Little Engineer in the Making ;) Questions for those moms who have been there... done

[SonshineLearner]

Hi Been there, Done that Moms/Dads :)

 

I have an 8.5 yr old son who we've wondering "what" he's gonna be and started asking "what type of engineer" he's gonna be :)

 

My husband is a Mechanical Engineer by schooling and a Design Engineer by trade. (And my step daughter, my son's half sister, is studying to be a Chemist)

 

I'm doing Singapore 4A and Beastly Academics 3A. (just started these)

 

He also talks incessantly about math and such.

 

He absolutely loves history and likes science and seems to have a gift towards languages. His memory is incredible, so I'm working on more memory work. (Like a poem we just started... that someone mentioned here)

 

Math is my seriously weak point. I'm pathetic at higher math. I've read a ton about math at the lower level and have tried to figure out how you get from whatever grade 4A is.... to Algebra.

 

So, for my son who will need to be doing Calculus his last year of highschool... I would assume... I'm trying to figure out his path. I know it's early... but I don't want him to be in 9th and wonder where the time went....

 

I'd love to have some people who have sent their children off... or will be in a few years ..... offer your advice. :)

[mumto2]

For SM you go to level 6b then switch to NEM levels one to four. It is a combination algebra, geometry, and beginning trigonometry text in one. It was designed to prepare students for the GCSE/IGCSE exams. From there you need to finish with another type of text book. Saxon etc. We have used lots of things to supplement.

[Teachin'Mine]

No btdt as far as engineering goes as my dd is 15yo, but she began algebra early and is currently doing calculus. My guess is that with the path he's on, he'll be doing calculus before his senior year, but there's a lot of time between now and then. Good for you for looking ahead. I'm not familiar with Singapore as we didn't use any formal math program in the early elementary years, just workbooks. But I switched to Saxon for their 6/5 and we've been using it ever since. I haven't taught my dd math since 6/5 as she likes to learn on her own from the texts. Saxon works well for independent learners and has a few DVD support options if they're needed. Saxon has lots of mental math, facts practice (although that's probably not so needed with your son's memory), mental math and lots of built-in review in each of the lesson problem sets. They also incorporate geometry throughout so a separate geometry text isn't needed, but we did do a year of formal geometry. Whatever you choose to use, enjoy your little engineer! :)

[Julie in MN]

My youngest went right from Singapore 6B in 7th, to algebra in 8th. We used most of our extra math time on drill, including a focus on fractions in 7th.

 

My oldest son is an engineer. He didn't do algebra until 8th, either. But then he was in a special program at our university that did Algebra I and II in 8th. He then went back to regular math and did calculus in 11th at the high school, and again in 12th at the community college.

 

You are right to focus on math (and test scores in math). The only other things that seemed to make a difference for my son were writing well and having involvement in things outside of academics.

 

Julie

[SonshineLearner]

Thanks! Wow, Julie! How great to have special programs near you. Thanks for everyone's opinions. He seems to soak in things, but with Math I'm especially nervous ;)