Justmeandyou Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 I want to purchase Lial's pre-alg. or BCM. Not sure which. Also I want to go ahead and get Algebra. So many editions, I have no idea which to choose. Suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Any edition will work. If the edition is old enough you just might have to discard any calculator instructions. About the only thing I can think of that I saw in old college arithmetic/pre-algebra books that is totally irrelevant now is extracting non-rational square roots (so if they're teaching an algorithm for calculating decimal approximations of square roots without a calculator, you can safely skip that section). I would recommend pre-algebra for students with solid arithmetic skills who need some maturation before algebra, and BCM for students whose foundational arithmetic skills are shaky. If unsure on arithmetic skills, I would start with BCM and work the chapter tests. If the student fails a chapter test, go back and work problems from that chapter. If the student gets a B or C on a chapter test, work problems relating to the missed concepts and then do the chapter review. Depending on the age of the student they may go directly from BCM to algebra. I would recommend this especially for older students (high-school-aged students) who get at least a B in BCM. If they get a C or lower in BCM, I would do pre-algebra regardless of age. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellydon Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Any edition will work. If the edition is old enough you just might have to discard any calculator instructions. About the only thing I can think of that I saw in old college arithmetic/pre-algebra books that is totally irrelevant now is extracting non-rational square roots (so if they're teaching an algorithm for calculating decimal approximations of square roots without a calculator, you can safely skip that section). I would recommend pre-algebra for students with solid arithmetic skills who need some maturation before algebra, and BCM for students whose foundational arithmetic skills are shaky. If unsure on arithmetic skills, I would start with BCM and work the chapter tests. If the student fails a chapter test, go back and work problems from that chapter. If the student gets a B or C on a chapter test, work problems relating to the missed concepts and then do the chapter review. Depending on the age of the student they may go directly from BCM to algebra. I would recommend this especially for older students (high-school-aged students) who get at least a B in BCM. If they get a C or lower in BCM, I would do pre-algebra regardless of age. Thanks for the detail! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justmeandyou Posted October 8, 2014 Author Share Posted October 8, 2014 Any edition will work. If the edition is old enough you just might have to discard any calculator instructions. About the only thing I can think of that I saw in old college arithmetic/pre-algebra books that is totally irrelevant now is extracting non-rational square roots (so if they're teaching an algorithm for calculating decimal approximations of square roots without a calculator, you can safely skip that section). I would recommend pre-algebra for students with solid arithmetic skills who need some maturation before algebra, and BCM for students whose foundational arithmetic skills are shaky. If unsure on arithmetic skills, I would start with BCM and work the chapter tests. If the student fails a chapter test, go back and work problems from that chapter. If the student gets a B or C on a chapter test, work problems relating to the missed concepts and then do the chapter review. Depending on the age of the student they may go directly from BCM to algebra. I would recommend this especially for older students (high-school-aged students) who get at least a B in BCM. If they get a C or lower in BCM, I would do pre-algebra regardless of age. Perfect. I'll order a newer edition of pre-algebra then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Perfect. I'll order a newer edition of pre-algebra then. older, btw, = prior to the early '90s or so. You don't need to get a new-new edition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 BCM covers all the basic arithmetic you'd need for algebra. Plenty kids go from BCM to alg 1. Struggling students ought to do both BCM and prealg. Prealg does the same, with negatives and exponents thrown in from the beginning. It's more of an honors prealg. Great book. Introductory Algebra = alg 1 Get the older dirt cheap editions. Just make sure the picture matches on the cover of your student text and solutions manual. I'd suggest doing odds or evens, but more of the word problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justmeandyou Posted October 8, 2014 Author Share Posted October 8, 2014 Looks like the 3rd edition is the cheapest. The solutions manual is more than the book. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Yes. Lial's has FAR more problems than you need. If you can trust your student not to look at the answers in the back of the book until it is time to check work, I would assign the odds. Learning to look in the back and compare your answers and then go back and find your OWN mistakes is an awesome skill to learn early. If your student is more prone to temptation, assign the evens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoJosMom Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 OP, just so you know, there is a Lial's book that combines Pre-Algebra and Algebra into one (hefty) volume. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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