Thoughts on Miquon Math?

[toawh]

I'm thinking about buying Miquon Math. I've been looking for something that is based on investigation as a supplement to school maths. My main intention is to give my kids a deeper understanding of mathematical principals so they can hopefully come to love math as much as I do :). I don't want worksheets or drills. Miquon math was suggested to me by the boards. Before I buy the whole set, is there anything worth knowing (pros or cons)? I've never handled the program and would hate to spend money I already don't have on an item I won't use.

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

We use and enjoy Miquon in addition to Singapore. However, I think you could buy the Cuisinaire rods (get a small group pack, it's nice to have a lot) and the videos at education unboxed to put together your own math exploration activities. It is great to introduce the subject visually with the rods, then hit the *real* math books to cement in facts and calculating practice.

 

My son is only in SM 1, and we are just finishing 1a (switched programs in middle of year). We are doing an easy topic and so I thought I'd introduce a harder concept (multiplication) with Cuisiaire rods and the techniques from Education Unboxed, followed by corresponding Miquon sheets. He understood it INSTANTLY. The rods are really amazing for understanding concepts. I think there just needs to be plenty of additional drill, of one sort or another, to make calculating very fluid. This is where a secondary program comes in, or else just build your own drill into it.

[Farrar]

We love Miquon. What age are you thinking about it for?

 

It is very conceptual. I love the way it leads kids into deeper thinking by introducing it both with the rods and with really simple, intuitive problems at first. I love the organization style, which is different from other programs. All the books are organized by "threads" that teach different topics. So, for example, thread A might be counting, B might be simple adding, and so forth. Threads continue through the different workbooks. It sounds a little complicated, but it's actually pretty simple and it allows you to jump around within the workbooks, which we really liked. I also like the discovery aspect of it and the way that it can be more child-led than other programs. Also, we just love the rods. And I think Rosie's videos make it easier to use than ever.

 

It doesn't have much drill, and I do think that's one of the reasons it doesn't work for many kids as a main program, but one of my ds has used it as his math spine and we've done drills and math facts through games. Because it's more spiral, that may not work for all kids either. And some parents find the way that it looks so different on first glance really intimidating.

 

I could talk Miquon all day though. My ds who uses it will finish soon. The biggest con to me is that it doesn't go all the way up to algebra.

[toawh]

We love Miquon. What age are you thinking about it for?

 

It is very conceptual. I love the way it leads kids into deeper thinking by introducing it both with the rods and with really simple, intuitive problems at first. I love the organization style, which is different from other programs. All the books are organized by "threads" that teach different topics. So, for example, thread A might be counting, B might be simple adding, and so forth. Threads continue through the different workbooks. It sounds a little complicated, but it's actually pretty simple and it allows you to jump around within the workbooks, which we really liked. I also like the discovery aspect of it and the way that it can be more child-led than other programs. Also, we just love the rods. And I think Rosie's videos make it easier to use than ever.

 

It doesn't have much drill, and I do think that's one of the reasons it doesn't work for many kids as a main program, but one of my ds has used it as his math spine and we've done drills and math facts through games. Because it's more spiral, that may not work for all kids either. And some parents find the way that it looks so different on first glance really intimidating.

 

I could talk Miquon all day though. My ds who uses it will finish soon. The biggest con to me is that it doesn't go all the way up to algebra.

 

 

Right now I need it for ds(7) and ds(3). They do plenty of math at school -- well the older one does. He did a year of Saxon before hitting school so he is ahead and school work is review for him. Right now he likes math because "it's easy" and I want to keep it that way. Are the lessons clearly laid out? I worry that I'll end up with a bunch of rods that will be used to make roads for cars by ds(3) because I'll be lost about what to do with them or strapped for time to plan my own classes around them.

[Farrar]

They're clearly laid out, but the system isn't linear. It's not, do a then b then c. Instead, you can follow each thread individually, or you can skip from one thread to the next within each book doing each one in order (a-1, a-2, a-3, a-4, etc.) but doing a bit of a, then a bit of g, then a bit of d and so forth until it's all finished. The annotations book has ideas for introducing each thread and teaching it.

 

It's not a scripted, one foot in front of the other one, sort of curriculum. However, we haven't found it hard to use. And making trains with the rods is good for 3 yos!

[toawh]

They're clearly laid out, but the system isn't linear. It's not, do a then b then c. Instead, you can follow each thread individually, or you can skip from one thread to the next within each book doing each one in order (a-1, a-2, a-3, a-4, etc.) but doing a bit of a, then a bit of g, then a bit of d and so forth until it's all finished. The annotations book has ideas for introducing each thread and teaching it.

 

It's not a scripted, one foot in front of the other one, sort of curriculum. However, we haven't found it hard to use. And making trains with the rods is good for 3 yos!

 

 

Okay, I'm gonna buy it! The fluidity of the program is what appeals to me the most actually. Thanks

[Alessandra]

I'm thinking about buying Miquon Math. I've been looking for something that is based on investigation as a supplement to school maths. My main intention is to give my kids a deeper understanding of mathematical principals so they can hopefully come to love math as much as I do :). I don't want worksheets or drills. Miquon math was suggested to me by the boards. Before I buy the whole set, is there anything worth knowing (pros or cons)? I've never handled the program and would hate to spend money I already don't have on an item I won't use.

 

We love Miquon. What age are you thinking about it for?

 

It is very conceptual. I love the way it leads kids into deeper thinking by introducing it both with the rods and with really simple, intuitive problems at first. I love the organization style, which is different from other programs. All the books are organized by "threads" that teach different topics. So, for example, thread A might be counting, B might be simple adding, and so forth. Threads continue through the different workbooks. It sounds a little complicated, but it's actually pretty simple and it allows you to jump around within the workbooks, which we really liked. I also like the discovery aspect of it and the way that it can be more child-led than other programs. Also, we just love the rods. And I think Rosie's videos make it easier to use than ever.

 

It doesn't have much drill, and I do think that's one of the reasons it doesn't work for many kids as a main program, but one of my ds has used it as his math spine and we've done drills and math facts through games. Because it's more spiral, that may not work for all kids either. And some parents find the way that it looks so different on first glance really intimidating.

 

I could talk Miquon all day though. My ds who uses it will finish soon. The biggest con to me is that it doesn't go all the way up to algebra.

 

 

 

:iagree:

 

Everything she said. I bolded parts I especially agreed with -- Miquon does aim to give a deep understanding. There are no typical drills, and the worksheets are not about practicing procedures/algorithms, but about discovering. As for the organization, Miquon is spiral, but in a completely different way from the spiral of Everyday Math. I think of Miquon as being interlocking, rather than spiral. Addition links to multiplication; fractions link to division.

 

Worksheets are laid out to be visually appealing, some printed black, some in red or green or blue. They have lots of open space so children can write (or draw) their own problems. Very, very few (almost none) of the problems are arithmetic -- that is to say something like columns of numbers for addition. Almost all of the problems are in the form of algebraic sentences, like : x + 4 = 7, but, instead of an x, there is an empty square or circle or triangle to be filled in. Early on, the problems get sophisticated: 1/2x + 3 = 5. Much more complicated than that, but I don't have my book in front of me.

 

Btw, it's OK for a kid to play with the rods -- in fact, it's encouraged. Miquon was developed in a progressive school and is child centered. The author emphasizes that kids have days of being ready to absorb new ideas and days of being more intellectually quiet, and that teaching should respect these ups and downs by letting the children have a say in what they are doing on a given day.

 

One other aspect I like about Miquon is that is was designed to use as little language as possible, so that non-readers can still do it. From my experience, this also works in the opposite direction, because it allows older kids to use Miquon for remediation without feeling that they are being talked down to.

 

Definitely get the teacher materials with it. Be aware that the workbooks are consumable -- in fact the pages are designed to be torn out of the books to make it easier to place the rods on the pages.

 

A lot of the math lovers on this board love Miquon. It sounds as though it could be a good match for you.

[Spy Car]

IMO Miquon is a marvelous tool for unlocking the kind of mathematical understanding and love for the subject you to inspire.

 

It is a "quirky" program in that is looks very different from anything else. Some of the "strangeness" is "shock of the new" and is more superficial than one might guess at first glance. Instead of using "birds" and "bunnies" to illustrate shapes, for example, early lessons incorporate strange abstractions. But it is just "birds" and "bunnies" underneath it all.

 

The teacher materials are a gold mine. It really helps one be able to see math discovery through a child's eyes, and helps a parent/teacher create and promote opportunities for "discovery." And how to turn "discoveries" into explicitly understood math axioms.

 

Because parent/teacher development is so important when using Miquon it is important for parents to put in study time of their own. Which is not painful. The materials are great. "Notes to Teachers" is short, and has ideas for starting out with C Rods. "First Grade Diary" is a very warm mentorship by the author who takes parents through a year of using Miquon in practice. FGD gives the philosophical/pedagogical model for the Math Lab experience. And "Lab Sheet Annotations" has both notes on objectives on each student page and also fantastic tropical information on mathematical operations. "Annotations" becomes a serious reference book.

 

Miquon is not for everyone. But if you are looking to "turn the lights on" in a fun and effective way, Miquon is fantastic.

 

A board member here (Rosie) has created a website called "Education Unboxed" where she has posted videos on her take on using Cuisenaire Rods and Miquon inspired methods to teach. They are a great way you get a feel for this sort of learning.

 

Lastly, Miquon sets can often be found here (hardly) used, because—to be honest—some people purchase it and never get beyond the "what the heck?" moment.

 

Bill

 

 

[Chelli]

You can buy the Miquon workbooks from Currclick so that you can reuse them again and again without having to tear out pages or anything.

 

http://www.currclick.com/product/463/Miquon-Math%2C-Orange-Book%2C-Level-1-Gr-1?term=miquon&it=1

[Spy Car]

 

 

Okay, I'm gonna buy it! The fluidity of the program is what appeals to me the most actually. Thanks

 

It is super fluid. It encourages children (and parents) to creatively improvise and to follow topical interests. And to appreciate how, at the core, all of the early mathematical concepts are interrelated.

 

The "playing" with C Rods that the young one will get is a magical part. When young ones imprint concepts using tools they can manipulate themselves (and when learning by other means if relatively hard) is when Miquon is irreplaceable. The older boy will unfortunately miss out on some of that, but there is still much to be gained.

 

Bill

[Alessandra]

You can buy the Miquon workbooks from Currclick so that you can reuse them again and again without having to tear out pages or anything.

 

http://www.currclick...erm=miquon&it=1

 

It'd great to know this. I am lending an math teacher friend some of the teacher materials, but didn't want to lend our completed workbooks. Now I can give her this link!

THX

[Spy Car]

I can see the agruement for e-files especially with multiple children, or avoiding shipping over-seas, but I also think there is something charming in the low tech printing of the students books, and the fact that a child can flip through them to find lab-seets that interest them that I would miss without a hard copy.

 

Bill

[toawh]

Yeah, I was thinking to put the pages in plastic sheets so they can do them as many times as they want. Will the annotations book tell me what to do? I didn't order the first grade diary or the notes to teachers.

[ItoLina]

Yeah, I was thinking to put the pages in plastic sheets so they can do them as many times as they want. Will the annotations book tell me what to do? I didn't order the first grade diary or the notes to teachers.

 

 

I just have the Lab Sheet Annotations and that has worked fine for me as far as figuring out what to do.

 

We love love love Miquon here. It has been so cool watching my son really get these big ideas. Whenever he seems to be struggling with something in Math it is my go to thing. i pull out the rods and some Miquon sheets and it just clicks for him. I use it to supplement Singapore 1A right now, but we also go through periods where we just do Miquon for a couple of weeks on its own.

[Spy Car]

Yeah, I was thinking to put the pages in plastic sheets so they can do them as many times as they want. Will the annotations book tell me what to do? I didn't order the first grade diary or the notes to teachers.

 

 

I would get the other books. "Notes" you may (will) find the least of the 3, but the FGD was essential for me in painting a picture of how to teach. I found it very inspiring. I forget now if it was Paula (3BlessingsMom) or myself who coined the idea that the FGd was "the heart and soul" of Miquon, but we each repeated it so many time we "co-owned" the idea.

 

If you do get the FGD, I'd urge you to blast through it as almost a pleasure read, which is hard because it is packed with ideas. You can re-read (to glean good stuff) but reading this work gave me "the big picture" of how to teach using the Math-Lab style, which I found both liberating and confidence building. It didn't take long before I started inventing stuff and making my own lab-sheets and explorations.

 

The Annotations book has notes for each page, and great topical information (really great) but I think it lacks "the big picture" vision you get reading Notes and the FGD first. I think it is why many Miquon trials go wrong. Many people just "don't get it."

 

It really isn't so complicated. And these days the Education Unboxed videos at least give people who refuse to read a window into how a Math-Lab learning environment works, but I'd still urge you to read the teacher books.

 

Miquon is not really a workbook based program (despite there being lab-sheets) and cultivating good teaching is one of the strongest elements.

 

Bill

 

 

[Walking-Iris]

Yeah, I was thinking to put the pages in plastic sheets so they can do them as many times as they want. Will the annotations book tell me what to do? I didn't order the first grade diary or the notes to teachers.

 

I love Miquon, but I'm going to give you my own con about it. There are no answers and no instructions on how to use the workbooks. At least not entirely. In the Annotations there will be some instruction and examples but just as many not. The Annotations has smaller pics of all the workbook pages and it's expected you'll fill them in as you go along with your child to create your teacher guide. I didn't do that, I'll just keep my older ds's completed workbooks to reference for the younger two. Now this is K-3 or potentially 4th grade math, so no big deal. BUT it's so different than how so many of us were likely taught math in school that it can be overwhelming and confusing at first. Not so much in the first books, but in the later books sure. Most of it can be figured out by you. There's no hand holding or script or anything. I do however wish a new teacher guide for these workbooks could be out there with a tad more guidance and instruction for the sheets.

 

That isn't a big obstacle however. The Annotations do have a lot of topical "articles" that can help you teach (and even re-learn self-educate) the material. There were a few hiccups in the road where I wanted to chuck the Annotations in the trash because we just couldn't quite figure out what it was they wanted on a particular sheet and some simple guidance would have been nice. Those hiccups were usually in the Yellow book for whatever reason. But then again those struggles over figuring it out and finally getting that "a ha" moment, either from my dh or I, or (best of all) from my ds are sort of the point of Miquon.

 

My oldest ds has completed all levels of Miquon, and my Kinder has his set waiting for him to begin. I'll get a complete set for my dd when she is ready as well. I just started with the Orange book and we went straight through it, no skipping around. That worked for us. I also set up every activity detailed in the Annotations guide except those few that really work best in a classroom setting.

 

We supplemented with a few other things for maths practice, mainly Kumon books and some drill type coordinate graphing sheets from Scholastic. I'm going to use some SM and MEP along with Miquon with my 1st grader.

 

 

I firmly believe that sticking with Miquon (and not tossing it in the trash!) and taking the time to read the Annotations and to work those sheets and do those activities *with* my child really laid a strong math foundation for him. This is truly how i wish I had been taught math and why I decided to use it ages ago when my ds was 1st grade age. And I have no regrets and will happily use it again and again with my other children.

 

I also don't have the other two books. SpyCar does Notes to Teachers cover the range of the books or just those early play with c-rods years?

 

And OP for your 3 year old http://www.nurturedbylove.ca/resources/cuisenairebook.pdf

 

I've been doing these activities with my little ones.

[toawh]

 

 

And OP for your 3 year old http://www.nurturedb...senairebook.pdf

 

I've been doing these activities with my little ones.

 

 

Thanks I'll be sure to use these with the little one.

And Bill, your input has been very helpful.

I guess I'll be running back to the boards when I get stuck. Dh says if I buy it I need to make it work -- we're pretty strapped for cash. So here goes...

[Spy Car]

 

 

I love Miquon, but I'm going to give you my own con about it. There are no answers and no instructions on how to use the workbooks. At least not entirely. In the Annotations there will be some instruction and examples but just as many not. The Annotations has smaller pics of all the workbook pages and it's expected you'll fill them in as you go along with your child to create your teacher guide. I didn't do that, I'll just keep my older ds's completed workbooks to reference for the younger two. Now this is K-3 or potentially 4th grade math, so no big deal. BUT it's so different than how so many of us were likely taught math in school that it can be overwhelming and confusing at first. Not so much in the first books, but in the later books sure. Most of it can be figured out by you. There's no hand holding or script or anything. I do however wish a new teacher guide for these workbooks could be out there with a tad more guidance and instruction for the sheets.

 

That isn't a big obstacle however. The Annotations do have a lot of topical "articles" that can help you teach (and even re-learn self-educate) the material. There were a few hiccups in the road where I wanted to chuck the Annotations in the trash because we just couldn't quite figure out what it was they wanted on a particular sheet and some simple guidance would have been nice. Those hiccups were usually in the Yellow book for whatever reason. But then again those struggles over figuring it out and finally getting that "a ha" moment, either from my dh or I, or (best of all) from my ds are sort of the point of Miquon.

 

My oldest ds has completed all levels of Miquon, and my Kinder has his set waiting for him to begin. I'll get a complete set for my dd when she is ready as well. I just started with the Orange book and we went straight through it, no skipping around. That worked for us. I also set up every activity detailed in the Annotations guide except those few that really work best in a classroom setting.

 

We supplemented with a few other things for maths practice, mainly Kumon books and some drill type coordinate graphing sheets from Scholastic. I'm going to use some SM and MEP along with Miquon with my 1st grader.

 

 

I firmly believe that sticking with Miquon (and not tossing it in the trash!) and taking the time to read the Annotations and to work those sheets and do those activities *with* my child really laid a strong math foundation for him. This is truly how i wish I had been taught math and why I decided to use it ages ago when my ds was 1st grade age. And I have no regrets and will happily use it again and again with my other children.

 

I also don't have the other two books. SpyCar does Notes to Teachers cover the range of the books or just those early play with c-rods years?

 

And OP for your 3 year old http://www.nurturedbylove.ca/resources/cuisenairebook.pdf

 

I've been doing these activities with my little ones.

 

 

"Notes" is a 50 page "booklet" that gives an intro to the program and answers basic questions like, what is the role of the teacher?, what are the materials?, how do you get started?, and things like that.

 

It is my opinion that his little book should have been the forward to "Annotations" and not a separate book. It is slight, but not useless information. I rationalize that there is so much value in the FGD and the Annotations book that the thin Notes book is forgivable value-wise. And it does have valuable information for those new to teaching the program.

 

Now the FGD (which I would re-name the "First Year Diary" if I could, because Pre-K was a great ime for us to start Miquon) really adds a great deal of big picture understanding of how to teach using this style, and a offeres up a lot of great ideas to crib and/or inspiration for inventing ones own math-lab activities.

 

I found it helped me unleash my "inner math teacher" at a time when I was very eager (post reading Liping Ma) to offer up a more interesting and deeper math journey to my child, but really lacked a path for making it practical. Reading the FGD I thought, "I could do that!"

 

I can't guarantee everyone will have the same sense of emphifany. I've been around long enough to know people who had the same reaction I did, and others who've said, "Meh."

 

Bill

[Spy Car]

 

 

Thanks I'll be sure to use these with the little one.

And Bill, your input has been very helpful.

I guess I'll be running back to the boards when I get stuck. Dh says if I buy it I need to make it work -- we're pretty strapped for cash. So here goes...

 

 

Look for used if cash is an issue. I can guarantee Miquon sets appear frequently here (un)used in the classified forum. I got my set way back when here "used."

 

You can also look at the MEP (Mathematics Enhancement Programme) website for a complete free-for-the-cost-of-printing downloadable curriculmn that meshes very well with Miquon, using Miquon to introduce concepts, and MEP to add puzzely student problems and Lesson Plans that are "Math-Lab" like in spirit, and highly adaptable to being fused.

 

The Miquon experience, for us, lit a passion for both of us. I hope you enjoy it.

 

Do look at the Education Unboxed videos as they make some of the ways you can teach using this style really clear.

 

Best wishes!

 

Bill

[toawh]

Thanks will do that.

[ondreeuh]

They're clearly laid out, but the system isn't linear. It's not, do a then b then c. Instead, you can follow each thread individually, or you can skip from one thread to the next within each book doing each one in order (a-1, a-2, a-3, a-4, etc.) but doing a bit of a, then a bit of g, then a bit of d and so forth until it's all finished. The annotations book has ideas for introducing each thread and teaching it.

 

It's not a scripted, one foot in front of the other one, sort of curriculum. However, we haven't found it hard to use. And making trains with the rods is good for 3 yos!

 

Is there any disadvantage to working straight through the books in order? We are using Orange now, and looking ahead it looks like it gets very meaty very quickly! If we finished Orange and then moved on to the next one (Red?), would it start way too easy, or would it be a suitable review?

[Farrar]

 

Is there any disadvantage to working straight through the books in order? We are using Orange now, and looking ahead it looks like it gets very meaty very quickly! If we finished Orange and then moved on to the next one (Red?), would it start way too easy, or would it be a suitable review?

 

The vast majority of students will do the books in order - orange, then red, etc. We did, mostly. I have seen that for some older students you might do a thread all the way through from one book to the next. I think anyone doing Miquon with a student 3rd grade and up might look at that method.

 

However, just within the books, one of the best things about Miquon was that we would do a few pages, and then get stuck. In most curricula, especially mastery curricula, you have to get unstuck before continuing. Otherwise, you can't really progress because everything builds on itself. But with Miquon, the organization lets you go sideways. The threads are all building different skills alongside each other. If you get stuck on a "d" thread page, hey, no big deal. Just do something different and do a "g" thread page or a "f" thread page or whatever. In general, the pages within each thread need to be done in order, but otherwise you can skip around. This also adds to the discovery element and to a feeling that the child can be in charge to some extent - I often say, hey, pick a page and we'll do it. Actually, what I often do is pick the first page and choose something I know has been more difficult for him - division, for example. Then, when he hits a wall, I say, okay, let's just do one more page. You pick. And he'll pick something more "fun" for him - graphing and functions, for example. To me, this fluidity, flexibility, whatever you want to call it, is one of the greatest strengths of Miquon. So, can you just do the whole workbook in order? Sure. No harm done. But I wouldn't have wanted to.

 

I will say also that I've come all around on the FGD and the Annotations... I had some minor training in using the rods and had used them when I taught remedial middle school math at the small school where I worked. Then, I started my kids with Math Made Meaningful in K. The FGD didn't feel like a revelation for me. And I haven't picked it up since that first read. The Annotations also seemed useless for a good while... It wasn't until about Green or so that I really started referring to them a lot. But once I did, I felt like there was *SO* much there. So much that I was greatly surprised. Anyway, all of this is to say that the teacher books for Miquon kind of have seasons... If anyone sticks with the program, I think you may have an evolving relationship with them.

[Spy Car]

I remember just when I was beginning to think I didn't "need" the Annotations book anymore (because I intuitively "got" what the lab-sheet objectives were) I suddenly ran into the huge topical resources in the book that were highly valuable to be for a long time.

 

I had no background teaching math to a young child and no previous exposure to C Rods, so the ideas in the FGD were rather more a revelation to me.

 

Bill