Math - What Homeschool Math Program is Right for you?
Posted: Mon Apr 21, 2008 7:37 am
Math is one of those subjects that seems to get a lot of attention. In my experience, parents are concerned for one of three reasons:
1. Math is a struggle for my child. I just don’t know how to find the right homeschool math curriculum that will help him or her understand.
My child is very strong in Math–how quickly to I move him or her to an advanced homeschool math program?
2. My child can do math, but he hates it. How far do I really need to take him?
3. If your student struggles with math, your approach will be very different than those whose child excels. Because it is a skill course, the key to remember in math is not to push through material that your child does not understand. Take the time to review, to reteach if necessary, to approach it from a different angle.
Find the right time of day for math. Not all students can start the day off with math (despite the prevailing view that the morning is the best time of day). Some will do much better if they can avoid math all day and tackle it in the evening after they’ve had a good break from school work. Others, may prefer to do it last.
Speak candidly with your child and give her the freedom to determine the best time to approach the subject.
And don’t be afraid to repeat the same course a second time (or go with the same grade level using a different homeschool math curriculum). With homeschooling, you have the ability to ensure that your children have truly mastered their material before you push on. Take advantage of that opportunity. You will find that once they do master it, you can accelerate later.
If your child excels in math, don’t be afraid to allow them to push the limits. Don’t keep purchasing courses in chronological grade level. One of the students I evaluate is 12 years old. Last year, he completed an advanced college level math textbook and moved on to the next level this year. If his mother had not encouraged him to keep progressing, he would be one very bored young man!
Many strong math students find that they can move from sixth grade math directly to pre-algebra. Others have moved to pre-algebra after the fifth grade level. Don’t be afraid to do this, but do so with caution. Moving them forward too quickly (especially before they have truly mastered fractions and decimals) can create real frustration later.
For those who want to simply complete math requirements without struggling through more advanced courses, I recommend you take your student thorugh Algebra I, then allow them to take consumer math and/or business math.
In fact, I recommend consumer math as an elective for all students. Why? Because you can be whiz at calculus and trigonometry and have no idea how to balance your checkbook or put together a budget that works. Not a bad thing to learn, don’t you think?
1. Math is a struggle for my child. I just don’t know how to find the right homeschool math curriculum that will help him or her understand.
My child is very strong in Math–how quickly to I move him or her to an advanced homeschool math program?
2. My child can do math, but he hates it. How far do I really need to take him?
3. If your student struggles with math, your approach will be very different than those whose child excels. Because it is a skill course, the key to remember in math is not to push through material that your child does not understand. Take the time to review, to reteach if necessary, to approach it from a different angle.
Find the right time of day for math. Not all students can start the day off with math (despite the prevailing view that the morning is the best time of day). Some will do much better if they can avoid math all day and tackle it in the evening after they’ve had a good break from school work. Others, may prefer to do it last.
Speak candidly with your child and give her the freedom to determine the best time to approach the subject.
And don’t be afraid to repeat the same course a second time (or go with the same grade level using a different homeschool math curriculum). With homeschooling, you have the ability to ensure that your children have truly mastered their material before you push on. Take advantage of that opportunity. You will find that once they do master it, you can accelerate later.
If your child excels in math, don’t be afraid to allow them to push the limits. Don’t keep purchasing courses in chronological grade level. One of the students I evaluate is 12 years old. Last year, he completed an advanced college level math textbook and moved on to the next level this year. If his mother had not encouraged him to keep progressing, he would be one very bored young man!
Many strong math students find that they can move from sixth grade math directly to pre-algebra. Others have moved to pre-algebra after the fifth grade level. Don’t be afraid to do this, but do so with caution. Moving them forward too quickly (especially before they have truly mastered fractions and decimals) can create real frustration later.
For those who want to simply complete math requirements without struggling through more advanced courses, I recommend you take your student thorugh Algebra I, then allow them to take consumer math and/or business math.
In fact, I recommend consumer math as an elective for all students. Why? Because you can be whiz at calculus and trigonometry and have no idea how to balance your checkbook or put together a budget that works. Not a bad thing to learn, don’t you think?