If you feel like you need to hold a child back/repeat a subject...

[KrissiK]

Do you change curriculum? Just slow down? Today was a bad day in math for my poor, sweet sensitive 6 year old ds. he is not a mathy person, and he has the misfortune of having an older brother who whizzes through math. I lost it. Everything. My patience, my temper, I just said, "I can't work with you anymore, do it yourself!" when he couldn't figure out counting by 2's even on a number line, and we've been skip counting all year. He has had the worst trouble skip counting...5's, 10's, 2's, he just doesn't get it. Anyhow, I'm not making the decision yet, but it has crossed my mind to perhaps have him repeat 1st grade math next year. We're doing A Beka right now. I don't want to repeat A Beka, he would not do well in Singapore at all. Maybe MUS? Anyone? Anyone?

[trying my best]

RightStar would have a lot of hands on manipulative that he can play and see how math works?

[GaHadley]

Isn't there a skip counting song somewhere? May be that would help?

[Amy Jo]

My first try would be to supplement what he needs, whether that be a game, memory work, a second/detour curriculum. If math is such a sore point right now, I'd back off for a week and play some games. Or you can keep going, but maybe drop to 1/2 pace. Older math books on Google books can be a free way to get more word problems or drill.

 

If you decide to redo the year's curriculum, then I'd choose something different.

[EKS]

I recommend RightStart. I wouldn't tell him he is repeating 1st grade math. Fortunately, RS doesn't label by grade level.

[Joyofsixreboot]

I am having my 4th grader repeat 3rd grade grammar. It is just not how he is wired. He is improving. I changed curriculum to CLE which is a much better fit for him with it's constant repetition. He didn't really realize he was repeating since we changed curriculum. In the end I want him to know it and not worry about what 'grade' he is doing.

[Mommy22alyns]

Becca & I hit a wall in math and I moved her to RightStart. She's still not a mathy kid, but she really made improvements with RS. When I started her, we'd done Singapore 1A and part of 1B, but I moved back and put her in RS A. A and B have few enough lessons that you could move quickly through them if needed.

[HollyB]

I think there are a few skip counting songs on youtube. Maybe one of them will stick with him.

[NanceXToo]

I would definitely slow down/back off/make things more fun and light-hearted... play games, talk, use manipulatives, sing songs (like the skip counting songs mentioned, like marching around the room banging on some toy drums while you do it...have FUN).

 

I would make extra, doubly sure I never "lost it" like that with him again, because the VERY last thing you want to do is give him a sense of "I'm stupid, I'm no good at math," because when a kid has that sense it can last FOREVER. And Mommy getting really frustrated can give exactly that sense.

 

If you do continue with whatever curriculum you are doing, you need to know your own warning signs of when you are getting frustrated/impatient and BEFORE it gets to the point where he might sense that, you need to say in a positive, light-hearted manner, "Okay, I think we did enough of this for today, want to play a game?" Or something to keep things moving in a positive direction.

 

He's still really young, and I'm kind of in the relaxed/gentle approach camp for the really young ones and think there's much to be said for the "Better Late Than Early" approach and so on. So, yeah, maybe just ease up some.

[FairProspects]

Maybe I'm way off base, but is skip-counting really essential to passing 1st grade math?

 

I mean, sure, you want him to be familiar with skip counting as a concept (which it sounds like he is), but my 6 y.o. doesn't consistently get skip counting all the time either. We keep revisiting it as a skill to work on, but I'm pretty sure it is developmental, and I'm not going to hold him stagnant in math over one concept that needs some work. Its going to get re-taught and practiced in next year's math anyway, right?

 

Is it just that or are there other signs of difficulty that make you think more is needed? Because if it were me and it is just the skip-counting, I would move on and trust that at 7 or later when we do it will eventually click.

[Crimson Wife]

My DS will be doing a "transition" year between K & 1 but it isn't just because of one subject. He has a November birthday and just barely made the cutoff for K (it's 12/2 here). He is reading (which is why I decided to start him on K) but not yet writing. He's been working through HWOT Pre-K and I hope to get him started on HWOT K later this spring. And he wasn't ready for Right Start A back in August when I tried. So I had him fly through MEP Reception (a pre-K program) and now he's slowly working through MEP Yr. 1 and RS A plus a lot of hands-on math activities.

 

I'm planning on continuing the same curricula because they do seem to be working. He's made a lot of progress over the past 6 months. I just don't think that he's going to be ready for 1st grade work by August. And with a boy, I think I'd rather have him be on the older side for his grade rather than being on the young side.

[Bloggermom]

I would put your child in Dreambox Learning. It has made such a huge difference for my almost 6 year old.

[KrissiK]

I would make extra, doubly sure I never "lost it" like that with him again, because the VERY last thing you want to do is give him a sense of "I'm stupid, I'm no good at math," because when a kid has that sense it can last FOREVER. And Mommy getting really frustrated can give exactly that sense.

 

Oh, you can bet I learned my lesson. I was just sick. I didn't say anything like, "you are so...." whatever, but my frustration with him was very evident. I'm know my reaction didn't make him feel very good at all. I apologized and we worked out the rest of the lesson together (skipping the part we were struggling with) after a break.

[Random]

I am fairly sure my ds will be repeating most of his 2nd grade material. He just doesn't get most of what I'm trying to teach him. My plan is to use something different the second time, so he doesn't feel like he's repeating anything. Also, I'm hoping a different approach might be more understandable for him. My son is also very sensitive.

 

I have also lost my temper with my son. :grouphug: We both cried. I'm ashamed I lost my temper, but I apologized to him, and he forgave me. We both moved on.

 

Best wishes to you!

[Targhee]

The beauty (and one of my biggest reasons) of homeschooling is to teach each subject at their level (above, at, or below average). I would switch methods. I like the idea of Rightstart level B, both because I really like RightStart (reaches all modalities, semi-scripted, very little prep, fun "drill", etc) but also because of the level labeling. Our K foundation in Righstart carried oldest DD through some crappy public school math programs (Everyday Math) for three years!

[justamouse]

I would definitely slow down/back off/make things more fun and light-hearted... play games, talk, use manipulatives, sing songs (like the skip counting songs mentioned, like marching around the room banging on some toy drums while you do it...have FUN).

 

I would make extra, doubly sure I never "lost it" like that with him again, because the VERY last thing you want to do is give him a sense of "I'm stupid, I'm no good at math," because when a kid has that sense it can last FOREVER. And Mommy getting really frustrated can give exactly that sense.

 

If you do continue with whatever curriculum you are doing, you need to know your own warning signs of when you are getting frustrated/impatient and BEFORE it gets to the point where he might sense that, you need to say in a positive, light-hearted manner, "Okay, I think we did enough of this for today, want to play a game?" Or something to keep things moving in a positive direction.

 

He's still really young, and I'm kind of in the relaxed/gentle approach camp for the really young ones and think there's much to be said for the "Better Late Than Early" approach and so on. So, yeah, maybe just ease up some.

:iagree::iagree:

 

There is a book about real life math for kids. It's downstairs, but it's good with stuff like this. I'll look it up tomorrow. :D

 

Sometimes their brains just aren't ready and you need to idle. I see no reason to 'stay back' a year if you're going slow enough in the first place. So if he's stuck, just idle for a bit and wait for his maturity to catch up. In the mean time play some mathy games and use manipulatives. Set the table together and count silverware by twos.

 

And forgive yourself. We all do it. That's how you learn where your line is.

[ElizabethB]

Maybe I'm way off base, but is skip-counting really essential to passing 1st grade math?

 

:iagree:

 

And, I don't think so.

 

Actually, skip counting may be more helpful to students who are not good at math.

 

I know several boys who are good at math and intrinsically get math concepts but cannot skip count.

 

While I have only a small sample size (a bit bigger than just my children, though, I have worked with a few additional students for math), so far of the students I have worked with, every student who is good at math cannot get skip counting and every student who is not naturally good at math has been able to learn skip counting fairly easily and has found it helpful.

[NanceXToo]

Oh, you can bet I learned my lesson. I was just sick. I didn't say anything like, "you are so...." whatever, but my frustration with him was very evident. I'm know my reaction didn't make him feel very good at all. I apologized and we worked out the rest of the lesson together (skipping the part we were struggling with) after a break.

 

I'm sure you did! And I hope I didn't come across like I was trying to guilt trip you. Actually, I was just thinking of the sense *I* have had MY whole life of being no good at math. It's a really hard thing to get rid of once you've labeled yourself that way or somebody else has made you feel that way.

[Pam Wilhelm]

I had my 5th grade girls go all the way back to MUS Alpha....we progressed very, very quickly. I also threw in Math-It, which I think had the greater impact. Sometime during that review year the skies parted and the light dawned........... about a year and a half later they are both pretty darn good in math.

 

We have since switched from MUS to Saxon and all is right with the world.

[In The Great White North]

Maybe I'm way off base, but is skip-counting really essential to passing 1st grade math?

 

I don't remember ever even hearing of skip-counting til my dc started in a Waldorf school. They did endless skip-counting, marching around the room, jump-roping, tossing beanbags, etc.

 

I definitely didn't do any. Ever.

 

And it took me less time to memorize the multiplication tables (probably because I had the idea that I had to memorize them, whereas the dc were assuming that with enough "play" it would require no effort.)

 

It's worth the time, at this stage, to figure out his learning style. It will make life much easier over the next few years if you know how to make things "click."

[KrissiK]

It's worth the time, at this stage, to figure out his learning style. It will make life much easier over the next few years if you know how to make things "click."

 

Yes, this is what I'm trying to do. I'm certainly not thinking about holding him back because he can't skip-count.:D It was just the issue of the day. He's just one of my kids who I've had a hard time trying to figure out his learning style and I'm really struggling. He does well in reading, spelling, language arts type of thing. His hand-writing is atrocious, although unlike a lot of kids who struggle with hand-writing, he doesn't mind writing at all. It's not a fight. He'll write anything, quite cheerfully. You just can't read it. I'll pick a letter every once in a while that I want him to work on, lately it's been "e" and we'll work on that. Anyhow, he's a mystery to me, but honestly, he's the sweetest, most cheerful child I've ever enountered and that's why I just hated myself all day for making him cry during math. He got lots of laptime from a guilty feeling mom!;)

[Roxy Roller]

I did Abeka with my DD from K4 to 3rd Grade, and then we hit a wall. During her 3rd Grade year, we went through 3 math programs and finally settled on MUS. I also switched my oldest son at the same time, and he was in 1st Grade. We had to do math through the summer, so that we could start the 4th Grade/2nd Grade book in the fall. I do not regret that decision.

 

I would try to take a break first and see that works, and if it doesn't, you still have time to switch to something else and work through the summer to start your next level in the fall.

[abbeyej]

I'll third (fourth? fifth?) RightStart for him. I'd switch now, rather than waiting though. He'll move on to the next grade in school, whatever happens in math. But you just stick with math at his pace (and perhaps a little extra math-TLC). As long as he's making steady progress, that's okay. But really, I'd strongly recommend using RS with him...

[jvenice]

It sounds like you need a hands on, manipulative based, mastery program. We have had great success with MUS b/c we go back to where it didn't 'click' and move from there. It's relatively inexpensive and having a DVD lesson once a week (or faster if you can) takes some of the pressure off of both of you. Don't be too hard on yourself. There is no classroom teacher who would take the time and effort with your child than you do. One of my teacher friends had luck with Hershey kisses...make it fun (not a Pavlovian thing) just fun for both of you. I'm sure you have tried so many ways...

[abbeyej]

Oh, you can bet I learned my lesson. I was just sick.

 

I got that from your first post. ... We all have parenting moments we wish we could take back. I bet you'll be on your guard against that mistake again.