Mrs.Mom Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 Hi all!! I am very unfamiliar with the various curriculum out there - so much available - but I need a new math program. I really would like to see, touch and feel the style of math before I invest in something. We will need something new after Christmas, so I have some research time. This is probably a very newbie question - but I was just curious how you make your final decision? The trial and error process seems a little pricey if you make the wrong choice. :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 Does your area have a homeschool bookstore where you can go and preview different curricula? I find that a trip to the one in my area is worth the gas because I can look through the whole book rather than just a few sample pages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs.Mom Posted November 11, 2012 Author Share Posted November 11, 2012 No, I live in the backwoods. As in, 45 minutes from the nearest Walmart... so I am limited (physically). Definitely makes it tougher! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 but I was just curious how you make your final decision? The trial and error process seems a little pricey if you make the wrong choice. :P My kids look at the sample pages of the math curriculum that I think might be suitable and they make the decision for which they prefer. Like they look at Beast Academy samples for 3A/B/C and they are just not interested in the monsters. They just tell me "mummy don't buy, I don't want". My older prefer color and a decent about of white space in his curriculum. I cater to that when possible. My younger is more easy going with curriculum. For AOPs textbooks, I am lucky my library has the full set so my boys could take a look before I purchased. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jpoy85 Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 The first year I went to the HS convention to get an idea hands on of what i would want. I knew Christian based but there are just so many options and sometimes a sample isnt enough. After I felt the convention I narrowed it down and then purchased BUT I still made a wrong choice or two. IE: Math and Phonics curriculum. As for the wrong choices and how to change them to the right choices- I was sent a book of one of the curriculum and i fell in love to i got it. The Math i looked at previous threads on here and found it used and thankfully is a good fit. HTH~~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 I read these boards, then I go online and look at the curriculum's websites, previews, read reviews. After doing this, the choice for AoPS was a no-brainer for us, and it worked extremely well. For other things, or just to have a few extra resources on hand, I buy older editions used for very little money; so if it does not work out, not much is lost. (Just bough a multivariable cal text for $4 including shipping) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barbara H Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 Lots of good suggestions. Online previews and samples are good. You may be able to even find someone on WTM to send you copies of a couple of pages if you can't find a preview. Let me add a couple of suggestions: 1. I have been able sometimes to get more expensive books by inter-library loan or through our university library so I could get a good look before I purchased. I did this with Life of Fred and it was enough to see that it wasn't going to be a good fit for us. 2. I would also suggest looking at the return policies. Early on in homeschooling when I couldn't get to a convention and wasn't able to see a lot of resources locally, I placed a large order with Rainbow Resources with the intent of returning some of it. Of course if you do this look at the return policies carefully and make sure you won't face restocking fees. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 I ask questions, look at samples, and make FAR too many missteps :). I also go to as many homeschool book sales and visit homeschool stores when traveling since there isn't one locally. In most cases, these are more useful for ruling out rather than ruling in curriculum, but it still helps avoid at least a few of those missteps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErinE Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 It helps to "know thyself." A good curriculum that gets done is better than a great curriculum that sits on the shelf. I adapt curriculum to suit my kids' learning styles. FLL is too scripted and slow, but I like the methods and definitions so I use them in daily writing. I like the WWE philosophy, but felt I could incorporate its teaching without the workbooks. For math, I have a goal in mind and a particular style I want to teach. I am not interested in spiral-intensive curriculums which helps cull the options. I also wanted a complete elementary program, with additional practice available. What helped me was to read many, many math threads, find posts and members I identified with, and use the collective wisdom of the Hive to make a final selection. We started with SM (which the kids and I liked), but moved to MM for family lifestyle reasons (portability is important). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quark Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 Hi all!! I am very unfamiliar with the various curriculum out there - so much available - but I need a new math program. I really would like to see, touch and feel the style of math before I invest in something. We will need something new after Christmas, so I have some research time. This is probably a very newbie question - but I was just curious how you make your final decision? The trial and error process seems a little pricey if you make the wrong choice. :P The nearest homeschool curriculum stores are too far away for an easy drive and my library did not stock some of the popular choices at that time. So I chose the trial and error method, took advantage of return policies and also asked around locally. If your local homeschool community does not have a curriculum preview/ swap day, you can easily start one. The effort might actually be less than using the trial and error method: i.e. hounding your doorstep for the UPS man, opening packages eagerly only to find that the materials won't work and then repackaging almost every single one and driving to the post office to return them. :001_smile: I am lucky to have a voracious reader so eventually, we stopped using homeschool curriculum and started using more and more whole books/ living books and high school texts for math, online resources and mealtime discussions. This simplified curriculum shopping SO much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 Like others, I looked at online samples as much as possible (CBD has good samples usually, and sometimes RR has samples of different pages, plus the publisher itself may have samples also). I have gone to a convention twice, but my first purchases were made well before convention time. Did I make some purchase mistakes? You bet. In the first 3 weeks of school, we changed spelling 3 times that year. :lol: And I think by the end of the year, half of what we had started was different. This year, I haven't made purchasing mistakes. I know myself and my kids better, and I was able to make good, educated decisions. Everything we started with this year, we're still using. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissKNG Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 I look at lots of online samples and I read lots of reviews. I also ask questions on message boards like this one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 This year, I haven't made purchasing mistakes. I know myself and my kids better, and I was able to make good, educated decisions. Everything we started with this year, we're still using. Well, I'm in year 3 and I still made purchasing mistakes this year. :lol: Not very encouraging, I know! It was mostly with my youngest though since I'm still getting to know his school personality. I sometimes also go for shiny and new, even when I shouldn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 It was mostly with my youngest though since I'm still getting to know his school personality. I sometimes also go for shiny and new, even when I shouldn't. I figure next year will be the year I have to figure out DS2. His "K" year was mostly a continuation of stuff he did last year when he was 4, except that this year we do it every day - school isn't optional anymore. Next year, I'll be adding some other subjects, and I will have to figure out what he needs and how he learns some language arts areas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suzielou Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 Hi, my name is_____ and I am a curriculum shopaholic. I do have a homeschool bookstore that allows me to look through things, but I have usually read a ton of reviews and stalked it, I mean checked it out, online before I ever go to the store to check it out. Sometimes I feel really good about something and buy it, only to return it a couple of days later after I have really dived into it. My first impressions are usually right (except for MUS, I thought I would hate it, but love it). Unless I am 100% sure a curriculum is going to work, I try not to buy it, but sometimes I can't help myself. We also have several homeschool groups in the area and they have used book sales. I have yet to go to a convention and have my mind changed while there. I usually know what I want to look at before I go. Time also plays a key role. How long will it take? We dropped Sonlight and switched to Notgrass this year, but I wasn't sure how DS11 was going to take it. He loves it and I love that it combines workbooks with literature. However, if it didn't work out, it would have been $150 wasted. Curriculum that we love gets done first. It is not a surprise that Math, Science, History, and Latin are the subjects that he does first. Once you find something that works, you will find that you aren't looking as much. I have spent more time looking at Latin programs this year than anything and I haven't googled a thing for my DD8 and DS6. The DS3 is getting some googling for reading, but I think we are going to continue with what we have. :) Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runningmom80 Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 I have not had many opportunities to see books before buying them. So I basically come here and ask a lot of questions, look at as many samples as I can, read whatever reviews I can find, and then decide. Once in awhile I end up with a dud, but mostly that has worked out for me. Choosing books carefully constitutes the bulk of my homeschool planning. So I do spend a lot of time looking at the options and asking about what others have used. In terms of conferences, I went to one, but it was small and it only involved curriculum I was using already anyway. The larger ones are often not of interest to me because they aren't secular. I am not sure how many books at a religious type conference would interest me. Some textbook companies (large and small) have excellent samples. You really can get a sense for the book/program. Some don't though. That makes it difficult. If I got a book I instantly hated I suppose I could return it. I have yet to do that, but with something very expensive I would. I haven't bought too many expensive books. HTH :iagree: (not that I've been at this that long!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs.Mom Posted November 13, 2012 Author Share Posted November 13, 2012 I thought I would have until January to figure it out (we need the next level in math), but ... apparently DS9 thinks he needs to complete this year's math in the next two weeks. Wish me luck!! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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