OhioMom66 Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 Hi everyone. We are in our second year of homeschooling and my daughter is 11 years old in sixth grade. In fifth grade we completed Singapore 4A, 4B, and 5A. I noticed she had a bit of a problem with the reviews, but it wasn't too bad so we kept moving on. This year so far we completed 5B and are in 6A. She is doing very poorly on the reviews. When we go over the material we do the textbook together then she completes the workbook. She does very well on her workbook problems, but when it comes to the review she doesn't fully remember some of the concepts. Sometimes I grade it then give it back to her to work on the ones she missed, allowing her to use her current and old books to figure it out. Other times I grade it then we sit together and work the problems she missed. It seems to me she needs more practice on the concepts before we move on, although the work comes easy to her as we do it. Something is not sticking. We have not purchased any of the Intensive practice books. Should we back up and do some of those from level 5?? Any advice? I'm wondering if this isn't really the best program for her. I'm open to trying something different, either in place of Singapore or along with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dana Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 You might want to try the Extra Practice books. They're at the same level as the textbook/workbook problems. The Intensive Practice is significantly higher challenge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 Beth, I noticed you're in Ohio. Do you know about the Midwest homeschool convention in Cincinnati? Just making sure. It's the highlight of our year around here. And yes, it sounds like you would benefit from some more practice. Math is the sort of thing you want perfection on, not the school attitude of 80% being fine, not for this level. It comes back to bite you later if you don't. Hopefully those extra Singapore books will do the trick. If they don't, Math Mammoth is a similar thought process but with more practice. If you go to the convention, don't forget to check on the General board about the board get together! There usually is one. It's fun to meet everyone. Last year we did pizza and stayed up talking. (Now if you were there and I remember your face but not your name, I'm going to feel silly!) :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree House Academy Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 (edited) Hi everyone. We are in our second year of homeschooling and my daughter is 11 years old in sixth grade. In fifth grade we completed Singapore 4A, 4B, and 5A. I noticed she had a bit of a problem with the reviews, but it wasn't too bad so we kept moving on. This year so far we completed 5B and are in 6A. I have to wonder if you are moving too fast in Singapore. Doing 3 books in a year is a lot...and Singapore is really about 1 level ahead anyway (you aren't supposed to start Singapore 1A until 2nd grade). If I went through the material that fast, I think my sons would have a tough time retaining it too. When my son does a lesson, we go over it and if he missed things, we discuss them and re-do what he missed. We do the same for reviews and practices. I count Practices as quiz grades and Reviews as Test grades, so my son makes sure to try really hard on everything and give it his best. We still over everything he missed each time. I think this helps a lot. Edited February 2, 2011 by Tree House Academy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn On the Border Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 (edited) Ds12 has the same problem. He is on Singapore 5B. He does fine with the lesson and workbook- even the related word problems. But, when he gets to the reviews he can't remember how to do the problems. I have been making review sheets with a handful of problems a day, and I plan on reviewing some problems with him before the review (just to refresh his memory). I think some kids need more review than others. Although Singapore isn't a perfect fit for ds12, we are not going to switch math programs. I think that it challenges the child to do more and more difficult problems. Many math programs teach kids how to do problems, but they don't push them to use their math knowledge to solve difficult problems. Ds15 did Saxon and then Chalkdust (which was very challenging), but he was stumped on many problems on the PSAT. The PSAT has a lot of thinking questions, not just straight forward math problems. I think it's worth doing some tweaking of the curriculum to make it work. Edited February 2, 2011 by Shawn On the Border Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
missmoe Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 I agree with the pp. Perhaps you are going to fast? We have the extra practice and the test booklet. I use these to make sure my kids are doing review everyday. And sometimes we just do review. I think having her go back and look up how to do the problems is a good idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elinnea Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 My oldest ds was doing great with Singapore until we reached 5B/6A. We used the extra practice workbooks but it wasn't really that he needed more practice, it was that he wasn't understanding the concepts in the first place. The instruction is a bit scant sometimes IMO and even I was having trouble explaining some of the problems. We switched to Math Mammoth this year. I love this program! Lots of practice and very clear instructions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siloam Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 I adore Singapore, but I finally had to pause it for my oldest. She isn't mathy, and has always struggled with the way it makes logical leaps. Doing Right Start first usually allowed her to understand what is going on in Singapore, but like your dd she just hasn't gotten enough practice with fractions, percents, decimals and ratio to be able to pick out what they are asking for in the story problems. For the time being I have her doing Lial's Basic College Math. It is giving her the practice she needs in these areas and the instructions are great, not making logical leaps. Once she finishes we will come back and finish Singapore, but for now the IP and CWP books were too much without mastery of the basic skills first. Heather Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LizzyBee Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 I agree with the pps that you may be moving too fast. You could always back up and re-do some of what you've done, add some supplemental books, or take a break and do some Key To books. Also, I think by the time you get to SM 6, 75% is considered an A. I don't remember the entire grading scale, but if you can find it on the SM website or forums, it may put your dd's grades in a better perspective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OhioMom66 Posted February 14, 2011 Author Share Posted February 14, 2011 Thank you everyone for your replies. I have ordered the Extra Practice workbooks for levels 5 and 6. We will back up to level 5 and hopefully solidify her understanding. We have been moving so quickly because it seemed natural to do so. There was very little work to do in the workbook for each lesson so we would do two lessons per day, doing the textbook together then her doing the workbook on her own. Again, thanks for all of the support! :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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