Common Core....wow...just wow.

[ChocolateReignRemix]

I never stated they were materials. I realize they are a set of standards. To be excruciatingly clear, I am not interested in following CC standards. I've seen the materials. They are slanted toward extreme environmentalism and go far beyond turning off the lights. You are rude and now on ignore.

 

I am sorry, but I feel that I have to declare "Shenanigans!" on you. Are you claiming you have viewed all materials that meet the CC standards?

[Corraleno]

We do not have a right wingish/conservative/republican government. We have a progressive, over-reaching, Democratically-controlled, overspending government. And these are new standards, not materials, as was previously pointed out.

 

 

Obviously Kiwik was not referring to the US. She was pointing out that despite implementing similar measures to the US CC, not only has her country's educational system not collapsed, they have a conservative government.

 

In other words, CC may not be the harbinger of communist apocalypse that some seem to fear.

 

Jackie

[Erin]

 

For the love of Pete, do I really need to say I've seen materials that are aligned with .Common Core standards.

 

 

Well yes. You're saying how deterimental "CC materials" are.

But yet you're USING materials aligned with CC standards!! (Singapore)

 

 

Personally, I think you just don't really understand the issue...

I'm guessing your favorite bloggers, friends, news sources, etc. are all up in arms about this and you just haven't fully investigated.

...Which, frankly, most of us are guilty of, on occasion. :o

 

 

You might want to do some heavier research on this.

Start at the source http://www.corestandards.org/Math

[Mergath]

I never stated they were materials. I realize they are a set of standards. To be excruciatingly clear, I am not interested in following CC standards. I've seen the materials. They are slanted toward extreme environmentalism and go far beyond turning off the lights. You are rude and now on ignore.

 

 

Explain to me how CC will make any difference at all. Our local schools cannot even remotely produce students who have achieved mastery of the current standards. How does raising the standards all of a sudden produce mastery?

 

 

If you want me to explain it, you'd probably have to take me off ignore. :rolleyes:

[ILiveInFlipFlops]

Are these bad things? I remember learning them in elementary school. I started K in 1983 so the recycling thing came later than second grade. Was it okay pre-CC but not okay post-CC?

 

 

For some people, it is never OK. Teaching environmental conservatism is always a harbinger of the coming socialist overthrow. We're allowed to teach children to be mindful and protective of their personal possessions, but never of our shared resources.

 

 

Well yes. You're saying how deterimental "CC materials" are.

But yet you're USING materials aligned with CC standards!! (Singapore)

 

 

Personally, I think you just don't really understand the issue...

I'm guessing your favorite bloggers, friends, news sources, etc. are all up in arms about this and you just haven't fully investigated.

...Which, frankly, most of us are guilty of, on occasion. :o

 

 

You might want to do some heavier research on this.

Start at the source http://www.corestandards.org/Math

 

Indeed. And it is simply incorrect to say that Singapore teaches "one best way" for every type of math. Singapore focuses on the teaching of varied strategies at every level, from first grade on up. So someone is either in denial or not understanding how to teach math the Singapore way.

[LucyStoner]

I was referring to teaching materials, not standardized tests. I have seen actual CC math teaching materials. Young children need to be taught one best way to solve a math problem, not five. When foundational skills are solid, feel free to expand.

 

Singapore IS a Common Core aligned curriculum choice. Do you not know this?

[nmoira]

Singapore IS a Common Core aligned curriculum choice. Do you not know this?

 

Oh, stop brow beating her with facts. :p

[Sobeknofret]

Out of curiosity, what are some other CC aligned materials that homeschoolers use often? I'm not for or against the CC-- I haven't done enough research on it to say, but I am curious as to what we're using that already conforms to the CC standards.

[mamabear2three]

I just talked to my husband about this because he is a public school teacher. He said that for the past two years all the teachers in his school have had to sit through multiple in-service training's on "how to teach in the common core method". He said that they are getting rid of many text books to replace them with common core aligned books and that they are moving to an entirely new teacher evaluation program based on the common core.

 

So while it seems like the CC should simply be a set of standards "what my 6th grader needs to know..." it is more than that in the schools - at least in the school my husband works at. He said that the new "methods" for teaching are all student led so for example if you are teaching about levers, instead of teaching first and then doing experiments, you would simply hand out levers and let the students "discover" anything they can from them. So it's student led discovery, open ended questions, etc.

 

I have no idea how the common core standards have anything to do with teaching methodology because from what I have read, they are just benchmarks. Apparently in our district, (and maybe more, but I can only speak to this one district) the Common Core means a lot more than that. So it seems to me that while the standards may or may not be "good" for an individual child, another issue entirely is the implementation of those standards. (Along with the issue of new/more testing, etc.)

[Butter]

I googled and turned up a few lists. I can't copy and paste using my Fire, but the search terms I used are common core homeschol curricula

 

Calvert either is or will be. Math-U-See caused a ruckus when they recently aligned (and then said they barely made any changes - just added a few things and moved a few others). Several versions of Singapore. Most already aligned made little to no changes.

[Butter]

I just talked to my husband about this because he is a public school teacher. He said that for the past two years all the teachers in his school have had to sit through multiple in-service training's on "how to teach in the common core method". He said that they are getting rid of many text books to replace them with common core aligned books and that they are moving to an entirely new teacher evaluation program based on the common core.

 

So while it seems like the CC should simply be a set of standards "what my 6th grader needs to know..." it is more than that in the schools - at least in the school my husband works at. He said that the new "methods" for teaching are all student led so for example if you are teaching about levers, instead of teaching first and then doing experiments, you would simply hand out levers and let the students "discover" anything they can from them. So it's student led discovery, open ended questions, etc.

 

I have no idea how the common core standards have anything to do with teaching methodology because from what I have read, they are just benchmarks. Apparently in our district, (and maybe more, but I can only speak to this one district) the Common Core means a lot more than that. So it seems to me that while the standards may or may not be "good" for an individual child, another issue entirely is the implementation of those standards. (Along with the issue of new/more testing, etc.)

 

This shows exactly why implementation is what makes all the difference when it comes to common core. Interesting that the new methods for teaching sounds like what a lot of unschoolers I know do!

[DarlaS]

Explain to me how CC will make any difference at all. Our local schools cannot even remotely produce students who have achieved mastery of the current standards. How does raising the standards all of a sudden produce mastery?

 

Did Mergath (or anyone) actually say that they would?

[Erin]

Interesting that the new methods for teaching sounds like what a lot of unschoolers I know do!

Truth be told, discovery-based science (student-led, if you prefer) has been taught in methods classes in teacher-ed. colleges for a couple of decades...

Most teacher don't teach that way though, because as unschoolers can tell you, guiding discovery is a whole lot more work than plopping stuff directly in front of kids.

[mamabear2three]

 

This shows exactly why implementation is what makes all the difference when it comes to common core. Interesting that the new methods for teaching sounds like what a lot of unschoolers I know do!

 

I know, right? except it scares me to think about public school teachers attempting to implement an "unschooling" teaching method within the current public school model where teachers are trained to do things in such an "in the box" way. Getting out of the box is a huge problem for people... and I cringe to think how the fallout will impact both children and the teachers when the teachers pay and job security is beginning to be tied to student test performance.

 

Not to mention that I'm pretty sure that most unschoolers are not jumping to have their kids tested each year to prove how effective their methods are...how do you unschool and teach to the test at the same time?? :confused1:

[DarlaS]

This shows exactly why implementation is what makes all the difference when it comes to common core. Interesting that the new methods for teaching sounds like what a lot of unschoolers I know do!

 

Sounds like inquiry-based science. A good thing for students whether or not it has anything to do with the standards.

 

There will be an adjustment period for sure. I have some inquiry teaching books around here and making sense of them is a bit challenging. Very different from the classical or any kind of traditional approach.

[Catherine]

I don't need to watch the video to determine that CC isn't for us. I don't like or use materials that indoctrinate.

 

I don't know how you can educate a child and not "indoctrinate" them. It just means teaching them a particular... "worldview" is the word that comes to mind. Maybe you mean you want to choose how you child is indoctrinated? No education is neutral. If you'd rather your child not be "indoctrinated" to use less electricity or learn to work together with other students on a project, then that's your choice.

[Sahamamama]

nm

Edited June 7, 2013 by Moderator
Not a helpful direction.

[[email protected]]

Reminder:

 

Debate the standards. Not the personalities, preferences, and competencies of each other. Or there will be bannings.

 

Moderator

[kristinannie]

I am really sad that people on this board are beating each other up. Can't we have a civil conversation? I think that most of us would agree that public schools are failing our children or else why are we homeschooling? Honestly, there are good and bad aspects of the Common Core. I haven't read every single section, but I have read up until 2nd grade since that is where my kids are.

 

The meteorologist Youtube video was about Everyday Math. The schools in our school district use it. There are a lot of problems with this curriculum IMHO. Parents almost unanimously hate it. The kids in our district are not being well educated. They cannot think and they cannot comprehend. It is a real problem. So much of the time is wasted during the day on popcorn parties, anti-bullying week, tolerance days, etc. That is my opinion based on talking to a lot of parents of kids in PS here.

 

I think we need to stop browbeating each other. We all homeschool for different reasons and we should be trying to support each other rather than tear each other down. Some people (myself included) homeschool in large part so that their kids are not indoctrinated. (I also homeschool because I want to incorporate my faith into school and because I want better academics.) Some of us might not think indoctrination is happening at all. That doesn't mean that people should be mocked for believing that it is true. Too many posts contain these attacks now. It makes me not even want to come on the WTM boards anymore. I am looking for support as I homeschool my kids and advice on curricula. This board is growing toxic.

[LucyStoner]

The federal government neither wrote, mandates or will enforce the standards.The National Governor's Association initiated the project with a group of state-level school superintendents and adoption is fully voluntary. States of all different political persuasions and demographics have participated in the creation of the standards and voluntarily adopted them. Many long popular homeschooling curriculums already met or exceeded CC with only minor tweaks made to be able to smack a CC sticker on and sell to the public school market. The full name is Common Core State Standards Initiatives. It's not a federal Dept. of Ed led thing. The history of the development of this project stretches back more than a decade and is rooted in bipartisan organizations like NGA. It is not part of NCLB. If someone calls it a federal project, their information is coming from political rather than news and educational sources. The funding for this project has come from state, not federal, coffers and receives substantial business foundation support.

 

I have not paid too much attention to CC because I am not sending my kids to school at this time (surprise!) While I don't think CC is perfect from the relatively little I have bothered to see, I generally like the idea of kids getting a high school diploma that means something/shows achievement. CC is hopefully a step in that direction but it is not like anyone of us is holding our breath, right?

[Roadrunner]

I've only really read about the math and English parts of CC. Prof. Wu at Berkeley is in favour of the CC math standards, which is a huge endorsement to me.

 

Here is Prof. Wu on CC:

http://math.berkeley.edu/~wu/

 

I think whether CC is an improvement depends entirely on how your particular state or district implements them, and what the curriculum they were using said beforehand.

I just read one of the articles on this link about CC math standards. I don't see how anybody thinks it won't have an impact. According to Wu, CC isn't just standards (learn fractions in third grade), but specifies exactly how to teach it (learn fractions in third grade by using number line.... ). It's exactly how conceptual math programs we all love on this board teach math. Unlike existing standards, CC seems to address teacher training, which is the key to good teaching and quality improvement. How is this not a good thing?

[ILiveInFlipFlops]

Some people (myself included) homeschool in large part so that their kids are not indoctrinated. (I also homeschool because I want to incorporate my faith into school and because I want better academics.) Some of us might not think indoctrination is happening at all.

 

I don't remember anyone mocking about indoctrination. The point was made that anytime you teach a child to believe something you believe, you are indoctrinating them. You may not want the school indoctrinating your kids, so instead you are indoctrinating them according to YOUR beliefs. That's what I recall reading.

 

As to the rest, sadly, I agree with you, which is why I'm not around here that much anymore. It really bums me out, but I've pretty much given up :(

[Guest inoubliable]

There are some subjects that create issues every.single.time around here. CCSS is one of them. Vaccinations another. Cupcakes apparently. Homeschool rooms...who knew?

 

The real question is why do I feel the need to post in these threads when I know exactly how they will turn out?

 

 

I thought we were all just coming for the kilts and cupcakes? :confused1:

 

 

:leaving:

[kristinannie]

Maybe we even need to just say, "Pass the bean dip" on this site too...sad. :tongue_smilie:

[PachiSusan]

The real question is why do I feel the need to post in these threads when I know exactly how they will turn out?

 

For me, hope springs eternal. Somewhere in the deepest regions of my heart I still have hope that someday people on different sides of any coin will finally allow themselves to listen and learn from each other.

[unfrumpable.]

 

 

The real question is why do I feel the need to post in these threads when I know exactly how they will turn out?

 

 

 

I come for the entertainment.

 

I may learn some, I may debate some, I may just be snarky. But, overall, it's all for fun. I enjoy watching people debate as much as I love debating myself.

[Mom-ninja.]

 

 

I enjoy watching people debate as much as I love debating myself.

 

As in debate with yourself? I do that all the time too.

[unfrumpable.]

As in debate with yourself? I do that all the time too.

 

You made me literally laugh out loud. Yes, I do that too. :lol:

[Butter]

The meteorologist Youtube video was about Everyday Math. The schools in our school district use it. There are a lot of problems with this curriculum IMHO. Parents almost unanimously hate it. The kids in our district are not being well educated. They cannot think and they cannot comprehend. It is a real problem. So much of the time is wasted during the day on popcorn parties, anti-bullying week, tolerance days, etc. That is my opinion based on talking to a lot of parents of kids in PS here.

 

 

Wasting time on popcorn parties, anti-bullying week, tolerance days, etc. is not related to the textbooks that were chosen, however. No doubt it is a problem to spend so much time on that stuff (my mom has always referred to that as the "fluff and feathers"), but I think we can all agree that it is not related to Common Core. My friend had her kids in one school district near where I used to live and her kids spent time every day watching TV shows and movies that had nothing to do with what they were learning in school. It was a bad use of time for sure, but it wasn't related to Common Core.

 

I heard so much bad about Everyday Math that I finally looked at it. And discovered it wasn't so bad at all. Mostly, it is just different and I suspect that's why so many parents hate it. Perhaps a night or two where parents can come and learn about it would help. Of course not all parents would come, but even if some of them got to know a bit about it they wouldn't hate it so much. People tend to react negatively to that which is unfamiliar.

 

It is hoped that Common Core will help with the issues of kids not thinking and not comprehending. The "fluff and feathers" should not be the norm, but instead the treat (I've got nothing against a popcorn party once or twice a year because the kids in the class earned it). But, again, it will be all about the implementation. Schools in most (if not all) states already have standards to achieve (they are just different based on the states instead of common between most states). Some schools are achieving those standards and some are not. I suspect it will be no different under full adoption of Common Core.

[TracyP]

I heard so much bad about Everyday Math that I finally looked at it. And discovered it wasn't so bad at all. Mostly, it is just different and I suspect that's why so many parents hate it. Perhaps a night or two where parents can come and learn about it would help. Of course not all parents would come, but even if some of them got to know a bit about it they wouldn't hate it so much. People tend to react negatively to that which is unfamiliar.

It's not just parents. Many teachers hate Everyday Math, too. The complaints I have heard were that it is too spiral and that there are too many kids who just don't get it. The teacher I talked to said they (plural because their is agreement among the teachers) use EM (as required by the district) and try to supplement. Even with supplementing, she is worried that kids are leaving w/o a solid foundation.

[wapiti]

. 

 

[Butter]

Also, about Everyday Math... it was around long before the Common Core started being adopted. It was not created because of Common Core (but, like many, many other curricula aligns). No matter what the standards, or if there are none at all, there will be textbooks that people don't like (looking at Teaching Textbooks for example... some on this board love it, some hate it) or people think are bad. Unless CC one day says x textbook must be used, it is not the CC standard's fault that the school district uses a certain textbook people don't like. I do believe most school boards have meetings or will take complaints to consider changing what they use.

 

I have to wonder though... if so many people hate Everyday Math, why is it used in so many places?

 

FWIW, many of the methods in EM are exactly what my dyslexic son has figured out (on his own) for solving math. He'd thrive in a classroom using it. Go figure.

[TracyP]

I have to wonder though... if so many people hate Everyday Math, why is it used in so many places?

 

I think it is because EM claims to teach conceptual understanding and multiple strategies to solve problems. I don't know many who disagree with these goals. But there are many problems w/i the program that need to be dealt with. Just one I know of is that the conceptual understanding is pushed to the point where you hear crazy stories. I'll give you one. Child A writes 9-4=5 on his paper and gets it wrong because he didn't draw 9 bananas and cross off 4 of them. Child B writes 9-4=6 and he gets it right because he drew 9 bananas and crossed off 4 of them. That's just crazy, IMO.

 

But you are right. This has nothing to do with CC. I have seen people linking the two but there is no link there. People were hating on EM long before they were hating on CC.

[Butter]

That story reminds me of one I know of from a RL friend with a son Melody's age. In 6th grade he kept failing his math tests. The reason was he wasn't labeling his word problem answers properly according to the teacher. He was doing the math perfectly. He even got one wrong once because he wrote dog instead of dogs. This was NOT using Everyday Math, by the way. Honestly, marking wrong because you didn't draw a picture or because you didn't pluralize the label is ridiculous and I blame the teacher more than the textbook. (Unless of course the instructions say to draw a picture showing it - I can totally see my oldest getting things wrong because she ignores directions and then gets mad because she doesn't think she should have to read directions.)

 

One would think the people choosing textbooks would actually look at them rather than rely on the blurbs about them, but I've read stuff by Feynmannon when he was on a group choosing textbooks and so know all too well that that is not case.

[Wheres Toto]

That story reminds me of one I know of from a RL friend with a son Melody's age. In 6th grade he kept failing his math tests. The reason was he wasn't labeling his word problem answers properly according to the teacher. He was doing the math perfectly. He even got one wrong once because he wrote dog instead of dogs. This was NOT using Everyday Math, by the way. Honestly, marking wrong because you didn't draw a picture or because you didn't pluralize the label is ridiculous and I blame the teacher more than the textbook. (Unless of course the instructions say to draw a picture showing it - I can totally see my oldest getting things wrong because she ignores directions and then gets mad because she doesn't think she should have to read directions.)

 

One would think the people choosing textbooks would actually look at them rather than rely on the blurbs about them, but I've read stuff by Feynmannon when he was on a group choosing textbooks and so know all too well that that is not case.

 

I remember getting in trouble for not labeling my answers to word problems in math class. This was probably 30 years ago and definitely not Everyday Math, just a PITA teacher (IMO).

[Erin]

 

One would think the people choosing textbooks would actually look at them rather than rely on the blurbs about them, but I've read stuff by Feynmannon when he was on a group choosing textbooks and so know all too well that that is not case.

:confused1:

I've been on the committee choosing textbooks too (because every teacher in the district is) and we were given physical copies of the texts we were considering. ...Three or four different texts, IIRC, for elem. science.

We had them for a couple of weeks, to have plenty of time to explore, compare, review support materials, etc.

[wapiti]

I have to wonder though... if so many people hate Everyday Math, why is it used in so many places?

 

FWIW, many of the methods in EM are exactly what my dyslexic son has figured out (on his own) for solving math. He'd thrive in a classroom using it. Go figure.

 

There are lots of places to read about the negatives of Everday Math, e.g., many of the links on this page (note that the links to Mathematically Correct, about the first five main links on that page, don't work as that site is down). I might start with this article. The negatives are similar to the negatives of other fuzzy math programs.

 

If there are parts that could help your student, then by all means I'd use whatever helps. However, I would not make the leap to assume that a full-blown classroom presentation would necessarily be as useful as a hand-picked, one-on-one presentation, due to the woefully-guided discovery, often group-think nature of the program, along with all its other flaws.

[Word Nerd]

Out of curiosity, what are some other CC aligned materials that homeschoolers use often? I'm not for or against the CC-- I haven't done enough research on it to say, but I am curious as to what we're using that already conforms to the CC standards.

 

 

The Educational Freedom Coalition website is useful if you want to see whether various homeschool products and vendors are aligned or will be aligning with Common Core standards or not. However, I'm hesitant to recommend or directly link to the website here because its About the CCS section is rather biased and contains misinformation and misleading claims about what Common Core requires and what it is and does (especially the post on the founder's personal blog, which the EFC website links to). Google it if you're interested.

[Butter]

:confused1:

I've been on the committee choosing textbooks too (because every teacher in the district is) and we were given physical copies of the texts we were considering. ...Three or four different texts, IIRC, for elem. science.

We had them for a couple of weeks, to have plenty of time to explore, compare, review support materials, etc.

 

 

In Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman, Richard Feynman talks about being on a committee to choose textbooks. One of the books they were given didn't have anything more than a cover. He found several issues in some of the books, but the others on the committee basically told him to shut up. They more or less were picking based on the covers is what he found.

 

It is certainly not how it should ever be and Feynman was horrified by the whole thing. Unfortunately, I've heard of other districts picking books in similar ways as Feynman's committee.

[Dana]

I remember getting in trouble for not labeling my answers to word problems in math class. This was probably 30 years ago and definitely not Everyday Math, just a PITA teacher (IMO).

 

 

I take off if units aren't included in a word problem.

I wouldn't for a singular/plural issue, but if you said 8 rather than 8cm, yes, that's a problem.

It's not that I'm being PITA... it's that if you're going into nursing, you'd better know the difference between 12 mg and 12 g. Units matter!

 

The illustration I also use is that we lost the first Mars rover because of a unit issue (metric vs US units). I want my students to get in the habit of including units. It'll also help them with science classes.

 

And I want students to see multiple approaches to solving problems, but I see so many students who don't know the standard (US) algorithm at all and can't do basic arithmetic without the calculator. If they had a method they could generalize from multiplication of two numbers to two polynomials, I'd be fine.... but they don't. I do blame Everyday Math since until we started using it, I never saw students who couldn't multiply two numbers at the levels I see now.

[albeto]

At least we, as homeschoolers, can choose to use ANY curriculum we like; CC-aligned or not. If you have high standards, then it really doesn't matter what everyone else is doing. I'm not going to go out and buy a science textbook that is heavy in anything I don't believe in just because it is CC-aligned, so why does it matter really? The curriculum I choose will be because it suits MY homeschool philosophy and my kids learning style. I'm sure there's a lot of curriculum out there that is NOT CC-aligned that I would never touch because I don't agree with it.

 

CCSS is a divisive subject on this board. It's quite political in the way people respond to it.

 

It matters, really, because facts are facts regardless of who believes it, and appropriate education of children affects all society, not just one family.

 

:)

[Wheres Toto]

I take off if units aren't included in a word problem.

I wouldn't for a singular/plural issue, but if you said 8 rather than 8cm, yes, that's a problem.

It's not that I'm being PITA... it's that if you're going into nursing, you'd better know the difference between 12 mg and 12 g. Units matter!

 

 

In college and even high school, sure. I know it was a big deal in Chemistry class to make sure your units came out right. I was talking about elementary school when we were still learning how to borrow in subtraction. I never knew if I had the actual answer right or not because it would be marked off for labeling. I'm not THAT old. :lol:

 

ETA: I just realized that I put about 30 years ago. Okay, I'm not that far from being THAT old. :ph34r:

[Dana]

ETA: I just realized that I put about 30 years ago. Okay, I'm not that far from being THAT old. :ph34r:

 

Yeah... that messes with you, doesn't it? ;)

[Erin]

 

In Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman, Richard Feynman talks about being on a committee to choose textbooks. One of the books they were given didn't have anything more than a cover. He found several issues in some of the books, but the others on the committee basically told him to shut up. They more or less were picking based on the covers is what he found.

 

It is certainly not how it should ever be and Feynman was horrified by the whole thing. Unfortunately, I've heard of other districts picking books in similar ways as Feynman's committee.

 

wow.

Thank heaven it's not like that everywhere!

[Butter]

I take off if units aren't included in a word problem.

I wouldn't for a singular/plural issue, but if you said 8 rather than 8cm, yes, that's a problem.

It's not that I'm being PITA... it's that if you're going into nursing, you'd better know the difference between 12 mg and 12 g. Units matter!

 

The illustration I also use is that we lost the first Mars rover because of a unit issue (metric vs US units). I want my students to get in the habit of including units. It'll also help them with science classes.

 

And I want students to see multiple approaches to solving problems, but I see so many students who don't know the standard (US) algorithm at all and can't do basic arithmetic without the calculator.

 

I agree that points definitely should be taken off for not including your label. I think H's teacher had a bee up her butt for counting wrong for not adding his -s to dog. He was in 6th grade (which is middle school there). In elementary school no teacher ever said a single word about labeling his word problem answers (or rather never said anything about his lack of labeling). His 6th grade math teacher also didn't even give partial credit for doing the math right. If there was no label, the answer was wrong. Period. If you are going to nursing school, you most certainly had better be writing your units on there! (But that math is a bit past answers like 8 dogs lol)

 

You know, my aunt has been complaining about kids in fast food places being unable to make change without the machine telling them exactly what to do for at least 25 years now. As long as I can remember at least (I'm 35). I do find it very odd how many math textbooks have kids use calculators in early elementary. My 4 and 6 year olds have gotten ahold of calculators and played with them. I never had to teach them how to punch in numbers. But no way do I think calculators belong in actual solving of arithmetic problems, at least until you know solidly how to do them by hand (like I use a calculator reguklarly balancing my checkbook - sure I could do it by hand, but at this point in my life, using a calculator is just fine).

[JumpedIntoTheDeepEndFirst]

Ignoring all/any CC issues and the commentary of the "presenters" and based solely on what I could read...

 

What bothers me most is that this textbook was written by a major education publisher with the obvious opinion or knowledge that it has a built in market or fills an existing need. Whether you agree with the objectives or not, there is clearly a social indoctrination function incorporated into this text. I have to imagine that there are many fundamentals first graders need to know before they get to these topics.

[NASDAQ]

Also, about Everyday Math... it was around long before the Common Core started being adopted. It was not created because of Common Core (but, like many, many other curricula aligns). No matter what the standards, or if there are none at all, there will be textbooks that people don't like (looking at Teaching Textbooks for example... some on this board love it, some hate it) or people think are bad. Unless CC one day says x textbook must be used, it is not the CC standard's fault that the school district uses a certain textbook people don't like. I do believe most school boards have meetings or will take complaints to consider changing what they use.

 

I have to wonder though... if so many people hate Everyday Math, why is it used in so many places?

 

FWIW, many of the methods in EM are exactly what my dyslexic son has figured out (on his own) for solving math. He'd thrive in a classroom using it. Go figure.

 

Dyslexic children suffer worse than most in EM classrooms. EM uses a lot of group work and a lot of writing about math -- language work, basically. Dyslexic children, who find literary output more difficult, suffer.

 

There are entire movements devoted to pressuring school boards to dump EM and its cousins. Sometimes it's successful. Often it's not successful. Most school boards are not perfectly responsive to parents. Witness how long it took to get schools to drop look-say teaching.

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Witness how long it took to get schools to drop look-say teaching.

 

Where we used to live still uses it...

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I homeschool in NYS. Does anyone know if I need to note which common core standards are covered in my IHIP? I've read in this thread that our standards are "higher", and therefore we don't need to pay much attention to the common core standards... but my concern is that, down the road, they could invalidate the curriculum I've assembled because it isn't "aligned". I've worked in public school in the past, and when they changed the standards then, my Spt. just told us to note in our plans where the standards are covered. I would like to avoid the extra work if possible. What's the best course to follow to cover myself?

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I homeschool in NYS. Does anyone know if I need to note which common core standards are covered in my IHIP? I've read in this thread that our standards are "higher", and therefore we don't need to pay much attention to the common core standards... but my concern is that, down the road, they could invalidate the curriculum I've assembled because it isn't "aligned". I've worked in public school in the past, and when they changed the standards then, my Spt. just told us to note in our plans where the standards are covered. I would like to avoid the extra work if possible. What's the best course to follow to cover myself?

 

 

 

I can't comment on what you have to do legally in your state, but I'm willing to bet that in a few years (say with the next administration change) that there will be a whole new set of standards with a new fancy name and everyone will argue its merits and problems blah blah blah.

 

So I would say carry on homeschooling as you see fit. ;)

 

That's the only political issue I care about as far as education--that my freedom to do so is not tampered with.

 

I homeschool because I don't feel all this political junk has a place in a child's education.

 

I'm willing to bet there is an unschooling group in NY. And even though you may not be an unschooler, they can have some very good ideas on how to deal with legalities.