Tiramisu Posted March 8, 2016 Posted March 8, 2016 We've gone through CLE LU 805 and it seemed best to move on to algebra 1. I have a Saxon set so we are trying that. She could easily do the work beyond lesson 20 but I decided to start with lesson 1, which is fraction review. It took her HOURS. She could sail through a CLE lesson of harder math so I don't get it. Maybe it's just an adjustment but it just brings back Saxon nightmares with my oldest. Is it a visual thing? She has visual processing weaknesses. Less white space? Eyes having to move back and forth between text and workbook? We'll have to give it more time, but I'm already getting nervous. Quote
OneStepAtATime Posted March 8, 2016 Posted March 8, 2016 What about CLE Algebra? Is there a reason you wanted to switch to Saxon if CLE was working well? Or do you want to use Saxon for all higher maths since CLE light units only go through Algebra I at this time? Quote
Tiramisu Posted March 8, 2016 Author Posted March 8, 2016 What about CLE Algebra? Is there a reason you wanted to switch to Saxon if CLE was working well? Or do you want to use Saxon for all higher maths since CLE light units only go through Algebra I at this time? I just have Saxon on the shelf, so I took that easy way out. I may have the same problem with CLE Algebra since their algebra LUs aren't meant to be workbooks and written in. But for the price of a light unit, it couldn't hurt to try it. Right? My worry about Saxon has always been the formatting and lack of white space. If that is truly a problem for this dd, it's going to cause issues when she gets to new material. CLE has very good formatting and their explanations are succinct, so that might be a better option. 1 Quote
OneStepAtATime Posted March 8, 2016 Posted March 8, 2016 I haven't seen the CLE Algebra L.U. I had no idea they were not like the normal Light Units. How annoying. That format works well for us. Now I am curious. Is it more like a textbook, where you copy the problems and do them on your own paper? Has anything else changed about it? If Saxon isn't working because of the layout, might you be able to move the problems onto a dry erase board? I realize that is a lot of extra work, though... FWIW, Saxon didn't work for us, either. CLE worked so much better. I do think part of it was absolutely the layout. DD does well with the CLE layout. All the white space. Writing directly in the workbook. No copying to something away from the immediate visual space. Clear, succinct explanations. Good luck, whatever way you leap. If its o.k. I'd love an update... 1 Quote
SnMomof7 Posted March 8, 2016 Posted March 8, 2016 (edited) I just can't resist saying...the layout people at CLE are genius. They have my uttermost fist bumps. Edited March 8, 2016 by Jennifer Bogart 3 Quote
Tiramisu Posted March 8, 2016 Author Posted March 8, 2016 (edited) Here's a link. They are calling the LU's "reusable." You can look at the samples and see there isn't much space for writing at all. https://www.clp.org/store/by_course/175 I feel like calling CLE and asking for them to consider making algebra LU's like the old ones. Their goal is to eventually put them into a textbook, but for sn kids the workbook is really beneficial. Edited March 8, 2016 by Tiramisu Quote
OneStepAtATime Posted March 8, 2016 Posted March 8, 2016 Here's a link. They are calling the LU's "reusable." You can look at the samples and see there isn't much space for writing at all. https://www.clp.org/store/by_course/175 I feel like calling CLE and asking for them to consider making algebra LU's like the old ones. Their goal is to eventually put them into a textbook, but for sn kids the workbook is really beneficial. Yuck. Quote
theelfqueen Posted March 8, 2016 Posted March 8, 2016 We were struggling with the time slog of Saxon but son is very happy with the format/material coverage... I was really unsure when someone suggested the MFW lesson plans ... I felt like my son really needed all thirty problems because his scores were acceptable but not fantastic... But I decided to give it a try, the lesson plans aren't that expensive. His scores (both daily work and test) have gone up and his stress level has gone down. I think this was the compromise that we needed. We're not spending 1.5-2 hours EVERY SINGLE DAY. There are still days that are closer to that but they're fewer. 2 Quote
Tiramisu Posted March 8, 2016 Author Posted March 8, 2016 We were struggling with the time slog of Saxon but son is very happy with the format/material coverage... I was really unsure when someone suggested the MFW lesson plans ... I felt like my son really needed all thirty problems because his scores were acceptable but not fantastic... But I decided to give it a try, the lesson plans aren't that expensive. His scores (both daily work and test) have gone up and his stress level has gone down. I think this was the compromise that we needed. We're not spending 1.5-2 hours EVERY SINGLE DAY. There are still days that are closer to that but they're fewer. Thank you for reminding me of this. I read about those lesson plans on another forum and they seemed very helpful. Quote
MistyMountain Posted March 8, 2016 Posted March 8, 2016 We were struggling with the time slog of Saxon but son is very happy with the format/material coverage... I was really unsure when someone suggested the MFW lesson plans ... I felt like my son really needed all thirty problems because his scores were acceptable but not fantastic... But I decided to give it a try, the lesson plans aren't that expensive. His scores (both daily work and test) have gone up and his stress level has gone down. I think this was the compromise that we needed. We're not spending 1.5-2 hours EVERY SINGLE DAY. There are still days that are closer to that but they're fewer. What are the MFW lesson plans? Quote
OneStepAtATime Posted March 8, 2016 Posted March 8, 2016 What are the MFW lesson plans? Maybe My Father's World? Quote
Tiramisu Posted March 8, 2016 Author Posted March 8, 2016 Maybe My Father's World? Yes. There's a sample on their website. They cost $15. It looks like they take a strategic approach to cutting down the number of problems rather than just doing odds and evens. Quote
theelfqueen Posted March 8, 2016 Posted March 8, 2016 (edited) Yes, My Father's World -- it's not just doing odds and evens but a little more selective to make sure you're still doing review but not quite so much repetition. So... every problem set has 30 problems. For one lesson you might do 1-8, then 16-30 evens; the next lesson might be 4-20; the next lesson might be all 1-30 ... but every day has slightly different groupings of problem sets - as determined by someone who was more willing than me to spend their time figuring out the right combination. They recommend that if you are consistently doing poorly, try X (all 30 problems) or try y (back up and repeat the last 4 lessons) etc. We also occasionally use Alise Weber's youtube videos of teaching Saxon lessons to a class. They fill in the blanks a bit when something isn't crystal clear (and are free). I still feel like he's getting really solid info and absorbing the higher math skills but it's less of battle. Edited March 8, 2016 by theelfqueen 1 Quote
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