RS B-E, then Saxon 7/6, now BJU?

[hsmom08]

My dd went through Right Start and then we switched to Singapore Math 5 St. Ed. but she didn't like it so we switched to Saxon 7/6. That was what she tested for on Saxon. Now that we have finished, I really don't like Saxon and someone mentioned BJU. Should I start her on BJU for 7th grade or should I back track and do 6th grade? I know that some people feel w/many curriculums that the newer ones are watered down but from the one thread that I read, it seems like everyone loves the new editions. Also, besides the student text, TE, test and test key, do I need to get anything else?

[Aloha2U]

We just finished RS Level E. This fall we're going to move into RS Geometry combined with VideoText Algebra (Modules A, B, & C) for a two year course. The plan after that is to continue with the Videotext Algebra program for a third year, completing Modules D, E, & F.

 

However, all that said, I hope you don't mind my asking... what did your dd not like about SM? And, what do you not like about Saxon?

 

(Unfortunately, I have no experience with BJU.)

[PeterPan]

I went back to look at a few of your old posts. I really don't know much about you. I caught that she's a rising 5th grader by age and flew through the CWP books from Singapore while you were doing RS. From that I gather she's very bright. I would look at Dolciani for her. I like BJU, but the problem sets are longer and can get tedious, especially in their book 7. In fact, I would say their gr 7 is probably my *least* favorite of the new editions, just for that reason. A gr 7 text attempts to bridge between the arithmetic/fractions/percents content of the lower grades and pre-algebra/algebra content they're about to go into. It's basically a skippable level IF you have an extremely strong student who has already covered that material.

 

I haven't used Saxon 7/6, but I'm assuming it covers traditional 6th grade content and that if you gave her a placement test from a standard publisher like Horizons she'd test into a pre-algebra course. If that's the case, I would consider going ahead and putting her into the Dolciani pre-algebra accelerated course (very trim, nice conceptually, perfect for her age and thought process). Horizons is spiral, so I'm not sure she'd be any happier in it than she has been in Saxon. The placement test though would be a good way just to check what she has nailed and what's left to go before she's ready for pre-algebra. I'm guessing she could go right into the Dolciani text. Check it out. Should be cheap on amazon. Or Derek Owens has a pre-algebra course where he puts the videos up for free, doesn't he? Or look at Life of Fred. LoF is very non-standard, but it might be fine for your student.

 

If you still want to look at BJU, just go to the BJUPresshomeschool website and look at their samples and go by your gut. Seriously though, I'd open your mind to more options. If she's ready for pre-algebra and is young, you don't want to overwhelm her with long, involved problem sets and over amounts of work. That Dolciani accelerated course pre-algebra really might do the trick.