LEK Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 After debating, eyeing off and admiring beast academy since the first book was released I have finally decided to take the plunge, yay! I am excited, dd8 is excited! The only niggling doubt is that I have had to wait so long for her reading ability to catch up with her math ability, mathematically she could have tackled level 3 a year ago but she would not have been able to adequately read the text and questions back then. Now I am worried that I am holding her back mathematically by starting with books nearly an entire year behind her "grade level", I know I am being silly but I just cannot shake that doubt. SO, my dd is 8 and finishing up 3rd grade in November this year (our school year is a calendar year), she is a very young 3rd grade and could place into either 3rd or 4th in our local school as her birthday is right at the cutoff. I am planning on starting her on BA 3A as soon as I have ordered and it arrives, probably in a month. I am expecting she will most likely complete 3A this year and start 3B when she starts 4th grade in January working through 3B-4A during her 4th grade year. That will be fine right? I am just worried that I am holding her back by starting behind her grade level but on the other hand I want her to do all of level 3 as there are some parts in each book that I feel she could use a little more practice with (even though she easily places into book 3D on the assessments). Argh, I am over thinking this I know. Just reassure me that beast 3B-4A is a perfectly fine plan for 4th grade math (with Khan and some MM5 thrown in there if needed). Please! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HelenNotOfTroy Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 BA is much more challenging than the level indicates. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 Totally fine. If she's not tremendously challenged maybe she will end up working a little faster and finishing earlier. But even if she moves through 4 books per year precisely, she should be ready for pre-algebra after 5D (if it's out). That would put her beginning pre-algebra in the end of 6th grade, which is an absolutely fine place to be. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idnib Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 It's completely fine! As I did in the other thread, I'll recommend using a set amount of time per session and not a set amount of problems or pages. We've sometimes spent an entire hour discussing one problem or playing one of their games, other times I've awoken in the morning to find DS flew through a bunch of problems before breakfast. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneStepAtATime Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: What above posters have said. And she doesn't have to read the lessons entirely independently to get a lot out of this math program. Feel free to read the lessons together. It can be a great collaborative effort. This math system is challenging. Doing it together can be a great way to really dig deep. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweetpea3829 Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 Beast Grade 3 is totally not a grade level behind Grade 4. In fact, I think just about most math students would benefit from starting Beast at level 3. Yes, much of it would be easy for the average, say, high schooler. But man, there's some real meat in there! When I first picked it up, I remember flipping through and coming across the Skip Counting chapter in the table of contents. I was so disappointed! Skip counting? In a 3rd grade math curriculum supposedly for advanced math students? Skip counting is Kindergarten and First grade material! Then we reached that chapter...and holy cow! There were several problems that I could not wrap my head around! And that's when I realized how genius Beast Academy is. See...it wasn't JUST a chapter on skip counting. It was factoring. Bazinga! I triple puffy heart Beast Academy. *I* have learned so much, and have had my own math thinking stretched through the 3rd grade materials. My son is laying an amazing foundation which will serve him very well in Algebra and beyond. I have said this many times but it bears repeating, I heartily wish that there was a Beast Academy designed for below average to average math students. The actual approach, using a comic book and fun characters to teach math, would go a long way in encouraging math phobic kids. 17 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reign Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 We just started Beast this week. The recommendations on here convinced me to start my 8 year old on 3a. She is almost done with mm4. Now that I have the books I am really glad we started at the beginning. We have all enjoyed it this week. I hope you and your daughter have fun too! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Not to rain on the party—especially since I agree with the consensus that even a year "behind" that BA ia a challenging (and super cool) math program—however, I would not be suprised if you find yourself wanting something else to help with the "nuts and bolts" of elementary math. The prosaic and procedural parts of the math education are not where BA shines. Yes, it provides the poetry. Beautiful poetry. MM or PM, or something, might be your friend. Bill 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie of KY Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 I think most kids can use more math practice/drill than Beast provides, but I LOVE Beast Academy. You are best starting at the beginning of 3A with your child. I've done it now with two different non-readers. I read everything, but they can do all the math. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pitterpatter Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Yes, this. There are quite a few tricky words. I'm still not sure I'm pronouncing polyomino or tetromino correctly. DD and I often work together. It's different and a lot of the problems require thinking beyond the obvious. Solutions can easily be overlooked, especially in the beginning, as it takes time to shift your mind into thinking beyond what you see on the surface. :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: What above posters have said. And she doesn't have to read the lessons entirely independently to get a lot out of this math program. Feel free to read the lessons together. It can be a great collaborative effort. This math system is challenging. Doing it together can be a great way to really dig deep. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Targhee Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 8 years old is a great age to start BA 3, in fact it's the intended age. On top of that it is also intended for "mathy" kids who benefit from greater depth and complexity. There's no need to rush through or skip BA, for the vast majority, in order to accelerate your child in math. The conceptual framework you're building with BA is going to put the student ahead in many aspects. Even my very mathy oldest child loved to go back to younger brother's BA books for interest and challenge. She wished they had been around for her! I learned many things while helping my DS (and now middle DD) through the book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 I know it is hard to get over the grade labels and I know that when I mention it to others I feel at times the need to justify but you just can't explain BA to others, you have to work through it to get it. Also remember that BA is an entire elementary math program that is complete by the end of 5th grade, doing it behind is of no concern. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LEK Posted August 27, 2015 Author Share Posted August 27, 2015 Thanks guys :) You have all confirmed exactly what I was thinking all along but then I just started worrying about the number on the front of the books and got myself all confused and worried. She is currently working 1 grade level ahead in math and would be doing MM5 next year, to go from a book with a 5 to a book with a 3 seemed scary somehow and illogical but I am pretty sure this is the right move for her, she loved all the sample pages and her and a friend actually sat down and worked through some of them one afternoon together for fun, they were disappointed when i ran out of sample pages for them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneStepAtATime Posted August 28, 2015 Share Posted August 28, 2015 If she asks, you might explain that the number is really a guide for the level, not the grade level and that they started the program in the middle. Levels one and two haven't been written. She used something else for level one and two and now it is time to start level 3. My kids use a lot of resources that are not grade level specific but level specific. There is a progression from one level to another, not a grade level designation. Numbers on books don't bother them anymore. They just assume it is a level progression number, not a grade level, if that makes any sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebbyribs Posted August 28, 2015 Share Posted August 28, 2015 I could've written that post! My daughter, who was a late reader and who will turn 9 at the end of November started BA 3A at the end of last spring, after finishing MM3. So far, so good. She's in 3B now, and the plan is that she'll get through 4A or 4B by May. I figured that if she goes through 1 complete grade level of BA per year, that she'll be done with 5D and ready to start pre-algebra when she is 11, which seems like a fine pace. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momacacia Posted August 29, 2015 Share Posted August 29, 2015 We owned and did some MM before moving oldest to BA. Just to reassure myself that dd can look at more "normal" math problems and do them (and because MM looks more like standardiEd testing), I've printed out the final tests of grade levels she has completed recently and hand out pages once in a while as that day's math just to see how she's doing (and give her a break from Beast). Of course, it's a different curric so things "look" different, but that's part of the point and it gives me some confidence that we're not off the path with this unique program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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