Our math solution!

We figured out our math plans for the 2008/2009 school year! This is such a relief for me. I miss the comfort that we had when we were using Singapore Math's Primary Math series. There was no guessing. The kid finished PM 5B? Well, then start PM 6A. So simple were the days... And then, like many others, we didn't fit with Singapore Math's New Elementary Math series for high school math. We spent some time flapping in the wind which actually turned out better for the kid. I think that she needed a few years to mature before starting Algebra. Math has always been a good subject for her, but just because you CAN do something doesn't mean that you should. As it is, she'll be starting Algebra 1 this year (her 7th grade.) I really feel at peace about this decision.

And....

We will be able to simply choose the next level from now until college! No more picking and choosing. I love choice, but math is just one of those subjects that is best done (in this house) in an orderly way.

Our text book will be Elementary Algebra by Harold R. Jacobs.



We'll be pairing it with Algebra 1 dvd lessons from Ask Dr. Callahan. I'm really excited about this series. The Algebra videos have the same type of humor as the kid. Between the Jacobs text and the funny inserts in the video she'll love math even more than she does already. Plus, the explanations are clear, the steps are highlighted well, and it will allow her to move at her own pace. I think that it will give me the help that I need in teaching the course as well.

As long as it works as we think, we'll follow their recommended sequence - thought not the recommended grade levels - with one small addition:

Algebra 1 (7th for the kid)
Geometry (8th)
Algebra 2 with Trig (9th)
*Add in Mathematics: A Human Endeavor by Jacobs as part of a Discrete Math class (10th)*
Calculus (11th)
*Calculus 2 - there was a blurb on the site that it will be coming out eventually. If she is heading towards a math-heavy major or just loves math we can continue into this course so that she'll have math each year. Otherwise, we'll end with Calculus in grade 11.

I've gotten everything ordered, so I'll post a better review once I have the product in hand. It just feels like such a relief to have this taken care of. I'm not one to wait until the end of summer to decide on a curriculum, but it is done so no use in feeling guilty. :)