Principles of Mathematics 1 vs. 2?

[mamanlait]

After Singapore 6b - and at the 7th grade level - which Principles of Mathematics Level is recommended?

[Carrie]

If your child did well with Singapore 6A/6B, he or she should be ready to go into Principles of Mathematics: Book 2. This is what we did with our third son this year. He went directly from Singapore 6A/6B into Principles of Mathematics: Book 2. It is going very well for him! We are doing Book 2 with him in 8th grade.

However, if your child struggled with Singapore 6A/6B, or if your child is going into 7th grade, then it would be wise to do Principles of Mathematics: Book 1 instead.

Blessings,
Carrie

[mamanlait]

Thank you for your response, Carrie! She is in 6th grade working through 6B now. She is a strong math student but I'm not in a hurry to get started with Algebra any earlier than 9th grade. I found with my oldest that Foerster's is quite challenging and maturity matters. I think we will start with PoM 2 and work through it slowly.

Thanks!

[Nealewill]

If you did it three days a week, you could probably easily spread it out over 2 years. I am finding that each lesson in POM 1 is very full. My dd is really liking it though. I am glad she is using it this year.

[mamanlait]

Nealewill,
Out of curiosity -- and to help me with placement -- how far along did you get in Singapore before switching to Principles of Mathematics 1? Also, you say that each lesson is quite full. We probably spend 20 minutes a day in math now with each Singapore lesson at the 6b level. If it takes longer than 30 minutes, we typically wait until the next day to complete the lesson. This happens frequently with Textbook Reviews. I think what I'd like to "get" out of POM 1 or 2 is some solid review on arithmetic (fractional addition, multiplication, division or long division with at least 3 digits, etc.). My dd is very solid with doing the more difficult math problems, conversions, and "thinking" skills but is not as fast as I would like her to be with basic arithmetic facts. Not bad...she knows them...but sometimes long division or multiplication is a problem b/c she loses track of her place trying to remember her facts....
Thank you!

[Nealewill]

My dd completed 5B. She did fine with Singapore but sometimes she just didn't get it as well as other kids might get it. I actually had her jump around a bit on math programs (she started with Abeka, finished all of RightStart for elementary but was struggling, then had her do Singapore 4A-5B). For her, I wanted her to start POM 1 because I felt like she jumped around before and I wanted her to have 2 years of pre-algebra before algebra. Even though she is on the youngest end of the age range for her guide, this will place her starting Algebra at 13 when she starts the WG guide.

What I meant by "full" is that POM takes more time a day than Signapore. The kids must read their own text to themselves and then they have problems to do on their own. Most days take her 30-60 minutes to do. On days where it takes her a long time, I think sometimes it is because she is wasting time. She actually don't care too much for math. But this book as been great. When she gets stuck, I have been able to show her in the text where she needs to look back and figure things out. She can use the book to help her solve those tough problems. I love that it is interesting to her and that she seems to genuinely enjoy what she is learning. I was worried about taking the extra time during the day to use this program but I am glad I used it with her. She is responding very well to it.