Math in Focus: The Singapore Approach

[Country Girl]

Has anyone used this or know anything about it? I just got my new RR catalog and this was in there and looked interesting. They have a really long review in their catalog but I can't find one on their website to link to but I did find some info on the publisher's website: http://www.greatsource.com/singaporemath/index.html

 

Thanks!

[dsmama]

Yes, I am using this right now as a supplement to Singapore. I just bought the workbooks, as the TMs are prohibitively expensive. The order of topics is close to Singapore US ED, though with a few switches. For example, Weight is in 1B in MIF verses 1A in USEd.

 

You can go to the virtual sample site at http://hmheducation.com/virtualsampling/vs_registration/na/vs/mathinfocus/

 

You'll need to register (FREE) and then you'll get an e-mail with the password. I found this helpful to look at stuff.

[Country Girl]

dsmama~ Thanks for the feedback. How would you compare MIF to SM? Since you are using it as a supplement, does that mean you don't feel it is complete on its own?

 

Also, thanks for the link to the virtual sample. I've looked at a few pages quickly but am hoping to spend some more time looking over the program.

 

Thanks!

[dsmama]

Hi! Yes, I bought it as a supplement this spring, because my DD needed extra practice in math. Yes, I could have bought the IP from Singapore, but I thought something similar but yet different would be appealing to her and me.

 

I haven't looked into buying it as a full curriculum, mostly because of the price of the TMs -- the HIG for Singapore is about 1/4 the price -- and because I was able to get the HIGs and texts for this year and next at a nice discount (used). But I can see how one could use the MIF books to make a complete curriculum. There is a lot of focus on word problems, and each chapter has a review, which is more than what is in Singapore.

 

As I said, a few things are out of order. But I like having a different book for her to do and the extra practice. Also, the pictures of money in MIF are much more realistic than in Singapore, which is helping us right now as we study money.

 

Hope this helps.

[Country Girl]

Thanks again! From the description in the RR catalog and the few sample pages I've looked at, I'm wondering if I could get away with not buying the TM. It seems like most of the teaching is right in the student book which is something that really appeals to me.

 

Thanks for your feedback!

[Country Girl]

Anyone else had a chance to use this program?

[LarlaB]

Has anyone used this or know anything about it? I just got my new RR catalog and this was in there and looked interesting. They have a really long review in their catalog but I can't find one on their website to link to but I did find some info on the publisher's website: http://www.greatsource.com/singaporemath/index.html

 

Thanks!

 

I came here today to ask the same question- was up late last night looking at RR catalog and getting excited that this might be the solution for us. :)

 

It 'seems' like its intended for school use given the Houghton Mifflin publishing and high cost of text books. But I can work with that....

 

We used Singapore last year, and while I like it, there were challenges and I was looking to supplement or add on this year. After ooking thru the samples of MIF, I really like what I see....the same concepts, seemingly presented a bit differently. We may switch to MIF....

[kfeusse]

can this be used with the Standards edition??

[Country Girl]

I came here today to ask the same question- was up late last night looking at RR catalog and getting excited that this might be the solution for us. :)

 

It 'seems' like its intended for school use given the Houghton Mifflin publishing and high cost of text books. But I can work with that....

 

We used Singapore last year, and while I like it, there were challenges and I was looking to supplement or add on this year. After ooking thru the samples of MIF, I really like what I see....the same concepts, seemingly presented a bit differently. We may switch to MIF....

 

After looking at the samples, any thoughts on whether you think the TM would be necessary? It seemed to me that most of the teaching was in the student book. Suggestions for supplementing or reteaching seemed to be in the TM but I think I could do without those.

[monalisa]

I'm very interested in this too. I'm debating with sticking w/ BJU Math (see you are using that Country girl) or switching to SM. There are some similarities in how they teach. One thing I like about BJU is the TM's. The SM HIG is good, but love the colorful, well laid out BJU TM. I was confused in RR that it says "new to the Saxon Homeschool Catolog", but indeed yes it is published by the same people as Saxon, and shows up on the Saxon Homeschool website. CBD.com has samples of the student workbooks on their website that you can see (they list the tm's separately, but don't have samples yet); I can't find it on RR.

 

monalisa

Edited June 16, 2010 by monalisa

[Country Girl]

I'm very interested in this too. I'm debating with sticking w/ BJU Math (see you are using that Country girl) or switching to SM. There are some similarities in how they teach. One thing I like about BJU is the TM's. The SM HIG is good, but love the colorful, well laid out BJU TM. I was confused in RR that it says "new to the Saxon Homeschool Catolog", but indeed yes it is published by the same people as Saxon, and shows up on the Saxon Homeschool website. CBD.com has samples of the student workbooks on their website that you can see (they list the tm's separately, but don't have samples yet); I can't find it on RR.

 

monalisa

 

Funny monalisa.... I'm actually considering switching from BJU because I despise the TM :lol:. I agree that MIF looks like the teaching and strategies are similar to BJU which I really like. BJU 1-5 have worked really well for my oldest so far and I'd like to give my youngers a similar teaching style. I just hate using the TM (and so don't very often any more). I'd like to find a BJU-type program with all the teaching in the student manual and this looks close.

 

Also, the link that dsmama posted earlier in this thread has virtual samples of all the books. I haven't looked closely enough to tell for sure... but it seems the samples include most if not all of the book so you can get a very good look at the program.

 

HTH!

[Julie of KY]

It looks like it is the US edition of the My Pals are Here math from Singapore math. It is published for the school market and I had a chance to put my hands on it tonight. It looks like a fancy (in other works more expensive) version of basically the same Singapore math. I've been using the old 3rd edition and the US edition books for years now.

[Crimson Wife]

Has anybody seen the "Enrichment" books? If so, how do they compare to Primary Math Intensive Practice?

[Country Girl]

It looks like it is the US edition of the My Pals are Here math from Singapore math. It is published for the school market and I had a chance to put my hands on it tonight. It looks like a fancy (in other works more expensive) version of basically the same Singapore math. I've been using the old 3rd edition and the US edition books for years now.

 

Julie,

 

What exactly is the My Pals are Here math? Is that different from the Singapore Primary Math that so many here use?

 

Thanks!

[monalisa]

I read somewhere (RR catalog maybe?) that My Pals are Here Math is what they are currently using in Singapore.

[winoelle]

Looking at the samples it seems like maybe this adds that extra part that you are supposed to do but isn't laid out in the other books? I find the HIG for the standards edition to be pretty difficult to use, so I wonder if I would like this better.

 

Noelle

[HappyGrace]

bumping this again!

 

I saw this in RR and was excited too. We tried Singapore 1 a and b and part of 2a so far with the HIGs and I hate all the switching back and forth, etc. But I love the Singapore approach; just want it laid out better!

 

We really like MM too and that's our fallback for now, but I'd love to do MIF because we like the colorful-ness of Singapore!

 

I hope someone else chimes in with more info! Has anyone asked about it yet on the Singapore website forums? And I'm dying to know if you need the TMs or not or if it can be taught with just the books-due to expense, that would make or break the decision for me! (And yes, I am one of those who think Singapore Primary needs the HIGs to be fleshed out properly. I'm hoping the MIF doesn't need the TMs!)

[Teresa in MO]

okay, I finally got my RR catalog and have read the reviews. Looked at the samples on CBD and the greatsource website. I am really interested in this for my 1st grader. I'm just not sure which books to get. I am definitely getting the student book and workbook. From the greatsource website I am not going to order the teacher's edition. But you have extra practice, enrichment, and assessments. From the CBD website samples it looks like workbook A, which covers one semester, is over 200 pages! RR catalog said if you can't make up your mind between Primary Singapore and Math in Focus to come to a convention and look at both. I am going to the CHEF Conference in St. Louis next week, so they better have brought this for me to look at like the catalog says!!!!LOL

[winoelle]

I hope someone who has seen this IRL will post soon as I am seriously considering it. I like that there are little pictures of the pages in the students books in the TM. That would make planning much easier.

 

Noelle

[blessedmom3]

Wow ! You girls made me want to spend the 100+ for this curriculum ! I have been looking extensively at it and read the review on RR. This seems to be the perfect math curriculum ! But it's so expensive ...

[Country Girl]

Well, I was at my local HS conference this weekend and RR did not have MIF at their booth. I did speak with one of the RR representatives about the program but unfortunately, she wasn't much help. She said she had only seen the program for the first time the previous week but did say that it sounded like RR would be carrying a hs package that didn't include the TM. Also, she thought the program could be done without the TM (although it sounded like she had only quickly viewed the program so take that for what it is worth). It did sound like there was someone at RR who was the resident expert on this program so it might be worth giving them a call on Monday and seeing if I can speak to someone who is more familiar with the program.

 

Teresa, hopefully you will have better luck next weekend and RR will have a copy at their booth. Does anyone know if they are more likely to bring something to the conference if you call ahead of time and request it?

[Teresa in MO]

I am one of the organizers of our conference and have asked the RR booth if I called ahead and requested they bring something if they would. The workers told me that it is the people at the warehouse that pack the boxes and they do not even know what they are bringing until they unload the boxes. I hope they bring Math In Focus. It says in their catalog to come see it at a convention, so I'm coming and hopefully seeing!! LOL

[Country Girl]

I hope they bring Math In Focus. It says in their catalog to come see it at a convention, so I'm coming and hopefully seeing!! LOL

 

:iagree:I hope so too! I'll be anxiously waiting to hear if you get a chance to see it or not.

[5ray2006]

I spent 2 hours the other night going through the virtual samples online at the listed website. I was impressed by the color and how easy it looks to teach without the TM. I also liked the chapter reviews. I went to a local bookstore to view Singapore Math Standards and Math in Focus seems to follow the topics along in the same order with a few exceptions. We are going to try this!! I purchased from RR last night .I bought MIF K for my 4yr who is PreK age. I bought the student book A, part 1 and 2. This looks a lot better than Singapore Standards Earlybird IMO. For my rising 1st grader, I bought Student book A, workbook A, and enrichment A for grade 1. He will be using this in addition to Saxon math.( He loves math and tends to do 4-5 pgs of math per day- so I have plenty of math around for him).

 

The one thing that I really like about this curriculum is the Reteaching workbooks. These books are geared for students who need extra help understanding concepts. They clearly break the steps down so a child can understand how to do math the Singapore way. However, I didn't see them listed on the RR website. Maybe they are only sold by the publisher? I was interested in this for my oldest ds.

 

Anyway, I will try to post a review after using for a few weeks with my children.

[nmoira]

What exactly is the My Pals are Here math? Is that different from the Singapore Primary Math that so many here use?

The various incarnations of Singapore Primary Math are based on a program by that name used in Singapore from the early 80's through 2001.

 

The Singapore Math Story

 

I read somewhere (RR catalog maybe?) that My Pals are Here Math is what they are currently using in Singapore.

New math standards came into effect in the early 2000's, and the competition was introduced into the text book market. MPH Math is, I believe, the most popular of the new series, but is not the only one in use.

[HappyGrace]

Country Girl-thanks for updating us on convention! Wish you could have seen it! Please let us know if you call and get and info.

 

5ray-we'd LOVE to hear a review once you start using it! It is expensive but if I knew it could do the same job as the Standards Edition without having to deal with the HIG, it would be worth it!

[kfeusse]

Country Girl-thanks for updating us on convention! Wish you could have seen it! Please let us know if you call and get and info.

 

5ray-we'd LOVE to hear a review once you start using it! It is expensive but if I knew it could do the same job as the Standards Edition without having to deal with the HIG, it would be worth it!

 

 

I already have Singapore's HIGs..so I was wondering if I could use the MIF student books and the Singapore's HIG's...

 

Does anyone know if the grade levels are the same in both programs...if a child is in 1A in Singapore, will they be in the same in MIF?

[Kennic]

I liked the HIG's because they helped me understand the math well enough to really let my kids explore methods and approaches to a problem so that they did not rely on a set of steps. My son would come up with other approaches than I did and we would talk about the differences and his approach sometimes was better and more efficient and in advance of the level he was learning. I think it made him really learn to think mathematically than if he had been shown steps in some example problem and then given problem where he just follows those steps. But I really liked teaching him math, and I, personally, think really learning math needs a knowledgeable person to talk about ideas or get help from, not just examples in a math book (or even some talking head on a DVD or worked out examples on the computer which we tried once) and also one who has some idea of where it is all heading, not just what is at that particular level. When we used math books that gave well laid out examples followed by practice on those examples there was no incentive to explore. Of course, my son was pretty good at math to begin with and he did not really like math when things were all laid out for him, it was just boring.

[dsmama]

As someone using the MIF books right now (I have the workbooks only for 1A and 1B), I wanted to add the following:

 

-- Workbooks are not in color. They have a lot of art and are still appealing, though.

-- It might be possible to use the Singapore HIG to explain the concepts of each new unit -- teaching games, etc. -- and then use the MIF stuff. Not sure, though, but I think this could work somewhat well.

 

Good luck to those deciding!

Gwen

[winoelle]

Bumping this to see if anyone has had this in hand to look at?

 

Noelle

[Teresa in MO]

Bumping this to see if anyone has had this in hand to look at?

 

Noelle

 

I bought 1B. I have the textbook, workbook, and enrichement book. We have not started it yet, will start in August. Any specific questions, let me know.

[winoelle]

What I am wondering is how is it different from Singapore Standards or Primary? I feel like we struggle a bit with the layout and wonder if this wouldn't work better. From looking at it it seems to have more direction and examples in the text and workbook. Why did you choose it over one of the other versions?

 

Noelle

[lisabees]

What I am wondering is how is it different from Singapore Standards or Primary? I feel like we struggle a bit with the layout and wonder if this wouldn't work better. From looking at it it seems to have more direction and examples in the text and workbook. Why did you choose it over one of the other versions?

 

Noelle

 

:lurk5:

[sassenach]

Another question for anyone who has seen both, are the MIF enrichment books and Singapore intensive practice similar? I like the look of the enrichment books, and I've never seen the intensive practice books before.

 

Overall as I was looking through the samples, I feel like it is so similar to Singapore, it's not worth the huge price tag. I have most of what I need for singapore, but I may add on the MIF enrichment books.

[sassenach]

What I am wondering is how is it different from Singapore Standards or Primary? I feel like we struggle a bit with the layout and wonder if this wouldn't work better. From looking at it it seems to have more direction and examples in the text and workbook. Why did you choose it over one of the other versions?

 

Noelle

 

There is a link to the samples towards the top of this thread. When you log on to view the samples, you can literally look at every page of every MIF book.

[LarlaB]

I was looking thru MIF for a bit last night and noticed something....in SM they had all problems worked horizontally, whereas MIF had them going vertically. Might not be a big deal, but it stuck out to me because I thought one of the major differences was learning to regroup, not simply add/carry.

 

Thoughts?

[Crimson Wife]

Another question for anyone who has seen both, are the MIF enrichment books and Singapore intensive practice similar? I like the look of the enrichment books, and I've never seen the intensive practice books before.

 

:lurk5:

 

Are there samples of the MIF enrichment books online somewhere?

[dsmama]

 

Are there samples of the MIF enrichment books online somewhere?

 

Yes -- Go to the first page of this thread, and I posted a link there.

[Teresa in MO]

I have the MIF 1B textbook, workbook, and enrichment book. The enrichment book was the one thing I was disappointed in. The material in it was okay, but not for the price. The workbook is $8.95 and the enrichment book was $22. The workbook is 261 pages and the enrichment book is only 86 pages. I did not think it was worth the money and I probably will not order it again. You can see samples at RR.

[Crimson Wife]

After looking through the MIF 3A Enrichment book at the HMH site, I have to say that it looks less challenging than SM 3A IP. The questions are similar to the first level of problems in the IP book but there doesn't seem to be anything equivalent to the "take the challenge" section.

 

Typical "dumbing down" for the American market :glare:

 

Thanks for providing the link, I'm going to be skipping these...

[sassenach]

After looking through the MIF 3A Enrichment book at the HMH site, I have to say that it looks less challenging than SM 3A IP. The questions are similar to the first level of problems in the IP book but there doesn't seem to be anything equivalent to the "take the challenge" section.

 

Typical "dumbing down" for the American market :glare:

 

Thanks for providing the link, I'm going to be skipping these...

 

Thanks, that's exactly the feedback I needed.

[LarlaB]

I have the MIF 1B textbook, workbook, and enrichment book. The enrichment book was the one thing I was disappointed in. The material in it was okay, but not for the price. The workbook is $8.95 and the enrichment book was $22. The workbook is 261 pages and the enrichment book is only 86 pages. I did not think it was worth the money and I probably will not order it again. You can see samples at RR.

 

Thanks, that's helpful to know. ;)

[Literary Mom]

Cathy Duffy's review:

 

http://cathyduffyreviews.com/math/math-in-focus.htm

[winoelle]

Thanks for posting this...after all the thread discussion and poring over reviews and samples, I am going to switch when we finish my remaining materials.

 

Noelle

[Literary Mom]

Funny, this all led me to check out CLE (Christian Light Education) math, so now we're switching from A Beka (supplemented by Singapore & Horizons) to that! Of course if we finish it early, like we did last year, we'll probably add on Singapore or try this version of it, if it gets rave reviews here.