................... Posted January 11, 2016 Share Posted January 11, 2016 (edited) My dd12 is bored to death by horizons and does pretty well with Zacarros and math Olympiads etc.I know AOPS will not work for her because she can't/won't slow down to read leangthy text based introductions or explanations, she is also possibly dyslexic and definitely right brained so color and pictures are way more helpful.I feel she is past arithmetic but am at a loss as to what to do next...Ideas?Maybe Math U See? She didn't like how long it took him to explain things. ...so I am not sure that's a good fit either. Edited January 15, 2016 by Calming Tea Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourisenough Posted January 11, 2016 Share Posted January 11, 2016 Hmmm...neither have color/pictures, but I was going to recommend MM7 for Pre-Algebra, followed by Foersters Algebra 1. We're in MM7B now and I've been working through Foersters to prepare to teach it to my daughter. I'm struck by how direct and simple his presentation style is. I feel like there are no more words than necessary to communicate the concepts. There are word problems at the end of each chapter; they're very well-worded and clear, but challenging. I'm also going to order the Math Without Borders video lessons for an alternative presentation if/when needed. I expect my DD to be quite independent with it. Take a look to see if you think it could work for your DD. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 12, 2016 Author Share Posted January 12, 2016 Thanks! I thought about math mammoth pre algebra but it seemed a little advanced and also so many problems! ,.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 Have you considered Teaching Textbooks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 12, 2016 Author Share Posted January 12, 2016 TT is definitely on my list but my dd hates the slow explanations and the simplistic word problems. She wishes we could just do zaccarros for an hour every day....she's not a gifted Mary student nor is she an ambitious person, but she just wants things to be interesting ...and a challenge is of course interesting ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 Fwiw, when my strong math kid grew bored with Horizons I skipped her a couple/few tests ahead. That way some the material hasn't been learned well enough to be automatic, thus making it more challenging. Doubling lessons daily also helped. I've been running her through the highlights of Horizons prealg to make sure we've covered all the major bases. She's dabbled in AoPS, been on a Math Olympiad team, and other random stuff. This book has a bit of a different flavor from the elementary books, but she could still whip through two lessons a day if we were just working straight through it. To more adequately answer the OP, you might consider Math in Focus. It's approach is so different from Horizons that it would shake things up. Colorful. Makes you think. You can view the whole book on their website. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 Derek Owens worked well for my kid like that. Very visual. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 12, 2016 Author Share Posted January 12, 2016 Thanks! I'll look again at MIF and Derek Owens And for now I think you're Right about moving a lot faster with horizons Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in VA Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 How about Christian Light until you are ready for Algebra and then Fresh Approach. They are both 'to the point' . 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 12, 2016 Author Share Posted January 12, 2016 Ok, we have looked at: Ruled Out: TT, Math U See and Derek Owens ...all 3 seem to move very slowly and explanations are long. I personally loved Derek Owens, and would have loved a teacher like that in school... CLE -Not interested because it's very similar to Horizons... Math in Focus is intriguing to me...but I really dislike the sequence. This child is definitely going to be ready for Algebra 1 in 8th grade or even the second semester of 7th. Math in Focus spreads out what we call "pre algebra" over 3 years. I can't place her into the last book as she would miss a ton of really important concepts covered in Course 2....so I think I'm ruling MIF out. Which leaves Math Mammoth Pre-Alg, Dolciani, and I'm off to check out Wilson Hill right now.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourisenough Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 Ok, we have looked at: Ruled Out: TT, Math U See and Derek Owens ...all 3 seem to move very slowly and explanations are long. I personally loved Derek Owens, and would have loved a teacher like that in school... CLE -Not interested because it's very similar to Horizons... Math in Focus is intriguing to me...but I really dislike the sequence. This child is definitely going to be ready for Algebra 1 in 8th grade or even the second semester of 7th. Math in Focus spreads out what we call "pre algebra" over 3 years. I can't place her into the last book as she would miss a ton of really important concepts covered in Course 2....so I think I'm ruling MIF out. Which leaves Math Mammoth Pre-Alg, Dolciani, and I'm off to check out Wilson Hill right now.... Wilson Hill uses Dolciani pre-algebra, if I remember correctly. I was very tempted to enroll my DD in that class this year, but I decided I'm a tad bit of a control freak and I like to have my hand in math so I can jump in to help, if necessary. As a result, we went with MM7, but I also bought the Dolciani book just to have an additional resource (I really like it, but haven't needed it at all). I'm again tempted to enroll my daughter in WHA for Algebra, but for the same reason as last year, I think I'll just keep on chugging along teaching her Foersters at home. Report back what you/your daughter think of WHA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 12, 2016 Author Share Posted January 12, 2016 Well I looks at WHA's website and I love the whole feel/ look/ philosophy and the friendliness of the teachers seems evident. Also I believe they actually show a teacher which is very nice!!! But, I really think she's ready for pre algebra now, halfway through 6th grade. ...I'm going to look through the horizons book again... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 AoPS prealgebra videos are complete so your daughter can watch those while you decide on curriculum 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deerforest Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 Did you check TabletClass? It's a recorded video format that you play online. I think it goes quickly and covers a lot. However, I don't think it goes very deeply. We are roughly using pre-algebra as our spine, but it's just so DD can watch the videos, do the practice sheets, and then I can quickly ascertain where she needs additional practice or wants a deeper understanding. For us, it's not sufficient on its own, but others have liked it a lot. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie of KY Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 We do AoPS with me (mom) reading and working through the practice problems with the student. After that, the student does the problems at the end of each section. This eliminates the problem of the student having to read through all of AoPS. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 12, 2016 Author Share Posted January 12, 2016 We do AoPS with me (mom) reading and working through the practice problems with the student. After that, the student does the problems at the end of each section. This eliminates the problem of the student having to read through all of AoPS. I would run away if I had to do this every in addition to helping with math in general. 😱 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 13, 2016 Author Share Posted January 13, 2016 (edited) OK, so for now I am going to have her do double lessons in horizons with only a few problems per topic (usually about two...I spent hours going through the book and circling.) I asked a friend who is suggesting UCSMP and I have to say, it looks perfect because it gets right into real world word problems which really require a lot of logical thinking...My dd loves that type of thing and absolutely hates drill. It's also not cluttered, which would be excellent for her..... Edited January 13, 2016 by Calming Tea Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie of KY Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 Something else you might look at is MEP math - it's free! and downloadable. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 Is Mathematics: A Human Endeavor too wordy? It isn't pre-algebra ... kind of a hodge-podge. It would be a kind of a filler if you ran out of Zacorro. Otherwise, I don't have any ideas for you. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 (edited) What about Jousting Armadillos? It seems well liked by those who found AoPS to be too unwieldy. Edited January 13, 2016 by SilverMoon 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 13, 2016 Author Share Posted January 13, 2016 Checking out jousting... Ruled out u Chicago ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deerforest Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 I think Jousting Armadillos has a lot lengthier descriptions than AoPS. The tone is different, though. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in VA Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 Are you looking for pre-algebra or is she ready for Algebra? I can't quite tell from the various conversations. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 My ds who is dyslexic is currently doing PreA with AoPS and KhanAcademy videos as his main source of info rather than written text, and with problems coming from Khan and Alcumus. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 14, 2016 Author Share Posted January 14, 2016 Are you looking for pre-algebra or is she ready for Algebra? I can't quite tell from the various conversations. Well that's a good question. Horizons is very advanced, so she has covered 6th grade material halfway through 6th grade. So, she could start a Pre-Alg course now. If I wait till next year and finish Horizons 6th, and then fill in a few gaps at the end of this school year she could jump straight to Algebra 1. But I'd rather not take that route...I'd rather just find/get a great Pre-Alg book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 14, 2016 Author Share Posted January 14, 2016 (edited) THis is awful...you've all given me many ideas but we've ruled so many out..plus the ones I've ruled out MathUSee- too slow, almost remedial the way it goes Thinkwell- same thing- this guy took five lessons to explain the most basic idea of algebra .....I think my dd would hide in her room- I would hide in my room. Math without Borders- best of the video series, but my dd dislikes videos in general Derek Owens- good explanations, but rather slow...also the note taking thing would be very hard for dyslexic Teaching Textbooks- liked the pace of the actual videos, but not the pace of the lessons, dragged concepts over too many lessons Tablet CLass- we are Mac and one Chromebook family...couldn't get it to work Jousting Armadillos- too much text. My dd will skip over whole words, phrases, etc...she cannot do math this way AOPS - too much text I am almost thinking I should order Dolciani. At least it would cover everything and not bore her to death, or be repetitive. I also did take the advice to have her do two Horizons lessons per day and cross out all the extra practice.... I'm surprised that our math tutor is recommending UCSMP...all the bad reviews made me think it was the worst math curricuum...ever....so for that reason I am afraid of it. Maybe without a good teacher, it fails. And I do not qualify as a great math teacher. BUt I am definitely going to look at it! Maybe my dd is a special case and would do well with something so closely linked to relationships and real world problem solving. Thanks everyone! Edited January 14, 2016 by Calming Tea Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in VA Posted January 14, 2016 Share Posted January 14, 2016 Pre-Algebra is always a tough one. What is it about Horizons that bores her? The repetition? I haven't used it so I don't know how it's set up really. I'm trying to think of other pre-algebra books you could look at... College of the Redwoods Pre-Algebra Lial's Did you take a look at Fresh Approach Algebra 1? It's very uncluttered which I see you mentioned as a plus. You could see if she's ready for it. I think it does some pre-algebra stuff at the beginning. I haven't used it yet but I've looked at it and plan to for my daughter who needs straightforward and uncluttered. VideoText Module A has a lot of good pre-algebra concepts that help solidify everything before Algebra. I'll let you know if I think of more 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 14, 2016 Author Share Posted January 14, 2016 Well I guess Horizons is just very repetitive. Actually, as I looked at the second half of the second 6th grade book, I think in the next few weeks she will be really excited/interested because they introduce a lot of cool new topics such as geometry, proportions, statistics, and more. She will really love it. I think that now that I crossed out so much of the extra problems, it'll be great, for the rest of this year. Unfortunately though, Horizons 6th grade overlaps with EVERY Pre-Alg Curriculum out there. So, that's why to me it makes more sense to start a good Pre-Alg right NOW then, to wait and then to have to skip through part of a Pre-Alg book next year, thus causing confusing in the beginning of the school year when her brain is already mush. I will look at the 3 you mention also...College of the Redwoods, VideoText and Fresh Approach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 14, 2016 Author Share Posted January 14, 2016 (edited) Ok Video Text ruled out...explanations very weird to me.....looking at the other two now Really liked the other two....I think the black and white text would bother her with the Fresh Approach, especially on that type of printed paper that I think it is most likely printed on. BUt the COTR looks very nice! I will look more at that later! THanks. Edited January 14, 2016 by Calming Tea 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted January 14, 2016 Share Posted January 14, 2016 Galore Park's So You Really Want to Learn Maths series is working very well for my DD. She seems similar to yours - needs pictures and color, not text-heavy explanations. The explanations are pretty short and sweet, and there are plenty of practice problems without them being overwhelming (like CLE). It may be worth looking into. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted January 14, 2016 Share Posted January 14, 2016 (edited) I think Memoria Press uses the College of the Redwoods text, so they would have lesson plans & quizzes/tests, etc. if you wanted them. Edited January 14, 2016 by RootAnn 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 15, 2016 Author Share Posted January 15, 2016 THANK YOU for your patience in working through this!!! DEREK OWENS is the winner!! Today, I realized that I had made a mistake in showing her a DO sample lecture about something she already knew. TODAY I showed her one about something new (the coordinate plane). She watched, listened and TOOK HER OWN beautiful notes! (Her dyslexia is only spelling, not numbers. She showed minor frustration that she spelling cartesian wrong but I said, Don't EVER worry about that. This is math not spelling!) She is all signed up and ready to go and I feel so glad that I don't have to teach it all, and that I can sit and calmly watch lectures with her!!! :hurray: :hurray: :hurray: :hurray: :hurray: 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 15, 2016 Author Share Posted January 15, 2016 I registered but am waiting on the login info etc. ...hopefully it'll be here by Monday and we will be all printed and ready to go... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourisenough Posted January 15, 2016 Share Posted January 15, 2016 THANK YOU for your patience in working through this!!! DEREK OWENS is the winner!! Today, I realized that I had made a mistake in showing her a DO sample lecture about something she already knew. TODAY I showed her one about something new (the coordinate plane). She watched, listened and TOOK HER OWN beautiful notes! (Her dyslexia is only spelling, not numbers. She showed minor frustration that she spelling cartesian wrong but I said, Don't EVER worry about that. This is math not spelling!) She is all signed up and ready to go and I feel so glad that I don't have to teach it all, and that I can sit and calmly watch lectures with her!!! :hurray: :hurray: :hurray: :hurray: :hurray: Yea! Please report back and update us. I feel invested in her math education! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 15, 2016 Author Share Posted January 15, 2016 Yea! Please report back and update us. I feel invested in her math education! LOL I am sure y'all do! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athomeontheprairie Posted January 15, 2016 Share Posted January 15, 2016 Completely off topic... I read the first line of your title "we have a winner " and was hoping you meant the lottery, even if it hadn't been one of the larger prizes. I still would've been happy for you had you want a smaller amount 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 15, 2016 Author Share Posted January 15, 2016 HAHAHA I can't bring myself to buy a lottery ticket...seems like gambling..but all my friends were sure having fun running out to get one just cause everyone else was. :o) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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