Dyslexic child and pre-algebra/algebra

[baxterclan7]

Yes, 🙂 I know dyslexia isn’t a math problem per se, but the learning challenges that cause dyslexia affect math learning too! My 12 year old (7th grade) dyslexic daughter struggles with new concepts, and takes lots of repetition to remember how to do new things in math. This has slowed our progress down greatly. She is currently about halfway through Saxon 6/5 and it has worked well for her because it gives lots of practice. However, we’ve definitely tweaked the way we use it, because it takes SO MUCH TIME- especially for her. She is my fifth child, and watching two of my older children hit a wall once they hit Saxon pre-algebra or algebra is making me think I will need to find a different program for her. The amount of work was overwhelming for these two who may have been slow processors/ ADD, but were not dyslexic (or at least not severely) on top of it. The problem is, both of those children decided to go to public school for high school, where they thrived in math, but I have no idea what to do with this child at home for a curriculum that won’t take her hours and hours to complete each day. Both of my boys had math teachers who assigned much less homework than Saxon ever does, yet they both did well. She will have different challenges than they did, but I’m hoping some of you have some experience/advice for me on this. We may be able to stick it out through pre-algebra in Saxon if that’s what is necessary to complete that level of math without leaving gaps before we jump ship, but I really think Saxon algebra will be too much. But I’m open to suggestions with Saxon as well. Thanks!

[EKS]

I used Saxon (3 - halfway through 7/6) with my dyslexic son because I thought he needed the repetition/review.  What I discovered is that the way Saxon is structured actually made it so he needed more review.  By chopping everything up into tiny bits and never stepping back to look at the big picture, it made him learn the math piecemeal, which then required a bunch of review to make it stick.  I also believe that all that review actually covered up a lack of conceptual understanding.  He was able to do well on the tests by rote, but he was never able to connect the concepts together in a way that allowed him to see the underlying simplicity.

I would look for a curriculum that aims to have students understand things in larger pieces.  When I took my son out of 7/6, I had him take the placement test for MUS.  He placed into Beta (2nd grade).  So that's where we started.  He did Beta-Zeta (6th grade) in about six months and at that point would have benefitted from a good prealgebra program (like Derek Owens).  Instead we went straight into Jacobs Algebra, which he ended up doing very well with, but there were some issues with arithmetic that made it take longer.

[Lori D.]

Saxon was too much/too busy/too disjointed for DS#2 with stealth dyslexia who also struggled mightily with abstract math topics (i.e. -- algebra!). We switched to Math-U-See in 5th grade, backed up and did some massive review. He did MUS as the spine throughout 5th-8th grades, along with supplements of Hands-On Equations and excerpts from Singapore, as well as excerpts from Keys to Percents, Decimals, and Fractions series of workbooks. In 9th he used Jacobs Algebra, but only semi-clicked with it, and so he re-did Algebra 1 with MUS for the first semester of 10th grade, and MUS Geometry for the second semester. We then spent 1.5 years struggling mightily and with much repeating but got through MUS Algebra 2. Algebra is never going to "click" or be easy for him, but making it visual made it a LOT less painful.

All that to say... If your student needs a more visual and concrete presentation of math topics, then switch. Better to go lighter, but to really *get* the concepts, then to spend hours a day on math -- at which point, the child's brain has most likely shut down, so more time on math is NOT helping with gaining ground. JMO!

BEST of luck in finding what is the best fit for this child! Warmest regards, Lori D.

[klmama]

If you aren't opposed to online lessons, you might look at Unlock Math.  It has short video lessons, then as much practice as you need.  You can redo sections with all new problems.  There's a 2 week free trial.  My dc finds it easier to stay focused and to remember than with previous math.  

[baxterclan7]

4 hours ago, EKS said:

I used Saxon (3 - halfway through 7/6) with my dyslexic son because I thought he needed the repetition/review.  What I discovered is that the way Saxon is structured actually made it so he needed more review.  By chopping everything up into tiny bits and never stepping back to look at the big picture, it made him learn the math piecemeal, which then required a bunch of review to make it stick.  I also believe that all that review actually covered up a lack of conceptual understanding.  He was able to do well on the tests by rote, but he was never able to connect the concepts together in a way that allowed him to see the underlying simplicity.

I would look for a curriculum that aims to have students understand things in larger pieces.  When I took my son out of 7/6, I had him take the placement test for MUS.  He placed into Beta (2nd grade).  So that's where we started.  He did Beta-Zeta (6th grade) in about six months and at that point would have benefitted from a good prealgebra program (like Derek Owens).  Instead we went straight into Jacobs Algebra, which he ended up doing very well with, but there were some issues with arithmetic that made it take longer.

Great insights, this is very helpful! Thanks!!!

[baxterclan7]

4 hours ago, Lori D. said:

Saxon was too much/too busy/too disjointed for DS#2 with stealth dyslexia who also struggled mightily with abstract math topics (i.e. -- algebra!). We switched to Math-U-See in 5th grade, backed up and did some massive review. He did MUS as the spine throughout 5th-8th grades, along with supplements of Hands-On Equations and excerpts from Singapore, as well as excerpts from Keys to Percents, Decimals, and Fractions series of workbooks. In 9th he used Jacobs Algebra, but only semi-clicked with it, and so he re-did Algebra 1 with MUS for the first semester of 10th grade, and MUS Geometry for the second semester. We then spent 1.5 years struggling mightily and with much repeating but got through MUS Algebra 2. Algebra is never going to "click" or be easy for him, but making it visual made it a LOT less painful.

All that to say... If your student needs a more visual and concrete presentation of math topics, then switch. Better to go lighter, but to really *get* the concepts, then to spend hours a day on math -- at which point, the child's brain has most likely shut down, so more time on math is NOT helping with gaining ground. JMO!

BEST of luck in finding what is the best fit for this child! Warmest regards, Lori D.

Interesting that a couple of you had the same observations about why Saxon can be causing some of the issues, or at least exacerbating them. Thanks for your feedback!

SaraLyn

[baxterclan7]

2 hours ago, klmama said:

If you aren't opposed to online lessons, you might look at Unlock Math.  It has short video lessons, then as much practice as you need.  You can redo sections with all new problems.  There's a 2 week free trial.  My dc finds it easier to stay focused and to remember than with previous math.  

I will check that out- convenient way to “test drive” it. Thanks!

SaraLyn