Shannon C Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 I keep going back to MUS for possible purchase b/c my dd really needs something hands on. I am not sure that I personally understand how they present concepts with the blocks. I watched the sample video for Alpha and it still didn't make sense to me. Have any parents had trouble explaining the methods to their kids? Maybe it will be more clear to me once I watch a whole lesson and have a TM to look at. Also, do kids become dependent on the blocks or do they eventually "get it" and do math mentally. I'm just struggling with what to do, but we need to switch soon. We're in Horizons 1 now, but we are not enjoying it at all. I've heard good things about BJU too, but not sure if it's similar to Horizons approach. I don't believe that we want to do RightStart either. Thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scuff Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 I was just thinking of switching from MUS because DD6 just wasn't getting it. But we took a break, had her just watch the video each day and do unrelated worksheets, and yesterday it just clicked. She's very hands-on, which is why I started MUS in the first place. So even though I don't always like his style, we're going to keep at it. I did start hsing with BJU with DS in K5 & 1st. I love their math. It's not like horizons, in that it's mastery and Horizons is spiral. (from what I've heard, I've never actually used horizons) I'm thinking about using either BJU or R&S during the summer with DD to keep things fresh and give her another perspective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shannon C Posted February 25, 2009 Author Share Posted February 25, 2009 We definitely need a mastery approach, which is why Horizons is not for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorbackmama Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 I keep going back to MUS for possible purchase b/c my dd really needs something hands on. I am not sure that I personally understand how they present concepts with the blocks. I watched the sample video for Alpha and it still didn't make sense to me. Have any parents had trouble explaining the methods to their kids? I'm not at all familiar with Horizons, only BJU and Singapore, but I haven't had trouble at all. Maybe it's because BJU's manipulatives are very similar??? Anyway, the blocks are merely counters as the child learns the facts. The green blocks are just individual counters. The "tricky" stuff comes when place value comes into play - 10 greens equals 1 blue (10), and 10 blues (or 10 greens) equal a red (100). They also use the colored blocks that represent numbers 2-9. He explains the reason behind that in lesson 3. It's so that when children are learning to add they are tempted to count. So they use the colored blocks rather than the individual green ones (which are easier to count). Maybe it will be more clear to me once I watch a whole lesson and have a TM to look at. Yes. He explains it in the videos. Also, do kids become dependent on the blocks or do they eventually "get it" and do math mentally. Not if they are going through the program at the pace they are supposed to. They are not supposed to move on to the next lesson until they are able to teach the lesson back to you (which shows that they understand) AND until they know the math facts taught in that lesson down pat. If they are still counting the manipulatives to arrive at the answer, that means they should not be moving on to the next lesson. Hope this helps! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunshine State Sue Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 Have any parents had trouble explaining the methods to their kids? Maybe it will be more clear to me once I watch a whole lesson and have a TM to look at. I've used MUS for 8+ years. Back in K, I would watch the video religiously, then present the lesson to my son. The lessons are quick and easy. On the rare occasion that I couldn't explain it well enough, we'd watch the video together. After several years, I stopped using the video and just read the lesson in the TM. It has the same information. The blocks are so great. Let me see if I can explain them a bit. You can take a 7 block and stack it on top of a 5 block. Then, right next to it, you take a 10 block and stack it on top of a 2 block. It's easy to see that the towers are the same height and 7+5=12. And, that just the beginning. Also, do kids become dependent on the blocks or do they eventually "get it" and do math mentally. It has been my experience that, eventually, the blocks slow the student down. They drop them on their own when they're ready. This question comes up regularly, and I don't think I've ever seen anybody say their child became dependent. HTH! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in Neverland Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 I watched the free "demo" video for MUS countless times and it didn't click for me either so I rejected it for 3 years! Then I saw a live presentation two years ago at the Cincinnati Convention and all the pieces fell into place and I was hooked! Math is now my son's strongest subject. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricaB Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 My son is finishing Primer and will start Alpha in a few weeks. We took a break at one point when he was struggling and switched to Singapore for awhile. It was more busy work for him. It didn't hurt, but I would never pick that program for anything besides a filler since it is not mastery. After four months, I slowly went back to MUS and he said "THIS IS MY FAVORITE BOOK EVER!" I haven't had any problems since that time. He especially loves when he gets to watch a new video. We watch the video once together and then he does most of the proceeding lessons on his own at a very new 5 years old. I don't think he is especially gifted in this area, but he does enjoy the program which makes him successful. Most importantly, NO PREP TIME!! My dream and prayer is that DD will like it too when she is old enough to start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shannon C Posted February 26, 2009 Author Share Posted February 26, 2009 That is good to know, I had just been looking at Singapore too b/c I had heard great things and HOD recommends it(which we will be using). So that is good for supplementing? It's cheap enough that I could use it on the side yet still master the math facts with MUS? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LadyAberlin Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 I'm using both Horizons K and MUS Alpha with my ds5. We love it. I do like MUS the best, but Horizons covers things like calendar skills, ordinal numbers etc that MUS either doesn't or we just haven't got to it yet. So I like to do them together. My ds is quick to stop using the blocks. It isn't that he doesn't like them, because he does, he just has this goal he has set for himself to not use them and when he has trouble he'll pull them back out. They definitely are not a crutch for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovedtodeath Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 (edited) You could look into Shiller Math for hands on as well, and Rightstart's Math Games will work with any program. I was just thinking of switching from MUS because DD6 just wasn't getting it. But we took a break, had her just watch the video each day and do unrelated worksheets, and yesterday it just clicked. She's very hands-on, which is why I started MUS in the first place. So even though I don't always like his style, we're going to keep at it. :iagree:Same here! I found our problems with MUS were due to me trying to fight the program. I have had to: Let Dr. Demme do the teaching and not rush through it. Just a note: MUS has a different scope and sequence, but they don't leave things out. You don't have to supplement. Edited February 26, 2009 by Lovedtodeath Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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