3 Only Children Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 (edited) I am on the verge of ordering Life of Fred for my ds 12 who "hates" math (blame that on ps) but loves science. I read him a couple of paragraphs online from LOF and he laughed and thought it was great. The website suggests that some 6th grade students might benefit from reading the last 4 in the elementary series (Goldfish, Honey, Ice Cream, Jelly Beans ) before starting fractions. From what I have read LOF is great for making math fun and that is the aim I am trying for but the books themselves are just supplements. I would like to get all of them but life being what it is, I need to spend wisely. So I am asking for some input here please. Would the Goldfish book be too "young" for him? Where would you start? Edited September 3, 2012 by 3 Only Children Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 I don't have the Goldfish book so I can't answer that. My 11 yr is doing the Fractions book. He's going through it slowly and started it before Goldfish and other books were published. He loves it. Maybe get one of the younger books and give it a try. LOF has a great resell value here so you can get most of your money back that way to buy the Fractions book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Dd is going through fractions right now but I have never seen the elementary books. I am planning on buying them for ds's. Does he struggle with math concepts or just hate math? There is a difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsabelC Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Depends on his personality. With my 9yo who finds math sort of OK but tends to give up easily if he can't see the point of it and it's not interesting at that instant, I'm intending to start right from the beginning. Apple will be good for my 7yo and 4yo, so we're going to start LoF all together and then accelerate Mr 9 through to the next lot if he wants to, while the girls continue more slowly. I think the stories are amusing enough to hold interest even if the arithmetic is very basic, and I'd like them to get nicely hooked on the stories before the concepts get challenging. However, your child might have a totally different attitude. If he likes to get his teeth into a challenge, he might not want to bother repeating stuff he's already covered. What does he hate about his previous math experience? Btw, if you do decide to stretch your budget and buy all of LoF, I have also read that it has a good resale value. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 3, 2012 Author Share Posted September 3, 2012 thank you, that is good advice. Buying just one book is a good idea. If the books are a continous story I just thought it woud be better to not end up having to go backwards. He is behind in math, because he doesn't think he is good at it so am trying to find something that will make it come alive for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 3, 2012 Author Share Posted September 3, 2012 . Does he struggle with math concepts or just hate math? There is a difference. He struggles with it and thinks he is not good at it. However I believe that since he likes science he probably will like math too, once I find the right approach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 He struggles with it and thinks he is not good at it. However I believe that since he likes science he probably will like math too, once I find the right approach. I would recommend starting with something he would find a little easy to build his confidence up. I had to do that last year when my oldest was in 8th grade but it was the BEST thing I could have done for her. Don't make it to easy but enough that will get him to realize math is not a big deal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 3, 2012 Author Share Posted September 3, 2012 Depends on his personality. With my 9yo who finds math sort of OK but tends to give up easily if he can't see the point of it and it's not interesting at that instant, I'm intending to start right from the beginning. What does he hate about his previous math experience? . That describes my son too, he gives up too easily. He is a very logical thinker and Has to know the Why behind it before he will even try. Plus he just doesn't think it is enjoyable so is not interested. I think the ps gave him a bad attitude towards it by making it just seem like work and nothing else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 You might want to try math games as well. If he needs to work on math facts the Right Start games are great. Maybe a book like Math Projects can help get a different taste for math. Keep checking the sale forum here for LOF. Also, if you have younger dc you can use the LOF with them later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 3, 2012 Author Share Posted September 3, 2012 I would recommend starting with something he would find a little easy to build his confidence up. . I think that is a great approach. He is my youngest so the books I get will be just for him. It's nice to know that they have a great resale value, that definitely helps in this decision making process. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 3, 2012 Author Share Posted September 3, 2012 You might want to try math games as well. If he needs to work on math facts the Right Start games are great. Maybe a book like Math Projects can help get a different taste for math. . I just read about this on Amazon, love that they have a companion website to help with some of the projects, always a plus for me as the teacher. He does like playing games but I haven't had much success with ones that are out right math games. I have to be a little sneaky and pick ones that you need to use math to play but it is not a "math" game, KWIM? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Story wise it does not matter. The story starts in the Calculus book technically where the circumstances of Freds birth are revealed. The author wrote Calc first then wrote the rest. I think, other then physics, the elementary books are the last written. No child is going to do it in order. As for the level it depends on how competent he is with math. Just because he doesn't like it doesn't mean he can't do it necessarily. If he is completely at ease with the basics--addition, subtraction, multipication, and division-- I would start in fractions. I do have a friend who has taken her 10 year old back to the beginning, apples. He is finally getting it -- we have all attempted to tutor him in the past. Nothing ever seemed to be retained. It is amazing, a light has gone on for lack of a better description. Friends, like ds, are a bit envious that he will get to read all of them. Many of the boys in ds gang are doing Fred math. They seem to enjoy being in on the "secret"--ds feels a bit smug because he has the calc book and knows that story thanks to big sister. He doesn't share.:lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deniseibase Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 You might check & see if your local library has them before you decide, ours does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin M Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 My 6th grader was struggling as well. We started with LOF Apples and worked through the whole series in about 6 months. He loved loved loved Fred and learned much. Think it would be worth it to start from the beginning. Now we are doing LOF Fractions as a supplement to Saxon 6/5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 I think that is a great approach. He is my youngest so the books I get will be just for him. It's nice to know that they have a great resale value, that definitely helps in this decision making process. Yes they are in HIGH demand right now!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 3, 2012 Author Share Posted September 3, 2012 Story wise it does not matter. The story starts in the Calculus book technically where the circumstances of Freds birth are revealed. The author wrote Calc first then wrote the rest. I think, other then physics, the elementary books are the last written. No child is going to do it in order. Thank you for letting me how it would be story wise, that is a big help in making the choice. And it will make him want to work up to Calc... I hope!:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 3, 2012 Author Share Posted September 3, 2012 My 6th grader was struggling as well. We started with LOF Apples and worked through the whole series in about 6 months. He loved loved loved Fred and learned much. Think it would be worth it to start from the beginning. Now we are doing LOF Fractions as a supplement to Saxon 6/5. I am thinking about doing this just to give him some confidence in math, as I know the early books will be easy for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 3, 2012 Author Share Posted September 3, 2012 You might check & see if your local library has them before you decide, ours does. That would be wonderful! We do have a lot of libraries in our area, praying one of them has the whole set. Going to check that out now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NittanyJen Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Depending upon how they work out, keep an open mind, too. From Fractions on up, the series is working out terrifically well as a standalone for DS11. Using another math program with Fred would waste his time. We are a heavy math/science focus family (between DH and I, we hold 4 Bachelor's degrees, 3in math and science, and DH has a PhD in math, and I have early childhood Ed experience) and we think Fred is phenomenal in the way it teaches conceptual understanding and subject mastery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 3, 2012 Author Share Posted September 3, 2012 (edited) Depending upon how they work out, keep an open mind, too. From Fractions on up, the series is working out terrifically well as a standalone for DS11. ...we think Fred is phenomenal in the way it teaches conceptual understanding and subject mastery. I really think Fred is the answer for my ds. If we started with Ice Cream say, which is 2 books before fractions, do you have a recommendation for a curric. to use with it or can that stand alone as well? And I'm interested to know why I should keep an open mind? Appreciate everyone taking the time to help me figure this out. Edited September 3, 2012 by 3 Only Children Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 I really think Fred is the answer for my ds. If we started with Ice Cream say, which is 2 books before fractions, do you have a recommendation for a curric. to use with it or can that stand alone as well? And I'm interested to know why I should keep an open mind? Appreciate everyone taking the time to help me figure this out. You could easily use LOF stand alone (or with free online worksheets if you wanted more practice/drill). My sister in law went from Saxon to Life of Fred. LOF is amazing!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 I think that is a great approach. He is my youngest so the books I get will be just for him. It's nice to know that they have a great resale value, that definitely helps in this decision making process. Or you could sell them to a friend, who has a habit of collecting math books? :seeya: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 4, 2012 Author Share Posted September 4, 2012 Or you could sell them to a friend, who has a habit of collecting math books? :seeya: I sure could, especially when said friend is so wonderful about letting me see her great stash. :Angel_anim: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 If it were me, I'd start him on Fractions. I did do the whole Elementary series with my 9 yo 4th grader, and she loved it, and I'm so glad I did, but with a 12 yo I would just jump into Fractions as long as his long division skills are strong. Not that you will do any damage by starting in Ice Cream or elsewhere! But important concepts are repeated, and so you won't "miss out" on anything if you start him in Fractions. I guess the main determinant would be whether you want to read/work together on this, or if you want him to work mostly independently. The Elementary books are designed to be read/worked on together, and from Fractions on up they should work relatively independently. So I guess that is maybe how I would decide where to start - am I looking for something cozy to read together to help inspire math love? Start somewhere in the elementary series. If not, go with Fractions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 Does he have his math facts down? If so, I'd start him with Fractions. If not, I'd remediate with the last few Elementary books as aids, along with games/living math approaches. DD just started Farming, and it's wrapping up addition facts and covering pre-algebra skills at the same time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 4, 2012 Author Share Posted September 4, 2012 with a 12 yo I would just jump into Fractions as long as his long division skills are strong. Not that you will do any damage by starting in Ice Cream or elsewhere! But important concepts are repeated, and so you won't "miss out" on anything if you start him in Fractions. I guess the main determinant would be whether you want to read/work together on this, or if you want him to work mostly independently. The Elementary books are designed to be read/worked on together, and from Fractions on up they should work relatively independently. So I guess that is maybe how I would decide where to start - am I looking for something cozy to read together to help inspire math love? Start somewhere in the elementary series. If not, go with Fractions. You bring up a lot of good points here that give me a good feel of how the books were designed. Good to know that the concepts are repeated and how they are meant to be used. Thank you for sharing, it is very helpful. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 4, 2012 Author Share Posted September 4, 2012 Does he have his math facts down? If so, I'd start him with Fractions. If not, I'd remediate with the last few Elementary books as aids, along with games/living math approaches. He knows his facts but is not solid with them so I was planning on spending the beginning reviewing enough to get him strong in those areas. I have MUS Gamma & Delta and thought those might be good for that but it is my first time using them. What is the living math approach? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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