Jump to content

Menu
Giving You and Your Child a Road Map to the Best Possible Education
The Well-Trained Mind Community

Can we talk pre-algebra options?

silver
 Share

Recommended Posts

silver

silver

Posted
Posted (edited)

I've found that, just like with Kindergarten math, pre-algebra seems to not have as many choices as other levels do. Can we (at minimum) list out some options? Even better if people can talk about what they've used: pros/cons? spiral or mastery? textbook/worktext/online? is it best for students that love math? is it best for students who loathe math?
 

Textbook/Workbook Options

  • AOPS Prealgebra
    • posts with comments: one, two
  • Bittinger's Prealgebra
    • posts with comments: one
  • BJU Pre-Algebra (video option also available)
  • Dolciani's Pre-Algebra: An Accelerated Course
    • posts with comments: one, two
  • Gattegno's book 4 and book 5
    • posts with comments: one
  • Horizons Pre-Algebra
    • posts with comments: one
  • Jousting Armadillos by Arbor
    • posts with comments: one
  • Lial's Basic College Mathematics
    • posts with comments: one, two
  • Lial's Prealgebra
    • posts with comments: one, two
  • Math Mammoth 7th grade worktext
    • posts with comments: one
  • MEP Year 7 and Year 8 together (free)
    • posts with comments: one
  • Saxon Math Math 8/7 or Algebra 1/2
    • From sonlight.com: "Considerable pre-algebra content is included in Math 8/7, and students who complete the text successfully (80% or higher test scores) will be prepared to take Algebra 1 as their next mathematics course. Algebra 1/2 focuses on developing skills that prepare students for algebra. The pre-algebra content is more extensive than the pre-algebra content of Math 8/7; however, the scope is narrower."


Video Options (pre-recorded)


Live Online Course Options


Supplements

 

(Note: I have not used, nor fully looked at, all the options I've listed. I'll add more options as other posters mention them.)

Edited by silver
  • Like 2
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
silver

silver

Posted
  • Author
Posted (edited)

I've used AOPS Prealgebra and Dolciani's Pre-Algebra.

AOPS Prealgebra:
Worked well for my math loving child. It went deeper into topics than Beast Academy, so I found it worth doing despite some of the topic overlap. Some of the problems were challenging, too much so for my good-at-math-but-doesn't-love-it child. This is not a typical text with 100 problems in every chapter, many of them rote calculations (which I appreciated). 

Dolciani's:
I used this for my good-at-math-but-doesn't-love-it child. It was okay; I didn't love it. It didn't make her suddenly love math (in contrast, I wouldn't say Jacob's Geometry has made her love math, but she certainly enjoys it more than any book she's done since finishing BA). It served its purpose, but I'm not sure I'll use it again for my youngest.

Edited by silver
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
SilverMoon

SilverMoon

Posted
Posted

I've used the Lial books. I'd say BCM is more basic prealg. It thoroughly goes over all the arithmetic you need to be successful in alg. The prealg book is harder, throwing in exponents, negatives, etc into the arithmetic early. 

 

I tried CTC ages ago when they had summer trials from HSBC. I was not impressed. They only needed to finish five problems correctly to move on and I found the teaching very "here's how you do it" instead of explaining the why. 

Horizons is a workbook/text. We didn't use it too long but I don't remember why anymore. 

If you search the logic forum for a large, old thread with prealg and straddler in the title, it's a good read. 🙂

(I'm nearly back to prealg with my sixth kid and I'm still undecided where to go with him. 🤷‍♀️😄)

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites
HomeAgain

HomeAgain

Posted
Posted

I had one child use MUS for pre-algebra and he flew through it.  It was just right for him - enough practice to cement concepts without throwing in too much new and different.  He was hitting the puberty brain fog at the time and really needed just that.

The other child used Gattegno's book levels 4 and 5 as pre-algebra.  It had enough written work, but the exercises were challenging with the hands on work.  He's doing MUS Algebra 1 right now and the lessons are a breeze compared to Gattegno.  He also doesn't use the MUS blocks - base 10 and cuisenaire work just fine at this level.  He also doesn't like videos, so if we had used MUS Pre-algebra it would have been straight from the textbook/teacher's manual.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
silver

silver

Posted
  • Author
Posted
1 hour ago, SilverMoon said:

If you search the logic forum for a large, old thread with prealg and straddler in the title, it's a good read. 🙂

(I'm nearly back to prealg with my sixth kid and I'm still undecided where to go with him. 🤷‍♀️😄)

I feel like I would probably wind up with a different preA for every kid, even if I had a dozen kids! I just cannot find something that I really like (and kids being different makes some options not workable for all kids). 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
ScoutTN

ScoutTN

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, SilverMoon said:

I've used the Lial books. I'd say BCM is more basic prealg. It thoroughly goes over all the arithmetic you need to be successful in alg. The prealg book is harder, throwing in exponents, negatives, etc into the arithmetic early. 

 

I tried CTC ages ago when they had summer trials from HSBC. I was not impressed. They only needed to finish five problems correctly to move on and I found the teaching very "here's how you do it" instead of explaining the why. 

Horizons is a workbook/text. We didn't use it too long but I don't remember why anymore. 

If you search the logic forum for a large, old thread with prealg and straddler in the title, it's a good read. 🙂

(I'm nearly back to prealg with my sixth kid and I'm still undecided where to go with him. 🤷‍♀️😄)

This. It used to be pinned on the Logic Stage Board.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
SilverMoon

SilverMoon

Posted
Posted

I forgot about Jousting Armadillos! My current 8th grader used JA and really, really enjoyed it. It needs a kid who doesn't mind wordiness and the occasional dad joke. It's more of a think smarter not work harder book, and it only lasts a semester at best. It's stronger on preparing for algebra concepts than it is shoring up arithmetic. (Textbook)

My JA kid also went through Real World Algebra by Zaccaro. This is a supplement and nowhere near a full course. 

Another fabulous supplement is Hands on Equations. This is just learning how to manipulate equations and, if you get the verbal problems book, turning word problems into equations. 

(Fwiw, the other two books from Arbor Foundation comprise alg 1. My JA kid really wanted to love the whole series but adamantly asked to switch books before finishing the first one. They are happy in Aufmann's intro alg now.)

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
mom31257

mom31257

Posted
Posted (edited)

I use the Lial's books, and I supplement a bit to meet state standards. I love the examples because the operations are so clearly laid out, using side explanations and different color inks. I use the Basic College Math book as an early middle school course, not prealgebra. The Prealgebra book introduces negative numbers early on, so the student gets practice all year long using those, which I find really helps Algebra 1 go much better. 

If you would like to see samples, message me your email address. I could send some photos. 

Edited by mom31257
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Insertcreativenamehere

Insertcreativenamehere

Posted
Posted

For my oldest, I used Derek Owens. He was well-prepared to enter algebra the next year in public school.

For my second, I used MUS Pre-algebra and half of MUS algebra. He is currently a 9th grader at a private school and is doing very well in algebra in school right now. Most of the first semester was review for him.

 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Everything Chocolate

Everything Chocolate

Posted
Posted

Thanks for bringing up this topic! I'm also looking at options for pre-algebra right now.

Another option which isn't in your list is Unlock Math: https://www.unlockmath.com/

Anyone have experience with it? I won a year of access in a giveaway, so we will probably give it a try, but I'd love to hear more feedback on this program if anyone here has used it.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
eternallytired

eternallytired

Posted
Posted

My oldest used AoPS Prealgebra, and it worked well for him.  He loves math and wants it to be challenging, and AoPS fit the bill.  I was definitely glad for the thorough explanations with the answers, since it's been a loooong time since I've thought much about algebra.  I thought it would be difficult to transition from BA to a standard textbook, but surprisingly he had no trouble with the switch.  I think the math itself was similar enough that it didn't feel different to him even though it looked different.

After working through a good portion of AoPS Intro to Alg, he needed a change and switched to Elements of Mathematics, by the Institute of Mathematics and Computer Science (IMACS).  Elements of Mathematics is an online program that technically covers prealgebra through precalculus all during middle school, but the prealgebra he's doing now looks almost nothing like AoPS prealgebra.  He's loving it: there's a lot of practical application and interesting interactive modeling.  For example, he's currently figuring out the amount of taxes that would be collected in a fictional nation using various income tax structures.  This is definitely an intense program intended for those who love math and enjoy being challenged.  Instruction is done through both text and videos (mostly audio of a teacher and students having a discussion, with static images of each person showing on the screen as they speak).  I pretty much can't help at all, since the language and symbols used are generally very different from in traditional math programs, but that's been pretty good for him as far as having to read the question board and re-read instructions to figure out what he's doing wrong.

My middle child is good at math, but doesn't love a challenge like her brother.  (She did a couple years of BA before saying, "Okay, Mom, I proved to myself that I CAN do this, but I don't like it.  Can I switch to something else?")  She thrived on Math Mammoth.  She enjoyed the independence of having the instructions right in the workbook, and the author did a good job of scaffolding learning, taking it from the concrete to the more abstract in manageable bites.  It felt rigorous without stressing her out.  She was sad to leave it behind after MM7 (prealgebra).  I definitely think it prepared her well for algebra, though, since she cruised through the first half of Foerster's Algebra 1 before encountering much new material.

I'm pretty sure I'll choose yet another prealgebra for kid #3, who tends to be very visual/kinesthetic.  We'll see!

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
bevwdi

bevwdi

Posted
Posted (edited)

I'm just posting to follow this topic. My kid is finishing 7th grade and I'm not 100% sure if he's ready for pre-Algebra. I feel like he can do arithmetic but that he doesn't really comprehend. Every time we roll around to a topic he has already done he needs me to basically reteach it. Not the four functions but basically everything after that. The other day he actually cried while trying to convert some fractions into equivalents playing a math game with younger sister. But at the same time he did great in unit on Khan Academy. So, who knows? 

I'm curious about MEP though. I was looking at it and it seems really creative. Can you just start in year 7? 

Edited to add: Is this the thread you were thinking of @SilverMoon? 

 

Edited by bevwdi
Possible thread.
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites
silver

silver

Posted
  • Author
Posted
On 4/15/2022 at 4:49 PM, smfmommy said:

A few free options:

Purple Math  purplemath.com

Master Math  mastermath.info

Purple Math seems to be just Algebra, do they also offer a pre-algebra course?

Master Math doesn't have anything labeled as pre-algebra. Do you have to complete both grades 7+8 to have covered pre-algebra?


Thanks!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
smfmommy

smfmommy

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, silver said:

Purple Math seems to be just Algebra, do they also offer a pre-algebra course?

Master Math doesn't have anything labeled as pre-algebra. Do you have to complete both grades 7+8 to have covered pre-algebra?


Thanks!

The purple math does have a pre-algebra option.  It's in a menu on the left side of my screen.  It does take you to Mathhelp but you can still do the lessons for free.

I am not sure how much you have to do of Master Math.  Usually grade 8 is pre-algebra.

Of the three I have only done MEP.

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
smfmommy

smfmommy

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, bevwdi said:

I'm just posting to follow this topic. My kid is finishing 7th grade and I'm not 100% sure if he's ready for pre-Algebra. I feel like he can do arithmetic but that he doesn't really comprehend. Every time we roll around to a topic he has already done he needs me to basically reteach it. Not the four functions but basically everything after that. The other day he actually cried while trying to convert some fractions into equivalents playing a math game with younger sister. But at the same time he did great in unit on Khan Academy. So, who knows? 

I'm curious about MEP though. I was looking at it and it seems really creative. Can you just start in year 7? 

I did MEP year 7&8 with my boy who sounds similar to yours.  He forgets the procedure easily.  He did well and I think liked MEP (he decided to stick with it after year 7).  We got through MEP 8 at the beginning of spring.  At a lesson a day you can easily get through years 7&8 in a single school year.  I do like the word problems and the fact that there are only "ten" problems per lesson.  Some problems have multiple parts, but it seemed less overwhelming for him and I instead of seeing 60 problems for each lesson.  He is reviewing with Khan Academy without my help for the remainder of the school year to see if he has actually internalized the concepts or if I have helped too much.  As he is going into 8th grade I am not too concerned if we need to do pre-algebra again.  

To answer your question, you can easily begin in Year 7.  

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
cintinative

cintinative

Posted
Posted

So, maybe we went the long way round, but we did Math in Focus 1-5 and then we did all of Course 1 (which is supposed to be part 1 of a three part pre-algebra course), then we did Dolciani's Pre-A.

Other than the fact that Dolciani's Pre-A was more of a traditional textbook than the MIF books tend to be, we really didn't struggle with it. Neither of my kids are math geniuses, but it served us well.

When we got to Dolciani Alg I, I really needed to build in a lot of review.  My youngest took a long time to get through that book, but I don't blame the pre-A for that. I think he just wasn't totally "brain ready" for algebra when we started it. 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
alisha

alisha

Posted
Posted

Another option that I got from these boards is that most Algebra books do a review of Pre-Algebra in the first few chapters. So, the route we took was to just do a single Algebra book slowly over 2 years. Definately depends on the child, but an option.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 3 weeks later...
CAtoVA

CAtoVA

Posted
Posted (edited)

Bittinger's Pre-A is another option (I am looking at it now for one of my kids).

I have Bittinger's Introductory Algebra (Algebra 1) and use it with another kid along with a few other sources. It is similar to Lial's books. For this kid (doing algebra now) I used Math Mammoth grade 7 for Pre-A.

Edited by CAtoVA
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Ellie

Ellie

Posted
Posted
On 4/10/2022 at 8:33 AM, silver said:

Textbook/Workbook Options

  • Saxon Math Algebra 1/2

 

Saxon's Math 87 is also a pre-algebra. Students who complete Saxon Math 76 with at least an 80% average do Math 87, then Alg. 1; students with less than 80% do Alg. 1/2. Students new to Saxon do the placement test and then whichever text they test into.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Aliqout

Aliqout

Posted
Posted
On 4/18/2022 at 4:17 PM, smfmommy said:

I did MEP year 7&8 with my boy who sounds similar to yours.  He forgets the procedure easily.  He did well and I think liked MEP (he decided to stick with it after year 7).  We got through MEP 8 at the beginning of spring.  At a lesson a day you can easily get through years 7&8 in a single school year.  I do like the word problems and the fact that there are only "ten" problems per lesson.  Some problems have multiple parts, but it seemed less overwhelming for him and I instead of seeing 60 problems for each lesson.  He is reviewing with Khan Academy without my help for the remainder of the school year to see if he has actually internalized the concepts or if I have helped too much.  As he is going into 8th grade I am not too concerned if we need to do pre-algebra again.  

To answer your question, you can easily begin in Year 7.  

Although it is counterintuitive, some children who struggle a little with math because they forget procedures do better with a deeper, more challenging curriculum. When they have to focus more on the why, and work out procedures for themselves (with help), they "own" them and math becomes less about memorizing procedures and more about establishing a logical framework. 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
kiwik

kiwik

Posted
Posted

My oldest was at school but they let him spend some of the time on AOPS PA.  My youngest is using Derek Owen's.  He finds the videos a bit painful at times but it seems to be working.  My oldest has just come home at 15 and I am trying to decide whether to stick with the NZ curriculum or try and do a quick run through algebra 1 and 2 then geometry.  (I know that isn't the usual sequence but it could take 6 months plus to source the geometry text.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 3 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...
ktgrok

ktgrok

Posted
Posted

Wait, TT 7 is pre-algebra? I didn't realize. DD12 was doing it this year but got frustrated as we moved further into it. Part of the issue is she is a perfectionist and entering in the answer and seeing if she is right or not each time is stressful to her. She starts panicking if she gets more than 1 wrong, and can't concentrate the rest of the lesson. But she's was in 6th using it a year ahead, so I didn't push her too hard to finish it. 

Looking at MUS for pre-algebra, do you think she could go into it having finished a little over half of TT7? 

I like that the video can teach it, but she will like me doing the grading. 

Also going to look at MEP now...

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Janeway

Janeway

Posted
Posted (edited)
19 hours ago, ktgrok said:

Wait, TT 7 is pre-algebra? I didn't realize. DD12 was doing it this year but got frustrated as we moved further into it. Part of the issue is she is a perfectionist and entering in the answer and seeing if she is right or not each time is stressful to her. She starts panicking if she gets more than 1 wrong, and can't concentrate the rest of the lesson. But she's was in 6th using it a year ahead, so I didn't push her too hard to finish it. 

Looking at MUS for pre-algebra, do you think she could go into it having finished a little over half of TT7? 

I like that the video can teach it, but she will like me doing the grading. 

Also going to look at MEP now...

You can do the placement exam for MUS and see if it would be good to do the pre-algebra or the algebra. I love on MEP that I can print off what we need, so I can skip over what we already have done, or even go back in to lower levels to pick up extra on weak areas.

Edited by Janeway
Link to comment
Share on other sites
silver

silver

Posted
  • Author
Posted
On 7/20/2022 at 1:57 PM, ktgrok said:

Wait, TT 7 is pre-algebra? I didn't realize. DD12 was doing it this year but got frustrated as we moved further into it. Part of the issue is she is a perfectionist and entering in the answer and seeing if she is right or not each time is stressful to her. She starts panicking if she gets more than 1 wrong, and can't concentrate the rest of the lesson. But she's was in 6th using it a year ahead, so I didn't push her too hard to finish it. 

Looking at MUS for pre-algebra, do you think she could go into it having finished a little over half of TT7? 

I like that the video can teach it, but she will like me doing the grading. 

Also going to look at MEP now...

It looks like TT has a pre-algebra level that is separate from level 7.

https://www.teachingtextbooks.com/pre-algebra-version4.html

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing
×
×
  • Create New...