Horizons > Saxon

[AdamsFamily]

Have any of you had any experience switching from Horizons to Saxon math? My dd is finishing horizon 6. I know there is one more book in the horizons series, but I would like to go ahead and switch to a program that we will use in the upper grades.

 

Was the transition easy? Did Horizons leave out anything that was crucial for Saxon?

 

Thanks!

[Shannon in TN]

:bigear: I'd love to see what others have to say, too. We're in Horizons 5 this year and I'd like to change over to something for the upper grades starting next year, too. I was thinking either Saxon or maybe Singapore.

[Tess in the Burbs]

My son is doing Horizons 6 this year and has Saxon on his short list for next year using the teacher dvd's. Would love to hear how kids did going to Saxon....

[mschickie]

We used Horizons through 3 and then switched to Saxon. Once dd got used to having to write down the problems and work she was fine with it. We did do the Saxon placement test which put her in 65 instead of 54. Dd reads through the lesson and does her math first thing in the morning. I only need to go over it when she has a question about it which is rare. I find that Saxon does an excellent job in going over the material and providing examples. We do not use the videos just the book and dd has not had a problem with it. This is our second year with Saxon and I love it.

[HollyDay]

We went from Saxon 87 to Horizon Pre-Algebra. Personally, I like Horizon better. It is ambitious, but I think it explains concepts in a more straight forward manner than Saxon did. It is a different approach. I know a few families IRL who have gone from Horizon to Saxon for the very reason you mention. They speak well of the transition. I had a choice to make just recently about high school math. Dd will finish Horizon pre-Algebra shortly after the Christmas break. IF Horizon had Algebra 2 and Geometry, I would stick with that program. But, as of now, they don't. When I call AOP, they don't have any info about it either. For continuity's sake, we are switching over to Lial's for algebra. Long story short, I wouldn't think you would have difficulty moving from Horizon to Saxon at that level. Higher levels, maybe, due to the geometry being wrapped into the algebra progam.

 

But, if you like Horizon, you still have 2 years worth of books to go. Hopefully, by then, they will have at least Geometry on the shelf.

[AdamsFamily]

I didn't know Horizons added Algebra 1. I love Horizons and would rather stick with it, but they don't have the upper level classes. Didn't pre-algebra just come out last year? Maybe they will continue with Algebra 2, Geometry, Trig, and Calculus. That would be great! Add in Khan Academy videos when needed, and I'd be set! :)

[Serenade]

My oldest son switched from Horizons to Saxon this year. He completed Horizons 5 and was able to test into Saxon Algebra 1/2. I think it was largely a perfect transition. Most of the first lessons in the Saxon book reviewed things he had already learned in Horizons, but the Saxon lessons just went into greater depth/more complex problems.

 

The biggest issue with his transition was the timing -- the Saxon lessons probably took him twice as long as the Horizons lessons. He also had to transition from a workbook to a notebook, which was interesting to say the least -- he put his problems all over the paper in all sorts of weird orders, and it took him a long time to get the hang of placing them in order, and not wherever they fit. :-)

 

If you haven't already, look up the Saxon placement test and have your child take it -- it will give you a good idea for placement. My son barely tested into Algebra 1/2, but some of the problems on the test were simply things he had never been exposed to before, like the formula for the area of a triangle. That was easy enough to learn, KWIM? The basic things Horizons taught him well so that he had no trouble adapting to the more demanding problems in the Saxon book.

[AdamsFamily]

Thanks for the information! Now that I know Horizons has Algebra 1, I will stick with Horizons for the next two years. Instead of Saxon, I am going to aim for the recommendations from Veritas Press post Horizons. At least that is my plan now! :)

[rhrice3]

Ladies,

I had two children switch from Horizons to Saxon very easily and successfully. Now this was 6-8 yrs ago, but we always started with Horizon. At the time Sonlight recommended switching to Saxon after 3rd or 4th because Horizon was not as strong (I understand that is different now). Anyway, my ds (gifted in math) switched from Horizon 3 to Saxon 65 very easily in 4th grade - he was bored with Saxon so I added Singapore for extra work. He went to 76 then 1/2 with Singapore added each year then on to Chalkdust Alg.

 

My dd went from Horizon 3 to Saxon 54 easily. I added Singapore for word problem help and she went on to finish 65 with Singapore added and then on to Chalkdust prealg

 

I think that it would be quite easy for a child to move from Horizon to Saxon. I along with other friends found that Horizon was more comprehensive and challenging so make sure that you take a Saxon placement test so your child is not bored.

 

Good luck,

Renee R

[Trish]

I didn't know Horizons added Algebra 1. I love Horizons and would rather stick with it, but they don't have the upper level classes. Didn't pre-algebra just come out last year? Maybe they will continue with Algebra 2, Geometry, Trig, and Calculus. That would be great! Add in Khan Academy videos when needed, and I'd be set! :)

 

 

I think their pre-algebra is strong, liked it a lot.