Tuesday, July 7, 2020

Homeschool: Math

If you did not see my previous post about our 2020-21 school plans, read that here! This week I will be sharing a separate blog post for each school subject, detailing my plans for which curriculum we will be using. For reference, I will have a 5th grader, a 3rd grader, Kindergartener, and a 3-yr old preschooler this year. Honestly, I do not have any formal "school" plans for Andrew this year. He is an energetic 3-yr old boy and not yet ready to sit and follow directions. He even refuses to color with a crayon!  So any curriculum I list is for my 3 older kiddos.

Also, I feel like I should preface all of this by saying I reserve the right to change my mind about any of this! Haha. Seriously, I will not know if this is the right fit for my kids until we actually use it, so I'm giving myself full permission to switch curriculum if at any point I know it is not working.

Spoiler alert: I don't plan on teaching common core math!

MATH: I feel like I got a good grasp of how my boys learn math during our distance learning in the Spring. And I'm pretty sure they learn it like I do. Straight and to the point. My boys tend to do well in Math. (It was always my favorite subject! I appreciated being able to get the answer, check and know it was correct, and then move on. No gray areas, just black and white.) But I noticed any time there was a problem that involved manipulatives (such as measuring things, or doing long drawn-out number lines, or using counting tiles), they became bored and frustrated, because they already understood the concept. So when looking at Math curriculum, I was looking for something less hands-on and more basic in nature. Similar to the way I remember learning Math. For now, I have settled on Horizons Math.  These brightly illustrated workbooks teach math in a spiral style, meaning basic concepts are reviewed multiple times, with each review becoming more complex. "Analytical reasoning and mental math are stressed throughout the series, as well as memorization and drill."

I'm going to try level 5 for Ryan, 3 for Lucas, and K for Jenna. Math will be taught every day.
I already received Ryan's level 5 workbook, and immediately sat for half an hour, pouring over it. It looks to be the perfect level for him, and I appreciate the riddles and puzzles throughout the book. I even wanted to grab a pencil and do some of the work! Haha if only my son was so eager.

If for some reason Horizons Math is not a good fit for us, I have heard good things about Saxon Math, Singapore Math, and Teaching Textbooks. We actually did a free trial of teaching textbooks (it is completely online), and one of boys liked it and the other did not.

I also have access to some really fun Usborne math workbooks that I plan on using as supplements, such as a wipe-clean telling time book, times table practice pad, and a lift-the-flap fractions and decimals book.

What curriculum do you use for homeschool Math?

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