pjssully Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 HI-- Just a quick question to anyone who might have twins or similar ages. My twins are 6.5 and very bright in math. HOwever, one is farther ahead in knowing facts and basic math ideas. I am not sure if i should try to teach them together or do them separate. They do tend to be a bit competitive so i worry a bit about that, especially for "time tests"if we do them. And i am not sure what program to put them in. The finished HOrizons Book 1 Last year but i want to do something different. Looking at Singapore 1a for one and 1b for the other, or doing them together in saxon 2 or abeka 2. any insights or other programs that might work(not math u see, please) thanks pam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Camy-7 boybarians 1 lady Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 I have always kept them together for all subjects. However, if one of the boys was getting the concepts better, I'd let him go ahead of his bro. I like the competition aspect, it was good for the both of them. Still is (grin). It's funny that one of my boys is better at language arts and the other is the math/analytical guy. Go figure. Identical twins, opposite personalities. We have used Singapore, R&S, Saxon, and MUS. MUS was great for our introductory years, yet it cost too much for us to keep going. I switched them to Singapore for a few years, then I got too busy to teach and figure it out for myself..LOL. R&S has been a good steady program for us thus far. Saxon is currently killing us, yet I'm trying to get my boys accustomed to the approach for future ACT testing. Blessings, Camy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In The Great White North Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 I'm a twin and I strongly recommend teaching them together. My school systems (public and parochial) had a policy of putting twins in separate classes. I'm proof that it is a fruitless effort. If they are at all competitive (and most are), putting them in different programs won't inhibit the competitiveness at all. It always irritated me to no end when a teacher or coach told me not to pay attention to my sister. Given that they're both "very bright in math," I would recommend starting them in the same book, even if one knows the math facts better than the other. Developmental spurts come at different times for every child, even between twins. Starting one ahead of the other could cement what would have been a fleeting developmental difference into a self-labeled "I'm not as good at math" scenario. If they both do the same work, one may want to race through for a few months, then the other, flip-flopping over the years. As for programs, my absolute favorite is quizzing math facts orally in the car. We make it a game. It's free, easy and I have a captive audience. I can also tailor the questions to the right level for each child. We didn't even bother with workbooks til they had the mental math down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LauraGB Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 I have always kept them together for all subjects. However, if one of the boys was getting the concepts better, I'd let him go ahead of his bro. I like the competition aspect, it was good for the both of them. Still is (grin) Camy Boy/girl twins here. I agree w/Camy. Its hard at 6.5 to let one go on and not another, but each child will appreciate being treated as an individual. If one has to work harder but keeps up (which is our case - mostly due to the competitiveness), I'd keep them together. If its more extreme than that, teach what each child needs. Regarding programs, I am not intimately familiar w/anything but Singapore. Hearing what you said, I would suggest if you look into Singapore, please check out the sample pages. We did not start w/1A. Dc would have been starting 1st grade, traditionally (so, 6). We started w/1B and finished it w/in 2 months. If you've already completed a curriculum for an entire year, you might even look at 2A. hth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teamturner Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 I did keep my boys in the same program. One is more competitive than the other and he is the one who tends to fall behind his brother. In math (we use MUS) when he would struggle w/a concept, I would just spend a week on review for them both. Since MUS only has 30 chapters, there is time in the school year to do this. However, when one struggled in reading lessons (when they were 5), I let the one boy continue on and kept the one struggling working on previous lessons. The one who fell behind his brother was constantly looking to see if he had caught up w/his brother yet and it made him work harder to get there. So I agree that competition can be a good thing but you must always emphasize that they are different and that is okay. We can't all excel in the same things, etc. I think helping the twins understand that we all learn at different speeds on various subjects would be an easier task than trying to use different math programs and all that would encompass for you the teacher. Just my 2 cents! HTH! ;) Blessings, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen500 Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 I have ds1 who gets math quicker than the other. We use Singapore, so I can have ds2 do some extra problems as needed. We use Challenging Word Problems, and usually ds2 and I work some together while ds1 does the more challenging ones on his own. That's working for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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