dkholland Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Could anyone advise me on a math sequence for my ds: He will tell you he hates math! That is how our day starts each day. I am asked him not to come with that attitude and disciplined when he continues, but obviously he is a strong-willed young man and we have not conquered the attitude yet. Next, he struggles with Alg. I. Saxon brought lots of tears in 7th gr. so we swithed to Chalkdust. Ds likes having his own teacher, not me, explain the concepts. We have problems with son not writing down what Mr. Mosley writes on the board and therefor has no notes. I have stressed the importance of taking notes and sit with him when I can and make him. but, how much is he learning if he does not 'attend' to what I have asked him to do. He has focus issues....with math only! So, we are at Ch 5 (working with polynomials) and he does ok with most of it. But, when he gets to a problem he immediately can't do, he writes a '?' and moves on. I get his test back with question marks all over it. So, he maintains about a low 70% avg. in math. This is not good enough for me or him to get where he wants to go. (He is in Civil Air patrol and dreams of getting into a service acad. But, I fear math will hold him back.) Finally, my question.....do we hang out in the chapters where he doesn't get it, until he does, and continue math well into summer? Should we repeat a year of Alg. I? Then he will only get to pre-calc his senior year (if that!). I know Alg. is fundamental and want him to have a handle on it. I hate to get an 'easier' program. But maybe there is one out there he could understand better. I really think to move onto Geometry will be a big mistake but that is where he will be in the fall for ninth grade. What should I do with his math struggles? Thanks so much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 I know I sound like a broken record, but have you considered Derek Owens? His videos are so very clear -- the concepts he covers are complex and the texts he uses are challenging, but he really manages to break things down into such simple elements. Beyond that, kids are give "fill-in-the-blank" notes -- so it's a good transitional step for kids who don't quite grasp how to take their own notes from scratch. If you do the course with him, he'll grade all of the work, and if your son is consistently turning in "?" responses, Derek will try to explain further and request that he complete the work again. ... It just sounds like it might be a better fit? (I promise, lol, I have no affiliation with Derek other than being an extremely satisfied customer!) He could take the course at his own pace. If you started now, took the first portion quickly, and perhaps continued over the summer, maybe he would be ready for geometry in the fall? If not, I do think it's far better to be a strong student who gets through pre-calc than a student with limited understanding who flounders into calculus before graduating. He needs the foundation now or it won't matter when he starts a given course... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SheilaZ Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Have you looked at the videos at the khan (Kahn?) academy. It's free and there is après on teaching the concepts pus practice areas. I use it with my sons along with the Saxon DVD. He can review everything and still go into geometry. It won't help with note taking at all but but it might help with concepts. My 7th grader struggles with math also. Saxon is probably not the best fit for him right now, but I haven't found anything else. So I'm supplementing with Kahn (khan?). He doesn't like me teaching him math either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teachin'Mine Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Honestly I don't think it matters what program you use. The issue which needs addressing is his willingness, or lack thereof, to do the work required. I know there may be some exceptions out there, but most math students need to write down the problems and write out the solutions on their own in order to master the material. Simply watching someone else do the work - whether it be in a text, a video, a classroom, or on a white board at home - won't be enough for them to be able to work problems on their own. He needs to have his goals of a service academy become more real and then he may be more willing to do the work needed. I know there was a thread here recently with some great advice on how to go about doing this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Honestly I don't think it matters what program you use. The issue which needs addressing is his willingness' date=' or lack thereof, to do the work required. I know there may be some exceptions out there, but most math students need to write down the problems and write out the solutions on their own in order to master the material. Simply watching someone else do the work - whether it be in a text, a video, a classroom, or on a white board at home - won't be enough for them to be able to work problems on their own. He needs to have his goals of a service academy become more real and then he may be more willing to do the work needed. I know there was a thread here recently with some great advice on how to go about doing this.[/quote'] Yep. There is NO program, none whatsoever, that will make him able to instantly do any problem he looks at. Writing a ? when he doesn't understand instead of thinking about it is a truly terrible habit that will make any college courses far more difficult for him as well. The higher he gets in math, the more likely it is he'll have to think about problems, and his grades will drop. Unfortunately, I don't really have any advice for that specific thing other than refusing to accept his exam if he hasn't attempted every problem, even if he spends all day glaring at it and pouting. With respect to the sequence -- I wouldn't worry about following the school year exactly. I'd stretch the course out as long as he needed and award credit in the year he completes it. So if he takes a year and a half on alg 1 and finishes in the middle of 9th grade, award credit for 9th grade algebra 1. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justasque Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Have you considered an in-person tutor? It can make the world of difference with reluctant math students. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 VideoText comes with notes. Maybe that is something that would help? They have them all nice and ready to refer back to when needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 My ds has the same issue on tests. He wants to turn it in with blanks. I don't allow it, just had that issue this week. He's tried that in a few subjects. I just hand it back to him. So we went over the ones he skipped. In some cases it was because he just misread, in other cases his brain was fried and just skipped it. In some cases he didn't understand the terminology. Going back through the test with him is a good way to see where he's truly having problems. Khan Academy has videos as well as hippocampus. I'm going to have ds watch some of those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkateLeft Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Should we repeat a year of Alg. I? Then he will only get to pre-calc his senior year (if that!). I know Alg. is fundamental and want him to have a handle on it. I hate to get an 'easier' program. But maybe there is one out there he could understand better. My very math and science oriented daughter ended up repeating Algebra I in 9th grade, because I was worried that she didn't have a firm enough grasp on it. She wants to major in chemical engineering. It ended up being the BEST thing for her. By getting a solid algebra foundation, she's done extremely well in subsequent math courses, which enabled her to accelerate her math sequence a bit. She'll now get through Calculus by the time she graduates. So if you feel that your son would benefit from redoing Algebra 1 in 9th grade, I'd suggest trusting your gut. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1Togo Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 (edited) In order to do well with CD, your son must watch the lecture and work all the lecture problems along with the instructor. If he does not do well with the practice problems following the lecture, he should rewatch the lecture and rework the lecture problems. Mr. Mosely says that some of his students watch the lectures until they can almost repeat them. Also, your son may need to do the practice problems more than one time. If he does not do well with the chapter review, he may need to rewatch the lectures and rework the lecture and practice problems for that chapter. If he follows this procedure (whatever parts of it are necessary), his test scores will improve. In addition, ask him to walk you through the problems he does not understand. I would suggest contacting Mr. Mosely. He is glad to offer specific advice for your student. Edited January 19, 2012 by 1Togo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThisIsTheDay Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Honestly I don't think it matters what program you use. The issue which needs addressing is his willingness' date=' or lack thereof, to do the work required. [/quote'] It's a habit he may need encouragement to learn. My dd is also quick to say she does not understand something in math. I have found that if I tell her that I'll help her in a few minutes, or if I ignore her, she'll usually eventually be able to figure it out herself if given a short amount of time. It's the same thing with chemistry at my house. I definitely don't think you need to drop algebra early, or look at a different curriculum. When he sees that giving a bit of effort has great rewards, he may be further encouraged. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 The best advice I've found for reluctant workers is to give them more work if they don't complete what is asked for the first time... If the problem is that they don't understand how to do something, knowing they will have to do twice as many if they don't ask (in order to be able to complete it the first time) spurs many to ask. You don't need to do twice as many, you can start with 5 extra, or whatever you decide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheApprentice Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 I agree, Derek Owens Alg. 1 is working very well here. The 2 workbooks that come with the program are not complete and have to be filled in as the instruction is given. Sometimes it will be definitions, other times it will be the problems being worked out. And the way he explains things makes it very clear for ds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dkholland Posted January 20, 2012 Author Share Posted January 20, 2012 Wow...thank you all for posting and giving encouragment! Today he missed 8 on a test of 22 problems....three of which where just marked with a '?'. So, I handed it back and got all but two right! So, ,I know he understand the material enough to get through it he just dislikes math so much his attitude is becoming a hurdle. I am not wanting to try a new curriculum mid-year. I feel the CD is a good program, but maybe we need to approach it differently. thanks for the suggestions there. Sailmom - I do have a gut feeling that another year in Alg 1 will benefit him. That is an issue my husband and I have been discussing. I don't want him to feel like a dumby who needs do re-do a class. But, algebra is fundamental to other high school classes and so I want him to have the best chance to do well in those too. You've been a great help to me and anyone else lurking with a math-reluctant son!:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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