bbcooker Posted July 2, 2014 Share Posted July 2, 2014 What are the differences of how Saxon 54 and CLE teach? What are the strengths of each program? What are the complaints of each program? How much time does each program take per day? When the programs get into the high levels of math, which one is stronger for a dc entering an engineering, math or science field? Thanks so much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeAndTheBoys Posted July 2, 2014 Share Posted July 2, 2014 I definitely recommend CLE for lower grades. And CLE peters out after 8th grade (they have Algebra and Geometry in their "new" (i.e. GOOD) version, then they have an old version of maybe Alg II--I've been active on CLE yahoo groups for years and just haven't gotten a great vibe for any of their high school math). We have used CLE from Grades 1-7 for my oldest, then he moved into Algebra I (Saxon) this summer. I was tempted to put DS2 in Saxon this year for 5th grade--but I bought the book and decided to stay with CLE through grade 7 (or he may need to do Grade 8 as well to prepare for Algebra-DS1 did not). I can't completely compare since I haven't done Saxon Elementary, but I can say that CLE is great preparation for Saxon. Beginning in 3rd grade, it becomes independent, with short lessons for the student to read through and work a few problems from. Then it has 20-30 review problems to spiral through previous lessons. That made it somewhat easy for my oldest--lots of "stuff he already knew". Not so easy for my DS2 who is forgetful--but goodness, if he wasn't doing that constant review, I would hate to think how much MORE he would struggle with math!!!! So we've made CLE work for him--I think any math curriculum would have challenges. We switched to Math Mammoth briefly in 3rd grade because he was a year ahead in CLE and overwhelmed--he did NOT like that approach and begged to go back to CLE. So we started Grade 4 over in Grade 4 and he did much better. So now he's on grade level. Anyhow--I bought Saxon 6/5 for him this year and looked it over--and it was just too much for him--too many words on each page, too long of explanations--he isn't ready for it. So he's going to stay in CLE for a few more years--the pages are really clean, it's a workbook format, it's very gentle and sweet. But content-wise--I think they are similar, and I think the approach is similar. My oldest got 100% on the Algebra placement test--so he seems to have learned what Saxon would have taught. And he's done about 5 lessons in the Algebra book so far (review stuff) and no surprises have popped up--yet. His complaint is that is takes a lot longer--but that's the nature of high school math. CLE, even up through the middle school levels, could be done in 30-45 minutes. Looks like Algebra might take at least an hour for each lesson. I am looking forward to reading other responses!!!! Oh, and Saxon is definitely better over CLE for high school levels--CLE is not high school math for pre-engineers, etc, from what I've read about it. Whereas I have a LOT of friends in my local homeschool group who have done Saxon in high school and been more than prepared for college math in STEM careers-- Betsy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixpence1978 Posted July 2, 2014 Share Posted July 2, 2014 I'll try... We have used CLE from 205-410, with 500's coming up for next year. My son (in private school) has gone through Saxon from 3 up to starting Algebra in the fall. Differences in how they teach: They are very similar in that they have an incremental/spiral format. A new small tidbit is taught and added to what you already have learned. Their differences would be that Saxon is a lot more wordy than CLE. CLE has instructions that are to the point, and Saxon likes to discus the topic more. It may occasionally be a bit deeper. Also, Saxon spends at least the first 30-50 lessons reviewing material from previous years before starting on new material. CLE spends the first light unit reviewing, and moves to new things pretty quickly after that. So the material is spread out better. I may get blasted for this, but I also find that Saxon does require a bit more problem-solving skills. There are more and deeper word problems, IMO. The strengths of each program: Saxon - mathematical thinking and vocabulary (not the same type as something like Singapore, but still quite strong) CLE - strong math done in workbook form (great if your kid struggles or refuses to copy) Complaints of each program: Saxon - can get overwhelming. There are a lot of words on a page. Then there is the copying of problems onto separate paper. CLE - can be a bit weaker in word problems (again some people disagree, this is just my opinion), length of the problem set (we cross some off) Time per day: For us, both take about an hour. Saxon might be slightly longer though. CLE is usually a very short lesson, followed by a longer work period. Saxon (for us), was a longer teaching lesson, and a decently long work period. But then again, it depends on your kid. My son can usually do a practice set in Saxon in about 30 minutes. My dd usually spends at least 45-60 minutes on her work, but she is a dawdler. Higher levels of math: I know Saxon has a good track record for student wanting to get into engineering type fields. I personally prefer a more mastery approach come high school math, but I have many friends who used Saxon up through Calculus with very good results. CLE is only just starting to rewrite their upper-level math, so I wouldn't count on that yet (though it could change). I think there are a few times that it's okay to switch math curriculum, upon entering upper elementary/middle school, and entering high school. My plan is to continue CLE for my dd until we reach upper levels. I can tell you why I think Saxon is a good fit for my son while CLE is a good fit for my daughter, if that would help. My DS is very logical, accelerated, and likely looking at a career in engineering. He is able to copy his work without issues or complaints, he doesn't get weighed down in the Saxon lingo, and he can withstand the rigor of the program. He probably also would have done well with something more conceptual, but I do like spiral math in the lower grades personally. My DD is more of a dreamer, struggles in school, and is more of a care-giver. She mainly struggles with reading, writing, spelling, and language. Her math skills are stronger. She really disliked having to rewrite the problems in Saxon when we tried it. She also really struggled with how wordy it was. She likes more of a get in, get out teaching. The longer practice section has helped her become proficient at math. She doesn't like conceptual learning...looking at something too many ways confused her. In my opinion, both programs are very strong with math, you just need to think about which would be a good fit for your child. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbcooker Posted July 4, 2014 Author Share Posted July 4, 2014 Thank you! From how you both explained it, I think I'll do CLE until High School, and then switch to something at that point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbcooker Posted July 4, 2014 Author Share Posted July 4, 2014 Hi back to you too. :) :) I recognize your name. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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