utkallie Posted November 29, 2011 Share Posted November 29, 2011 Please bear with me as I am a newbie at trying to figure out the big homeschool curriculums. I am looking for a kindergarten/1st grade math program that would be good for my pre k DD who is identified as a strong VSL through IQ testing. She is currently in therapy for auditory processing issues but one on one she does fine as long as I can keep her interest. She enjoys adding and subtracting with Unifix cubes so I would like to somehow incorporate those. I briefly looked online at MM, Singapore, Lifepac. Can anyone tell me the differences from experience? I have a good friend who uses Math U See and explained it to me but it sounds a little boring for a pre k aged child. I also looked at MEP but got kind of overwhelmed and confused by the site. What others should I look at for a young VSL? :bigear: Thanks in advance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted November 29, 2011 Share Posted November 29, 2011 Miquon - hands-on, whole-to-parts, and perfect for that age. I'd probably plan on adding in, or transitioning to, something else in a year (Singapore, MM). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2smartones Posted November 29, 2011 Share Posted November 29, 2011 I was also going to suggest Miquon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blondeviolin Posted November 29, 2011 Share Posted November 29, 2011 Suggesting Miquon here too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted November 29, 2011 Share Posted November 29, 2011 My DS2 seems to meet all the criteria for VSL, though hasn't been officially diagnosed as such. He uses Singapore Essential Math K, and I have him use Cuisenaire Rods with them. This combo has worked GREAT. He is really learning a lot. I'm thinking after he finishes the K book, I'll try out Singapore PM 1 (Standards Edition) with him, and continue to use the C-rods. I highly, highly, highly recommend using C-rods, whatever math program you decide to use. They are awesome. Get the unscored plastic ones. The bucket of 155 is a good idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utkallie Posted November 29, 2011 Author Share Posted November 29, 2011 I highly, highly, highly recommend using C-rods, whatever math program you decide to use. They are awesome. Get the unscored plastic ones. The bucket of 155 is a good idea. What are the differences between those and Unifix cubes? When I bought the Unifix cubes at our local school store, I saw the C-rods but wasn't really sure of how they are used and if they are that much different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleIzumi Posted November 29, 2011 Share Posted November 29, 2011 MIQUON!!!!! It's been magic for my VSL. Also, the C-rods have no line divisions, and do not separate. They have a fixed value/ratio, 1cm for each value but unmarked. My VSL could, within about 3 times of using them, pull out three at random and say, "This is 26!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted November 29, 2011 Share Posted November 29, 2011 What are the differences between those and Unifix cubes? When I bought the Unifix cubes at our local school store, I saw the C-rods but wasn't really sure of how they are used and if they are that much different. Unifix cubes come apart. C-rods are one piece. They are color-coded so you can easily find the 3 or 5 or whatever. That has been wonderful for my son. He is still working on counting to 20, yet if you give him a 6-rod and a 10-rod and ask him to find a rod that will fill the "hole" when they're placed next to each other, he'll immediately say "4!" and grab the purple rod. It's magical! :D He's also picking up math facts by using them, despite us not getting to those facts in our curriculum yet. One day he asked me what 8+2 was, and I asked him the question back. He said "10! Hey, that's the same as 5+5!" We haven't practiced such things. He just picked them up on his own, and he's not noticeably mathy (yet). As I said, he's still working on counting to 20. I think unifix cubes would encourage a lot more counting, whereas the C-rods allow them to just see the number bonds. Bill can probably give you a better explanation. Where is he? :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utkallie Posted November 30, 2011 Author Share Posted November 30, 2011 I wish I could get my hands on a Miquon book to look at it in person. The few samples I am finding online do not look appealing so I am guessing it is something I would need to actually see to understand it. I did look at Singapore samples like one of you suggested. I like the looks of it and the concepts covered but am having a hard time figuring out if she would need the first part of the first grade book or the second. Once again, I wish I had more samples to look at. Is there a website that shows more or are those few sheets on the main website all I can see without purchasing? MM looks good too but maybe a little too repetitive and too much writing for a young learner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Embassy Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 I have a VSL and use Singapore effectively with him. I couldn't figure out Miquon and I tried it out twice! Singapore has placement tests at singaporemath.com if you want to determine the correct level. Prior to Singapore I used Critical Thinking's Mathematical Reasoning. My VSL loved it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serendipitous journey Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 I think unifix cubes would encourage a lot more counting, whereas the C-rods allow them to just see the number bonds. Bill can probably give you a better explanation. Where is he? :) :iagree: We have the unifix cubes, and haven't found them terribly useful. Except for making patterns, but even there I've seen some at Delta Science that you can stack in 3D and I'd go for that first. Currently the main use of unifix cubes for us is that Bot-bot likes to pull them apart and he also blows through the holes like they are tiny trumpets. So I'd go with C-rods for actual math intuition (and will, for Bot-bot when he's a bit older). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beaners Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 My 2 year old likes to use popcubes for counting right now. Shes loves to count out a number of blocks and spread them out and put them together and show me how they stay the same number. We also use them as counters when we make up word problems. We get pretty silly with those, and I'll put all kinds of things on the table for everyone to pick and choose from. Last time ducks were eating dinosaurs and farm animals were getting packages in the mail. I think different kinds of cubes could be useful to demonstrate decomposition and recomposition of a 10 and place value, leading to why the procedural form for addition with carrying and subtraction with borrowing/decomposition works. Cuisenaire rods would work too, but we have both so I might set both on the table when we get there. (I'm making the mistake of assuming I'll actually involved in the teaching and any instruction is necessary, compared to checking for understanding.) I also let the kids free play with cubes because it builds their hand strength for writing. It's hard work getting everything apart and back together! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleIzumi Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 I think different kinds of cubes could be useful to demonstrate decomposition and recomposition of a 10 and place value, leading to why the procedural form for addition with carrying and subtraction with borrowing/decomposition works. Cuisenaire rods would work too, but we have both so I might set both on the table when we get there. (I'm making the mistake of assuming I'll actually involved in the teaching and any instruction is necessary, compared to checking for understanding.) I also let the kids free play with cubes because it builds their hand strength for writing. It's hard work getting everything apart and back together! That's all we used our linking cubes for, too. Making 10/regrouping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utkallie Posted November 30, 2011 Author Share Posted November 30, 2011 Have any of your kids who have used Singapore had trouble with the number bonds? Based on the placement test I am thinking starting at 1a. I looked at the kindy books but DD is past those. Do I really need the home inst. manual? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Embassy Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 Have any of your kids who have used Singapore had trouble with the number bonds? Based on the placement test I am thinking starting at 1a. I looked at the kindy books but DD is past those. Do I really need the home inst. manual? We switched from another curriculum so we took a little extra time through the first book while cementing things like number bonds. I had my VSL draw pictures of things like a number 8 and a number 2 like they were buddies. Of course the numbers had faces, arms, legs, etc. That as well as continued practice seemed to cement the number bonds. I would definitely get the home instructor's manual. It is much more than the answers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted December 1, 2011 Share Posted December 1, 2011 Have any of your kids who have used Singapore had trouble with the number bonds? Based on the placement test I am thinking starting at 1a. I looked at the kindy books but DD is past those. Do I really need the home inst. manual? We just started the number bonds in the K book. With the C-rods, my son is having no problem with them. I haven't used the 1st grade Singapore books yet, but I just started the 4th grade book and I LOVE the HIG! It has information on how to present the lesson and also information for the teacher (for example, certain divisibility rules are taught in the 4th grade book, yet the HIG explains to the teacher divisibility rules for all the one digit numbers, even though not all of them will be taught in this grade level). Also, I noticed that some things taught to the student in the HIG are NOT in the textbook. For example, again in the 4th grade book, fractions are compared such as 2/3 and 5/6 - always ones that are easy to convert one to the other. In the HIG, it teaches how to deal with fractions that aren't so obvious, then in the textbook, one of the practice problems at the end of the section includes something like 2/3 and 5/7. If you didn't use the HIG, you didn't teach the kid how to do this problem, and they're suddenly seeing it for the first time, because it wasn't one of the guided practice problems. It was only taught in the HIG. Now again, I don't know how the 1st grade level compares, as I haven't gotten that yet. I'm likely going to get the 1st grade level for DS2 next year, and I will definitely get the HIG. I find myself using the HIG more than the textbook. We do the problems in the textbook, but I present the lesson from the HIG at the white board. My 2 year old sits next to my 7 year old, with the used EM K book A in his lap, so he can do "maf" too. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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