Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Recommended Resources Singapore Math info?

I have seen this name come up a lot on this board and would love if someone could pass on any info...I will be homeschooling my DS5 starting in 2 weeks (we had to give our notice to his current school otherwise we would be held liable for full tuition) and I am scrambling to look for curriculum pieces...I have everything else I will need except for math - which is his true love and my weakness! We are trying to find a good curriculum and kept seeing Singapore Math come up. Would you all recommend this and should I begin with the K program? Thanks for any help with this

I wouldn't necessarily start with the kindergarten level. There is a placement test you can do to see which book would be best for your DS. If your child gets a certain percentage correct, then they recommend the next level up. http://www.singaporemath.com/Placement_s/12.htm

We got primary math 1a text/workbook for our DS4 after having him do the test. We have just been doing it occasionally when he shows interest, and we finally got to some new stuff for him and he started liking it more (he doesn't like doing stuff he already knows how to do.)

Good luck with the homeschooling!

Since we haven't done a whole lot yet, I can't give it a full evaluation. But it suits us for where we are now.

DS6 liked it a lot when we first started homeschooling, when he was picking up basic concepts. We started with 1a, the Kindergarten would be too basic for kids with any sort of number sense (we use it for DS4 and it's perfect to introduce numbers), the one thing I really love about the series is the way they relate the numbers. They really stress to the kids that a number is the sum of its parts (i.e. 5= 2+3, 4+1, 0+5) and pretty much all of 1a is devoted to teaching that concept. Our problem with it is that while DS isn't self-taught in math, he can project concepts out pretty far once he's shown and even just into 2a we were finding that he had already figured out the concepts and was frustrated at having to practice bits and pieces at a time. If you do go with Singapore, I would suggest using Intensive Practice and Challenging Word Problems instead of the regular workbooks.

There's another series that we tried in the beginning- Miquon Math. It was very interesting, it's based on research done in a experimental classroom in the 70's and definitely has a "off the beaten path" feel to it. If you have a homeschool store near you, it might be worth checking out. The workbooks are pretty inexpensive, like Singapore, but the teacher's manual is a must (some of the exercises are completely mystifying without the explanation) and it's a bit pricey (~$20), though it's just one book used for the whole series.

I love Singapore Math and I think it's an excellent math program. It's tricky to find out if your child should use the K or 1st grade program. As far as I know there is no placement test into 1st grade. If your child passes the 1A test then it means that he is ready for 1B.

You may need to look at the sample pages and see what would be the best fit for your child. You may want to start with 1st grade or the second half of the K. You will see. The material is cheap so if you don't find a perfect match it's not such a big deal.

I think SM is a great place to start, especially if you're in a panic (as I was last year, since we pulled DS7 (then 6) out of 1st grade in late Sept. for "emergency homeschooling." No time to plan or even think! Scary!). It is a solid, useful, well-done curriculum.

We did move away from it this year, though we may move back once DS has done some other things. SM--like pretty much every other math curriculum for elementary-aged kids that I've seen--was just too focused on calculation and not conceptual enough for where DS7 is right now. But it's definitely an excellent curriculum, especially for GT kids.

Get the "Intensive Practice" workbook if you like more problem-solving stuff. Some of those problems are downright hard--my DH is an engineer and I'd like to think that I'm no slouch, but some of the problems in the lowly 2A book made even the two of us have to stop and think! The calculations at that level aren't hard, but the critical thinking is really quite challenging. I highly recommend it, and you can use it instead of the regular workbook if you want to. (You just miss all the easy problems that way.)

Also, I like the teacher's guide, but I thought the student textbook was kind of useless. Unless you want to hand your child the books to do completely alone--in which case you want both the textbook and the regular workbook--I think all you really need is the teacher's guide and the "IP" workbook.

(If you want more word problems, the "Challenging Word Problems" workbook is good. I just liked the "IP" book because it contains a wide variety of problem types, not just word problems.)

This is good to know. As I said, we have just started this series, for basic math, and I guess I didn't stop to think about how the textbook really doesn't add much. I'll have to get the teacher's guide and try the IP stuff.

The teacher's guide gave me some ideas for games and hands-on stuff that I wouldn't have come up with on my own. If you're good at that sort of thing, it might not be as useful to you as it was to me. But I thought it was worth the money a LOT more than the textbook was, given my use of the materials.

Some people really like to have their kids do the work completely independently, and I respect that. But I usually work with DS7, so I like something with a bit more meat to it, you know?

I do like very much that SM has options, and that you can tailor the curriculum somewhat based upon your child's needs. It's one of the strengths of the program, especially for a GT child. (And it's cheap! Love that!)

OK -the teacher's guide is listed as $21 on singapore's site - I'll have to think about that. But i'll surely check out the intensive practice workbooks. thanks.

You're welcome!

We use the textbook and workbook combo, without the teacher's guide. But after the Singapore earlybird (kindergarten) series, I expect my kids to do the work independently. My three year old is currently doing early bird 2A and also the mathematical Reasoning Kindy level from Bright Minds. She chooses her own work, how much, and when to do it. Yesterday she decided to do both math books, so completed several pages in each.

I'm a much lazier homeschool mom than Kriston!