How to accelerate in Math?

[NavyMommy]

DS is 5.5 now. He seems to have a gift for math and an intuition for it that neither I nor his older sister (7) have. I  already  jumped him ahead  by starting with a Memoria Press core for grade 1 (by  age this should be his K year) and it seems to be a great fit for everything except math. R&S (which is what they use) has him bored to tears. It's really beneath him, when he sets his mind to it he can complete the entire lesson in 5 minutes or less. 

 

My instinct is to switch to a spiral program with more variety and move up a level. I used  the online horizons test and it  looks  like Grade 2 will be a good fit. He flew through the placement test, aside from the < and > symbols but that isn't something we've covered, he does know which number is larger / smaller though, just not the symbols.

 

I'm worried about him  being this advanced in a subject  though, are there any issues I need to watch out for? How has working ahead affected your child down the road? Are there other programs out there that are better for younger children working ahead? This is all very new to me, my 7 year old is pretty much on age/grade level.

[HomeAgain]

I'd look at something that approaches math differently for an accelerated child: Singapore, MEP, Beast Academy, Dragonbox or Hands On Equations...and branch out from arithmetic.  Puzzles and logic games are about half of our math time here.  I should have invested in ThinkFun stock, lol, given how much we have.  Sudoku is great, so is chess, and we alternate between logic games and arithmetic skills, skipping ahead through a curriculum as needed.

[sweetpea3829]

You need Singapore Grade 1 and in a couple of years, Beast Academy.

 

My son (now 9 in a few days), was very similar to your boy.

 

A few precautions...just because he CAN work ahead, doesn't mean he SHOULD or is even emotionally ready.

 

So watch for burning him out. I nearly burned mine out by expecting too much volume in terms of workload. He was definitely capable, but at the end of the day, he was a 6, 7, 8 yr old boy who really just wanted to be playing Legos or climbing trees.

 

Another precaution is to remember that just because he is accelerated now, doesn't mean he always will be. He may very well slow down. What you don't want is for him to move too quickly and then arrive at concepts he is cognitively not developed enough for.

 

 

For our boy, I chose to place him only one to one and a half grade levels ahead. We added in Beast for depth and we explore other math topics. This grade level (4th) is the first time he isn't on track to complete the entire grade level before the end of the calendar year. He isn't struggling at all, it's just that there is finally enough new material that he hasn't already intrinsically absorbed. Enough new material that he is actually learning, instead of if being mostly review.

 

So yeah, that's what we've learned thus far, lol. We are in the beginning stages of exploring algebra and his high school math sequence.

[sweetpea3829]

I'd look at something that approaches math differently for an accelerated child: Singapore, MEP, Beast Academy, Dragonbox or Hands On Equations...and branch out from arithmetic. Puzzles and logic games are about half of our math time here. I should have invested in ThinkFun stock, lol, given how much we have. Sudoku is great, so is chess, and we alternate between logic games and arithmetic skills, skipping ahead through a curriculum as needed.

 

Lol, all curricula that we've added in. DragonBox is great. All of the DragonBox are great.

 

Also....after he is older, Murderous Maths, Math For Smarty Pants, Life of Fred, Competitive Math, etc.

 

We do a lot of logic around here, too.

[Jackie]

Another vote for finding a more challenging program. We used RightStart, and it's given her a great conceptual understanding of numbers, but I had to do quite a bit of tweaking to keep it moving fast enough. Singapore would likely have required far less tweaking, especially if we had skipped the usual workbook in favor of the Intensive Practice workbook and the Challenging Word Problems.

 

As soon as she was ready, we switched to Beast Academy, but they don't start until third grade level.

 

We also mixed in other resources: Prodigy Math, Dragonbox, Dreambox, Highlights' MathMania, Sir Cumference books, Zaccaro's Primary Challenge Math, Penrose the Mathematical Cat, Hands On Equations.

[wendyroo]

My son is 6.5 and is currently finishing up Math Mammoth 3.  He started MM2 in the middle of his K year after he finished Singapore 1 and I needed to move him to something more independent.  He goes through MM pretty quickly, only completing about half the problems (I choose which to assign) unless there is something he needs more practice on (which is rare).  We also supplement with Prodigy math, Singapore Challenging Word Problems, Dragonbox, Zaccaro's Challenge Math, Mind Benders and various apps, games and puzzles for fact practice.  He is getting Beast Academy 3 for Christmas.  We are just going to keep moving at his pace proceeding through elementary math and onto algebra (AOPS) as he is ready.

 

Wendy

[frogger]

Miquon could be good. They explore and figure things out on their own.

 

RightStart may be a good choice also. At first glance it doesn't look very adjustable but really if the are doing great at their mental math you can just skip the warm-up section(a short section at the beginning of the lesson that reviews or practices things) and go through two lessons at once for a few lessons then back off to one lesson at a time when it feels right. Sometimes when kids are way ahead they hit a block conceptually and that would be the time to pull out the games and some living books and take a break from

 

The last thing you want to do is make him hate what he is really good at so let him lead and don't push much.

[NavyMommy]

Thank you so much for all of the suggestions!! I need  to look into them more. Singapore is intimidating to me, which is why I haven't looked into it more. I'm good with math, and don't mind teaching it, but from what I've heard  it's just so different. I'll look  into it more. I also looked  into Beast Academy, which I really thought  would get his interest but they start assuming they can multiply which we haven't gotten to yet.

 

I'd look at something that approaches math differently for an accelerated child: Singapore, MEP, Beast Academy, Dragonbox or Hands On Equations...and branch out from arithmetic.  Puzzles and logic games are about half of our math time here.  I should have invested in ThinkFun stock, lol, given how much we have.  Sudoku is great, so is chess, and we alternate between logic games and arithmetic skills, skipping ahead through a curriculum as needed.

 

He does love math and logic games. He's a whiz  at checkers, and love mancala and sudoku. I haven't ventured into chess because I don't know how to play it, but maybe it's time to remedy that :)

 

You need Singapore Grade 1 and in a couple of years, Beast Academy.

My son (now 9 in a few days), was very similar to your boy.

A few precautions...just because he CAN work ahead, doesn't mean he SHOULD or is even emotionally ready.

So watch for burning him out. I nearly burned mine out by expecting too much volume in terms of workload. He was definitely capable, but at the end of the day, he was a 6, 7, 8 yr old boy who really just wanted to be playing Legos or climbing trees.

Another precaution is to remember that just because he is accelerated now, doesn't mean he always will be. He may very well slow down. What you don't want is for him to move too quickly and then arrive at concepts he is cognitively not developed enough for.


For our boy, I chose to place him only one to one and a half grade levels ahead. We added in Beast for depth and we explore other math topics. This grade level (4th) is the first time he isn't on track to complete the entire grade level before the end of the calendar year. He isn't struggling at all, it's just that there is finally enough new material that he hasn't already intrinsically absorbed. Enough new material that he is actually learning, instead of if being mostly review.

So yeah, that's what we've learned thus far, lol. We are in the beginning stages of exploring algebra and his high school math sequence.

 

I really appreciate the insight from "down the road" so to speak! That was one of the reasons I liked Horizons. The lessons are only 2 pages, even at the 2nd grade level so hopefully the workload won't be to overwhelming. I'm going to look more into Singapore, it's just  not something I'm familiar with so it's been a bit  intimidating to me. I am looking forward to completing grade 2 this year so we can venture  into Beast Academy! 

[wapiti]

 I also looked  into Beast Academy, which I really thought  would get his interest but they start assuming they can multiply which we haven't gotten to yet.

 

There is no multiplication on the pretest for 3A.

 

 I am looking forward to completing grade 2 this year so we can venture  into Beast Academy! 

 

This will depend on the individual kid, but in our house, 6.5 was still a little early for Beast, even for a kid who could multiply.

 

Beast would be more challenging than the regular Singapore workbooks.  I can't compare to the Singapore Intensive Practice or Challenging Word Problems.  (However, I'd guess that I might find Beast a bit more intuitive than Singapore.  Disclaimer:  I only used tiny bits of each.)

Edited December 10, 2015 by wapiti

[ondreeuh]

Math in Focus is a new version of Singapore Math and I love it. It is very easy to accelerate. I go over the lesson, choose a few textbook problem to ensure DS gets it, and he does the workbook pages. Many lessons are supposed to span 2-3 days, and we are able to do them in 1 day, sometimes we combine 2 short lessons, etc. I supplement with the 70 must-know word problems book. DS 7 is almost done with MiF 3B and the level 3 word problems. I have the Zaccaro books and the Singapore Math Challenge books for more variety. We started Beast Academy but set it aside until he has finished MiF 3. I just prefer not to mix the two right now.

 

I agree with the PP who said to keep an eye out for maturity issues. Singapore requires student to handle multiple steps pretty early on. Grade 3 cover long division, converting fractions, calculating elapsed time, and other things that are fairly abstract and require some pretty sustained concentration.

 

If you do Singapore PM or Math in Focus, I would start at 1A and quickly go over the Singapore way of solving problems. The number bonds, bar models, and regrouping strategies may be a lot different than he's seen in Rod & Staff.

 

I also have my kids do Math Minutes which provide daily spiral review & preview. It has been great for keeping things fresh and cuts down on the time it takes to cover new topics in the main math program.

[desertflower]

No stress chess can teach you and your child. But like anything, my ds played it a couple of times and was ready for grown up chess. ;)

[sunshineslp]

Math in Focus is a new version of Singapore Math and I love it. It is very easy to accelerate. I go over the lesson, choose a few textbook problem to ensure DS gets it, and he does the workbook pages. Many lessons are supposed to span 2-3 days, and we are able to do them in 1 day, sometimes we combine 2 short lessons, etc. I supplement with the 70 must-know word problems book. DS 7 is almost done with MiF 3B and the level 3 word problems. I have the Zaccaro books and the Singapore Math Challenge books for more variety. We started Beast Academy but set it aside until he has finished MiF 3. I just prefer not to mix the two right now.

 

I agree with the PP who said to keep an eye out for maturity issues. Singapore requires student to handle multiple steps pretty early on. Grade 3 cover long division, converting fractions, calculating elapsed time, and other things that are fairly abstract and require some pretty sustained concentration.

 

If you do Singapore PM or Math in Focus, I would start at 1A and quickly go over the Singapore way of solving problems. The number bonds, bar models, and regrouping strategies may be a lot different than he's seen in Rod & Staff.

 

I also have my kids do Math Minutes which provide daily spiral review & preview. It has been great for keeping things fresh and cuts down on the time it takes to cover new topics in the main math program.

I agree that using Singapore or MiF would be a good way to challenge your son. I have a son that sounds very similar to yours and we use right start and he loves it! He has learned so much and it spirals so it's always new and fresh. However, we are moving to Singapore in a few months after he finishes level B of RS. I'm also a little scared of teaching it but we are doing what this poster said, and that's starting at 1a and moving through quickly. I did want to ask this poster regarding MiF vs Singapore, you said Singapore requires complex steps fairly early, does MiF not do that? Is the S&S that different and much slower?

 

 

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[Sarah0000]

I have a just turned four years old son. Miquon is a great fit for him because he can do it independently and the written output is much more interesting. Since he's so young, I do not ask him to do lines of problems. Instead, we turn problems into stories. I found Singapore 1 easy to do this way (we used just the textbook).

 

I don't know why a previous poster said to do Life of Fred later. Maybe to do it independently? We read it aloud together and discuss the questions and answers. DS has only finished grade 1 math but did fine with LoF Apples and Butterflies.

 

Going into grade 2 math I am having a little more trouble keeping things as natural as possible. Math picture books have helped tremendously. Check out Bedtime Math and the Greg Tang books.

[Hunter]

My youngest was about 5 years ahead at one point. That meant we were deeply into advanced maths while I was still legally required by law to teach math. Calculus books are expensive and hard to teach.

 

Little guys struggle with volume of work and handwriting issues. Often they cannot read the text themselves and need you to spoonfeed the math with no ability to work independently.

 

So DS and I arrived at the college years broke and burnt out. He ended out at the local community college at 17. And took algebra 2 disguised at "College Algebra" using a newer edition of the exact same book we had found at a yard sale and used years ago. And to make it worse, the teacher only assigned the easiest problems and said all the hardest things I had drilled him on were "too hard".

 

So what did I accomplish by rushing? Nothing that I can think of. Except the school board hid from us more than I hid from them, because at one point I tried to put him back in school and they didn't want him. They claimed they were unable to " accommodate" a child who was so "different".

 

So when they stopped taking my phone calls and didn't respond to anything I mailed them, I stopped trying. And went a bit rogue for awhile. And did all sorts of stuff that "gives homeschoolers a bad name". :lol: The freedom was pretty cool.

 

So older brother got a chance to work out on the docks and break lots of child labor laws and basically do no math. :lol:

Edited December 10, 2015 by Hunter

[ondreeuh]

I agree that using Singapore or MiF would be a good way to challenge your son. I have a son that sounds very similar to yours and we use right start and he loves it! He has learned so much and it spirals so it's always new and fresh. However, we are moving to Singapore in a few months after he finishes level B of RS. I'm also a little scared of teaching it but we are doing what this poster said, and that's starting at 1a and moving through quickly. I did want to ask this poster regarding MiF vs Singapore, you said Singapore requires complex steps fairly early, does MiF not do that? Is the S&S that different and much slower?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sorry, I used MiF and Singqpore interchangeably in my post. They follow pretty much the same scope and sequence. MiF is newer and based off the newer syllabus used in Singapore, while Primary Math is based on an older syllabus. The presentation is different. But the methods are the same.

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

If you want to accelerate, I would definitely suggest a mastery program rather than spiral.  With a mastery program (SM is my experience), you can pair a difficult computation chapter with an easier conceptual/vocabulary chapter.  For example, in Singapore, I would combine adding with regrouping with geometry or clocks or graphs.  Then, just do one lesson from each each day.  

 

Don't be afraid of Singapore!  Reading the HIGs will teach you how to teach them, but watching videos at EducationUnboxed.com is also extremely helpful for understanding Asian math.  

 

My biggest caution with acceleration is to not get trapped in the "my child is accelerated and so must continue to accelerate".  I've found this out the hard way.  My son is about 1.5 years ahead, but is now working at a normal pace.  Any time this year where I have tried to push him back into acceleration, it has ended in disaster.  He needs the easier chapters to catch his breath after the harder ones, and I give him review problems during those chapters to keep the harder concepts fresh.  My dd is still in the acceleration phase, but I'm sure she'll eventually get to her "level" as well and slow down at that point.  Always let your child set the pace.  Maybe this comes naturally for some parents, but I had to figure this out.  lol.  

 

p.s.  If you do choose SM, I recommend the challenging word problems to go with it, and the MM review books if you find your child needs to sit on a subject for a bit or if you just want to have a problem bank for reviewing.  

 

 

[Arcadia]

How has working ahead affected your child down the road?

My kids self teach. My oldest start SM2 at 4 skipping SM1. He could self teach SM, his number sense is solid and he had a fascination with googol (1 with 100 zeros behind) and pi before K.

 

Beast academy wasn't out when my kids gobble up SM, found CWP easy and AoPS doable. They did past year contest problems too for leisure. Both my kids started aops prealgebra at 8.

 

The advantage my boys have is that math did not slow down their science which they mostly self-teach asking me and DH when stuck. DS11 and another homeschool kid are youngest in a homeschool physics class with 14 year olds. The other boy and DS11 are both tall for age (around 5'2"/155cm)

 

The disadvantage is that DS11 is out of sync when he wants a classroom class for math. Our nearest local Math circle was going too slow because the teachers/facilitators still have to go at the slowest speed and some kids didn't do their homework.

 

He will likely hit calculus before high school and do 4 years of dual enrollment. It also means that my school district would be happier if I don't put my boys back in high school.

 

Socially, where I stay have many math accelerated kids so my boys don't stick out like a sore thumb if they talk about "higher level" topics.

 

If your child learns by himself, it is not the calculus trap that you have to worry about. It is setting aside money to pay for outside classes or tutor a few years down the road.

 

ETA:

This was what we tried since preschool:

MEP including the puzzles page (up to GCE 'A')

Canada math kangaroo past years questions

MOEMS samples

U of Waterloo, Canada math circles and past year math contest (goes up to 12th grade)

AMC8 past year

USAMT past year

 

We also did AoPS counting and probablity as well as AoPS number theory.

We also tried elements of math foundations when it came out.

 

My older went into mandlebrot fractals while my younger went into graph theory. They read the entire math sections of a few libraries, whatever is on the shelves and they think they are interested in. I gave up keeping a record.

 

There is also chess math puzzles.

Edited December 11, 2015 by Arcadia

[Haiku]

I would go deeper, not faster. Get math games books, look at online math games (my kids love coolmathgames.com), read math picture books from the library, etc. Look at what Zaccaro has to offer. Challenge your son to go deeper with the concepts he's working on, not go faster and pile on more concepts. If you zoom ahead too quickly, you may find yourself in a situation where he is not developmentally ready for the abstract thinking required.

[daijobu]

Add in some exams from MOEMS.  You can books of old exams from Amazon.  Skip volume 1 and buy volumes 2 and 3.  They are a lot of fun, and probably take 45 minutes to take an exam and review the solutions.  

 

When my kids were elementary, we did 4 days of singapore math, with a MOEMS practice on Wednesday to break things up.  HTH.

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

Add in some exams from MOEMS.  You can books of old exams from Amazon.  Skip volume 1 and buy volumes 2 and 3.  They are a lot of fun, and probably take 45 minutes to take an exam and review the solutions.  

 

When my kids were elementary, we did 4 days of singapore math, with a MOEMS practice on Wednesday to break things up.  HTH.

 

Not to OP, but these look really interesting!  Thanks for the link.

[FO4UR]

I would go deeper, not faster. Get math games books, look at online math games (my kids love coolmathgames.com), read math picture books from the library, etc. Look at what Zaccaro has to offer. Challenge your son to go deeper with the concepts he's working on, not go faster and pile on more concepts. If you zoom ahead too quickly, you may find yourself in a situation where he is not developmentally ready for the abstract thinking required.

 

 

This!

 

Do the Singapore IP and CWP books instead of the wb.  Let him watch Vihart.  Do hands-on geometry activities.  Learn math through various manipulatives and from various angles.  As soon as he's able, combine some math with science.  Let him work on the Your Business Math Series from Simply Charlotte Mason...and let that be a part of a grand pretend play store. Encourage him to gather other children into that pretend play and teach them some math in the process. Play.  (When we teach others, our understanding soars!)

 

There is no shortage of great math materials.  Strategy games?  Oh, yes!

 

The goal is to have a child ready for algebra who truly knows all arithmetic, and fluently uses that knowledge.  It is better to do algebra in 8th grade with that sort of rock-solid foundation than to rush into algebra 3 years earlier for the sake of accelerating just b/c he can.  

Edited December 11, 2015 by 4blessingmom

[daijobu]

Not to OP, but these look really interesting!  Thanks for the link.

 

You're welcome!  You and OP might also want to consider hosting a MOEMS team next year, if you have enough interest in the community.  It's easy and fun, and math-loving students get to meet each other.  It's also provides a nice springboard into future math competitions like MathCounts.  

 

We've done MOEMS for years now, and both my dd's now coach younger students, so it's been a positive experience for us all around.  

[EKS]

I would use RightStart for 1st grade math followed by Singapore 2-5 or 6.  When he's ready I'd take a look at Beast Academy too.

 

I agree with the others who say to go deep, but I think it is also important to move quickly to a place where there is more challenge.  It is also helpful to be able to use the time saved in elementary math to go more slowly if needed in secondary math.  Both of my sons have taken advantage of this.

[MeaganS]

We have a similar situation with my young 5yo. I've chosen depth rather than speed for her. We're doing Miquon and MEP in their entirety and I'm also throwing in some word problem books. She does math apps like Dragonbox and Slice Fractions and pre-programming/logic apps too. I really want her to understand math deeply and we're in no hurry. So far it is going well and she often relates every day life to math concepts.

[Targhee]

If you have the time to teach it I highly recommend RightStart B now (first edition)! You can do two days worth quickly if it is something familiar, but man is that the most solid 1st grade math!!

 

If you don't have time to teach it I recommend Singapore and Miquon.

 

Either way switching to Beast Academy when ready for it is also excellent.

 

I don't recommend just going faster, nor skipping things. I think going deep and wide is key. Use Miquon, use games and puzzles, use MoebiusNoodles and Education Unboxed and Let's Play Math to help "see" math in different ways. Play with your math! It's not a race to calculus, but rather a voyage of discovery.