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Questions for MUS users....


Kate in VA
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Okay. After watching the sample videos on their site I am very intrigued.... However.. Mr. Demme's way has kind of lit a flame on my dh temper :001_huh::D

My experience (while watching the dvd, I was :eek: cause I had a aaahhhh haa moment) I was shocked to understand some concepts that I just never got before.... However my dh thought it was neat but at the same time he is really concerned that the way he was teaching was making the kids rely the blocks.... I went on to explain that they were just a teaching tool to show the concepts and then move on to doing the problem with out them.... However I was curious about the double digit multiplication sample video because as much as I like the way he taught it (it really shows place value well .... which I never even understood) but at the same time it's such a round about way to get the answer ..... While the old school way with adding the zero is so much simpler and time saving.... does he go on in the lessons to teach this old "short cut" way? Am I over thinking this?

I just don't want to teach my child in ways like Everyday Math does.... Does that make any sense? ... I'm just rambling now :lol:

THanks

Edited by Kate in VA
correcting
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Guest Cheryl in SoCal

Steve teaches the round about ways so the child understands math. They don't use the round about ways very long and don't become dependent on the blocks. One of the signs whether or not the child has mastered the lesson is whether they can do the work without the blocks.

 

I've used MUS from Alpha through Algebra 1 (we're currently using Geometry). My older crew were in 5th and 6th grade when we started (I took them all the way back to Alpha because their math foundation was so poor) and they never used the blocks (probably because they were older). My next child is 7 and currently in Alpha. She uses the blocks at first but doesn't move on to the next lesson until she has mastered the material and doesn't need the blocks.

 

I LOVE MUS and now actually understand math!! I knew it was for our family when my kids learned (as in actually understood) more watching the demo than they had in all the previous years of school.

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Mr. Demme really wants kids to understand the importance of place value which is why he shows multiple digit multiplication this way. He also explains that there often is more than one way to solve a math problem. Having said that, he does go on to show a more "traditional" way of multiplication. My son understood both but preferred to use the "traditional" method. That's the beauty of it...giving the child multiple ways to solve a problem and letting them go with what makes most sense to them.

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my kids stopped using the blocks sometime during beta- my dd8 is finishing beta and uses them sometimes.

 

Some of his teaching is an "aha" moment for me, and some of it doesn't make sense to me or seems, uh.."klunky" I guess..so when that happens, I will also teach my kids the way I was taught to do it, and I let them pick which way they want to work it.

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I agree, Steve Demme is AMAZING! I've understood a lot from him than I ever did from my public school experiences. :) My youngest is VERY visual and Alpha's working very well for her. My other kids had been in public school where they were taught to take 8 blocks and 5 blocks and then count them vs MUS's comparison to 10. I LOVE IT! My 6 yr old understands place value than many 3 or 4th graders. It's great!

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My son HATES math. Math-U-See is the only way he will learn. I tried Singapore because of all the rave reviews, but it was awful for him, and we started from scratch with MUS Alpha last year. We're on lesson 4 in Gamma this week, so we've only just finished Beta. Last week when we were in the car, he added up all the cash that he had in his pocket (mentally!) and came up with $2.56. Then he said he wanted to purchase something he'd seen for $1.29 the previous week. I didn't bother mentioning tax, and he figured out all by himself - again mentally - how much change he would get if he bought the item in question. Blew me away. So they definitely don't get stuck on the blocks. He did break them out to understand the concept of multiplication in the first couple lessons of Gamma, but he's already doing the math in his head.

 

The only thing I haven't enjoyed has been the songs on the skip counting CD, but I just bought my own from another source, one that the kids have loved, and so far Gamma has been fun.

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I love-love-love MUS. There have been MANY concepts that I only understand now, as an adult, through Mr. Demme's instruction. Frankly, I'm grateful for it too, as I always felt like a real idiot in math.

 

My kids have been using MUS for years. They are not block-dependent at all. In fact, they don't use them much at all. They both seemed to outgrow them somewhere in Beta??? They do, however, appreciate seeing the examples Mr. Demme gives using the blocks--it's a simple visual that makes abstract concepts more tangible.

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I do find that he usually teaches the long way around, for the understanding and then comes back and teaches the tips and tricks. I really enjoy that about the program except for with fractions. I had to jump ahead and teach some things like reducing, because I felt it was just too cumbersome. My husband also jumped in and taught fractions a bit differently. But my son has a very good understanding of fractions now, so I can't complain too much. ;)

 

And I also agree with pps that my kids usually drop the blocks in gamma. I am glad he still uses them to demonstrate on the videos.

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eep! we still use blocks in epsilon for one of my children

 

she just "gets it" with the blocks, but we are weaning, so she can go to the grocery store also! ha ha ha

 

btw, MUS made my children the state say, were "special ed" and non learners, get math and excel at it! My 12 year old is doing pre-algebra come January and says these words, Math is Easy!!!

 

Thank you Steve, with your ink stained fingers!!

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