Is it okay to come close but not complete a textbook in a year?

[lynn]

I am feeling like we did our best to get through the 120 lessons for Algebra 1 but we are having to slow down some to really get it kwim.

 

Would you just keep going and push throug to  finish the book  on time or  stop and review lessons ds has not quite mastered?  We are at about lesson 110 he usually makes low 80's on tests.   

[Lara in Colo]

Public schools frequently don't finish their books, that being said-- I would push through and finish over the summer-- you paid for it, there isn't a time constraint (like in public school-where the last day is it).

 

Unless there is a reason NOT to finish the book- I would.

 

[Lara in Colo]

Ignore my last post -- it was junk--- I didn't read your post well enough--- slow down and re-work the stuff he needs.  The goal is to KNOW the material before you can build on it---

[TCB]

I am no math expert but can tell you what we do with math. If we don't finish then I just have them carry on into summer until we do. I don't want to rush through as I want good understanding, and I think it is quite a good thing to do a little math over the summer anyway, less chance of forgetting everything.

[Tap]

Back track and make sure he knows what he is doing.  Mastery is vital in Algebra. 

 

 

Then look and see what the material is in the last few lessons.  Some programs do a bit of review and it isn't a big deal to miss.  Some programs do some extra problems that help to use the material you have already learned, but tie in several components learned throughout the year. Some cover new content all the way to the end.  

 

Since his grades have been in the 80s on tests, I would likely do all the assignments.  If it is new material, he needs to know it.  If it is review or just extra concepts, it sounds like he could use the practice.  

 

If it was literature...I wouldn't worry too much, but math really builds on itself and what ever you skip now, will likely come around again....but only as review assuming he was previously taught the material.  If he was  strong math student I would say 'he can pick up the last couple of concepts when the do the review' but if he isn't that strong, I wouldn't want to disadvantage him like that.

 

 

Continue working over the summer, you will only need a couple of weeks to complete them if he does more than 5 per week.  If not, tack it on at the beginning of next year.

 

 

 

[EKS]

With math, it's important to finish the book.  That said, it's also important to understand what has come before.  So I would do both things--I would go back and review *and* I would then move forward to finish the book. 

 

 

[Ali in OR]

Might depend on the text book. Many publishing companies put everything including the kitchen sink in there to say they've covered it, but then schools have to go at such a quick clip to try to get it all done that they may not cover it well. It's always eye-opening to me to see how non-American companies approach this. Singapore covers fewer topics but at a deeper level of understanding and execution, for instance. If you have some experience with math, have taught an older kid, know which topics are more important, know which will be covered again in Algebra II, you may be able to skip some stuff. I can guarantee you that especially this year with so many cancelled school days due to snow, there are public schools all over the country that won't "cover everything" and won't finish the book.

[Myeightkiddies]

I would finish it, but I wouldn't stress about finishing it "on time".  

 

I know that everyone would enjoy a break for the summer.  Would it be too much of an imposition to do half a lesson a day (as in half of the lesson today and the other half of it tomorrow) until it is finished?  It actually could help the child understand Algebra better.  For some it is easy to lose focus with longer lessons, and since your son is doing fine but not really excelling at it, I don't see a problem with shorter lessons.  It may delay the completion, but it won't take long each day to do the half lesson.  It would be easy to mix in some review since the lessons are shorter than normal.  Another benefit would be the ease of moving onto the "next thing" without having a long summer break away from math.

[Carol in Cal.]

No matter what, back up and master the material.  Algebra is absolutely foundational.

 

And if it's Saxon, you MUST finish the book.  Saxon loads a ton of crucial material in the last few chapters, more so than any other curriculum that I know of. 

 

We used Saxon for quite a few years, and we always finished the books, and usually maintained progress in a low key way over the summer--maybe just a couple time per week, skipping summer camp weeks, etc.  That way it didn't get forgotten, and, BONUS!  the first few chapters in each book are review so you can let your kids take the tests, and if they score well, skip the introductory lessons.   

[Laurie4b]

I hate to say this at this point, but low 80s is going to leave him at a disadvantage in higher maths. I would go back and review and shoot for 90% mastery on the review. It's okay if he retakes tests, gets partial credit, etc, but his knowledge of algebra needs to be rock solid. Go through the summer. If a tutor would help, get a tutor. Someone who is experienced at teaching algebra can often make pretty quick inroads.

 

I doubt if you need to finish the book. Often at the end, there is stuff that isn't that important, such as series, etc. or in some books, there is an intro to stuff that is more thoroughly covered in Algebra 2.  It's more important, imo, to have the mastery on the basic stuff.

 

What program are you using? What is covered in the last chapters?

 

 

[LMD]

I would finish it, but I wouldn't stress about finishing it "on time".  

 

This.  Finish it.  Do it properly, take as much time as you need.  Take 2 years if you need to.  You don't want to be able to tick off 'book x done' at the expense of him knowing the material, do you?  Isn't that exactly one of the biggest advantages of homeschooling?

 

Honestly, I don't care if we finish a book in a year or not.  For example, I just ordered the next level of a book half-way through our school year, because DD took a little longer to finish the last one, and we spent a bit of time playing with tangents before going on to the next one.  

[foxbridgeacademy]

I would finish the book and go back and review over Summer, unless you plan on doing another year of Algebra using a different curriculum?  I would not advance him with low 80's scores, he won't have the foundation for the next level of Math.... You could go ahead and do Geometry (needs some Alg. concepts)next year and do a weekly Algebra Topic Review.... So that he might be solid for Alg. 2 without having to spend a whole chunk of time on Alg 1?  Or, you could call it done. Then start next year with an intense Algebra Review (new Curriculum? Might do better) and finishing the stuff you didn't get to.  Expect it to take however long it takes (weeks, months, a whole semester), he gets a 90%+ you move on, if not go over it again.  We school year round so I don't know how important having Summers off is, we never have.

[TammyinTN]

We had some fundamental problems with Algebra(videotext)  and we started over January 3..we will be working through it until it's completed.  No skipping anything in that class at all...it's to important.  

[Amy in NH]

We work to mastery here, so I would slow down until the concept is mastered, and then continue on with the lessons at a regular pace until finished with the book.  We don't follow a rigid timetable, so schooling into the summer, particularly in only one or two subjects, would be okay with me.

[Carol in Cal.]

Actually, two years of Algebra 1, with different curricula, makes a lot of sense.

It is a luxury that we can allow ourselves as homeschoolers.

 

However, there is a lot of algebra 1 practice in later years, and also in chemistry.

Kids who are reasonably proficient leaving algebra 1 often solidify those skills considerably with the added practice.

[Seasider]

If this were my student, I would:

 

Stop moving forward in the book. Identify the concepts that are not fully mastered, go back and rework those lessons. If you are using Saxon, identifying the problem areas is easy because beneath every question there's a reference back to the chapter in which that concept was introduced.

 

If you are unable to assist the student in understanding, consider outside help (tutoring).

 

Once those concepts are understood, begin to move forward in the book. When a test question is missed, work through it to the point of full comprehension.

 

Finish the book. It may not appear that new concepts are being introduced; however (again, with Saxon), those final chapters usually present problems in which the learned concepts are layered/combined in the problems. This challenges the student to apply multiple concepts to single (albeit multistep) problems. It's excellent practice and skill building.

 

When the book is complete, do not take a long break before moving into the next book. Don't lose the momentum!

 

Start the next book by going right to the tests. I allow mine to go as far as they can and make 100% on the test; with Saxon, that's usually 3-5 tests. At the point they start missing things, you know they've passed the review portion at the beginning of the new book. Look over individual chapters to make sure there's no new concepts you've missed, and start back to daily lessons at the appropriate spot. At this point you are on track to "complete" the textbook within the school year. But keep in mind, the longer the break between books, the more review you might need when you get into the next one.

 

 

[ElizabethB]

Hive agreement!!

 

:)