AoPS Question

[UmMusa]

I'm considering using AoPS PreAlgebra for my 6th grader and have a couple of questions:

1) Is this a stand alone curriculum/program or will I want to have her on Math Mammoth 6 too?

2) Do I sign up online for the $300+ course that meets once a week or is there some other way to use AoPS?

3) Am I right in using this for 6th grade considering she completed Saxon 6/5 last year?

 

I"m all ears for any advice!

 

[Arcadia]

1) it is a standalone

 

2) nope, you don't need to sign up for an online class. She can self study, or you could give her some help. The solutions manual is a nice to have especially when you are exhausted and not in the mood to work out the problems.

 

3) I am not familiar with Saxon's scope and sequence so I can't comment on that.

[Upennmama]

It's standalone. You don't need the class, you can just do it as a math workbook. However, in terms of age/grade, I found it incredibly challenging. If your DD is a strong math student I think it works, but if she struggles it may be difficult.

[Alessandra]

1) it is a standalone

 

2) nope, you don't need to sign up for an online class. She can self study, or you could give her some help. The solutions manual is a nice to have especially when you are exhausted and not in the mood to work out the problems.

 

3) I am not familiar with Saxon's scope and sequence so I can't comment on that.

This, but adding that the solutions manual is essential, IMO, because a lot of the problems are very challenging.

 

AoPS may be *called* PRE Algebra, but it was much more challenging than the Pre Algebra at ds's top ranked school. You can try out some problems online on the AoPS site and see if you like it.

[UmMusa]

Thank you. My daughter has been doing math on grade level. Is 6th grade too early for pre algebra? Is that normally what 7th grade is?

[Luckymama]

Thereis no math "normal". Pre-algebra can be studied at any grade level when the student is ready :) Dd studied AoPS pre-algebra in 6th grade, the year it was first published.

 

Have you looked at the samples? The pre-tests for AoPS tend to be on the easy side, btw.

[TX Native]

I'm not an AoPs user, but I have looked at it closely. I would see if she can easily ace the pre test without any help. The website states that the student should be able to complete this independently before starting that level.

 

ETA: I considered this for my strong math student (5th grader), but he needed too much help from me to work through the pre test problems. I will consider it for his 6th grade year only if the pre test is a breeze for him. I think 7th-8th grade is more standard/common for pre algebra (emphasizing that there are lots of variances among students-like said above, there is no normal). My son thrives on math problems and I am 99% sure he will enter a math based carrier field. My younger child will likely not reach pre-algebra stage until around 8th grade unless she suddenly transforms into a math geek.

Edited August 17, 2016 by TX native

[Dinsfamily]

I'm not an AoPs user, but I have looked at it closely. I would see if she can easily ace the pre test without any help. The website states that the student should be able to complete this independently before starting that level.

 

ETA: I considered this for my strong math student (5th grader), but he needed too much help from me to work through the pre test problems. I will consider it for his 6th grade year only if the pre test is a breeze for him. I think 7th-8th grade is more standard/common for pre algebra (emphasizing that there are lots of variances among students-like said above, there is no normal). My son thrives on math problems and I am 99% sure he will enter a math based carrier field. My younger child will likely not reach pre-algebra stage until around 8th grade unless she suddenly transforms into a math geek.

I would agree with this but also add that you should look at the samples on the website as well. My ds is an above average math student and also loves it. We gave AOPS Pre-A a try after he finished Singapore PM6 halfway through 4th grade. He was ready for the material but not the workload required. We slowly worked through the first 4 chapters and did a lot of fun extra math over the next year and a half and then revisited Pre-A in earnest at the beginning of 6th and he excelled. I think he needed the extra year and a half to handle the workload. Now he is excited about AOPS Algebra this year. I should add that, although I love teaching math (especially Algebra and above), he works through the books independently and only asks me when he needs help with a problem.

 

I am not planning on using AOPS Pre-A for my next ds coming up even though he has done well in Singapore PM. He doesn't have the capacity for the struggle AOPS requires. The plan is MM7 instead.

Edited August 17, 2016 by Dinsfamily