Well...had to drop Singapore...

[dale1088]

DD was just not getting it. I tried with her and she'd get so, so frustrated. She doesn't have any "issues" other than just not being a particularly mathy kid. She's like her mom in that way. I think Singapore is a great program, but it just wasn't working for us.

I decided to try CLE. I have looked at MUS, Right Start, Making Math Meaningful, R&S, Horizons and Saxon and just loved all the good things I read about CLE. DD needs more practice, but not to drown in problems. And she needs to revisit concepts so she can keep it in mind. She has just started 4th grade and still doesn't have her facts down, and now that we have moved into Preparing her work load has ramped up quite a bit. I wanted her to feel more confident in math. I didn't do a diagnostic, but ordered the 300 level and am hoping it's a good fit.

BTW, Rebecca (Tree House Ac) if you see this, thanks for all your posts about it here and elsewhere. It helped!!!

I'll let you know how it goes!

[water2wine]

We love Singapore for our kids who have only been hsed and it works like magic for them. But our older kids that came from ps and needed help with their facts are doing really well with CLE. In the end I wish I had started them all out with Singapore and gone down a level but I am really happy with CLE as well. Most of my kids did test about where I thought they would on the diagnostic test except one and that was my dd with special needs. Probably my wishful thinking that got in the way there. I hope you like CLE!

[LynnH]

My ds came from ps where he used what I like to call "fuzzy math". I knew he would be very frustrated with Singapore, although I think it is a great program. So we also went with CLE and it is going great. I don't have him do every problem though only about 1/2 to 3/4ths so that way it doesn't take too long. I love that you can add your own math to Preparing and still get the full benefits of the program.

[jewel7123]

Just curious, did your DD start out using Singapore from the beginning or you started using it recently?

DD was just not getting it. I tried with her and she'd get so, so frustrated. She doesn't have any "issues" other than just not being a particularly mathy kid. She's like her mom in that way. I think Singapore is a great program, but it just wasn't working for us.

I decided to try CLE. I have looked at MUS, Right Start, Making Math Meaningful, R&S, Horizons and Saxon and just loved all the good things I read about CLE. DD needs more practice, but not to drown in problems. And she needs to revisit concepts so she can keep it in mind. She has just started 4th grade and still doesn't have her facts down, and now that we have moved into Preparing her work load has ramped up quite a bit. I wanted her to feel more confident in math. I didn't do a diagnostic, but ordered the 300 level and am hoping it's a good fit.

BTW, Rebecca (Tree House Ac) if you see this, thanks for all your posts about it here and elsewhere. It helped!!!

I'll let you know how it goes!

[dale1088]

Just curious, did your DD start out using Singapore from the beginning or you started using it recently?

My dd was pulled from public school mid-3rd grade. That was last December. She had been doing "Everyday Math" but the curriculum was changed for 3rd grade, so she was already starting off with something new. She had not yet learned to regroup, or any multiplication/division.

I tested her with the Singapore placement tests and put her in 2A/B in January. We worked pretty quickly through the 2A book, slowing down when we got to regrouping, but it didn't spend that much time on the concept and moved on. My intention was to school all summer and keep her going in math, but we really, really needed a break this summer for a while. So when we picked it back up she was very frustrated, couldn't remember the concepts of multiplication, etc. I blame myself because I should have done a better job at keeping it up with practice this summer.

She's just a kid that needs a more methodical and visual problem solving method, and lots more practice. I was plagued with worry all last Spring that Singapore wasn't the right fit for her but kept hearing that I should stick with it, don't change math programs, etc. Ultimately I have to do what I think is right for this particular kid. I totally get why Singapore does it the way they do, and I really, really wish it had worked for us. My hope is to start my son out with it and keep him with it. For all I know he might be more mathy in his skill set and do much better with it.

[kiloyd]

What is CLE?

[dale1088]

What is CLE?

Oops, sorry!

It's Christian Light Education. I have read SO many great reviews that when I looked at it I thought it would fit my dd really well. Not any kind of indictment of other programs, this one just spoke to me as one that I think will work for her, so I thought I'd share.

[Tree House Academy]

I totally understand. We switched from Singapore to CLE as well and have really been pleased with it. I actually took my son (who is good in math) back one level in CLE because I wanted to make sure everything had been covered. He is 5th grade as far as reporting, but he is about mid-way through 4th grade CLE math. He is doing so well. We use CLE for my 1st grader too.

Singapore is a good, solid program. We loved it. It was just not right for my older son. He needed the constant review and the constant drill of math facts. Those two little things have helped him tremendously. I would say that math, while not his favorite subject (are you kidding...when you have the History and Science in Bigger...how could math compete???!) is probably his BEST subject.

My best advice to you is to do the flashcards and speed drill every.single.day. You will be amazed at how much it helps and what a big part of the program it is.

Another thing I like about CLE (we use Math, LA, Speedy Spanish, and Artpacs) is that it is a Christian program. God is often mentioned in the text and I really appreciate that.

[MommyInTraining]

I was planning on using Singapore, but now I am concerned. Will they not be able to memorize the facts with Singapore????

I had been using MUS with my oldest and math drills and she still needs work memorizing.

[Tree House Academy]

I was planning on using Singapore, but now I am concerned. Will they not be able to memorize the facts with Singapore????

I had been using MUS with my oldest and math drills and she still needs work memorizing.

Carrie's instruction in the early manuals is priceless. She does a lot more than the Home Instructor's Guide recommends. I think that it is worth a try for anyone using HOD. I also think that, if it doesn't work for your particular child, then you can always switch. I would start out with Singapore if that is your plan.

[2littleblessings]

I was planning on using Singapore, but now I am concerned. Will they not be able to memorize the facts with Singapore????

I had been using MUS with my oldest and math drills and she still needs work memorizing.

Singapore is not built to really practice math facts. It is great for mental math, and it works on understanding the ideas behind the math. It's not that they won't be able to memorize their math facts, it is just that you will have to work extra on that. I'm not familiar with CLE, so I don't know how that program or other programs compare on memorization. I am somewhat familiar with MUS, and while they do very well about reviewing as they go, they also don't do a whole lot for memorization if I remember correctly. We are in Beyond and doing Sing 2A/B, and we do extra flashcard practice each day.

[MommyInTraining]

Thanks Ladies.

Carrie and Julie,

Would you mind sharing how you have worked with your children on memorizing math facts?

Thanks so much!

Math is such an issue here!

[water2wine]

I was planning on using Singapore, but now I am concerned. Will they not be able to memorize the facts with Singapore????

I had been using MUS with my oldest and math drills and she still needs work memorizing.

Teri I am finding that my kids using Singapore are having no problems knowing their facts in fact it has been like magic for them really. They have had nothing but Singapore. My kids that use CLE came from public school and they were so messed up in math when I took them out I was afraid I could never do Singapore with them. This was before my little ones were even using Singapore. If I had to do it all over again I would have put them all in Singapore, gotten over my ego about levels because they would have been way back, and just worked through it. I think they would have been better off and the struggle would be less than what we went through. However I did not and they are older now. I have found CLE to be a good compromise and it has the repetition and truly the "reteaching" that my public school taught kids needed. My younger kids are going to stay though with Singapore because I do like it better and for us it has been far more effortless to teach and have them learn. CLE had been good though for my older kids. Sometimes different kids just need different things. But I am finding my Singapore kids are getting their facts down with no issues, in fact I would say ahead of age level. HTH

[Cynthia828]

We use CLE and like it alot. I have learned to skip some of what he already knows well, and it has shortened out time!

[dale1088]

I was planning on using Singapore, but now I am concerned. Will they not be able to memorize the facts with Singapore????

I had been using MUS with my oldest and math drills and she still needs work memorizing.

Carrie's instruction in the early manuals is priceless. She does a lot more than the Home Instructor's Guide recommends. I think that it is worth a try for anyone using HOD. I also think that, if it doesn't work for your particular child, then you can always switch. I would start out with Singapore if that is your plan.

I totally agree with this! My son will start with and probably be able to stick with Singapore and for that I am grateful. But my dd was pulled from school and just couldn't get Singapore. I really just posted to offer encouragement for those who have kids that aren't getting it and still trying to struggle with it. I am going to keep the Challenging Word Problems though and hope to work on those as a supplement with her, and will keep all bought materials for my son.

I actually consider this a victory...I started my homeschooling journey with HoD and have never even had the thought that I wanted to look at anything else, so the fact that I dropped a math program for another is making me feel like a more experienced homeschooler.