Snowstorm84 Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 I am looking to start a Kindergarten math program next fall for my son. I am trying to figure out whether or not to combine CLE with Rightstart or CLE with Singapore. I really like the idea of math games and manipulatives but would like the concrete worksheets as well. For those of you who have tried Rightstart, why did you like it or not like it? Same question for the Singapore users. If anyone has any opinions I would love the input. This will be my first time homeschooling and I feel a little overwhelmed. :) Also any other suggestions on curriculum for Kindergarten would be awesome! If you loved something tell me about it. Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reya Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Why CLE at all? For K and 1st, RightStart wins, hands down. For 2nd and up, there are benefits to both. Singapore's Challenging Word Problems really add something RightStart lacks, but RightStart is still really thorough, easy to learn, and VERY easy to teach. It treats many ideas more tangibly. At the end of RS, though, we really felt in heed of some more fractions practice before moving on to algebra. The one thing missing from RS is the bar approach to visualizing more sophisticated word problems. We used both, simultaneously, from K-6th. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristin0713 Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Why CLE at all? For K and 1st, RightStart wins, hands down. Ditto. I am not opposed to worksheets later on, but I think the RS approach is so perfect for young learners. We are loving it here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowstorm84 Posted March 8, 2011 Author Share Posted March 8, 2011 If I did RS and Singapore what should I get of the Singapore? Would the Essential Math books be good or would you recommend the Earlybird Texts and workbooks? Thank you for your input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2bee Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Also any other suggestions on curriculum for Kindergarten would be awesome! If you loved something tell me about it. Thank you. We used The Reading Lesson (TRL) the summer before 1st grade. We did all 20 lessons (each lesson about 20 pgs long, so they are more like chapters) in 10 weeks. ReaderBoy went from a nonreader, not knowing all his letter sounds on any given day to reading Frog and Toad stories with fluency... We used: 101 Things a Kindergartner Should Know About Reading for letter sounds and beginning words Letter Factory DVD' for letter sounds (2 viewings and they were 100% mastered) Then we started to use TRL. We worked on 101 Things along with TRL until it was done, and we also read 1 story a day after we reached lesson 4 or 5 of TRL and ReaderBoy read beautifully when we were done. Of course, he barely read for about 2-3 months after learning to read so well, so now his skills decayed and we're working on reading again, (even he admits "This was so easy when I was doing my phonics!) Moral: What ever you use, be consistent. Stay consistent... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Satori Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 I highly suggest RightStart in those first years. It's great all by itself. If you want worksheets, Math Mammoth is an effective and inexpensive option, but for Kindergarten, RS is just awesome. I tried Singapore Earlybird, but didn't like it. RightStart by far taught us more math in PreK-K. Now, we're loving Singapore Primary Math. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lakotajm Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Little Hands to Heaven. We never did all of it as laid out, but most of it. I found some to be so stupid. But much of it was fun for the kids and easy/quick. This we did for more like pre-school and kindy age for the two little ones together. That same year, we also did the Leap Frog phonics DVD a previous poster mentioned, and like she said, they got the letter sounds by the second viewing-it's amazing! I would not do worksheets at all for kindy math. Try some Montessori stuff, for great kinesthetic learning of math. Spindle box is easy to make. Sandpaper numerals, also. Good luck! Lakota Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowstorm84 Posted March 8, 2011 Author Share Posted March 8, 2011 Thank you for your replies and suggestions. Currently for Pre-K we are doing the Rod & Staff pre-k books and 100 Ez lessons. I am so excited about next year! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amie Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 I agree with beginning with Rightstart alone. You can transition into something with more written work later on (like CLE, Math Mammoth, or Singapore). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Also any other suggestions on curriculum for Kindergarten would be awesome! If you loved something tell me about it. Thank you. Another great math program to consider for Kindergarten is Miquon. It is a great precursor program to Singapore as it builds the skill a child will use in that program in a very developmental and playful way. Where RS is very "scripted" Miquon is kind of loose and allows (and encourages) a lot of improvisation. So it is good to get a sense of your own personal style and that of your child. With Miquon the child is the hands-on partner so it is great for the "I want to do it" type kid. Where RS seems to have a more parent led model. Both are smart programs, just very different in style. The MEP math materials are also tremendously interesting. They are free to download and really make children think. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SevenDaisies Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 (edited) If I did RS and Singapore what should I get of the Singapore? Would the Essential Math books be good or would you recommend the Earlybird Texts and workbooks? Thank you for your input. If you choose Singapore, I'd go with Essentials. I've not heard good things about Earlybird. I used Essentials with dd when she was in K and we loved it. There are simple instructions at the bottom of each page on how to demonstrate the concepts using various manipulatives. Each page has only a few problems - most of which are done in crayon. I found it extremely easy to use. I had planned to use RS with ds 4 because I thought he would like the hands on, but every time I did a sample lesson with him, he'd ask if we could do real math now (meaning essentials). So we're sticking with Essentials, but I purchased some of the RS materials - Abacus Packet, Abacus Worksheets, and the Math Card Games that both children can use. btw, the RS manipulatives are on sale at homeschool buyers coop. PS: Please don't take this to mean that I don't think RS is real math. RS was just not my son's preference. Edited March 8, 2011 by joliet Added ps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairytalemama Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 For those of you who have tried Rightstart, why did you like it or not like it? Also any other suggestions on curriculum for Kindergarten would be awesome! If you loved something tell me about it. Thank you. My daughter LOVES the Rightstart card games. She would play "Go to the Dump" all day. She actually asks to get out the cards! And I say it over and over and over on this board, but The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading is amazing! Just amazing! We are at lesson 182 out of 231 now and she's reading at a 2nd or 3rd grade level at age 5. I know one curriculum doesn't fit all, but it was so effective for us and inexpensive that when asked I feel compelled to tell everyone about it. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowstorm84 Posted March 8, 2011 Author Share Posted March 8, 2011 Thank you for your reccomendations. I will look into them. I have looked a little at the Miquon. Originally I was going to use Horizons or Saxon...then came to CLE and loved the TM for it so I was looking to use that. Based off of your posts I am going to order RightStart and see if it works for us! Hope it does! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mymonkeybug Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Since we are on the subject of Rightstart, rather than starting a new thread, I will try here first. I am looking for a good scripted, help mom help the child to learn math program. I would love to try Math On The Level but cost is very prohibitive. My children are 8 and 11. The 11 year old struggles with math to the point of tearing up many days. They were both pulled from public 2 years ago. The 8 year old is on track, if anyone were to ask, but who knows truly what on track is... Would Righstart work for them both or is it too kiddy and juvenile for 11 year old? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siloam Posted March 9, 2011 Share Posted March 9, 2011 Kids start out very hand on and concrete, that is why they pick up everything off the floor and then stick it in their mouth. :D I love RS and high recommend it all the way around, especially for younger kids because they often are still rather concrete and hands on in their approach to life. You will find a lot of people who later move on to Singapore, Math Mammon or another program, and that is becuase their child out grow the needs for the hands on, concrete methods. Mine don't, but I know it does happen. :D I have used Singapore Eearlybird, and I don't recommend it. The work on writing number names and reading them is not age appropriate, though it may have changed in the Standards version. It is also very common for kids who do Singapore, once they are in the Primary 1A book, to hit a wall when Singapore takes away the picture manipulatives. Singapore is good but it is written with mathy kids in mind. I personally wait till 2nd grade to start Singapore Primary 1A. We have a math focus, so my kids do both RS and Singapore. Heather Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monica_in_Switzerland Posted March 9, 2011 Share Posted March 9, 2011 I am a new HSing mom too, and here's our experience- My 4yo ds started the Earlybird book and did 30 pages in two days. To me, that's a sign the program is not right for him. We switched to Rightstart and are now on lesson 10. He concentrates for each lesson and I can see the lightbulbs going off. He loves the abacus. Rightstart is really amazing. I find myself sitting down to read through the book and find out what we'll be doing next. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.