whangty Posted April 9, 2018 Share Posted April 9, 2018 My 10 year old son got started on Alcumus last week. It seems that he is spending a good amount of time every day (1 to 1.5 hrs). He says that he has been learning a lot. I have looked at his profile and it does seem that Alcumus is incredibly well-organized. So, I am just wondering how much learning can Alcumus offer to students, if they were to spend good amount of time on a regular basis. My son is about to get started on AoPS prealgra book, so I want him to be able to find a good balance between studying the book vs. playing Alcumus. It seems that Alcumus might be more fun, esp. for my son. Thx. much in advance for sharing your experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoundAbout Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 I have an 11 year-old finishing up AoPS Intro to Algebra, and who has also done the Intro Number Theory and Counting and Probability problems as well. I've found the main problem with Alcumus to be that my DS does not always read the solutions (especially if they are longer) when he gets something wrong - he'd rather just move on to the next problem. So I use it for review, but would never use it to actually teach something new or practice a concept he was shaky on. I also think the format tends to favor problems that can be solved quickly, rather than the kind of problems you really have to wrestle with for a while. If he's having fun I don't see the harm in it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegs Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 I studied using alcumus and then started a math degree without having completed high school. I think it prepared me very well. I still play on my breaks. :) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SanDiegoMom Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 We use Alcumus a lot. My son is in an online class, and 40 percent is alcumus. When he hit a week that he had not paid attention in class as well as he should have (we were complicit in this -- too much fun going on in the house!) he started the week's work not knowing any of the concepts. He slogged away in Alcumus getting problems wrong, reading the solutions, and steadily working his way back up. By the end of it (and it took a LONG time) he knew the material inside and out. If a student gets the answers wrong frequently in the topic, the next problems carry fewer points, making it much harder to get into the green or blue. It really makes sure that they truly understand it. If they get them all right, there are fewer questions to get into the blue since the assumption is they understand the material already. Once you get past Geometry, there is no alcumus. :-( 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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