budeb Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Hi there. I decided to start a new thread from my previous post. I am thinking of afterschooling my ds (grade 4) for math. Just wondering what curriculum you use for a gifted math student. Just a little bit everyday. He's not getting what he needs in school. Many thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennynd Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Singapore Math. I use SM for my 2nd grader who is also not getting enough in school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Singapore is an excellent choice, especially the CWP and IP. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissKNG Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Singapore is an excellent choice, especially the CWP and IP. This is what we use! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen500 Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Singapore is an excellent choice, especially the CWP and IP. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILmommaof2 Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 hi.. long time lurker first time poster.. We use singapore as well for ds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iucounu Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Singapore Math (with Challenging Word Problems / Intensive Practice), and Ed Zaccaro Challenge Math, Life of Fred, and random logic work as enrichment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenneinCA Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 I am using Right Start with my youngest. I tried Singapore with my older kids and it didn't work for me. Singapore can be great but it needs to be a good fit for both the teacher and the student. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Ditto the above recommendations of Singapore, Life of Fred, and Zacarro. MEP is free and has some interesting puzzle problems. However, I personally don't use it because it's not a good "fit" for my teaching style. I did most of 1A with my 2nd child but felt like while he was doing a lot of interesting math work, I couldn't really judge if he was actually making any progress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iucounu Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Sunshine Math, developed by the Florida public school system, is another decent source of free math enrichment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nov05mama Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Singapore is an excellent choice, especially the CWP and IP. :iagree: This is what we use as well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teachin'Mine Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 We used Saxon beginning with 6/5. No idea if their texts earlier than 5/4 are good or not. I think it's because of Saxon that my dd has done so well. Other programs are good too. If you can get to a homeschool conference, it really helps to be able to flip through the different texts to see what you think will work best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathleen. Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 We use SM and the extras along with Miquon. The two fit nicely together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Primary Mathematics (which is what people generally mean when they say "Singapore Math") with the Intensive Practice (IPs) and Challenging Word Problems (CWPs), plus the Ed Zaccaro books, plus "MEP" which is the Mathematics Enhancement Programme (digital files available without cost online). Miquon for younger students (but you are past the target age). Art of Problem Solving (AoPS) for a slightly older child (unless he is very advanced). An elementary aged program from AoPS called Beast Academy is in the works but will likely be too late for you. Level 3 is due this summer (this is very advanced third-grade math, so it might still interest you). Mathematics 6 (aka Russian math). These are some of the best options. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NittanyJen Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 I have two gifted kids at two different learning stages. When my older was coming out of public school in 4th grade, we started in him Life of Fred: Fractions, and he has thrived in that series. He doesn't need the "step by step" type of instruction that some kids seem to need, and despite the impressions you can get from the fun storyline, yes, the "how" and "why" of the math is very much presented in these books. They are superior for a kid who can get it without needing the steps spelled out for them in a callout box. Fred can also be a great supplement, which seems to be what you are looking for, because it doesn't take hours upon hours of work to complete (it isn't "drill and kill;" it's more "think and skill.") After Fractions (if he has mastered long division) you can move on to Decimals and Percents, then he'll be ready for Pre-Algebra with Biology. I love all the ancilliary knowledge my son is picking up with Fred; my son can remember how many feet in a mile, the value of pi (and how it was derived) and other neat facts-- and he has learned the value of reading footnotes! My younger (3rd grade) son is using Singapore, and we love it, too. The mental math aspect is great; their explanations of why things work is very good, though sometimes I find myself expanding upon those a bit (unlike Fred, which is self-teaching, Singapore is meant to be taught by the parent to some extent). At 8 years old, kiddo is handling long division like a pro, and found fractions a snap. One thing to consider if you look at Singapore is: What are your goals/what kind of time commitment are you thinking of putting in here? Obviously, you are in control, and can just say that you will do xx minutes of math per evening/week rather than trying to complete a book before the school year is out, or not require all of the problems. But if your son's school assigns homework at the same rate my kids' former school did, you may need to adjust your expectations accordingly in terms of pacing (my kiddo had 45-60 minutes of homework a night-- in first grade). With the textbook, time for manipulatives, drawing stuff, the workbook, and the fun part for an advanced kid, the intensive practice book, a kid with lots of homework or sports after school is not necessarily going to proceed rapidly in Singapore. Spycar undoubtedly knows more about that aspect than many of the rest of us; if memory serves, I believe he is also an afterschooler. Both boys enjoy Khan Academy, a free online resource. The video presentations are terrific; kids can control their problem sets and earn badges, and they are free to explore more advanced topics that sound interesting to them. DS10 was learning about the chain rule the other day (I had to take some time out and explain derivatives to him, but that didn't take long, at least to a superficial level. We'll have time to dig deeper there later). I love that Khan Academy encourages the kids to become curious about what's coming later in math instead of thinking it's all just add/sub/mult/divide. They can play with angles, trigonometry, and see glimpses of calculus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chepyl Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 We use Singapore with the IP and CWP. DS tolerates the text and workbook so that we can get to the "fun stuff" in the more challenging books. He loves a challenge:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 I used Saxon with all of mine. This year dd did Thinkwell's Pre-Algebra program which is an online course but now we are back to Saxon because I am not ready for her to do Algebra, yet. Tried Singapore and MUS over the years but neither was a good fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy_of_4 Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 We have only used Horizons so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iucounu Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 Note that Saxon is relatively weak on problem-solving, including word problems, where Singapore is stronger. Thus some sort of additional problem-solving work should be added to a Saxon curriculum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scuff Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 This has been one of my biggest struggles in homeschooling. Right now we're using Mammoth Math and he's complaining that it's boring and too slow. We've also used Singapore CWP and a variety of other things not worth mentioning. We do love the Zacarro books. I just ordered AOPS prealgebra and I think I'm going to bump him into that while reviewing gaps with MM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
higginszoo Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 Miquon and Singapore, followed by Life of Fred, with MEP and Zaccaro as supplements has been the best combo for us here, with 4 math and science - gifted kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 We have been using Art of Problem Solving beginning in 6th grade. (With the new pre-algebra book that is now available, we would have started in 5th.) I can recommend it for a child who is good at, and interested in, math and who is willing to go above and beyond the standard curriculum both in scope and difficulty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ester Maria Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 AoPS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quark Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 Hi there. I decided to start a new thread from my previous post. I am thinking of afterschooling my ds (grade 4) for math. Just wondering what curriculum you use for a gifted math student. Just a little bit everyday. He's not getting what he needs in school. Many thanks. Art of Problem Solving (AoPS) is wonderful but wordy. We like it that way but it may not be practical for a 4th grader with less time. But if he really loves math and the challenge, then I'd say go for AoPS! Math Mammoth or Singapore may be easier for you to schedule/ teach time wise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 My own personal copy of AoPs Prealgebra just arrived in the post. It's my Christmas present...but I couldn't help but sneak a peek :D Happy dance! Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carpe Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 My own personal copy of AoPs Prealgebra just arrived in the post. It's my Christmas present...but I couldn't help but sneak a peek :D Happy dance! Bill :lol: me too! Thanks for making me feel less crazy about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennynd Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 My own personal copy of AoPs Prealgebra just arrived in the post. It's my Christmas present...but I couldn't help but sneak a peek :D Happy dance! Bill I want to hear you thoughts on it. Although I like the discovery approach which I think DS is bit young for that, i don't think the question itself in the book is in par as IP/CWP in SM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aquinas Academy Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 Singapore, followed by AoPS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivka Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 I really like MEP. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna Posted December 18, 2011 Share Posted December 18, 2011 Yes, AoPS Pre-Alg is where I intend to go next with dd. We tried to start it back in Sept. but she was a little turned off by the wordiness so I put it away for awhile since she's still young. I am planning on bringing it back out this summer and give it another try because I really like it.:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lasthenia Posted December 18, 2011 Share Posted December 18, 2011 Thanks for these links. Will try them. There's a good site with free ebooks, XPMath I think. New and unique perspectives on numbers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad S Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 (edited) In addition to the extent of giftedness and learning style, I think the best math curriculum depends upon other things like age of the child. If a child is working at an extremely high level, but close to age level, AoPS seems great. When our son was 9, we started AoPS Intro to Algebra and it worked fine for awhile -- challenging but not repetitive problems. But I think that his attention span, and interest level, wasn't where it needed to be for AoPS to work well for him at that time (I'm also not sure that the approach was his optimal style anyway). He had very good mastery of pre-algebra. I think it's a great curriculum for kids who are a little older and/or a little more into math. Prior to algebra, we filled in some gaps on pre-algebra by having son read LOF Decimals and Percents and the two LOF pre-algebra books and doing some MOEMS problems. That worked great for us and it was good that son got practice learning math almost exclusively on his own through the LOF books. As someone else mentioned above, there are lot of other things besides the solid math that kids learn in those LOF pre-algebra books. (I don't think the AoPS pre-algebra book existed yet when we covered that material.) I'm still not sure what the best approach for algebra for our son would have been; we ended up going back to more hands on instruction. I'm also not sure what the best materials would be after algebra 1 for 10-11 year olds. It would be great to find materials that worked well where he could go back to learning math mostly on his own again. We may try AoPS Counting and Probability or Jacobs Geometry or LOF Algebra 2 or something else. Any suggestions?? Edited December 20, 2011 by Brad S Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBM Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 I'm also not sure what the best materials would be after algebra 1 for 10-11 year olds. It would be great to find materials that worked well where he could go back to learning math mostly on his own again. We may try AoPS Counting and Probability or Jacobs Geometry or LOF Algebra 2 or something else. Any suggestions?? My son has worked through a number of the AoPS books. He seemed to do well plowing through, breaking, plowing through, etc. and then revisiting problem sets he did previously many months, or even years, later. He gets a kick looking over his old work now that he can see easier, more elegant solutions. As for suggestions, AoPS's Number Theory would be a good choice after Algebra 1 as well. AMC or MathCounts problem sets can be challenging. We also like the mathematical logic classes from eIMACS. My son took Intro to Logic 1 last summer after his 8th grade (age 14), but a younger student could probably handle it. This spring, we plan to sign him up for the second course. He goes to a school, so we have to do some activities when time permits. http://www.eimacs.com/parent_aml_overview.htm Math Circles can be really wonderful. There might be one in your area. http://www.mathcircles.org/ Math summer camps are also fantastic. Kathy in Richmond (she posts here) and her daughter direct and teach at two of them. http://www.artofproblemsolving.com/Wiki/index.php/Mathematics_summer_program Enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quark Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 (edited) I'm still not sure what the best approach for algebra for our son would have been; we ended up going back to more hands on instruction. I'm also not sure what the best materials would be after algebra 1 for 10-11 year olds. It would be great to find materials that worked well where he could go back to learning math mostly on his own again. We may try AoPS Counting and Probability or Jacobs Geometry or LOF Algebra 2 or something else. Any suggestions?? We are using a combination of the Jurgensen Geometry book, AoPS books and misc. logic puzzles, most of which are listed in this thread (post#19). I like how the Jurgensen book lays out concepts and we do some of the problems orally. The boy writes most of the B and C problems down and works on them independently, while I work on them myself next to him and we then compare answers/ methods and discuss if necessary. I find the best approach for my son has been to go deep into a text for a while, then put it away and let him play with puzzles or computer-based problems on his own and then go deep into a text again. We take breaks by watching some of the Teaching Company math courses too. Two other resources we sometimes use: 1. You might already be familiar with Alcumus but I thought I'd mention it all the same. 2. James Tanton. He has made youtube videos and also written a number of math texts (we have only one so far) but he doesn't have answer keys available for sale atm. You may want to write to him for a pdf copy of the solutions if you buy a text from his Lulu store. He's very nice but may not respond immediately to an email. Edited December 20, 2011 by quark more details about Tanton's products Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenbrdsly Posted December 23, 2011 Share Posted December 23, 2011 In addition to the extent of giftedness and learning style, I think the best math curriculum depends upon other things like age of the child. If a child is working at an extremely high level, but close to age level, AoPS seems great. When our son was 9, we started AoPS Intro to Algebra and it worked fine for awhile -- challenging but not repetitive problems. But I think that his attention span, and interest level, wasn't where it needed to be for AoPS to work well for him at that time (I'm also not sure that the approach was his optimal style anyway). He had very good mastery of pre-algebra. I think it's a great curriculum for kids who are a little older and/or a little more into math. Prior to algebra, we filled in some gaps on pre-algebra by having son read LOF Decimals and Percents and the two LOF pre-algebra books and doing some MOEMS problems. That worked great for us and it was good that son got practice learning math almost exclusively on his own through the LOF books. As someone else mentioned above, there are lot of other things besides the solid math that kids learn in those LOF pre-algebra books. (I don't think the AoPS pre-algebra book existed yet when we covered that material.) I'm still not sure what the best approach for algebra for our son would have been; we ended up going back to more hands on instruction. I'm also not sure what the best materials would be after algebra 1 for 10-11 year olds. It would be great to find materials that worked well where he could go back to learning math mostly on his own again. We may try AoPS Counting and Probability or Jacobs Geometry or LOF Algebra 2 or something else. Any suggestions?? Hands on Equations? Maybe the verbal book? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad S Posted December 23, 2011 Share Posted December 23, 2011 Hands on Equations? Maybe the verbal book? For the pre-algebra, maybe early algebra 1, Hands on Equations might have been useful, but it doesn't look to go beyond that (may still be useful for others here). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeanM Posted December 23, 2011 Share Posted December 23, 2011 I'm still not sure what the best approach for algebra for our son would have been; we ended up going back to more hands on instruction. I'm also not sure what the best materials would be after algebra 1 for 10-11 year olds. It would be great to find materials that worked well where he could go back to learning math mostly on his own again. We may try AoPS Counting and Probability or Jacobs Geometry or LOF Algebra 2 or something else. Any suggestions?? My 12 yo is using Jacobs Geometry this year. We're going to start using Patty Paper Geometry at our coop, which should work nicely with Jacobs. I thought the AoPS Counting and Probability looked interesting, and they have a Number Theory book too, that also looked good. We went with Jacobs for this year, but may switch to AoPS next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaSprout Posted December 23, 2011 Share Posted December 23, 2011 This has been one of my biggest struggles in homeschooling. Right now we're using Mammoth Math and he's complaining that it's boring and too slow. We've also used Singapore CWP and a variety of other things not worth mentioning. We do love the Zacarro books. I just ordered AOPS prealgebra and I think I'm going to bump him into that while reviewing gaps with MM. We pre-test with Math Mammoth- the light blue series has chapter tests. All we do is fill in gaps. We use CWP, too. Bean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErinE Posted December 25, 2011 Share Posted December 25, 2011 I like the fact AoPS has a book on counting and probability. In finance, knowing stats has been very helpful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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