Algebra 1 Saxon - Online class or independent?

[carlamom2ansnm]

I'm struggling here with what to do for my daughter who will be a Freshman next year. Math does NOT come easy for her. In fact, there are many days that it brings tears. It doesn't matter the curriculum, it's simply that her brain is not wired in a way that causes math to make sense. I'm NOT a math expert by any means. There are times that I've had to refresh my memory to try to help her with her pre-algebra work this year lol. She's in Saxon 1/2 this year and wants to continue with Saxon Algebra 1 next year. I have ordered the books, the solution manual, and the Art Reed DVDs. I then noticed that WTM has an online class that would fit in her schedule next year and I'm wondering if we should take the plunge with that too. Is this overkill? The teacher says she has office hours where you can ask her questions and such, and this part is really what is making me think it might be helpful lol. How much of Saxon Algebra 1 is reviewing of Saxon 1/2? Add on top of all of this that I am due with our surprise baby in October, so I'm really unsure how much help I'm truly going to be this year. Ideas? Suggestions? Am I stressing too much? I thought we had math worked out (as being an independent subject), but then we had tears again today and it made me question if it will really work or not next year :(

[yvonne]

Sign her up for the class!  You have the most wonderful gift arriving in October!  Of all the years to remove some stress, lighten the load a little, and give you some breathing room, this is the one!

 

It will probably remove some stress from your dd, too, having an outside, not-mom teacher for a subject she doesn't particularly like for a year. There will probably still be tears, but moving the center of gravity for math from you-her to outside teacher-her will make a big difference. You'll be able to step in alongside her and coach/cheer her through when she needs help. After plugging away through pre-algebra with my daughter last year, I outsourced algebra 1 to Wilson Hill this year. It has been the best thing for my daughter and me. Yes, there are still tears, but 90% less. She did so much better than I'd expected! I'm thinking of making a second pass through algebra with her next year because it still isn't easy for her and I think one more pass through it might really help the pieces to fall into place, making her more ready for, and more confident in, the rest of her math courses. Having had a year "off" of doing math together has made all the difference for both of us.

[FriedClams]

I would either take the class alongside her at home, or sign her up for the class. I don't think math, especially for non math kids, should be done independently.

[G5052]

I would either take the class alongside her at home, or sign her up for the class. I don't think math, especially for non math kids, should be done independently.

 

LOL. Don't I know.

 

I'm a STEM professor with an undergraduate degree in math. I worked hard, but math was never a problem for me. I worked in research and program management for 15 years before children.

 

One of mine did fine with Saxon all the way through. We took our time though and did Algebra I twice and took two years for the last book (Advanced Math). He just finished calculus in college with the highest grade in the class and a perfect final.

 

We had a disaster year with the next one. All A's in Algebra I with Saxon, and then a very low D with Saxon Algebra II. We both were at fault there. I couldn't teach her, and she couldn't teach herself. Period.

 

So this year I outsourced with a different text (Jacob's Geometry) with an experienced teacher. Night and day. She has a high "A." 

 

Next year she'll do an Algebra II class and graduate from high school.

 

I really would have liked to get more math done with both, but IMHO less math done right is more important than pushing them on in confusion.

Edited May 20, 2016 by G5052

[KarenNC]

We have been happy outsourcing Saxon to the free live online class at www.virtualhomeschoolgroup.org. The specific live math classes vary depending on volunteer availability, but they have at your own pace classes with teacher office hours support all the time. 

[Vida Winter]

We have been happy outsourcing Saxon to the free live online class at www.virtualhomeschoolgroup.org. The specific live math classes vary depending on volunteer availability, but they have at your own pace classes with teacher office hours support all the time. 

 

I second this. My daughter took Alg. 1 through vhsg this year and I am very pleased. You would either need to volunteer or make a donation to be able to take the live class but it wouldn't need to be nearly as much as regular tuition for a live class. The teachers are available for help and the way the classes are structured helps the student do well. If they get less than 80 on a test they need to retake it in order to move on.

Same with homework.

 

eta: they meet 4 days/week and students can attend any section.

Edited May 20, 2016 by Vida Winter

[OnMyOwn]

I second this. My daughter took Alg. 1 through vhsg this year and I am very pleased. You would either need to volunteer or make a donation to be able to take the live class but it wouldn't need to be nearly as much as regular tuition for a live class. The teachers are available for help and the way the classes are structured helps the student do well. If they get less than 80 on a test they need to retake it in order to move on.

Same with homework.

 

eta: they meet 4 days/week and students can attend any section.

How long are the class meetings?

[KarenNC]

How long are the class meetings?

 

 An hour a day four days a week (Friday is for the tests). For algebra 2 this year there were two class times running and students could attend the other one if they couldn't make their regular class. There was also the option to do the lesson from the ayop course for the day if the student couldn't attend either live class (this happened to us a couple of times). The teacher in our alg 2 class arranged time off so that if there was a break, it was for an entire week so that the M-Th class/Fri test schedule didn't get off-kilter. This did mean that there were occasional classes on a Monday holiday.

[carlamom2ansnm]

I second this. My daughter took Alg. 1 through vhsg this year and I am very pleased. You would either need to volunteer or make a donation to be able to take the live class but it wouldn't need to be nearly as much as regular tuition for a live class. The teachers are available for help and the way the classes are structured helps the student do well. If they get less than 80 on a test they need to retake it in order to move on.

Same with homework.

 

eta: they meet 4 days/week and students can attend any section.

 

GREAT information! The office hours for questions is what I'm most concerned about, as I feel that the DVD that we have now will give a decent instruction of the lesson itself, but then she ALWAYS has questions as she comes to review work. I'm looking into it now!

[KarenNC]

GREAT information! The office hours for questions is what I'm most concerned about, as I feel that the DVD that we have now will give a decent instruction of the lesson itself, but then she ALWAYS has questions as she comes to review work. I'm looking into it now!

 

If you only feel you need the office hours, you could just sign up for the ayop course at any time. The office hours are available to those students as well, with no worry about getting a seat in the live class. I'd suggest you go ahead and sign up now for one of the ayop courses and try it out. Here's the link to the ayop math courses http://www.virtualhomeschoolgroup.org/course/index.php?categoryid=5,  but start with the main page to see how it works. http://www.virtualhomeschoolgroup.org/

[OnMyOwn]

An hour a day four days a week (Friday is for the tests). For algebra 2 this year there were two class times running and students could attend the other one if they couldn't make their regular class. There was also the option to do the lesson from the ayop course for the day if the student couldn't attend either live class (this happened to us a couple of times). The teacher in our alg 2 class arranged time off so that if there was a break, it was for an entire week so that the M-Th class/Fri test schedule didn't get off-kilter. This did mean that there were occasional classes on a Monday holiday.

Thank you. For my dd, that would mean she'd spend 2.5 to 3 hours on math a day. Or do they not assign all the practice problems for homework? We've been trying out the ayop class and the daily lectures for that have been about 5 minutes, if that (though we've only been using it for about a week, so maybe some are longer).

[Vida Winter]

Thank you. For my dd, that would mean she'd spend 2.5 to 3 hours on math a day. Or do they not assign all the practice problems for homework? We've been trying out the ayop class and the daily lectures for that have been about 5 minutes, if that (though we've only been using it for about a week, so maybe some are longer).

 

The recorded AYOP lectures are short. Live classes run about 40-50 mins, 4x per week, and go into more depth. Live classes usually go over each example in the book's daily lesson plus a couple more that the students try on the whiteboard with the teacher watching and giving hints if needed. Then the students do around 20+ problems for homework which is auto-graded online, and on the 5th day of the week, take a test. It is quite a lot of work, and the students who put the time in gain a great deal.