Math

Now that we have decided to leave the cyber school, I realized I have become solely responsible for selecting what math the boys will be working on next year. Freeing yet frightening! The boys are plodding along in the Calvert math series this year. For EM, I do a lot of enrichment activities with math. He is flying through the first grade Calvert math. When he completes one of the tests, I browse through the next 20 lessons, pick out the concepts I know he hasn't mastered (usually only one or two) and give him the next test the next week. He will be done with their math by Christmas. I suddenly realized, I need a game plan for him before then. I spent some time on the Singapore math site today. I was fairly certain I wanted to pursue that option with him before today, but now I am absolutely sure. The site has a few very useful tools. Under the homeschool tab, they have placement tests available. I plan to give EM the 1A placement test next week. I am thinking I will start him with the 1B books when we have completed Calvert. That way, when he begins the year as a 2nd grader, he will also be starting the 2A math book.

JT is a different story. His first few years of schooling, like most gifted kids, he flew through the math that he already knew. Now we are running into road blocks. We have had to slow down so he can master long division. The lesson 80 test in Calvert is made up of almost all division problems. I told him I would not allow him to take that test until I thought he was ready. Maybe in a week or two he can do it. Looking at the rest of the math for the year, we should be able to move quickly through most of the remaining material. At that point, I'm not really sure where to start him with Singapore. Even the 4A placement test has concepts he has not encountered yet. I am seriously considering just starting him at that point. I'm just worried he will see the 4A book and assume he is not doing well. I know 4 doesn't necessarily mean 4th grade, but will he, even when I assure him it's fine? I had my own insecurities in math growing up...I don't want to see him have the same problems.

One other thing, not related to math...today on Pioneer Woman's blog, there was a post that mentioned a spelling web site, Spelling City. This site is a dream come true for me! For absolutely no charge, I can enter the boys spelling words and the site will generate games using those words. Matching games, word finds, unscramble, you name it, they have it. We spent the first 45 minutes of our day playing. My husband did discover that it doesn't know all words...thermodynamics was not in it's repertoire, however, repertoire is. Again today I find myself wondering, how did all those homeschooling moms survive before the internet came along?