Math-u-See: Curriculum Review

In our family we’ve had a real journey when it comes to the study of mathematics. We’ve used not one but six math programs in the seven years that we’ve homeschooled. Now let me open by explaining that I taught middle school math for three years in the Christian school. I’ve taught very bright students and those that struggle. Here I’m going to give you a little history so you will understand the relief at finding a math curriculum which finally worked for us. You might find yourself understand exactly our circumstance.

Our Mathematical History:

 In our first year of homeschooling, I bought the complete 1^st grade Abeka curriculum. By the end of the second semester, we realized it just wasn’t working. So we switched to Alpha Omega LifePacs Math. In 2^nd grade, we used Horizons Math and that seemed to be an okay fit for us. In third grade, I put my son on Bob Jones DVD school for all subjects. He did very well. We did it again in 4^th grade and I could see him needing me more and more especially in math. For 5^th grade, I went back to teaching him all subjects and we tried Abeka for math only since that is what I taught in the Christian school. The year went satisfactorily, but I knew he was struggling. There were days we had tears and math would take a couple hours. In sixth grade, we started the year with Teaching Textbooks. That lasted a semester. He absolutely hated it. So we stopped and he just studied math facts for all operations while I tried to figure out what to use next. That’s when I investigated Math-u-See.

Basics of Math-U-See:

Math-U-See was created by former math teacher, Steve Demme. It works well with all learning styles at all levels of math learning from the struggling student to the advanced. Math-u-See is mastery based vs. spiral. That means that in each level there is a focus covered in each book. The levels are set up as follows:

Primer (which is an introduction to mathematics. It is best suited for Pre-kindergarten to kindergarten level students.)

Alpha (simple addition and subtraction)

Beta (advanced addition and subtraction)

Gamma (multiplication)

Delta (division)

Epsilon (fractions)

Zeta (decimals and percents)

That covers the Elementary levels of Math.Then there are the usual high level math classes:

Pre-algebra

Algebra I

Algebra II

Geometry

Pre-calculus

Calculus

Stewardship

The elementary levels being set up as mastery can be used at different grades levels depending on the math level of the student. For example, a fifth grader would typically be in Epsilon, but a struggling ninth grader might be using it as well. There are no grades assigned to each level.

The Math-u-See system utilizes blocks in all levels of math even through the high school levels. These are very important and really make the Math-u-See experience different than other math programs. Most of us moms, dads and teachers were taught how to do math but not the whys about math. We were taught to think of math in an abstract manner. With this program students are taught to know the whys about math and with the blocks they learn math in a concrete way and then move into the abstract. It makes math much more understandable and (even more) it takes math concepts and rules and allows them to make sense so that memorization is not really necessary.

Teaching DVDs are included with the Teachers Manual. The idea is for the teacher to watch the DVDs and allow Mr. Demme to teach you the system of Math-u-See so that you can then teach your children. However, if you have children in the 3^rd grade or above, it is completely acceptable to have them watch the DVDs with you and then you can go through the lesson together. If you have an even younger child who learns well through listening or watching, then you can view the DVDs together as well. They are a great learning tool.

Our personal experience:

I decided to give Math-u-See a try after a couple weeks of searching through other math programs. We decided to put our sixth grader into the Alpha level which can normally be used in the first grade. He moved through Alpha quickly starting in February and finishing it in April. Math now took us 20 to 30 minutes a day. He was not only finishing quicker but understanding more fully—really understanding how math works. He could now do mental math—figuring out computation in his head. The addition and subtractions facts were learned. Then we skipped to the Gamma level which teaches multiplication. He finished it that summer. This past year in seventh grade, he completed Delta (division) and Epsilon (fractions). This summer before 8^th grade, we have been going through the Zeta book—decimals and percents. We should finish just in time to start the new school year and pre-Algebra, putting him on track for grade level. That’s a lot of math in 18 months.  This past year I put my 1^st grader into Alpha. He is much more math minded than my older son, but he still did great with Math-u-See. No tears here.

Advice in using math u see:

Math-u-See books are divided into 30 lessons with a test after every lesson, four unit tests divided through the level and a final exam. Within each lesson, there are seven pages to be completed (A-F plus test). Do you need to complete all those math pages? Absolutely not. Pages A-C cover the same new material. Pages D-F are called systematic review and include the new lesson material as well as review material. With my younger son, we did math only four days a week. We viewed the lesson on Monday and did the A paper. Tuesday we did the B paper, Wednesday we moved to the D paper and Thursday he took the test. If I found that he needed more review, we could take another day to do so. My older son who was moving through the lower levels at a much quicker pace might do the Lesson and A paper on one day, the D paper the next and the test the third day. Then we started the next lesson. This is all to say that you, the parent and teacher, can decide how much time you need to take for each lesson.

Make sure to purchse the blocks (both sets). They are imperative to this math system and used through all the levels. There are other manipulatives used in the upper elementary levels which can also be purchased to demonstrate those concrete methods of teaching things like fractions and decimals which we adults never had as students.

One other thing is that it is very easy to purchase used Math-u-See items and to sell your used items. Look for a local place to sell used curriculum or there are several online places to buy and sell including a special Math-u-See Yahoo group.

Visit the website to learn more about Math-U-See http://www.mathusee.com/ . There are video segments to watch and sample pages to view from the books.

Analytical Grammar: Curriculum Review

Whenever I hear about a new curriculum that sounds interesting, I go ahead and check it out. I was on a homeschool curriculum review yahoo group when I first heard about Analytical Grammar. I went ahead and visited their website. First of all I have to say that they have a terrific website and I encourage everyone to stop over there. It is comprehensive and informative. They have some excellent videos which explain their program extensively. Be sure to take the time to view those. The Analytical Grammar curriculum is meant for grades 6 and up.

The program was written by an experienced English teacher who created the curriculum while still teaching. She adjusted the course over the years as she experimented with her students. It is a well tested program, you can't deny that.

The idea of this program is that grammar is not a subject which needs to be taught every day and every week of the school year. It is knowledge that can be learned and then you can move on and use that information in your writing. They have broken down the grammar instruction into three seasons. It can be taught over three years, two years or even one year as necessary. Year One takes ten weeks, Year Two takes seven weeks and Year Three takes seventeen weeks. To learn more specifics of the program visit their website. It is on the pricey side as it cost nearly $100. That includes the teacher and student binders. The good news is that you can use it for the next three years.

MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:
As I learned more and more about this program, it looked like a perfect fit for my upcoming seventh grade student. He has always been a good grammar student, grasping grammatical concepts as early as 2nd grade that I wished many of my eighth grade students had so easily understood. In the 5th grade, we used EASY GRAMMAR and had an intensive year of grammar. He did terrific and it gave him a strong background in grammar. In the 6th grade, we focused a great deal on his special needs in math. Therefore, grammar took a backseat. I felt that we had covered so much the previous year that we should place our attention on the subject needing it.

Before purchasing the program, I contacted the company. I discovered that they were local to where I lived and I wondered if I could purchase the materials from them directly and avoid the shipping costs. They were great in responding to my question and even sent me to a local retailer where I could buy it.

The Fall came and I started my son in Analytical Grammar with much excitement, but after that very first day I felt disappointed . Not so much in the curriculum as in my son. He seemed to have forgotten so much of what we had previously learned and I couldn't understand why. After a week I decided maybe he just needed to review some things. I took out the 5th grade Easy Grammar book and reviewed prepositions. He did super! We went back to AG for another week. He did better but I still felt he was struggling with the material. And I realized why.

The material and the idea of the program is great. I don't doubt that when we come back to it that my son will thrive. AND WE WILL COME BACK TO IT. But at this time, it has just been a little confusing to him. The reason is because the sentences used from the very first lesson are very complicated. They use phrases, clauses, infinitives and so on. Usually when you begin a study in the parts of speech the sentences gradually become more and more complex as the student progresses. I know this because I taught 8th grade English in the traditional classroom.

If your student has a thorough grasp of grammar--parts of speech, phrases and clauses--then he or she will do well with the program. If, however, your student is shaky in grammar or needs a good review, it might be better to start with something simpler. I am currently using the 8th grade Abeka book with my 7th grader and he's doing terrific. I hope that at the semester or next year that we can switch back to the AG. I do belive it has merit in the idea behind it. I probably would have started with simplier sentences in the beginning myself, but I am sure they have their reasons behind why it was designed that way. Next year I hope to review this program again having gained more experience with it.