O/S of Jann's CC musings, question re: Saxon

[Tiramisu]

I have an 8th grade dd, and I'm worried about short-changing her as we head into the high school years, given all I've been reading about the CC and seeing with my other dd who is in ps and using a Singapore style program.

 

After trying multiple math curricula in the early elementary years, we settled on CLE since she had a hard time retaining. She benefited from the seeing the same concepts on a daily basis, so we stuck with it for five years. For algebra, she started Saxon because it's similar to CLE and she is is progressing well with my help, doing EVERY problem. My concern is that I'm just not seeing a lot of application in Saxon and we're at lesson 50. I used Foerster's with an older daughter and I'm feeling the lack of word problems. 

 

I'm afraid to leave a methodology behind that has worked successfully for this dd for so long. I also don't think consistent supplementation with another program seem realistic since she's busy getting done what's on her schedule already. Part of the problem is that she has visual-motor processing quirks (mild dysgraphia). At coops, teachers have always commented on how smart she is, and she is rather bright, but she's not without her struggles when it comes to memory and writing which can create issues with math. She probably has a B average due to what I'd call stupid mistakes.

 

I fantasize about moving over to the new Singapore high school series or AoPS but I just don't think it would suit her. :(

 

P.S. She LOVES science.

 

[Teachin'Mine]

If I remember correctly, a lot of the applications you'll see in Saxon are science related especially physics and chemistry.  This was with the 3rd editions and I'm not familiar with the 4th editions.  If it's working for her, there's no need to switch.  You can supplement with word problems easily enough if you don't think it has enough.  SAT/ACT test prep is one way to get practice with different problems.  Doesn't Singapore have a book with challenging word problems?  Not sure. AoPS also has books on word problems which you could use as a supplement as well.  As far as doing all the problems in Saxon, you're doing it right!   A lot of students make careless mistakes in algebra 1 and you will probably see that decrease significantly by algebra 2 as I think a lot of it is age related.

[Ellie]

Long-time users of Saxon report that their children have done extremely well, not only in college but IRL.

 

Your dd is only on lesson 50. Sometimes Saxon's brilliance sneaks up on you. :-)

[Teachin'Mine]

Yes - what Ellie said!  Dd was extremely well prepared, having used Saxon through calculus,  for college math and science courses.

 

There is some probability built into Saxon, but it doesn't sound like it will be enough for the new requirements.  I would plan on adding a statistics and probability course, which I think is a good idea anyway.

[Jann in TX]

I agree with the previous posters-- if Saxon is working for your daughter then stick with it.

 

90% of all Algebra 1 level mistakes are 'silly errors'... actually speed reading errors more than arithemetic errors... 2 times 3 equals 5 is a mistake I see ALL THE TIME.  I have zero doubt that those students know their multiplication tables...  their brain just focused on the 2 and the 3 and said 5 without looking for the process sign.

 

Saxon's next edtions will be CC aligned. 

 

I would suggest a supplemental program for word problems as the ones Saxon uses are very science heavy and follow a unique pattern-- so variety will help ANY student do better in this area.

 

I taught Saxon for over 10 years at the high school level and I used the elementary program while homeschooling my own daughters. I stopped using it when my oldest reached the 8/7 level and it became obvious that the unique methods of Saxon were not the best ones to use with my dd.  I also noticed about 30% of my students would have had more success with a program other than Saxon.

[kiana]

If she is currently doing well I would not switch away. Rather, though, I would do some extra work with word problems during the summer (NOT during the school year -- I think that might be overwhelming for someone who's not the strongest math student) with someone else's program. Foerster might be a good choice. This will benefit in two ways. 1) Summer review is almost always good for math. 2) She will see word problems from more than one angle.

[KarenNC]

I agree with the previous posters-- if Saxon is working for your daughter then stick with it.

 

90% of all Algebra 1 level mistakes are 'silly errors'... actually speed reading errors more than arithemetic errors... 2 times 3 equals 5 is a mistake I see ALL THE TIME.  I have zero doubt that those students know their multiplication tables...  their brain just focused on the 2 and the 3 and said 5 without looking for the process sign.

 

Saxon's next edtions will be CC aligned. 

 

I would suggest a supplemental program for word problems as the ones Saxon uses are very science heavy and follow a unique pattern-- so variety will help ANY student do better in this area.

 

I taught Saxon for over 10 years at the high school level and I used the elementary program while homeschooling my own daughters. I stopped using it when my oldest reached the 8/7 level and it became obvious that the unique methods of Saxon were not the best ones to use with my dd.  I also noticed about 30% of my students would have had more success with a program other than Saxon.

 

Do you have any suggestions for specific supplemental programs (secular, please)? My daughter is in Alg 1 now, will be doing an SAT/ACT prep class with co-op this spring. She does well with Saxon and we'll continue with it as long as we homeschool, but there's a chance that she may do a virtual charter in 10th (which would be after Saxon Alg 2) and it looks like they use Prentice Hall.

[Tiramisu]

If she is currently doing well I would not switch away. Rather, though, I would do some extra work with word problems during the summer (NOT during the school year -- I think that might be overwhelming for someone who's not the strongest math student) with someone else's program. Foerster might be a good choice. This will benefit in two ways. 1) Summer review is almost always good for math. 2) She will see word problems from more than one angle.

 

Thank you for the summer suggestion. I don't think it's realistic that we could supplement during the school year on a regular basis, and I think doing it on a regular basis is the only way it would be effective. 

[Tiramisu]

Do you have any suggestions for specific supplemental programs (secular, please)? My daughter is in Alg 1 now, will be doing an SAT/ACT prep class with co-op this spring. She does well with Saxon and we'll continue with it as long as we homeschool, but there's a chance that she may do a virtual charter in 10th (which would be after Saxon Alg 2) and it looks like they use Prentice Hall.

 

I found this Karen if you mean a CC type supplement for Saxon, but I don't know if it's any good.

 

http://www.rainbowresource.com/product/sku/050942/f28db5a3824044c5e53b5c87

[Jann in TX]

Until the actual tests are available and we can SEE the new content and new types of questions it is all speculation as the CC is not that specific.  Unfortunately, this makes it more difficult for us to prepare students who will be taking the first years of the test.

 

The problem with using a 'supplement' that was not designed to go with a your specific text is that the supplement may not meet your needs as its primary text may contain concepts not in your program and your program may contain concepts on the supplement and you would never know...

 

 

[readinmom]

You can go to Smarter Balance and take the practice tests, grade 3-8, and 11.  Scroll down to Take Practice Test.  It should give you a better idea of what you're looking for in the future.