Finding the perfect math program is like locating an elusive treasure. Everyone is looking for it and everyone truly believes they will find it. I thought I had it, for a while… And I still believe it’s the closest-to-perfect math curriculum for 1 – 6. It’s Singapore Math, in case you haven’t already guessed. Singapore promotes mathematical understanding rather than learning through memorization or formula. I love that it gives my kids the tools to apply their understanding to everyday problems. I remember when Daisy was 7, she would mentally calculate my change when I made purchases and then she’d whisper the answer to me. Now she beats me at tough math problems. We’ll be sitting together working on a problem and she’ll begin talking through the process. I used to stop her and try to explain my thought process (which was always longer and required a lot of scribbling) but eventually I realized that she is almost always right and her way of getting to the answer – while foreign to me – is much more efficient. Now I wait as she explains it, nod wisely, and check the back of the book for the answer. The degree to which she is able to manipulate numbers mentally astounds me – and that agility definitely comes from Singapore.
I used Singapore with Daisy from 1A to 6B – happily. I didn’t even have to employ the repellant technique that many homeschoolers use when they’re happy with their curriculum and don’t want to hear about the newest “best” thing (that would be the sophisticated put-your-fingers-in-your-ears-and-sing-la-la-la-la technique). However, when Sam got old enough I began taking a serious look at Right Start. Right Start is Asian based, which I like. It also uses a ton of different manipulatives, which I also like. Sam had a speech delay, so the fact that RS required a lot of parental participation and a lot of verbal exchange between the parent and the student was a plus for me. I figured I could have some one-on-one time with Sam, work on speech, and teach math all at the same time. Sam hated it. He called it “the white book” and he dreaded the sight of it. Finally, in exasperation, he said to me, “This is just talk, talk, talk…I want to do real math!!” And by that he meant the Singapore books he had watched his sister work through for years. I relented and pulled out a Singapore book for him. He’s been happily doing math ever since.
I’m now using Right Start with Harry. He loves the songs, he loves the manipulatives, and he loves the one-on-one time. I plan to use Right Start as our main curriculum and add a little Singapore in now and then. Eventually (probably by grade 3 or so) I plan to transition completely over to Singapore and just supplement with RS games.
On to Daisy…we were fine until she finished 6B. Then we floundered. She was young…just 9 when she finished. We tried New Elementary Math and it was a disaster. I had a baby that October and didn’t have the mental headspace to figure out NEM. So, we switched to Teaching Textbooks Algebra 1. Disaster again. She would get 90% one day and 20% the next. I couldn’t figure out what she didn’t understand and because I wasn’t in the loop (TT is self-teaching) I couldn’t help her. We did a few of the Key to Algebra books, we did some strange BC math, and we floundered for a while. It was Ok, we had time to flounder, it’s not like we’re in a rush or anything. The next year we tried New Syllabus Math and it was a much better fit…having a little more mental energy probably contributed to that. We added in Russian Math - which I love and now really believe it is the perfect follow up to the Singapore primary series. Now we’re dabbling in Japanese math, I’m not sure what I think of it yet but it came highly recommended. I’ll let you know how it goes. The plan for now is to continue with Russian as our primary until we transition to Japanese as our primary. We’ll continue to work through Singapore on a supplemental basis.
Why I like Singapore:
1. Instills a strong understanding of mathematics through conceptual understanding.
2. Focus on “thinking strategies” before drill (more on this later).
3. Requires a high degree of skill and thinking from students – definitely a rigorous program.
4. The pages are uncluttered and don’t overwhelm.
5. It’s easy to teach.
The word problems are a good example of the expectations of a Singapore student. I want my kids to be up to the challenge of the Singapore problems:
These word problems are from the new edition of Saxon Homeschool 5/4 and the 3rd edition of Singapore 4A/4B.
| Saxon 5/4 | Singapore 4A & 4B |
| Jamaal bought apples at 5 cents per pound. He spent 95 cents. How many pounds did Jamaal buy? | A metre of ribbon cost $4. Mary bought two pieces of ribbon each of length 3 m 50 cm. How much did she pay for the 2 pieces of ribbon? |
| Pamela listened to half of a 90-minute tape. How many minutes of the tape did she hear? | Mingli works 8h 30 min everyday in a factory. She is paid $5 each hour. a) How many hours does she work for six days? b) How much does she earn for six days? |
| Laura placed 243 paint cans on the shelf. Ninety-five of the cans fell during the earthquake. How many paint cans stayed on the shelf? | Mary had 1240 picture cards. She kept 80 cards for herself and gave the rest to a group of children. Each child received 8 cards. How many children were there in the group? |
This table compares word problems from Saxon Algebra 1 (typically 8th or 9th grade) with Singapore 6B (typically beginning of 7th grade).
| Saxon Algebra 1 | Singapore 6B |
| Gertrude cut a 76 meter rope into two pieces. The long piece was 12 meters longer than the short piece. How long was each piece? | The total length of three riboons, A, B, and C is 2.6m. Ribbon A is 60cm longer than Ribbon B. Ribbon C is 50 cm longer than Ribbon B. Find the length of Ribbon A. |
| Ben and Christy hide 600 raisins. This is 60% more than they hid last month. How many raisins did they hide last month? | A club had 600 members. 60% of them were males. When another 200 new members joined the club, the percentage of members who were males was reduced to 50%. How many of the new members were males? |
| The freight train headed north at 9am at 40 miles per hour. Two hours later the express train headed north at 60 miles per hour. What time was it when the express was 20 miles farther from town than the freight? | At 12:00 noon, Henry left Town P and cycled towards Town Q at 15 km/h. At 12:10pm, Pual left Town Q and cycled towards Town P at 12 km/h along the same road. If they meet each other at 12:30pm, find the distance between the two towns. |
This table compares ratio word problems from Saxon Algebra 1/2 (typical grade?) with Singapore 6B (typically beginning of 7th grade).
| Saxon Algebra 1/2 | Singapore 6B |
| The ratio of the number of birds to the number of beasts is 3 to 7. How many beasts were there when the birds numbered 750? | The ratio of the number of John’s stamps to the number of Peter’s stamps is 5:8. Peter has 18 more stamps than John. If Peter gives 22 stamps to John, what will be the new ratio of the number of John’s stamps to Peter’s? |
| The ratio of the number of smilers to the number of frowners was 13 to 2. When 52 students were smiling, how many were frowning? | The ratio of men to the number of women in a factory is 3:8. There are 120 more women than men. If the number of men increases by 3 and the number of women decreases by 12, what will be the new ratio of the number of men to the number of women? |
| The ratio of detritus to valuables was 2 to 9. If 80 pounds of detritus lay about, how many pounds of valuables were there? |
Finally compare Abeka Pre-Algebra (typical grade?) with Singapore 6B (typically beginning of 7th grade).
| Abeka Pre-Algebra | Singapore 6B |
| George Biddle bought a new van that cost $21,450. He made a 20% down payment. How much was his down payment? | A shopkeeper had 4 handbags which were of the same cost price. He sold three of them at 40% more than cost price. He sold the fourth handbag at cost price. He received $260 altogether. Find the cost price of each handbag. |
| The science club recently earned $523.50 in a candy sale. From the money, 75% is to be used for a field trip. How much of the money is for a field trip? Find the answer to the nearest whole cent. | Hassan gave 60% of a sum of money to his wife and 25% of the remainder to his mother. He still had $240 left. How much was the sum of money? |
| In the past, 85% of the student’s taking Mr. Kressy’s algebra class made a B or higher. If Mr. Kressy has 40 students this year, how many students will make a B or higher if this trend continues? | There are 5% more boys than girls at an art club. If there are 2 more boys than girls, how many children are there altogether? |
