MorningGlory Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 I am SO intrigued by the Beast Academy elementary math curriculum! This is a definite benefit of homeschooling--take two. Cool stuff that wasn't around for my older kiddos shows up for my younger kid and that keeps me pumped about doing this all over again. lol! So anyway, how closely does BA tend to stick to their publication schedule? I see that they are anticipating level 2A's release in August of this year. For those of you with experience waiting for BA books, do you think I can count on that schedule? I'm convinced that my daughter will absolutely love these. She adores comics and craves math. So exciting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackie Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 (edited) They have a history of falling behind. But as their website is still saying August for 2A, I would expect it within a month of that. It's B-D that might fall further behind. But who knows - maybe after having written three years worth of BA, they're better at predicting how long it will take them! Edited May 5, 2017 by Jackie 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wendyroo Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 One thing to keep in mind is that Beast Academy "levels" are often quite a bit harder than other curricula. In a recent thread about when kids are ready to start BA 3, many people mentioned that their kids had already finished third grade math in another rigorous curriculum (often Math Mammoth, Singapore or Miquon) before they even started BA 3. That has definitely been the case for my son. He finished MM 3, and then started BA 3 and MM 4 concurrently. He took 18 months to get through BA 3 (as a supplement), and he is now starting BA 4 and MM 6. Beast Academy has always provided plenty of challenge for DS, and even some for me...and I have two engineering degrees from MIT!! If your signature is current, and your daughter is 7 right now, then you might find it worthwhile to start her in another second grade curriculum, and let her mature and work with some of the second grade math concepts for a while until more of the BA 2 books are published. Because I agree with Jackie that even if BA 2A comes out in August, the others are likely to come out more slowly than you need them. Wendy 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cake and Pi Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 Historically, they've taken 5-8 months to publish each book. Books tend to be available for purchase at least 1-2 months after the estimate on the FAQ's page because even if they do manage to stick to their own schedule, which they rarely (ever?) do, there's a month-long lag between when they finish a book and when they get it back from the printer. It seem to me though, that the 2nd grade books *should* be easier to produce than the 3rd-5th grade books just because they'll have fewer problems to write and the concepts are easier to work with. OTOH, they're also working on getting BA Online up, so perhaps they'll be busy enough to run behind as usual. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneStepAtATime Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 Agree with the others, they run late on production so while the first book might actually come out in August the others will probably be produced behind schedule. Also, the program is challenging so your daughter very well may be better off working through something else for math for this next year and starting Beast at least slightly behind, or perhaps even a whole year behind whatever else she uses. It will be more likely with this scenario that you can have the books as needed since you won't be as dependent on them meeting their publication goals and your child will be stronger in math and better prepared for the depth and challenges of Beast. The "grade" designations on the Beast books really don't take into account the challenge level of the material. Some kids are ready. Many are not. Heck, even parents frequently find some of the problems quite challenging. Also, this is a thinking math. The goal is to really delve deep and think, even if it takes a loooooonnnnnnggggg time. The goal is not really just get to the right answer. Not all kids are mature enough for that kind of in depth, patient pondering until they are a tad older. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deerforest Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 They have a history of falling behind. But as their website is still saying August for 2A, I would expect it within a month of that. It's B-D that might fall further behind. But who knows - maybe after having written three years worth of BA, they're better at predicting how long it will take them! BA 3A was released in March 2012. DD was in 2nd grade, and we switched to it right away. It's took 5 years to release 3A-5D which is why so many of us early folks had to move on from it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 I have a 2nd grader who I've been planning to do BA for years!! She will be starting MiF2 and we'll pick up BA2 whenever it happens to come out. I'm not holding my breath. I'm just as excited about the online version, I just hope it isn't too expensive. BA 3A was released in March 2012. DD was in 2nd grade, and we switched to it right away. It's took 5 years to release 3A-5D which is why so many of us early folks had to move on from it. Wow, your memory is good, I was just trying to remember when we started it, we also jumped right into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deerforest Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 I have a 2nd grader who I've been planning to do BA for years!! She will be starting MiF2 and we'll pick up BA2 whenever it happens to come out. I'm not holding my breath. I'm just as excited about the online version, I just hope it isn't too expensive. Wow, your memory is good, I was just trying to remember when we started it, we also jumped right into it. My memory was accurate but I also validated on FB! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie of KY Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 The original publication schedule for the first books was way off. Nowadays I think their publication schedules have been mostly accurate. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorningGlory Posted May 5, 2017 Author Share Posted May 5, 2017 Thank you all! Very helpful! I had a feeling that the schedule might run behind what is now on the website, but since we will be using BA as a supplement, it shouldn't matter. I just know that if she takes to it like I think she will, she will be wanting that next book... DD is almost finished with BJU Math 2 and will begin BJU Math 3 this summer (somewhat schooling year-round with her---another new thing I'm doing this time around)...that is why I thought BA2 might be appropriate for her beginning in August. I've looked at the preassessment for 3A, and I know she is not quite ready for that level. But honestly, the samples and preassessments made me want to buy the books anyway! Such an interesting approach... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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