Has anyone tried MEP math? It's a free math program online from the UK.

[HappyGrace]

I tried to search the archives here but I can't find anything. Old Fashioned Education and I think a lot of Ambleside people use it. Any users-what do you think?

[at the beach]

I tried to search the archives here but I can't find anything. Old Fashioned Education and I think a lot of Ambleside people use it. Any users-what do you think?

 

I'm using it with my dd 8. We really like it so far. We have taken a somewhat delayed approach with math, but this is working so far. It really encourages mathematical thinking. It can be parent intensive, though.

 

Anita

[Jen500]

I've been wondering about MEP too. What do you do with the measurements? (ie pounds instead of dollars, etc)

[Laura Corin]

I haven't used it, but I imagine the only problems would be in learning different coins. Otherwise, you could just change the pound signs to dollar signs and it would be all the same.

 

You'd have to add in American weights/measures though - Imperial is only taught as a curiosity in most UK maths programmes, plus it's not identical to American.

 

Best wishes

 

Laura

[elegantlion]

I have looked at it briefly. It reminds me of Singapore Math, just at a quick glance. We may use it as a supplement.

[paula j]

We used it last year after finishing our Abeka math early. We really liked it much better than Abeka but that could be because we had used Singapore up to that year and it is very similar. Ds didn't do well with Abeka at all, too much busy work he thought.:001_huh: I had considered using it for the rest of his education but decided to try saxon instead, ds of course thought it was too much like Abeka, who'd have thunk it?:D

[HappyGrace]

nt

[at the beach]

I've been wondering about MEP too. What do you do with the measurements? (ie pounds instead of dollars, etc)

 

I haven't gotten to that yet, but from what I hear from others, they just change it to our way or do both.

 

Some more comments re: MEP. I've also looked at it for dd 11. Year 7. There are answer keys for Years 7 and up, too, which IMHO would be a great help. Year 7 looks really good from what I can see. We are currently doing TT Math 7, and she feels there is not quite enough review. So, I am unsure what we'll do next year. I'm looking to Singapore (we love CWP) or possibly MEP or (if I think she's ready) Dolciani Pre-Algebra. :confused:

 

Best,

Anita

[elegantlion]

I thought I'd bump this up for new discussion. Here's a link to the program. You can print out the scope and sequence for each year as well. As a homeschooling parent you can request a password to access the protected lessons.

 

http://www.cimt.plymouth.ac.uk/projects/mepres/primary/default.htm

 

Here's a link the yahoo group

 

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mep-homeschoolers/

 

I spent some time last night searching for comparisons between Singapore and MEP.

 

There are also secondary materials available on the website.

[JennyB]

I have been using mep math for 2 years now with my my 8dd, 11, 13 year old. We absolutley love it. It is so logical to me. I am getting ready to go out of town for the weekend but if you have specific questions then feel free to pm me and I will try to answer them. For the money I just change it over to dollars and we just do the measurment as written and then add in our own measurment skills book. That is easy enough to teach during daily life. I have to go but ask questions and when I get back Monday I will try to answer any that you might have. I really do love it. It is teacher intensive but very well designed and supported.

[Little Debbie]

I noticed some of the files require a password. :001_huh: Do you just give them the name of your homeschool as an "official educational institution?"

 

Deb

[Linda in Idaho]

I tried it for a few months with my 11 yo ds and 13 yo dd. I personally really like the program, but found it next to impossible to switch to MEP at that point. I think if one is starting very early on, it is good. But to switch later on when the student is already behind, going into Jr. Hi. will only delay things more. When you come in later, you have to back up to a level which accommodates the student's skills, and for us, that was just too far.

 

It is also very teacher intensive. It is not a program that you can hand to the student and expect them to complete it.

 

As far as the money and measurement--that's really a non-issue. You can easily get little workbooks for those at Walmarts. It's not done that much in MEP.

 

Linda

[Jen500]

I noticed some of the files require a password. :001_huh: Do you just give them the name of your homeschool as an "official educational institution?"

 

Deb

 

One way to get the password is to join the MEP yahoo group.

[elegantlion]

I noticed some of the files require a password. :001_huh: Do you just give them the name of your homeschool as an "official educational institution?"

 

Deb

 

I e-mailed them directly. I gave them my full name, address and that we were state recognized homeschoolers. They replied with a password within 2 days.

[In The Great White North]

Years? Levels?

 

Anita - how did you decide Year 7 was good for your 11 year old? Is Year 7 the same as 7th grade? Is there a placement test I missed? I did see diagnostic tests within Year 7 but didn't find any to place the child in a specific year.

 

How does year 7/8 compare to Dolciani Pre Algebra or Lial's Basic College Math? Year 7 really looks like pre-algebra to me.

[Little Debbie]

Thank you Jen and Paula for your replies...I really appreciate it!

 

Deb

[Laura Corin]

Subtract 1 from UK years to get US grades. We number what in the US is the K year, so:

 

US K is UK year 1

US 1st grade is UK year 2.... etc.

 

Laura

[In The Great White North]

Thanks Laura in China.

 

So Year 7 is 6th grade - I get it now. What are Key Stages? The MEP site mentioned them quite a bit.

 

Do you know how the traditional American high school math sequence (alg, geom, alg2, trig, calc) fits into their Years? I saw some things in Years 7 & 8 that I had in algebra.

 

We used Foerster for algebra with my oldest and I'd be curious to know what level of MEP would come immediately before that.

[Laura Corin]

Key stages:

 

Key stage 1: age 5-7

Key stage 2: age 7-11

Key stage 3: age 11-14

Key stage 4: age 14 to 16

 

Maths from age 11 onwards continues to be mixed maths. We don't have a year of algebra, then a year of geometry, etc. In the UK book that Calvin is using (year 7, I think), he has a couple of chapters on algebra, a couple of geometry, a couple rounding off the relationship of decimals, fractions and percentages, a couple on probability.... It carries on like that right through until at least age 16.

 

Best wishes

 

Laura

[at the beach]

Years? Levels?

 

Anita - how did you decide Year 7 was good for your 11 year old? Is Year 7 the same as 7th grade? Is there a placement test I missed? I did see diagnostic tests within Year 7 but didn't find any to place the child in a specific year.

 

How does year 7/8 compare to Dolciani Pre Algebra or Lial's Basic College Math? Year 7 really looks like pre-algebra to me.

 

Well, the site said that Years 7-9 are for 11 -14 yo. So, I figured that would probably be the best place to start. BUT as I am looking at Year 7, I feel much of it would be pretty easy for dd. However, I don't know that that's a bad thing. No harm in getting more practice at things. I can't comment on Lial's but I have Dolciani. I've been trying to compare, and I have wondered what others think. Dolciani seems more intense in some ways and seems to cover what MEP 7 and 8 covers. For example, it explains with fractions WHY it works to multiply or add them or whatever with formulas. Forgive me if I sound like a math dunce here. I pretty much am. :tongue_smilie: I did not see this type of explanation with formulas in MEP Years 7 or 8. It could be in there but I am missing it. MEP, though, is really showing how fractions work with lots of diagrams illustrating and I think my dd would have an easier time grasping things with MEP. BUT is that best in the long-term? :001_unsure: Finally, I am considering letting dd work through Singapore 6B next year for 6th grade because of the superior word problems, or I could just add in CWP. I'd love to hear if anyone has thoughts on MEP year 7 vs Singapore 5 and 6 vs Dolciani. I have no idea why I am letting this drive me crazy.

 

Anita

[sweetbaby]

 

I spent some time last night searching for comparisons between Singapore and MEP.

 

 

 

I thought this may help someone. It was an old post on the mep yahoo group.

 

On May 2, 2007, at 7:43 PM, Linda wrote:

Since you have used Singapore, can you give me some specific

differences between the two programs and why you changed? I was

showing a friend MEP and she said it looks much like Singapore,

which her kids are using. Since you have changed, obviously it's

not totally the same.

Linda,

I will try. I really like Singapore. I have been using for about 6

years now, and it has served our family very well, imho. I think I

will still think that Singapore has the best word problems I've yet

to see.

 

Singapore challenges to think about math concepts and apply them. It

does not involve rote learning. It works on teaching you connections.

 

MEP also does that, but goes even further. It introduces concepts a

lot earlier than Singapore does. For example, I introduced my Y1 son

to inequalities today in lesson 7. My twins almost in Singapore 2

have not seen those symbols yet. In fact, I've had to work with my

dd who is doing Y5 of Singapore, and doesn't really remember having

been introduced to them. She understands the concepts, just hasn't

been introduced to the symbols.

 

Today my dd was working on lesson 7 of MEP 5, and working with

putting inequalities on a number line. Singapore doesn't really even

touch this.

 

MEP allows students to really investigate the concept that there are

ways of arriving at the answers in a way that Singapore doesn't.

Even in the upper levels of MEP, hands on manipulatives and concrete

objects are used to explain abstract concepts.

 

Just the lesson of the different ways of writing one. You won't find

anything like that in Singapore. It is really stimulating mentally.

 

In Y2 the students were filling out a graph with the rule of there

were 3 more chestnuts than acorns. Sometimes they had to figure out

the number of acorns, sometimes the number of chestnuts, and for the

last section, they could make up their own numbers. Then they were

asked what the rule was, how they could express that rule (at least 3

different ways), and to write an equation for it. They were using

addition and subtraction sentences, and inequalities to do this. My

dh basically noted they were being taught functions. You won't find

this type of depth in Singapore.

 

Singapore is a great program. It just isn't as deep. It doesn't

challenge them to think as much. Now maybe, if I used the TM's -

which I don't, it might be more similar. But the textbook and the

workbooks are pretty much straight math, although they do teach

strategies, and as I said, so far their word problems are

unparalleled, imho. However, students can go from Singapore 6 into

Algebra. It prepares them that well. There are a couple of areas

that are not covered, but easily taught, and may be covered in the

beginning of an algebra book.

 

But my kids doing MEP are already doing graphing, exponential

notation (not covered in lower level Singapore), discussing set

theory, natural numbers, etc. I am amazed at what they are being

exposed to. I know my dh (the science/math guy) is impressed with

this program.

 

I do confess we have had some crying and gnashing of teeth, and the

"I can't do this" but they progress beyond that and realize that they

can do this, and they are not asking to stop. I think they are

really being challenged in a good way. Maybe I should have started

them a bit lower than I did, but time will tell. I think they can

handle it, but I may be wrong.

 

Christina

MEP is primary through secondary level also.

[mereminerals]

I had never heard of MEP before this forum. I am really looking for something to add to my dd's math. She is getting really burned out with Horizons. I think this looks like a good match for her. Thank you so much for this post!