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happynurse
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I've poured through threads on Rightstart Mathematics because I am wanting some fun, game based math for my pre-k kiddo. It seems that, in general, people like Level A well enough, and many seem to have a love affair with Level B. When it comes to Level C, what I'm reading is more of a mix. Some seem to like it, or parts of it, and others quit Rightstart at this point.

 

If you used Rightstart B, did you choose to continue on with Level C? Why or why not? 

 

What mathematics program did you choose to transition into after Rightstart?

 

 

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I'm interested in this as well. We use level B but I'm unsure if we'll continue with C based on reviews. I'm going to use Beast Academy for 3rd but that leaves a gap in 2nd grade math of we don't do C. I wish Beast 2nd was already available or would be by next year!

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We only briefly tried B for a short amount of time (it wasn't a fit for us but for the games and the abacus), so I can't help with your questions.  But I will say that I think there is a difference between the 1st and 2nd editions for Level C.  If I recall, those that disliked C so much might have been using the 1st edition.  And I think I read that the 2nd edition addressed many of those complaints.  But I'm just relaying what I sort of remember from looking at RS.  Just keep that in mind when reading about mass exodus from C halfway through.  Hope that helps a bit.

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I used level C.

 

My son was 1) understanding math 2) enjoying math 3) progressing. I figured there was no need to change. I think that is a good way to approach math: if your child is learning and enjoying, don't listen to others and just keep going. Read reviews if that isn't happening.

 

I used D and E with him, too. I skipped the drawing in C with my daughter. I felt free to skip or compress lessons we didn't need. She finished D but didn't like level E, so we just changed.

 

My son intuited all of Singapore 4 and 5 and did the intensive practice books independently because, when I tried to teach lessons, he'd say, "Mom, I know how to do this." So I'm happy with his foundation. It was a good fit for him.

 

Emily

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We used first edition for Level A and second edition for Levels B and C.

 

I liked A just fine. B worked quite well for us. C not so much.

 

Level C feels unevenly paced. It has a massive amount of review and re-teaching from B. The most egregious example of both the unnecessary reteaching and the unevenness is regarding 4-digit addition and subtraction. In B, there are many lessons teaching 4-digit addition, first using several different manipulatives, then moving to paper-based. Afterwards, part of the daily warmup was to do two addition problems each day until you had gone through several pages of them. It worked. My daughter could practically do this in her sleep.

 

Then in C, they reteach 4-digit addition. Not just a review; they actually reteach it the same way they did in B, just as if it had never been seen before. Not marked as review, either. It's like someone forgot to edit the books properly. Then, later in C, you come to 4-digit subtraction. They spend only a handful of lessons on the topic and have very few problems to practice on. Seriously, it's so little I'm having to supplement on the topic of subtraction before moving on to a different program.

 

I've been so disappointed in C that even though I had originally intended to go through at least D before switching programs, I'm scratching that plan. We're dropping RS and switching to Beast Academy.

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I've used it all the way through Level E in conjunction with Singapore Primary Math. I love, love, love RS. I discovered it around the time my oldest dd was diagnosed with dyscalculia, and it helped her to finally move forward with math. I wish I had found it when she was younger. My older two dc have used it, and they are doing very well with math.

 

That said, I do skip the Cotter Triangle and a good bit of the geometry. Since they haven't finished Primary Math by the time they finish Level E, we just stick with it.

 

My ds (4th grade) is currently in Level C of RS and Level 3A of Primary Math. This could be seen as a bit behind, but he tested slightly above grade level back in July--even though he didn't use paper and pencil to solve any problems. The examiner didn't even realize that he knew how to regroup. Little stinker, lol!

 

 

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I only have 1st edition. I have kids in level E (2 kids), one 3/4 through C, and one in A. I like them all. Edition 1 C does have a fair big of review, but my kids need it. The instruction in C and D is great. But, level C edition 1 is..... long. All my kidx have taken a year and a half. It started to fell - to me as a teacher - like it was dragging.... not that it was going too slowly for the kids, just that I was ready to be done. It isn't feeling quite that bad with kid 3 though. I love how rightstart teaches fractions and multiplication and division... which you would miss if you jump out.

 

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We've just finished level C. I freely compress if my child has mastered something, like the addition algorithm. Of there's not much of something, line the subtraction, I mostly assume it will be coming around again later on and haven't worried about it so far.

 

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I liked A just fine. B worked quite well for us. C not so much.

 

Level C feels unevenly paced. It has a massive amount of review and re-teaching from B. The most egregious example of both the unnecessary reteaching and the unevenness is regarding 4-digit addition and subtraction. In B, there are many lessons teaching 4-digit addition, first using several different manipulatives, then moving to paper-based. Afterwards, part of the daily warmup was to do two addition problems each day until you had gone through several pages of them. It worked. My daughter could practically do this in her sleep.

 

Then in C, they reteach 4-digit addition. Not just a review; they actually reteach it the same way they did in B, just as if it had never been seen before. Not marked as review, either. It's like someone forgot to edit the books properly. Then, later in C, you come to 4-digit subtraction. They spend only a handful of lessons on the topic and have very few problems to practice on. Seriously, it's so little I'm having to supplement on the topic of subtraction before moving on to a different program.

 

:iagree: I used 2nd edition A-C.  A was fine; I used it more-or-less as an informal guide for play-based math since my kids were little but interested in numbers and equations.  I am one who has a love affair with B.  My older two kids (little guy hasn't started yet) have come out of RS with an awesome grasp on numbers--and they are very different personalities and learning styles.  As for my opinion of C, Jackie has captured it exactly, so I won't bother to rewrite it.

 

ODS moved through level C material in something like 2.5 months of 4-day weeks--even with almost all of the geometry/drawing lessons.  Since he kept sighing and asking for "hard math," I've moved him on to Beast, which is absolutely perfect for him.  It requires him to problem solve and put various aspects of math together in a fun, non-contrived-seeming way.

 

DD started throwing fits over math a short way into RS-C; after trying to adapt it to make it work (after all, I loved B...and I paid for C!), I pulled her off midway through.  She doesn't love challenge but she is very visual; Singapore has been a great conceptual fit for her.  I can use my RS manipulatives if ever she needs them, there's lots of white space, puzzle-y pages, cute cartoony drawings...  It strikes me as being kinda the written version of RS--RS if it was done in a workbook with cute pictures to illustrate concepts.  That said, I decided to back her up to 2A in case the RS scope & sequence left her with any Singapore holes, but 2A has been way easy for her, to the point where we skipped at least half of the pages and finished in 3 months of 3-days-a-week.  Even 2B looks like there's not much new material.  In her case, it's fine, since I want to rebuild her confidence and love of math...but I think I could have easily moved to level 3 after half of RS-C.  Frankly, I probably could have started her on Beast if I weren't concerned about her ability to tackle the challenge without hating math.

 

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My son had public K then when he came home in 1st we did RS B. Yes, much love for that program. I recommend it a lot. We did about 2/3 of C in 2nd, but it was moving too slowly and then switching topics then coming back to old topics, and generally we just fell out of love. I can't really articulate it much more clearly than that - it just wasn't hitting topics on pace with his learning, I couldn't accelerate it as easily as I would have liked, and it got to be dry.

 

Switched to BA 3. He also did BA 4 and is doing Singapore 5 right now.

 

One child used RS A, then Singapore, public school 3 years, Singapore again, then AoPS

 

One used first 30 lessons or so of A, mixed with Miquon and other cuisenaire rod things, then Singapore, now BA 3

 

Currently teaching youngest (4 yo) with RS A and a mix of other things. We're having fun!

 

I have owned A for years. B was our umbrella school's, and we don't use an umbrella anymore so they took it back. If I were only going to buy one level it would be B, but since I already own A we use it.

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We are finishing up B and love it, but will not be moving on to C. For us, it's a format issue. DS is annoyed that he has to wait for me to do math, that there isn't anything I can hand him to just work on. So while the lessons in B have been amazing, we are moving on to BA and Miquon Blue instead of continuing in RS. Another factor is that DS no longer feels the need to heavy manipulative use, and dropped the abacus completely a month ago. To which I give credit to RS! I feel like it did such a good job teaching the transition from manipulative math to mental math that he no longer needs the manipulatives.

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I think one thing homeschool parents learn after time is to not be a slave to the curriculum. I just got to the adding 4-digit numbers section of C - and condensed one week into one day by doing enough of each activity for her to show she remembered it. I didn't feel comfortable doing that sort of cutting with my first kid. 

 

I start my kids in Singapore IP 2 at the end of C; I like the little writing in RS for my little ones and I like that they are basically independent in Singapore IP.

 

That attitude is also required for currently popular selections like Beast Academy. Some of the sections in B are much harder than some sections in C. Being willing to cut and chop and rearrange makes curricula better.

 

However, RightStart is based on good research and curriculum design and the more I use it the more I understand the depth of it.

Emily

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We have successfully used all levels of RS, 1st edition.  DD11 is finishing G, 9 year-old twins are in the middle of E, and DD6 is doing B.  We've enjoyed it and seen great results--no regrets!  The foundation and understanding RS lays down for future math is quite beneficial, from place value to fractions to geometric concepts.

 

RightStart is based on good research and curriculum design and the more I use it the more I understand the depth of it.

 

I agree with Emily, the more I use it the more I understand the depth of it.  I condense when I need to and skip a few lessons if the review is unnecessary, but the ability to know when to do this has come with using the whole program and seeing what the author is trying to accomplish, and where my child may or may not need review, like others have said above.

 

I have them do most drawing lessons.  To minimize frustration with the drawing lessons, among a few other things, I check their work in stages and don't wait until the end to find mistakes, so they aren't erasing the whole thing at the end just to start over.

 

And, we do all of the warm-ups at the beginning of the lessons.  One reason I even chose RS to begin with was it's strength in mental math, and the mental agility is strengthened in the warm-up.

 

Somewhere in level B, probably towards the end, we gradually stop using the manipulatives and only pull them out if necessary, depending on how much the child actually needs it or not. 

 

Once DD11 finished level E, I took some time to solidify her fraction work, prime factorization, exponents and square roots, and conversions to decimals and percentages with online math worksheets.  Now that she's almost finished with G, she's started AoPS pre-algebra with no problems.  I did use a bit of Beast Academy as a supplement once she got to the end of RS-C, so the AoPS format isn't foreign to her.   

 

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I had one go all the way through A-E and now into MM5 with no difficulties. This child understands it, just doesn't love math.

 

I have one in C now. He NEEDS the review and we are using the games much more heavily than his sister did. The pacing is sometimes uneven, but that evaluation also depends on the student and his abilities and weaknesses. What is easy for one child may be difficult for another. I think the 2nd edition is better organized than the first.

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I have one in C now. He NEEDS the review and we are using the games much more heavily than his sister did. The pacing is sometimes uneven, but that evaluation also depends on the student and his abilities and weaknesses. What is easy for one child may be difficult for another. I think the 2nd edition is better organized than the first.

 

This. I think sometimes we judge a curriculum too easily before realizing that what is right for one child might be a complete disaster with another (especially with math). Most of the negative comments I see about C involve the copious review and children that 'get it' and need to move on already. Unless you have a child like mine, who needs a lot of review and a more incremental approach that lets them come to a complete understanding more gradually. The amount of review then becomes a positive, not a negative.

 

That being said, I haven't used C. We are towards the end of B (2nd edition). I'm looking forward to continuing with C though. We tried MUS Primer and Alpha and MM 1A previously and nothing was working. After switching to RightStart, my dd7 is finally understanding math and enjoying it from time to time. :)

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Then, later in C, you come to 4-digit subtraction. They spend only a handful of lessons on the topic and have very few problems to practice on. Seriously, it's so little I'm having to supplement on the topic of subtraction before moving on to a different program.

 

 

Hmmmmm. This makes me wonder if 4-digit subtraction will be continued more in-depth in Level D. Looking at D scope and sequence, 4-digit subtraction is listed as being covered all year.

 

I would really like to hear from those that are now using Level D 2nd edition.

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To be clear, I do condense, skip, draw out, and alter RightStart freely. I do this with nearly every curriculum I use, and don't blink an eye. That's just how curriculum should be used, in my opinion.

 

But level C required me to make so many alterations due to the reteaching and unevenness that the program was no longer recognizable by the time we got through it. At the point where I have to tear apart a curric and rebuild it on a daily basis, there is no point in continuing it.

 

I did really like level B. Loved the approach to geometry in C, and don't hold RS responsible at all for the alterations I had to make for my child's fine motor skills. But we skipped and condensed so much that C lasted only a few short months, with my daughter capable of doing all the assessments at the end of the book. To me, that is clearly not an appropriate follow-up to level B, which even with condensing took us a year of learning and exploration.

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To us, A seemed very scattered.  B was AWESOME, and the best program we have ever used in any subject.  I'm not sure I would have loved B as much if I hadn't done A first, though, if that makes any sense.  I was getting my bearings with A, and then could really soar with B.  I liked the first half of C, but we got mired down and ended up moving on.

 

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I used all 1st ed, 2nd wasn't around when we started. Ds went through B-D completely and a good chunk of E, at that point we had started BA so we did bits and pieces. B was excellent but after that it went downhill for us, I can't think of anything else that would have worked better for him at that age so it was just as well we stayed with it. I tried it on my daughter a couple of times and it was crying and fits it was a horrendous fit for her, it might work well with dd2 but now I've moved on and I have her doing cuisenaire/Miquon. Even if we had jumped ship after C or D I still consider it worthwhile to be done, nobody does Math quite the same as right start and when you have a kid that it works for it just does. My thought was why jump ship if it was still working so we kept on going through until it wasn't and I'm certain I had threads just like you did asking others if, why and when they stopped RS but in the end I just had to make the decision for us.

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If you used Rightstart B, did you choose to continue on with Level C? Why or why not? 

 

What mathematics program did you choose to transition into after Rightstart?

 

RS A was amazing. We all loved it. My kids learned so much! It really set a good foundation.

 

RS B was pretty good. Maybe it was just that I was used to the format and they teaching method, and it didn't seem so shiny and revolutionary any more. We still liked it, and the kids learned a lot. I have read many threads on RS, and in my unscientific analysis, those who start in B like the program less than those who start in A.

 

RS C was a disappointment. There was an enormous amount of time spent on geometric drawing (for reasons that were not clearly articulated), and the precision necessary in the use of the drawing tools eluded my dd even though she has no problems with fine motor control. I don't feel that C taught a whole lot or advanced her knowledge of math very much. ETA: The one positive of C was how they teach subtraction. I think my dd has an easier time with subtraction of multi-digit numbers with the RS method than my son does with the traditional borrowing method.

 

I still planned to use D until my dd told me she wanted to learn division. I looked ahead to D and discovered that division didn't begin until lesson 107. That sealed the deal. There was no way dd would have tolerated that. We jumped ship most of the way through C and switched to Math Mammoth. It worked very well for my dd for levels 3-5. She was losing her engagement with it by the end of 5, so I put her straight into pre-algebra. We had no problems going from MM5 to Dolciani pre-a.

 

I didn't even attempt RS C with my son, as I knew the geometric drawing would be completely disastrous for him, and he needed something that had more explicit math fact teaching. MM did NOT work for him, so I put him in Teaching Textbooks 3 (in 4th grade). He finished it in 3 or 4 months and moved into 4, and now in 7th grade he's in TT 7 and doing fine.

 

ETA: Here is what I wrote in an archived post on this subject: We finished RS C (with many protestations from my dd, who had previously LOVED RS), but I made the decision to switch with about 30 lessons left. But I was about halfway through when I started to have doubts about it. Dd was the clincher. When we opened the book one day to yet another lesson on perimeter, she said to me in frustration, "Mom, I need harder math!!"

Tara 

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Thank you all so much for your replies! For whatever reason, I feel an intense pressure to 'get it right' from the beginning. Reading your thoughts is an immense help. 

 

It's truly okay if you have to experiment a bit and figure out what works best for your child. Glad you feel encouraged. :) 

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  • 2 weeks later...

I read through this thread, but didn't see this particular question answered:

 

We did a more traditional math program last year for Kindergarten. Can I start right in with Rightstart B (second edition)? Or do we need the foundation in A? I am concerned there won't be enough practice of the basics before the program moves on. On the other hand, I don't want DD to be bored.

 

 

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I read through this thread, but didn't see this particular question answered:

 

We did a more traditional math program last year for Kindergarten. Can I start right in with Rightstart B (second edition)? Or do we need the foundation in A? I am concerned there won't be enough practice of the basics before the program moves on. On the other hand, I don't want DD to be bored.

Call Rightstart! They are great at helping you determine placement, or advice as you go along....

 

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I read through this thread, but didn't see this particular question answered:

 

We did a more traditional math program last year for Kindergarten. Can I start right in with Rightstart B (second edition)? Or do we need the foundation in A? I am concerned there won't be enough practice of the basics before the program moves on. On the other hand, I don't want DD to be bored.

You can start with RS B - it is designed as an entry point, as is A.  If you do C or above they have transition lessons to get you up to speed with the way they do math.  But B, perfect place to start.  That's where my DS started in 1st after public school K.

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I read through this thread, but didn't see this particular question answered:

 

We did a more traditional math program last year for Kindergarten. Can I start right in with Rightstart B (second edition)? Or do we need the foundation in A? I am concerned there won't be enough practice of the basics before the program moves on. On the other hand, I don't want DD to be bored.

 

 

I started my daughter (just turned 5 at the time) on RS B 2nd edition because I felt she knew a lot of what was in A, based on the scope and sequence. Worked great for us. Take time to play the games, repeat the first ten lessons a few times if you need to, but we didn't miss anything.

 

My daughter's 6.5 now and we're in the final third of RS C. We'll be sticking with D, and at some point I'll probably supplement with BA. That looks good but conceptually it's a little beyond her right now. RS is letting her do more advanced concepts than I think she'd be comfortable with in other programs. I love the way it teaches things. We don't play the games quite enough and there was a week where I just had to stop and have her do addition worksheets to get some of her skills up, but overall the program works great for us.

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I have heard that with 2nd edition, the difficulty in B is a bit higher and it isn't quite as much of a direct starting point as it was in first edition. So if you are considering 2nd edition, you might want to give RightStart a call to discuss your specific situation. But I would think most likely B is still ok.

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I think that many people that may have had an issue with level C is with the old format.  I had been looking at RightStart for a couple of years but couldn't get myself to buy in to it because I didn't like the old format.  I purchased the new format this year and it is working great with my son.  I was just reading in TWTM that it's important not to jump around with curriculum, so if level A and B are working fine, set aside the reviews of others and try it for yourself.  Every child learns differently.  But if you jump around due to reading others reviews, it will create more problems by creating confusion in your student.  I personally identified with this problem as I jumped around a lot with my older son. Not because I was reading reviews, but because I was new to homeschooling and didn't really understand what my older son needed.  

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We used level C (1st edition) and are now in level D.  The geometry section in Level C was a real stumbling block for my DD.  I slowed way down because it was overwhelming for her.  Rather than doing one lesson a day, we went to only one or two lessons broken up over the week.  Despite it being difficult for her, I'm really glad we persevered because it helped her tremendously with fractions, visualization, and drawing.  She gained a lot of confidence and even competence in using the drawing tools.

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You can start with RS B - it is designed as an entry point, as is A.  If you do C or above they have transition lessons to get you up to speed with the way they do math.  But B, perfect place to start.  That's where my DS started in 1st after public school K.

 

Thanks so much! I am going to check scope and sequence and if it seems we can swing it, just jump in with B.

 

Thanks to all who responded with encouragement or advice.

 

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