting to like Dewey (she means Phonics Pathways) more, now that I'm getting good at it," which sort of confirmed my suspicions that the reason she complains is because she doesn't feel like she's good at something and strongly dislikes that feeling.

 

Totally OT, but your post made me think of it. :D

[parias1126]

What is MEP?

[twoxcell]

http://www.cimt.plymouth.ac.uk/projects/mep/default.htm

MEP is a math curriculum used in British schools. It is free to use and print. I just started using it with my kids, and we will be using it along with Horizons this coming year.

[5ray2006]

We use multiple programs over here. My younger ds is using Saxon Math 1 now and I will be adding in Singapore Math Standards 1A this summer. My older ds is using Teaching Textbooks 4, Math Mammoth (Blue Series) and doing worksheets only from BJU Math 3 (no teaching-use as review for TT ). We started homeschooling in January and working through the summer to finish up 3rd grade math. When our new school year starts it will look like this:

 

1st grader: Saxon Math 2, Singapore 1A/1B, RS Math games

4th grader: Saxon Math 5/4, Math Mammoth 4, RS Math games

[Violet Crown]

With middle dd we use the Key To series, and concurrently we use Standard Service Arithmetics. The former is for math at her level; the latter is for practicing arithmetic--not so much "drill" as techniques for developing speed and accuracy in number-crunching.

 

In addition, she has "Daddy math" time with no curriculum but dh's brain.

[sagira]

We're using Math Mammoth and Miquon. We switched from MCP, but kept Miquon as a discovery math with rods. So far I'm impresssed with MM, and I'm working through 3A myself to review and eventually go all the way to algebra (Foerster).

 

If ds will need more challenging practice with word problems, I would consider buying Singapore CWP.

Edited May 27, 2010 by sagira
CWP

[jen_white]

:001_huh: I think if you have one good math program (we've always used Saxon) then there is no need to supplement. If you feel like you program is lacking, then I'd say it's time to start looking for a new math program. ;)

[Snickerdoodle]

:)

Edited May 27, 2010 by Snickerdoodle

[melmichigan]

We now use MUS, SM and then CLE in place of drill. All are the complete programs. :)

[fractalgal]

:001_huh: I think if you have one good math program (we've always used Saxon) then there is no need to supplement. If you feel like you program is lacking, then I'd say it's time to start looking for a new math program. ;)

 

It's great that you are satisfied with Saxon. I am a fan of the early elementary levels of it, and I like the middle levels for a review curriculum.

 

For us it is sometimes helpful to see concepts presented from a different angle, and I far prefer the problem solving approach in Singapore to Saxon.

[Karenciavo]

For us it is sometimes helpful to see concepts presented from a different angle,...

 

Yes. This is why we do two complete math programs (Horizons and Singapore.) We spend approx. 45 minutes a day on math including games, flash cards, timed sheets, and teaching. All these items are not completed every day. At this stage anyway, my ds7 is able to complete both programs in less than a year. I loosely line them up, I'll go back and forth and maybe skip a section to save it for later, but I don't spend a whole of of time planning that out.

 

Next school year I look forward to adding LOF, but I'm not quite sure how that's going to work out. :tongue_smilie:

[Greta]

I just wanted to thank everyone because I've really enjoyed this thread. We were using MEP, and a friend recently loaned me her Math on the Level. I really, really liked it, she didn't want it any more, so I bought it from her. I'm *very* impressed with MOTL, but I also feel like I don't want to give up MEP, because I still love it, and think dd benefits from it. So, it was nice to read about people successfully combining two or even three math programs.

 

I was trying to figure out how exactly I would "align" the two, or mesh them together. Interesting to hear that many of you don't attempt that - you just go through both programs straight through.

 

I want to use both of these programs, not because I feel either one is incomplete, but precisely because I think they are both such strong and thorough programs! I also think it really helps my dd to see problems presented in different formats, and to practice different ways of approaching problems.

 

Anyway, just wanted to say thanks, because I've gotten mentally energized from this thread. :D

[Tonia]

We use two programs - RightStart and Horizons. I don't use the teacher's manuals for Horizons, it's more of a supplement. I have dd do a worksheet a day through the summer and I occasionally put the worksheets in her daily work folder. She loves the games and interaction she gets with RS and she loves the color and 'workbooky' feel of Horizons, so they both work for us.

[Leila4kids]

I've used two math programs throughout the years for various reasons, most of which have been mentioned. This year, I had my 5th grade dd in MM, and she got bogged down (read, it's not fun enough) so I borrowed TT6 from a friend. She loves it! But I am one of those who finds TT doesn't explain the "why" of the process, just the step by step. So, I have been flipping back and forth between the two, either using the TT as an intro, or as a brief review. I have her just do the lesson problems for the new concept in TT if I've already taught it in MM. I do like the review that's built into TT. For us, it has been great - she looks forward to doing math on the computer maybe 2x/week, and I have found it easy and fun to figure out how to dovetail the lessons!

Leila in WI

[Snowfall]

:001_huh: I think if you have one good math program (we've always used Saxon) then there is no need to supplement. If you feel like you program is lacking, then I'd say it's time to start looking for a new math program. ;)

 

If you read the math threads in this forum, you'll find that many (perhaps even most, but I'm not sure about that) of the posters here use more than one curriculum. It seems that most people just supplement with one, rather than use 2 (or more) complete programs, but using more than one curriculum in one way or another is very common. As GretaLynne said, it's not that I feel that either of the programs we're using is lacking - it's precisely because I feel they're both so solid. IMO math isn't like some topics. It's not like recognizing parts of speech, where you either do or you don't. There are many ways to approach math and I want my kids to know more than just the one way that any particular curriculum covers. :001_smile:

 

Even if we drop RS next year, we're just going to replace it with MM and keep doing MEP. It's not like we're spending hours a day on math. In fact, from what I've heard about Saxon, we're probably spending the same amount of time doing RS B and MEP 1 as we would be doing only Saxon 1, and a good portion of that time is spent playing games.

[Beth in SW WA]

Yes. This is why we do two complete math programs (Horizons and Singapore.) We spend approx. 45 minutes a day on math including games, flash cards, timed sheets, and teaching. All these items are not completed every day. At this stage anyway, my ds7 is able to complete both programs in less than a year. I loosely line them up, I'll go back and forth and maybe skip a section to save it for later, but I don't spend a whole of of time planning that out.

 

Next school year I look forward to adding LOF, but I'm not quite sure how that's going to work out. :tongue_smilie:

 

Hi Karen,

 

It's encouraging to know that you are doing this w/ your 7-year-old and that you don't get hung up on aligning everything.

 

I'm curious how closely you follow the Horizons TM. I own Hor 1 & 2 and will be starting it soon w/ dd 7. She's not ready for Hor 2 even though she just finished Saxon 1. I'm hoping by fall she'll be ready for Hor 2.

 

Thanks!

[abbeyej]

My son used Horizons and Singapore. There were times when I cut out individual exercises or problems within an exercise, but essentially he did both programs. (We started Singapore with 2b for him, if I recall correctly, so before that he just did Horizons.) We also did daily drill practice (~5 minutes) for much of that time. We threw in other supplements on occasion too: RS card games, Zaccaro's Challenge Math, Number Devil, etc...

 

My daughter is so far mostly using Horizons and just supplementing Singapore a bit. She needs more math, but it takes her a lot longer to get the work done (or did til recently), so I haven't pushed it with her. This fall though, I plan to be doing both programs more completely.

 

I do think that the breadth of coverage and constant practice in Horizons is a great complement to the depth of coverage and mental math in Singapore.

[Karenciavo]

Hi Karen,

 

It's encouraging to know that you are doing this w/ your 7-year-old and that you don't get hung up on aligning everything.

 

I'm curious how closely you follow the Horizons TM. I own Hor 1 & 2 and will be starting it soon w/ dd 7. She's not ready for Hor 2 even though she just finished Saxon 1. I'm hoping by fall she'll be ready for Hor 2.

 

Thanks!

 

When he started Horizons 3 back in April it was the first time I went without the TM, I used it for H1 and H2. I liked using the manual, when I remembered to use it, but those times were becoming few and far between so I dropped it. One thing that annoys me about Horizons though, and someone please correct me if I'm wrong, you can only get the S&S in the TM or for a fee from AO. It's a very small fee ($2.50?), but still :glare: one of the little things in life that annoy me.* :lol: Long story short is I think the TM is helpful, but I wasn't following it closely so I figured why bother. I still use the Singapore HIG though. And like Abbeyej's son, my son doesn't do every single Horizons problem, I mean he doesn't need to still be drawing a line from a word to a matching shape or a word to a number, etc. So we skip some stuff. He usually does 3 or more lessons a day with one or two things crossed out per lesson.

 

*Hey, I actually just found a free copy of the S&S on Timberdoodle.

Edited May 30, 2010 by Karenciavo

[Amy+2]

Yes, we use 2 programs.

 

Horizons and Shiller Kit 2

 

When they were K-2, I used A Beka and Shiller Kit 1, but after completing that, I got the math itch and tried a few other curriculums. Noticing that we were no longer advancing, I went back to the earlier combo, well, I guess I did change from A Beka to Horizons instead. The Shiller is my favorite part though. I LOVE incorporating the Montessori feel into our day, and my kids love it too! I align the Shiller lessons via the TOC to match the Horizons. To me, it is the best of both worlds!

[Beth in SW WA]

My tentative plan starting in June:

 

Dd7

 

Singapore 2

Horizons workbooks 1-2

TT3 for fun

RS games/abacus

 

Dd 6:

 

Saxon 1

Singapore 1

RS games/abacus

 

My girls seem to enjoy math & anything school'ish. Thankfully. :001_smile:

 

Updating this from last spring....

 

I love the hybrid approach of using multiple compete math programs. It really works. They get math from different angles and methods. No one is bored at all -- and even asks for more. No complaints here.

 

Dd6 is moving successfully through a combo of:

 

Singapore 1 A/B

RS B

Horizons 1 workbooks for drill & kill (I love these workbooks!)

MM blue addition, subtraction, place value & now mult (starting this week, as she just showed us last night that she can multiply just about any number under 12 by skip-counting. Who'da thunk all those skip-counting songs would work so well so fast?). :party:

 

 

Dd7 is doing:

 

Singapore 2A/B

Horizons 2 workbooks for drill & kill

MM blue place value 2, 3, mult 1, division 1

TT 4 (for lazy days or busy days :))

 

I need to fold in more RS games -- but the girls love worksheets.

 

I'm curious how others are doing.

[MeganW]

You are very lucky! My daughter is a complainer. No matter what the subject or how I cover it, she complains. I think it's because she's an extreme perfectionist, so when she isn't perfect at something she doesn't like to do it. Obviously, since education is all about learning and practicing things you don't already know or aren't already good at, it can be quite challenging for her to do her schoolwork willingly. It's very tiring sometimes. Lately I've really focused on reminding her of how much more she can do now than she could a few months ago and today she actually said, "Mom, I'm starting to like Dewey (she means Phonics Pathways) more, now that I'm getting good at it," which sort of confirmed my suspicions that the reason she complains is because she doesn't feel like she's good at something and strongly dislikes that feeling.

 

Totally OT, but your post made me think of it. :D

 

Somebody here made a comment once that has made all the difference in the world for my perfectionist. "You have to try something 10 times before you get it." My kid loves knowing that I expect her not to get it immediately. She especially loves it that she usually gets it in less than 10, so she feels like she has done better than expected! :)

[happyhappyjoyjoy]

I use RS B and Singapore 1. Right now RS is our spine. Singapore is our 'bookwork' in the van. He is a very 'workbook' child, and RS just didn't have enough worksheets for him. RS is awesome for everything else it has. I'm happy w/ both. I'm not using my Singapore HIG at all, since I'm teaching w/ RS, so I don't know if I'd call what I'm doing with Singapore a 'complete program.'

[femke]

We use both CLE and MEP. Because we 'school' year round, we can do one lesson CLE every other day, one lesson MEP the other day. It works great! Getting the best from both approaches.

[MissKNG]

Singapore Math and Horizons here!

[Snowfall]

Somebody here made a comment once that has made all the difference in the world for my perfectionist. "You have to try something 10 times before you get it." My kid loves knowing that I expect her not to get it immediately. She especially loves it that she usually gets it in less than 10, so she feels like she has done better than expected! :)

 

That's a great idea! Thanks for sharing. :)

 

I guess I should update our situation, too. Once we got back into doing RS full time, it was too much for DD to do both RS and MEP on a daily basis. She didn't like playing the RS games (hates them, in fact) and we reached a point where MEP was just frustrating her way, way too much. That puzzle aspect that some kids really like just makes her angry. Now we're doing RS B with Horizons 1 workbooks (not the lesson plans from Horizons, though). Plus I have the Math Mammoth blue series book on measurement which has led me to the conclusion that I either need to purchase the MM light blue series or the complete MM blue series...but I can't decide!!! :tongue_smilie: I still occasionally pull an MEP worksheet if it looks fun, and I've also used the free Indian math worksheets from NCERT. DD needs much more review of facts than RS gives for a kid who doesn't like the games.

[Cindyz]

We are using two as well. Singapore in our spine which I teach. My husband does MEP with him. It works out very well that way. I then supplement with Math Mammoth just pulling topics that I feel he could use extra practice. For instance in Singapore right now we are working on length, weight and capacity so I will give him some MM addition and subtraction because I don't want him to forget it all. He does Miquon sometimes in the evenings for fun. We also play RightStart games here and there.

 

In the last month we have done 4 hours and 10 minutes of Math Mammoth, 3 hours and 10 minutes of MEP and 3 hours and 25 minutes of Singapore math. (Thanks Homeschool Tracker for that info) That comes out to about 33 minutes a day 5 days a week. This doesn't count the Miquon and RightStart obviously.

 

We are currently using Singapore 1A about to move to Singapore 1B and MEP 1B. When things start to become more intense, I doubt we'll be using this many programs.

[Halcyon]

We use Singapore WB, IP and CWP and MEP worksheets to supplement topics that we don't see in Singapore. We also throw in some Ray's Mental Math and other games, but those aren't "complete" math programs because we only use bits and pieces.

 

We do about 45-60 minutes of math a day.

[Guest Cheryl in SoCal]

Updating this from last spring....

 

I love the hybrid approach of using multiple compete math programs. It really works. They get math from different angles and methods. No one is bored at all -- and even asks for more. No complaints here.

 

Dd6 is moving successfully through a combo of:

 

Singapore 1 A/B

RS B

Horizons 1 workbooks for drill & kill (I love these workbooks!)

MM blue addition, subtraction, place value & now mult (starting this week, as she just showed us last night that she can multiply just about any number under 12 by skip-counting. Who'da thunk all those skip-counting songs would work so well so fast?). :party:

 

 

Dd7 is doing:

 

Singapore 2A/B

Horizons 2 workbooks for drill & kill

MM blue place value 2, 3, mult 1, division 1

TT 4 (for lazy days or busy days :))

 

I need to fold in more RS games -- but the girls love worksheets.

 

I'm curious how others are doing.

I totally agree!! For us it's not really about completeness of a program but more about learning math through more than one method/perspective. It's so beneficial to learn more than one way of doing things! I've also found that doing more than one program doesn't take twice a long because they are expanding on what they have already learned.

[Snowfall]

Who'da thunk all those skip-counting songs would work so well so fast?). :party:

 

I forgot to ask what skip counting songs you were talking about. I know there is an MUS skip counting CD, but that's all I know of. Is that what you have or something else? I need it - DD gets hung up on skip counting in the teens. I don't really know why, but she says, "2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17..." or "5, 10, 15, 16, 17, 18..." If I jump in and say the correct next number she's fine, but if I just let her go she'll start counting by ones whenever she hits the teens, every single time. At least she's consistent. :lol:

[Dinsfamily]

I totally agree!! For us it's not really about completeness of a program but more about learning math through more than one method/perspective. It's so beneficial to learn more than one way of doing things! I've also found that doing more than one program doesn't take twice a long because they are expanding on what they have already learned.

 

:iagree: I originally started doing two math programs with my oldest because he was so advanced and I wanted to slow him down while broadening his knowledge instead of speeding through levels. Now that we're into it, I see the benefits for all of my dc. I now plan to use the Singapore/CWP/Miquon/Horizons combo with all of them adjusting the pace and workload as needed. I'm not sure if my others will use Zaccaro's Primary Challenge Math but I'll keep it on the shelf once ds6 is finished.

Edited November 13, 2010 by Dinsfamily
Adding info

[Tress]

This thread isn't energizing me like a previous poster mentioned, it is giving me a nervous breakdown :tongue_smilie:. Well, almost :D.

 

I'm not yet convinced that it is necessary to use two programs, but even if I were convinced.... How do you do it????

 

I'm using SM 2A with my just-turned-7yo, she has no problem understanding the material, but it is already a problem to make her do the reviews or the majority of the exercises. She gets really stubborn and resisting to everything she perceives as 'too easy'. Even using the IP books is a problem because the first part of the chapter is 'too easy' (tantrum), the next part is comparable, so 'I already did this' (whine) and the challenging part is...well, challenging and she would rather read a book :D. The idea of adding another program... makes *me* ready to throw a tantrum :lol:. What am I missing?? Do all your children just LOVE math?

 

 

ETA: while rereading this, I'm starting to think that maybe I should really speed math up for her, no reviews, only part of the exercises. Mmmmm. I'm such a box checker myself and I have trouble understanding why she can't just zip through the exercises if they are easy, but maybe that's more of a public school mentality that she just not has. Sorry for polluting this thread.

Edited November 13, 2010 by Tress

[Dinsfamily]

This thread isn't energizing me like a previous poster mentioned, it is giving me a nervous breakdown :tongue_smilie:. Well, almost :D.

 

I'm not yet convinced that it is necessary to use two programs, but even if I were convinced.... How do you do it????

 

I'm using SM 2A with my just-turned-7yo, she has no problem understanding the material, but it is already a problem to make her do the reviews or the majority of the exercises. She gets really stubborn and resisting to everything she perceives as 'too easy'. Even using the IP books is a problem because the first part of the chapter is 'too easy' (tantrum), the next part is comparable, so 'I already did this' (whine) and the challenging part is...well, challenging and she would rather read a book :D. The idea of adding another program... makes *me* ready to throw a tantrum :lol:. What am I missing?? Do all your children just LOVE math?

 

 

ETA: while rereading this, I'm starting to think that maybe I should really speed math up for her, no reviews, only part of the exercises. Mmmmm. I'm such a box checker myself and I have trouble understanding why she can't just zip through the exercises if they are easy, but maybe that's more of a public school mentality that she just not has. Sorry for polluting this thread.

 

My ds does just love math but I'm interested in others' answers as I add in future students. He does balk at easy stuff which is usually in Horizons. My standard answer to that is that if it is easy, you should be able to finish quickly. I do make him do every problem in Singapore and Miquon but not all of each Horizons lesson. He only does a few problems from concepts he's already mastered.

[Tress]

My standard answer to that is that if it is easy, you should be able to finish quickly.

 

Yep, that's what I have been saying, too.

 

But if I were to add for example Horizons, it will either be review (resulting in serious dragging or a tantrum) or it will introduce something new, making that specific topic in SM review. Either way, I would expect a lot of opposition....but I'm not seeing that in the posts on this thread :confused:. Maybe I just have a weird kid :D.

 

(BTW, she is a sweet girl, really. She does not give me any problems other than that I have a hard time finding the right level of challenge. And every time I think I have found it, we zoom along for a couple of weeks/months and then it changes again.)

[Snowfall]

LOL! My dd alternates between loving and hating math. That's why I dropped MEP. Once we got to numbers over 10, the puzzles were just too much for her. It wasn't fun anymore and I didn't want her to hate math just because she didn't like the MEP puzzles. I think over next summer we'll go back and hit that again with MEP, since it should be easier for her then.

[Spy Car]

No, we don't use all of two math programs; we use three. I don't think everyone has to use three maths, but it works for us right now. I'm not a "mathy" person, far from it. But, I have one son who is, and another who just needs lots and lots of working at something from different angles before it sinks in. So, we combine MEP/Singapore/Miquon around here. I don't worry about trying to make the programs match up, and I also don't worry about finishing ___ book in ___ time. We spend about an hour or so on math every day. MEP is done daily, Singapore and Miquon rotate as time and topic demand. We also add in Singapore's IP and CWP.

 

Yes, it is a lot of math; but I feel my guys are getting what I never had--an understanding of the different relationships in math. There is more than one way to do it, and still get the right answer. The ability to think up, down, and across with numbers. Some folks seem to have the ability to do this naturally; the rest of us have to work at it.:) I'm finding it worth the work.

 

We use the same three, Miquon, Singapore (with IPs and CWPs) and MEP (and a few other things thrown in as well).

 

I love how Miquon serves a concrete introduction to the whole-parts math method found in Singapore, how it turns on a young mind to math with fun and age appropriate tools, and deeply appreciate the teachers materials that inspire me to explicitly bring the logic of the laws of mathematics in to my son's work in a way he understands and can use in his problem solving.

 

Singapore serves as or "spine" and supplies the "method."

 

And MEP provides the cognitive challenge of taking lessons learned to another level.

 

I love this combo.

 

Bill

[MissKNG]

Either way, I would expect a lot of opposition....but I'm not seeing that in the posts on this thread :confused:. Maybe I just have a weird kid :D.

 

 

 

I see opposition when my big girl gets bored. Yes, if it's easy, it should be done quickly but if I'm not going to make her do 15 addition problems on the page when she can easily do/understand the first 5. I get the opposition when we hit problem #6.

 

With Singapore, we do pretty much all of the problems and with Horizons, we do a lot of compacting. We also dabble in MEP but mainly for the puzzle stuff. We also use CWP.

[Dinsfamily]

Yep, that's what I have been saying, too.

 

But if I were to add for example Horizons, it will either be review (resulting in serious dragging or a tantrum) or it will introduce something new, making that specific topic in SM review. Either way, I would expect a lot of opposition....but I'm not seeing that in the posts on this thread :confused:. Maybe I just have a weird kid :D.

 

(BTW, she is a sweet girl, really. She does not give me any problems other than that I have a hard time finding the right level of challenge. And every time I think I have found it, we zoom along for a couple of weeks/months and then it changes again.)

 

Just thinking out loud with you... Maybe you are going too slow with her. Math got much better for us this year when we got to harder topics. My ds has gone through Singapore PM 1A-2B + CWP, Horizons K-2, and Miquon Orange-Blue since we started Kindy last year and is still keeping that pace. His attitude has improved tremendously as we've advanced conceptually. I now realize that I started him too low. He hadn't had any formal math before then and I had no idea he was so math-intuitive. He has loved Miquon and Singapore from the beginning but Horizons was torture at first. We ended up accelerating quickly through K and 1 and the whining disappeared when we got to the second half of Horizons 2. Like I said, I don't make him do all the problems in Horizons. I use Singapore as our teaching math and Horizons as review. Once he had quick recall on his addition and subtraction facts, I would only make him do 2-4 addition/subtraction problems in each lesson to keep the concepts fresh and all the problems on each test. Now he's into multiplication and has to do all of the multiplication problems until he has them down. In this sense, Horizons is reinforcing what we're learning in Singapore. It isn't often that Horizons teaches a major concept before Singapore. We just ran into that with time but my ds can tell time just fine so he'll finish that unit in 2 days and move on.

 

Miquon is great for challenging dc and might be a good fit for you. It presents concepts in different ways and much sooner before other curricula. My ds loves that he can explore fractions in-depth, find factors, etc. He does it independently (with me alongside to expand on a topic or point out a pattern if needed). I let him choose whatever he wants to do each day. We usually do it last as a treat after he's done his 'real' math work. Dh is always amazed when I show him what ds6 has been working on in Miquon.

[MissKNG]

Just thinking out loud with you... Maybe you are going too slow with her. Math got much better for us this year when we got to harder topics. My ds has gone through Singapore PM 1A-2B + CWP, Horizons K-2, and Miquon Orange-Blue since we started Kindy last year and is still keeping that pace. His attitude has improved tremendously as we've advanced conceptually. .

 

:iagree: My big girl is on a similar track (sub Miquon with MEP) and I can see she is getting more excited with the harder math now that we are working in SM 1b. And I have "loosen up" with Horizons 1 in regards to compacting. Now I have 10 lessons sectioned out and she is allowed to work within those lessons for about two days then we move on to the next section. That way, she is getting some new concepts and working on stuff she enjoys and also touching on the mastered stuff without overkill drill.

 

Tress- Have you used the placement tests?