Gaps and Humility

[Jean in Newcastle]

It's a bit embarrassing to me, but my kids haven't been doing as well in school as I thought.

 

Dd9 managed to slog through to Singapore 4A before she had a catastrophic fail because she really didn't have the underpinnings down. We pulled the plug on math, did some various trial and error before I found those gaps which were really more important than I thought. This year we've gone back to Singapore 3A but sloooowly and with all the manipulatives in their full glory even when she says that she doesn't need them. Two weeks ago she was crying over 3 digit addition with carrying. Today she gleefully added numbers totaling into the millions because by Jove, she's got it! I look at the next unit and I think we'll have some tears ahead of us before we have victory again but I think this method is the right one to come out again on the other side.

 

Ds14's catastrophic fail has been more recent. At the end of the summer (we school year around) he hit a 10 foot thick steel wall in Algebra. I've hired a tutor who has discovered those infamous gaps in my math and science geek. Today I was a bit humbled to see him find some gaps in his science too. I don't think there are too many gaps - but they are significant because they affect his advancement as he gets higher up.

 

So - the gaps are being addressed. I'm trying to stop myself from looking at my nice pristine schedule get all torn up as we take time off to fill in the gaps. I find myself wondering if they had a teacher other than me, would they have had gaps in the first place? It's funny, because as I find myself shaken up as a teacher, I find myself getting back to some of the roots of my homeschooling when real learning, and the joy of mastery meant more than crossing stuff off of our checklists.

[Ria]

Don't beat yourself up, Jean. I had the same experience with Singapore. It just doesn't have enough review built in, at least not for my kids. After a year of using only Singapore, we began using two math programs daily (Singapore and Saxon). That worked for us, but we had the fail, too. It happens.

:grouphug:

[duckens]

Don't beat yourself up, Jean.

:iagree:No one knows everything, and even the best teachers miss some stuff.

 

Thank you for humbly sharing your experiences. This tells those of us coming up behind you (children aged 4yo and 10mo) to know that others have been through this, and there are solutions. I hope to be as wise as you are, and not panic.

[justamouse]

:grouphug::grouphug:

 

Ugh, triple digit multiplication UGH.

 

My 4th grader girls (this Sept) are still working on that from MUS Gamma (third 'grade') and that's with the manipulatives and my starting out with 300+40+7 x 200+60+6. (granted, it's the end of gamma, and in no way slowing them down, but still, UGH)

 

So yes, I totally get it. :grouphug:

 

I'm glad you found a tutor that's a good fit! I was thinking of hiring one of my geek cousins, to tell the truth. :001_smile:

[TXBeth]

I find myself wondering if they had a teacher other than me, would they have had gaps in the first place?

 

They absolutely would have. Everyone has gaps. However, if they had been in a classroom full of students, their gaps may never have been discovered and filled in. You're doing an awesome job. :001_smile:

[justamouse]

They absolutely would have. Everyone has gaps. However, if they had been in a classroom full of students, their gaps may never have been discovered and filled in. You're doing an awesome job. :001_smile:

:iagree::iagree::iagree:

[6packofun]

I agree! The gaps for public school students--in reality--are all the things they don't get taught and that aren't on tests. Think of how many aspects of history are getting left out of the curriculum nowadays, but you wouldn't think anyone was being shortchanged because they change the expectations to know (or not know) these things *right along with it*!

 

Our kids are going to have some gaps just because. When you find them and DO something, you *are* giving your child your best!!

[Ria]

 

Our kids are going to have some gaps just because. When you find them and DO something, you *are* giving your child your best!!

 

:iagree:

[Jean in Newcastle]

Thank you for the encouragement. This is the year that I've decided the "buck stops here" and we will not move on even if we don't get the subjects done this year. (Yet, though the way it's worked for dd is that now that she really gets it, we could shoot ahead a bit and then slow down for the critical stuff.)

[Mimm]

I appreciate you sharing how you are addressing gaps after they are identified. :)

[Zoo Keeper]

Thanks for the tranparency, Jean.

 

This makes me feel better about the snail's pace I'm taking in math. My oldest needs to go s l o w l y through Singapore and MEP. Really, really, s l o w . (He's in MEP year 3 and Singapore 2B/3A with his brother). It's where he needs to be.

[Pretty in Pink]

You are doing your children a great service by admitting to those shortcomings and addressing them head-on, rather than trying to plow ahead. Thank your for sharing your challenges. It is encouraging to know that I am not alone.

 

I realized over the summer that my eldest was behind in his writing ability. We spent the summer with those outlining workbooks recommended in TWTM and the KFHE. Wowsers. :001_huh: Talk about tedious, but my ds can now produce a decent outline. I also broke down and forked over the cash for Write Shop. I needed the hand-holding. I needed the script. My ds *loves* the program and is doing very well with it.

[Cricket]

We had to do some slowing down this past year as well. In some homeschooling circles I have found that it can be assumed that our children are way ahead or geniuses and it can be hard to admit when our kid's are behind or struggling. Our oldest struggles. I've had to come to terms with that over the summer and slow down and stop pushing him to "get through" material when he isn't understanding it.

 

It's great you are addressing it and not ignoring it!

[jasar31629]

I've struggled with this with dd in math. She seemed to grasp concepts just fine early on- but I realize now it was memorization and absorption...not true understanding. We have slowed way down though it's difficult to do. I keep telling myself I need to practice what I preach- how in homeschool the greatest blessings are to teach to the child and their needs...not plowing ahead before they're ready or staying at grade level if they're bored. It goes both ways!! We'd be more than pleased if they were ahead...is it so bad when they aren't average in an area or two?

 

It sounds like they are getting a solid foundation- you're doing a great job in my book!

[Julie Smith]

Thanks for the tranparency, Jean.

 

This makes me feel better about the snail's pace I'm taking in math. My oldest needs to go s l o w l y through Singapore and MEP. Really, really, s l o w . (He's in MEP year 3 and Singapore 2B/3A with his brother). It's where he needs to be.

 

I know last year when my eldest was in grade 1 we spend 2 weeks on the number 7. (This wouldn't have been so bad, but we followed it up after by spending 2 weeks on the number 9)

 

But now that he is in grade 2 things are going well. He really knows his numbers.

[newlifemom]

Thank you Jean. I need to hear that gaps happen. I need to hear that it is ok. I need to admit, that I am not a super homerschooler with some kind of magical powers.

 

Your ability to be real is an encouragement and a push for me to be real and stay real.

 

This stuff is hard. :grouphug:

[Jean in Newcastle]

 

This stuff is hard. :grouphug:

 

It is hard!

[Slartibartfast]

:grouphug:

 

We are always telling dd that the little things are very important in math because once you get to SCARY MATH it is the little things that can make a huge difference.

 

I think you are doing the right thing. :)

[Lucy in Australia]

Thank you for sharing :grouphug: And as a fellow HS mum who's discovering some gaps of her own :glare: (some of which are not just academic -who knew you had to spend so much time on virtues like compassion? :001_huh: ) I am learning the same lessons in humility.

[Liz CA]

Just for the record: I was NOT homeschooled and had plenty of gaps which I needed to find myself and remediate before moving on. When a teacher has 20-30 students, they may know some have gaps but there is not time to go back and cement the basic knowledge. It's sink or swim.

Your children are fortunate that their gaps are being recognized early enough as to not be a big problem. You need to really re-word "catastrophic failure."

:001_smile:

[Friederike in Persia]

Our maths gaps dh fills in happily and enthousiastically (as he does difficult problems with them he can identify gaps, thank God for an engineer as a dh!). It's the German gaps that embarass me. I'm German. The 2 younger one's German should be way better, but it isn't :001_huh:.

[....]

Dd9 managed to slog through to Singapore 4A before she had a catastrophic fail because she really didn't have the underpinnings down. We pulled the plug on math, did some various trial and error before I found those gaps which were really more important than I thought.

 

This has been said already, but we have problems with Singapore, too. After using Singapore from the beginning, we switched to another program. I know the whole argument on how superior Singapore/Asian math is...how Liping Ma is going to come to my house and help with the kids...but, my 8 yro was not retaining anything. He still doesn't know his math facts and there just isn't enough review. So, after doing Singapore for years, I put him in Math Mammoth 2A Addition/Subtraction. The dude just can't subtract. :svengo: We're still chugging along with Miquon (which helps with the conceptual stuff) and Kitchen Table Math (which we just started).

 

Anyway, I feel your pain.

 

Singapore's not a good fit for every kid. I think it's better to stop and find a solution to why they're not getting it or switch programs than it is to blindly run thru the program and they have no idea what they're doing. You could get several years down the road and then you would have some serious problems. :eek:

[Chris in VA]

Homeschooling also reveals my own gaps; talk about humility! :D

 

You are a wise woman and clearly want the best for your kiddos. That's very admirable! :001_smile:

[Cinder]

Well, I know what you mean about those gaps. We worked hard on math because that's *my* strength. I had a good idea what to look for. In fact, I had ds2 do pre-algebra twice (different programs each time) because I felt he wasn't quite ready to move on. Now that he's at a private school he's really ready for algebra.

 

But I passed on my weakness to my ds's--writing. I can write a decent paper, but I don't know how to teach it well. Ds1 went to private high school not ever having written a 5-para essay. And he had no experience with MLA formats. He picks things up quickly, though, and earned an A even though he "hates" writing.

 

When I look back on what I learned in school, there are definitely huge gaps! We didn't learn much history--and I was in the honors classes. We didn't read a lot of the classics I see on folks' reading lists here, but we read a lot of Shakespeare--2 plays a year.

 

I say Good For You for realizing there were gaps and addressing them head-on. Sounds like you're really working hard to give your kids the best.

[8circles]

You are a wise woman and clearly want the best for your kiddos. That's very admirable! :001_smile:

 

:iagree:& I don't see anything in your OP that says "failure". You're doing great! :grouphug:

[Impish]

I honestly don't think that there is an educational model on the planet that doesn't have gaps, if for no other reason than its people who are both teaching and learning!

 

The fact that you discovered it, and have taken strides to correct it, that's something to be proud of, not ashamed of. So many kids are left with the gaps, and simply fall further and further behind.

[justamouse]

This has been said already, but we have problems with Singapore, too. After using Singapore from the beginning, we switched to another program. I know the whole argument on how superior Singapore/Asian math is...how Liping Ma is going to come to my house and help with the kids...but, my 8 yro was not retaining anything. He still doesn't know his math facts and there just isn't enough review. So, after doing Singapore for years, I put him in Math Mammoth 2A Addition/Subtraction. The dude just can't subtract. :svengo: We're still chugging along with Miquon (which helps with the conceptual stuff) and Kitchen Table Math (which we just started).

 

Anyway, I feel your pain.

 

Singapore's not a good fit for every kid. I think it's better to stop and find a solution to why they're not getting it or switch programs than it is to blindly run thru the program and they have no idea what they're doing. You could get several years down the road and then you would have some serious problems. :eek:

 

*snicker*

[Sun]

They absolutely would have. Everyone has gaps. However, if they had been in a classroom full of students, their gaps may never have been discovered and filled in. You're doing an awesome job. :001_smile:

 

:iagree: I used to teach elementary school, and this is true. You're doing the right thing for your children.

 

Remember: Finding gaps isn't a problem. It's the start of the solution because you can only fill the gaps you find. Be glad you found these now when you can help remedy them!

[Jean in Newcastle]

Thank you for sharing :grouphug: And as a fellow HS mum who's discovering some gaps of her own :glare: (some of which are not just academic -who knew you had to spend so much time on virtues like compassion? :001_huh: ) I am learning the same lessons in humility.

 

Oh my goodness. I have so many gaps in stuff like compassion! I try to work on some of those things with my kids too but I know that God will be filling in those gaps.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Just for the record: I was NOT homeschooled and had plenty of gaps which I needed to find myself and remediate before moving on. When a teacher has 20-30 students, they may know some have gaps but there is not time to go back and cement the basic knowledge. It's sink or swim.

Your children are fortunate that their gaps are being recognized early enough as to not be a big problem. You need to really re-word "catastrophic failure."

:001_smile:

 

Well, it felt catastrophic because of the constant tears of frustration - sometimes from me as well as my kids;)

[LittleIzumi]

:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: We already had the same thing with Singapore. She was flying through and then WHAM, wall. Her conceptual knowledge is very strong and it got her this far, but her lack of facts and a few key methods has caught up to us. We had skipped one level entirely but are now going back through it, albeit quickly. I also got the IP for the level o' doom so that she can get more practice in it without boring her to tears once we finish the level before it.