Erica in OR Posted May 15, 2012 Share Posted May 15, 2012 I'm making plans for next year for math. My two oldest will be in 7th and 5th. So far we've used Saxon. For the earlier grades we tried one year of Miquon, but I found I needed the scripted lessons in Saxon as a guide. We continued into the regular texts since it was working okay and someone gifted us with the Saxon 54, 65, and 76 textbooks. It's at a crossroads—I'll need to purchase something for my 7th grader. I'm wondering how viable an option it is for my 7th grader to move into Life of Fred. According to the website, she would start in Fractions, and do the pre-algebra set. If we follow TWTM recommendations for 7th grade Saxon instead, I would need to purchase Algebra 1/2. My soon-to-be 5th grader finished this year's text already, so a few weeks ago I purchased Life of Fred Fractions as something fun for her to work through until the end of our school year. Both the girls and I like the literature-based approach. I like that the emphasis is more on understanding the concepts and relating it to the real world. Saxon has worked for us, but at times it is tedious for them—the large number of problems and the repetition. Can Life of Fred be a stand-alone program for middle school and not just a supplement? What would it look like for my 5th grader? Would she and the 7th grader both work through the same books together? Or 5th grader continue in Saxon and supplement with Fred for fun? Just trying to puzzle out what a plan might be here... Erica in OR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NittanyJen Posted May 15, 2012 Share Posted May 15, 2012 Yes, Fred can be a stand alone program at middle and high school levels, if your students really do the work and pay attention to the math. My son is succeeding very well with Fred, working independently. As a trial, I let him try AoPS and Dolciani Pre-Algebra, and both have been simple for him after Fred. My husband is a math professor at a major research university, and he wishes his students had half the prep that Fred provides. It does explain things conceptually, rather than just algorithmically. Fair warning; his political leanings are pretty transparent in Fred:Economics. We just use that as fodder for discussion :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beans Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 A while back I was fretting about what to do for my 7th grader who didn't seem to grasp math "conceptually," not understanding word problems, no retention, etc. She preferred the Saxon type style: lecture/video of how to do concept, then drill until comfortable. Apparently a lot wasn't retained or understood in the sense of practical life application. The whole point of math skills IMO. I was all set to go with BJU to help her catch up and cement her skills, but looked at Fred, as I was set to begin fractions with my son, and was unsure if Singapore would suit him. I really liked the look of it and decided to try it with my daughter as well. We started a few weeks ago and I couldn't be happier. My son (5th) does it alone, then reviews heavily with me. My 7th grader does it solo and has been doing fantastic. I am so pleased with it and plan to continue the series until they want a change. Basically it suits my son by showing him why he did all of those division problems and why you need to multiply two digits by two digits (you can't find out how many minutes in 39 days otherwise!). My independent daughter can learn on her own as she wishes, she learns the basics conceptually, and I check in at bridges to make sure all is okay (she will be on track to start pre-algebra sometime in the fall and with a SOLID foundation). With both children we have discovered weaknesses(roman numerals, place values), and stopped to go over them and practice for a day or two. I hope this helps some, as I know I was a little nervous about it. My kids love the drill drill drill, and when they miss the repetition or feel they need it, we'll just supplement with Khan or worksheets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reflections Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 :lurk5: I have been considering this very thing - I really like Fred - but I think that my dd is going to need some extra work. I'm sorta planning on doing Saxon 1/2 with LOF Pre-Algebra and see were we are after about 9 weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erica in OR Posted May 19, 2012 Author Share Posted May 19, 2012 Thanks for your thoughts, everyone. It's been very helpful. Erica in OR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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