Are you *sure* I'm supposed to be skipping problems in R&S Math?....

[Rhondabee]

I just finished planning for the next two weeks, and the last lesson (5th grade, btw) said that due to the lesson being so short, the teacher should probably ADD some problems.

 

Oh, my. word. My son would faint!!!!!!

 

*please* tell me I haven't lost my mind and that you skip problems, too. (Or, don't do all the oral drill - or *something!!!*)

 

And, If I have lost my mind - and I don't doubt that I have - and I have been a Math-mom-wimp and desperately need to change my ways .... please be gentle.

 

:bigear:

[TCoppock]

As long as your child understands the lesson and is able to correctly do the problems you assign I see no reason to include extra problems.

[mamaof2andtwins]

Oh yes, we ALWAYS skipped problems. In the 4th grade and up books I would have them either do evens or odds.

 

Best wishes,

[Beth in Central TX]

I don't think it's wrong to skip problems in R&S math. However, my boys do all of the problems, quizzes, speed drills, and tests from grades 1 to 8. I don't do all of the oral drill with my older two who are in R&S Math 6 & 8. I've never assigned extra problems, and we don't do the blacklines (my middle son did the blacklines when we switched from Saxon because he needed the extra drill work to learn his math facts). Math is a subject I focus on in our homeschool, and we spend about 1 to 1 1/2 hours on it each day.

 

HTH!

[Rhondabee]

Well, it doesn't sound like a consensus - but, I know we'd be doing Math for 3 hours or more if we tried to do it all.

 

He does them correctly, just very slowly. And, he gets overwhelmed (and therefore works even more slowly) the more problems there are to do.

 

Thanks for your feedback, everyone. I may change our set-up (not the curriculum) after Christmas.

[Beth in Central TX]

If skipping problems is best for your son, then that's exactly how you should set up the lessons for him. For my youngest son I actually have him take a break between the the pages so that he doesn't rush through the work. There's nothing wrong with customizing the work to fit the temperament of each student.

 

My post was just to let others know that not everyone skips the long math assignments in R&S math. I believe that the more grounded my boys are in the basics, the better prepared they will be for the higher level math. That's why we do all of the lessons in R&S grammar too. The R&S books are repetitive, but it's always building for a higher purpose. However, there are many homeschools that skip questions, and even lessons, in math (and other subjects) with success.

 

Your title included the word "suppose" which indicated to me that you felt compelled to skip work. If your son is not benefiting from skipping the work, then I wouldn't. However, if he's understanding the concept, then skipping work is definitely an option. There's also a third option though which I follow: even though my boys understand the work, they still do all of the assignment.

 

Good luck!

Edited November 10, 2008 by Beth in Central TX
Spelling errors

[mamaof2andtwins]

Well, it doesn't sound like a consensus - but, I know we'd be doing Math for 3 hours or more if we tried to do it all.

 

He does them correctly, just very slowly. And, he gets overwhelmed (and therefore works even more slowly) the more problems there are to do.

 

Thanks for your feedback, everyone. I may change our set-up (not the curriculum) after Christmas.

 

 

I found that my son would get more problems wrong when he had more to do. I think it is just too much writing. If it were a workbook, it might not have been an issue. I did for my daughters what I did for him because it seemed to work, and they watch each other.

[Titus.Two.Five]

Rod and Staff math is actually set up so that you can skip problems without missing anything. They purposefully do the problems in pairs so that if you do either odds or evens your still hitting each type of problem. I believe if you read in in the notes at the beginning of the book there will be verification of that in there. ;)

[Homeschooling6]

Some weeks I have my son do all the problems but I also let him write in the textbook. Other times I cross out half the problems. I actually like the drill of R&S and my dh prefers he does all the problems.

 

Edited to add that skipping is okay especially if it's overwhelming to the child.

Edited November 10, 2008 by Homeschooling6

[Julieofsardis]

What if he does all evens one day and if he gets them all right(or a certain percentage), then you move on. If he doesn't get enough right, you go back the next day and do the odds. So, if he is understanding the material well, then there is no need for overkill, but if he is struggling that will give him extra practice. It also has a built in reward for careful work.

 

Julie

[Rhondabee]

I do wish it were set up as a workbook - but then, when my oldest used ABeka, which *was* a workbook, I complained because the numbers were too tiny, his place values never lined up, and we ended up using graph paper anyway. (I think I'm just not likely to be appeased anytime soon - LOL!)

[Rhondabee]

Rod and Staff math is actually set up so that you can skip problems without missing anything. They purposefully do the problems in pairs so that if you do either odds or evens your still hitting each type of problem. I believe if you read in in the notes at the beginning of the book there will be verification of that in there. ;)

 

and I just can't find that anywhere. I don't think it would work for the lessons about factoring and multiples, because the problems build on each other (use your answers from #2 to answer #3, etc.). But I will look again - maybe I just overlooked something.

 

Thanks!

[Rhondabee]

What if he does all evens one day and if he gets them all right(or a certain percentage), then you move on. If he doesn't get enough right, you go back the next day and do the odds. So, if he is understanding the material well, then there is no need for overkill, but if he is struggling that will give him extra practice. It also has a built in reward for careful work.

 

Julie

 

nt

[Rhondabee]

If skipping problems is best for your son, then that's exactly how you should set up the lessons for him. For my youngest son I actually have him take a break between the the pages so that he doesn't rush through the work. There's nothing wrong with customizing the work to fit the temperament of each student.

 

Your title included the word "suppose" which indicated to me that you felt compelled to skip work. If your son is not benefiting from skipping the work, then I wouldn't. However, if he's understanding the concept, then skipping work is definitely an option.

 

Good luck!

 

I guess that is my dilemma. I feel like I *should* be doing more because he *knows* his facts if you catch him off guard. If you just interrupt the dinner conversation, and ask him any isolated fact, the answer just zips out. But when he's doing his Math, it is *agony* waiting for him to logic-out the answer. I don't understand why this is so, other than he feels pressured by me (the mean mom/teacher!) during math. And, neither more work nor less work really seems to have an effective cure.

 

On a practical note (to anyone who might read): Do you use the Teacher's book to teach the lesson?

 

I've been reading his book, helping him do the first one or two in each line, and then having him finish the lines on his own. (And, we do some of each type of Review question together before that.) I'm sure I probably read that was how some Math-Mogul used it - LOL!

 

But, I'm thinking maybe I should do the oral drill, and teach the lesson from the book - but then, IDK - it seems like that would take even more time than what we're doing.

 

I do like the idea of assigning the different sections at different times. I used to do that when my oldest did Abeka in 5th grade - actually, we had a separate drill time as well.

 

If you could share your daily teaching strategy, and about how much time it takes you (esp. if you do the teacher's lesson rather than just read the student book), that would be very helpful.

 

Thanks,

Rhonda

[Colleen in NS]

and I just can't find that anywhere. I don't think it would work for the lessons about factoring and multiples, because the problems build on each other (use your answers from #2 to answer #3, etc.). But I will look again - maybe I just overlooked something.

 

Thanks!

 

Hi Rhonda,

 

I just looked in my R&S 5 TM and I can't find anything in there that says it's OK to skip, but in the grade 6 TM, it does on page 6 ("Reviewing Exercises, pairing of problems"). Maybe the "OK" to skip problems begins in grade 6 when math facts are supposed to be solidified....And, in the grade 6 TM, there will be instructions to tell you if it's NOT OK to skip certain problems. The TM is very specific about this, so I find it helpful.

 

 

On a practical note (to anyone who might read): Do you use the Teacher's book to teach the lesson?

 

If you could share your daily teaching strategy, and about how much time it takes you (esp. if you do the teacher's lesson rather than just read the student book), that would be very helpful.

 

Thanks,

Rhonda

 

My ds does his math slowly, too. I do think it's not about ability, but just about how boring it is to work out problem after problem. I just take it from lesson to lesson, and decide each day how much to assign. Most days it's everything, but if there are 20 problems that I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that he knows how to do, I will assign odds or evens. Also, I do try to see what can be done orally. Things like "write the value of the underlined digit" or "change these improper fractions to whole or mixed numbers." To me there is no reason to write those answers down - "let's just zip through these quickly together so you don't have so much to write". There *is* good reason to set up a division of fractions problem and work it out, though.

 

I do use the TM to review and teach. Again, it's a daily thing of trying to decide what's necessary and what's not. I look over the teaching part, because sometimes there are notes in there that include information that is NOT in the student book, that will make the lesson make more sense. Also, the TM includes things to watch out for, problems that students might encounter. I esp. review facts, measurement tables, number strings/fact strings, conversions......and sometimes operations if ds is having trouble with one, before he encounters it in the lesson.

 

I'd say it takes anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes to teach and review and go over oral problems at the beginning of the student book lesson. Sometimes longer if ds is having attention problems!! :)

[Rhondabee]

Thanks, Colleen!

 

I think this has come to a head because the only way I could talk my parents out of homeschooling my kids for two weeks (they pick them up tomorrow) would have been to insult and hurt them. Can't have that!

 

I am trying not to beat myself up too badly, but I do feel like I have *really* let the kids slide, and I'm just embarrassed.

 

I think maybe I'll have them do Math facts for two weeks - maybe the drills in the back of the book - and then convert to trying to do the whole lesson when I'm feeling better. I'll probably have more questions for you then!

 

Wish I could give you a hug!

[PollyOR]

My kids would hate math if I made them copy the problems out of the book.

 

DD (10) gets up earlier than I do (shh! don't tell anyone ;) ). She goes through her math fact cards, does her speed drill, then works a set of problems that I wrote out the night before on a chalkboard. We don't do the oral drill but we do as many of the lesson's problems as we can orally. The few remaining problems are worked on a chalkboard. It takes us about 25-30 minutes.

 

Sometimes when I'm writing out the problems on the chalkboard the night before, I chastise myself for spoiling my kids. But, I would rather spend 7-8 minutes writing down problems than hear them complain every day while copying from the book.

[Rhondabee]

When my big kids are being slow it helps if I become their scribe or let them do the work on a small white board. Just an idea.

 

I do this quite often, but I think in trying to satisfy my parents' desire to pick up homeschooling for me until Thanksgiving (having surgury Wed.), I knew that *they* would never see the value in that. I know they'd be thinking he's just being lazy, and sometimes I *do* think that myself, but for some reason I think that the act of handwriting actually interferes with his thinking.

 

which reminds me, I wanted to pick up a pencil-holder thingy!!

 

So, thank you for letting me know I'm not the only one who does this, and that there are brighter days ahead.

[Rhondabee]

My kids would hate math if I made them copy the problems out of the book.

 

 

 

 

Today, he copied all the problems onto his paper before he started answering them, because looking at all the other problems in the book overwhelms him. And just copying the problems took 30-40 minutes!

 

I *have* copied the problems down for him in the past - I felt guilty that my older ds didn't have to copy his down. And, it's definitely neater than circling problems in his book.

 

But, then he has trouble finishing the test on time. Maybe I should just chuck the tests? (or take two days?)

 

Thanks for your post!

[PollyOR]

:grouphug: Rhondabee :grouphug:, good luck with your surgery!

[Ellie]

R&S expects you to require your students to do as much work as they need. If that means you skip problems by having them do even or odd because they're doing well and zooming right along, or if that means you require them all because they need the practice, then that's what you do.

 

It's only Saxon (Math 54 and up) where doing all the problems is a necessity.

 

Assign R&S math problems as necessary for your dc to be successful.

[Colleen in NS]

in trying to satisfy my parents' desire to pick up homeschooling for me until Thanksgiving (having surgury Wed.), I knew that *they* would never see the value in that. I know they'd be thinking he's just being lazy

 

I felt guilty that my older ds didn't have to copy his down.

 

Girl, drop the guilt, prepare for your surgery tomorrow, and hand your parents some math work that won't cause friction for them or your kids, even if it's just math fact drills! Tell your kids that things will run a little differently for the next couple of weeks, but that you won't load them down with difficult (define "difficult" according to what you *KNOW* about your kids) work which would cause everyone grief. Heck, give 'em busy work for a couple of weeks - maybe your parents will see this as good, and your kids will see it as easy, making everyone happy while you recover.

 

Hang in there, hopefully things will get easier when you get past the pain you're having.

 

:D:grouphug: