Best Afterschooling Math?

[eloquacious]

So we have an extremely high likelihood that my son will have Singapore Math as his mathematics program. If he gets into the classical/STEM charter near us, he will be doing Yr. 1 in KG, if we do the "true classical" charter, most likely on grade level, as they don't do ability groupings.

 

The goal is to accelerate him a bit, because we are hoping to go to a BASIS high school which offers an accelerated math track. This elementary charter serves as an unofficial "feeder" to the high school, but while kids at the charter are doing well on tests and showing deep understanding of the material (which I would certainly hope if Singapore is well-taught), they are not able to handle the rigorous homework the high school requires. (I believe that they do Saxon.)

 

So, I'm fine with the school not requiring a lot of math homework - that leaves things in our hands.

 

So far, the plan is to do Miquon Orange before he starts KG, then proceed through the various colors until that's done. We also own Math Mammoth Light Blue, and we have a Dreambox subscription. Perhaps it's that I was a Language Arts teacher and I'm overcompensating, I don't know.

 

Mainly, though, I want to keep the extra practice fun. He loves Dreambox, and the Cuisenaire rods are inherently fun. Math Mammoth...well, that might not be.

 

What else would you recommend, or what would you replace? I had been thinking of buying the RightStart Math games for fun facts practice. Any other games or similar things that would be a fun "every now and then" supplement?

[extendedforecast]

I'm partial to Math Mammoth.

[aug17girl]

I use the activities the free website K-5 Math Teaching Resources as a supplement for topics where DS needs a little extra practice or reinforcement. I present the activities as games and my 5 year old accepts them as such. They go really well with Dreambox since some of the activities use ten-frames and other similar tools.

 

Here is a link to the Kindergarten activities: http://www.k-5mathteachingresources.com/kindergarten-math-activities.html

 

I don't bother laminating the materials. If it is an activity for dry-erase markers, I just put the sheet in a clear page protector.

[eloquacious]

That last link was awesome! Thank you!

[ChrissySC]

Depnds on the way that they learn best. The traditional methods in ps may not promote any mastery because of the learning style. So, I would tend to think that Right Start or Math Mammoth would be fantastic for visual/kinesthetic learners, not something that the PS has much time to do.

 

If you want some reinforcement, Life of Fred. I love this.

 

Now, because of the age ... I would agree that MM may be best served as an afterschool resource with early grades. Otherwise, the more progressive the math the better that you might find the Keys to ... series or LOF. I have the entire MM and use the individual books much like the Keys to ... books.

 

HTH ... I just thought that I would throw this out there for you to ponder. Consider the grade and the learning style. That sums it up.

[eloquacious]

I am inclined to like things like MM and Miquon because they are more or less laid out. The games linked to above are awesome, but I don't think I'll be able to do them after my son enters K because that's the sort of thing I always forget about. Workbooks, etc. are just THERE. I can grab a paper and go.

[EKS]

 

The goal is to accelerate him a bit, because we are hoping to go to a BASIS high school which offers an accelerated math track. This elementary charter serves as an unofficial "feeder" to the high school, but while kids at the charter are doing well on tests and showing deep understanding of the material (which I would certainly hope if Singapore is well-taught), they are not able to handle the rigorous homework the high school requires. (I believe that they do Saxon.)

 

 

Do you know what specifically they are having trouble handling? Is it the excessively long problem sets? Or something else? Because how you supplement (if you are looking to avoid this problem down the road) depends on what the nature of the problem is.

[snazzy]

My sons have done singapore math (1-6A, 1-3A, & 1-3A). It works great for 2/3 of my kids. It works ok for the other one but it isn't great. Honestly though, I think that is a reflection of the younger ones ability more than the program.

 

I found we didn't need the textbook, the parent's books are excellent but in all honesty we found we didn't have time to do a lot of the activities. I now only buy the workbooks because of the time thing (and because I haven't hit any math I don't know myself yet - but this means I have to do all the questions in the workbooks to check their answers - that was fine in the beginning but now it is getting to be a pain - especially since my 4th grader is starting to work on material I barely remember)

 

It does not follow the typical school curriculum though so you have to think of the lessons as separate from what they are getting at school (or you can pull pages from other parts of the books to follow the school curriculum a bit). This gets worse as they get older.

 

My youngest twin definitely needs more review than singapore offers (even with school) and struggles with the word problems. My 4th grader though prefers to learn several concepts at once and just skip to the review section to keep from getting bored. My oldest twin seems to be at just the right pace for Singapore. Its just like Goldilocks.

[besroma]

I would consider MEP, LOF, and Muggins Math games for supplements.

 

My children also love books from The Critical Thinking Company: Balance Benders, Math Analogies, and Balance Math & More.

 

Visible Thinking in Mathematics by Singapore Math is also great.

[Toocrazy!!]

:iagree: that is a great link. Thanks for sharing.

[SunnyDays]

I like the idea of sticking with Miquon in the lower grades. If he's going to use Singapore in school, what about also supplementing with the appropriate IP or CWP books, or will they use those in school in the curriculum? That may not be acceleration, but it will certainly enhance understanding.

[eloquacious]

I like the idea of sticking with Miquon in the lower grades. If he's going to use Singapore in school, what about also supplementing with the appropriate IP or CWP books, or will they use those in school in the curriculum? That may not be acceleration, but it will certainly enhance understanding.

 

I had thought of that, as well. I will have to see where he's placed (there is a chance of acceleration, so K kids doing 1st math), and what they use before I can address that though.