Early elementary Singapore users?

[T'smom]

I have a 1st grader and we use RightStart. We're about 2/3 of the way through B and things are going pretty well most of the time. I had the chance to look at Singapore 1 a and b the other day and I am intrigued. I only got to look at the textbook and workbooks and I have some questions for people who use it.

 

How long does it take you every day? It looks as though it would take waaaaay less time than RightStart.

 

Do you need anything else for lower elementary? Instructors guide? Extra practice? Challenging word problems? I did not get to see any of these.

 

Does the instructors guide provide any extra activities for explaining concepts or practicing concepts, like games?

 

I loved the way it looked like it was written for little kids! I didn't even realize that I didn't like that about RightStart, but the worksheets and stuff in RS are really dry. I think my ds would really, really like the layout of the book. He would LOVE to color the pictures in the workbook.

 

I'm having a baby at the end of this school year, so I want next year to be as laid out in advance and easy to do as possible. It looks like Singapore would be way easier to use than RS. Is that accurate?

 

Or should I just not change what seems to be working? (Working in the sense that he is grasping the concepts...not necessarily that he loves doing it)

 

Thanks!

[EKS]

Singapore does take way less time than RightStart.  We used RS B (about 3/4 of it) in an effort to get away from Singapore 1A/B and then reentered the Singapore series at 2A with no problems.

[T'smom]

Singapore does take way less time than RightStart. We used RS B (about 3/4 of it) in an effort to get away from Singapore 1A/B and then reentered the Singapore series at 2A with no problems.

Why did you want to get away from Singapore? Was there a reason you didn't move on to RS C?

[EKS]

Why did you want to get away from Singapore? Was there a reason you didn't move on to RS C?

 

I didn't like the level 1 books.  There seemed to me to be too many places where conceptual leaps were required of the student that didn't need to be there.  RS B smoothed that over.

 

I had always intended to move back to Singapore.  The problems I had with 1A/B were absent from 2A on.

[fdrinca]

We use Singapore and love it, but I have to admit we're probably not using it the right way. My second grader has a natural math aptitude, so I've referred to the teacher's manual only a few times. When I checked into the manual for my first grader, I realized that there's really a lot of other activities that we've not been doing. I can't compare it time-wise to other programs, but the books/workbook alone don't give a full picture.

[Desert Strawberry]

We used the workbooks only. My kids don't require a lot of explanation. They spent 5-20 minutes per lesson, depending on interest and motivation. I liked that the books move quickly. My kids hate repetition.HATE.

I found that because the lessons are so visual, they picked up the concepts easily. My oldest used manipulatives as needed. In k and 1, he needed more hands on. By first, the book was enough.

[Coco_Clark]

We adore Singapore.  First year and we are starting 1b next month after our thanksgiving break.  

 

I wouldn't personally feel comfortable teaching the program without the HIG.  I think a more "natural" teacher probably could get away without it at this level, since the Math itself obviously isn't difficult.  But it is my life-line, full of instructions on how to present the problems with manipulatives and  fun games to further practice what you've learned.  I do a 5 min or so "presentation" on what we are learning with manipulatives, we spend another 5 or 10 minutes working the textbook problem together, and then my son does a workbook page independently which takes 5 to 50 minutes depending on his concentration level :p.  We take lots of breaks to spend time playing the suggested games, doing the problems with manipulatives and a white board, drilling to memorize facts, ect. but that is our general routine and even with breaks we should still finish the program in our school year spending an average 30 min a day.

 

 

[genny]

We're at the beginning of 2B right now and it takes anywhere from 20-45 minutes (instruction + worksheets).  I'm currently using the HIG, textbook, workbook, and extra practice book.  IMHO I find the textbook a little unnecessary except for the practice pages for my dd.  I really love the HIG!  I also own the intensive practice books.  Haven't used 2a or 2b yet (we've done 1a/b)...I like the fact that it challenges her to think a bit more (the worksheets are really easy for her...except for word problems).

[jennynd]

If I were you, I will stick with RS B and switch to SM 2 after that instead of start now from 1a. DD used RS abacus and I really like how the abacus works for visual making 10s and that is really what SM 1 try to teach.

We actually did not really use SM 1( we did miquon and rod and abacus ) and we moved in 2a just fine. We are about to finish 3b and we spend 20-30 min 3 days/week (afterschooler)

[CrunchyGirl]

We did the first 36 lessons of RS-B (I about lost my mind and LegoMan wasn't really digging it) and then switched to SM 1B and have gone from there (SM 2 and then on to a combo of SM 3 and BA 3; moving on to SM4/BA4 very shortly). ArtsyGirl is further along than I'd hoped at this point. I started with RS-A but it's driving me insane. We'll switch to RS-B tomorrow. I love the idea of RS. I want it to work. I think of my three kids ArtsyGirl is my best bet for RS. But I seriously despise using RS on a daily basis (and I feel awful saying that). It's just so not my style but it's a truly amazing program. So I will power through and resist the temptation to just buy the SM book and start her in SM which makes me much happier.

[Kathryn]

We started Singapore in 1B using the HIG, workbook, and textbook. We first quickly went through the first half of the Extra Practice 1 book to get a feel for how Singapore did things. We use the Standard edition and I love the Home Instructor Guides. When we started 2, I added in the Intensive Practice and Challenging Word Problems a year behind.

[T'smom]

If I were you, I will stick with RS B and switch to SM 2 after that instead of start now from 1a. DD used RS abacus and I really like how the abacus works for visual making 10s and that is really what SM 1 try to teach.

We actually did not really use SM 1( we did miquon and rod and abacus ) and we moved in 2a just fine. We are about to finish 3b and we spend 20-30 min 3 days/week (afterschooler)

This was what I was thinking. My original plan was to continue with RS C. But after looking at Singapore I think it would be easier and less time consuming for next year when I will have an infant! I didn't get to see 2 only 1 A/B, but It looks like he would be on track to cover the same stuff. (Except maybe the multiplication....we haven't encountered that yet)

[Dahliarw]

I really like SM. I have a 6yo working through 1b right now.  He finished 1a in 10 weeks!  I haven't been using the HIG with him unless he doesn't understand something.  He's fairly "mathy" and it's been easy for him, so I don't see the point in making him do activities to teach things he already knows.

 

With my older son I used the HIG with 2A/2B and I wouldn't do it without.  That being said, he really didn't like singapore (wasn't his style - did not like me instructing him and found the workbook "boring"), so I switched him to BA and am supplementing with SM, particularly the mental math part and any part that is not covered in BA.

[sassenach]

I am a natural math person and comfortable teacher. Imo, if you're not using the home instructor's guides, you're not really teaching the sm method. You can certainly teach math from them, but to fully teach the method, you would either need to be a trained teacher or use the guide.

 

They have tons if important instruction, reenforcement games, and drills. At 1, I wouldn't bother with the challenging WP or intensive review.

[Steven]

I can't compare to RS, since we have only used Singapore (we are now on 4A). We do two math sessions a day: several pages from the text book, and then later in the day several pages from the workbook. We closely follow the weekly schedule laid out in the Home Instructor's Guide (HIG). I look to see how many pages we need to cover for the week, and then divide them over the 5 days. (This year, however, my daughter has been breezing through the material and we have mostly been working on a 4-day a week schedule). We have never had serious problems keeping up with the weekly schedule, but neither do we race ahead. 

 

Ideally, I would like to see my daughter spend about 15 minutes on each math session, but in reality, it is longer because I can not keep her focused, especially on the workbook, which I would like her to do more independently.  In the earliest years we used a lot of the suggested manipulatives, especially counting trays that I made from egg cartons and counting beads. For me, it was pretty much open and go, except the first day of the week when I would read the material from the HIG to see how I should present the material and map out the daily schedule for the week. But that is not particularly time consuming. 

 

I also buy the Intensive Practice books, but we use those as review over the summer and do not try to do them when we are first introducing material.