using multiple math programs concurrently

I’m wondering how many of you are using multiple math programs and how you organize yourself.

We are using Right Start, Singapore and I really want to resurrect my Jones Genius stuff. But…how much of a good thing is just too much? I’m getting overwhelmed with the pressure of wanting to do it all…and, I hate to admit it, but the supermom gene didn’t get passed on to me. :frowning:

How do you schedule the use of multiple resources? How do you keep track of all the programs and ensure that the key strategies of each program are being learned before you’ve “passed” that topic of learning with another program? And, have any of you discovered whether it really matters? Have you jumped back into a program and thought “Man! I should have taught it this way…”???

We are doing JumpMath and Jones Genius. Once I taught the basics of the Matrix 1, I just turned our Candyland game into Matrix practice by writing equations in the matrix format on the color cards. They have to solve two to one problems before going to the color spaces on the card. I play this with my 3 and 4 year old. It gives them practice that interests them. They love the board of that game.

For Jump Math, I work with them individually for 20 minutes a piece during the 1 year old’s nap time. JumpMath has a lot of games so even though we covered the topic, they still like the games from previous lessons so we play those intermittently.

To keep track of it all, I generally try to keep a planner of scheduled activities. What I have learned about math at this age, is that you can present it one way and you are absolutely sure that it has been mastered. Then you present it another way and you feel that you haven’t even taught the concept at all. While I thought of math as mostly climbing a ladder upward, I have learned that some concepts require building laterally. The are numerous ways to skin a cat as they say so at this age I think its good to do so while building upwards as well.

I think making Jones Genius matrix one into a game really saved me in balancing it all. JumpMath often feels like a bunch of programs in one as it tackles a concept in so many different ways. I like it though because I feel confident when its all said and done that the topic was covered thoroughly. I also don’t find the kids get confused by it all either.

Keeping a journal or planner is also a lifesaver. I tried a sticker chart to help them see how much they were accomplishing with a reward system. I still have to tweek the reward system, but this seem to work well with the little ones. It even help me keep track of how productive our day was. I am not a super mom either. I have to have this structure or I would be lost everyday and all over the place.

We own and use a ridiculous number of math programs, and I have to say that the hardest part is getting organized!
If you are constantly jumping back and forth from program to program without a true set of guidelines, I think it would be very easy to confuse a child, burn ourself out, and possibly miss out on important points or aspects. Of course, this probably depends a lot upon the child in question and the focus of the parent, but I can tell you what we have done and what seems to work well for us.

Alex has always really seemed to enjoy anything math related, quite possibly due in part to our emphasis on it. Regardless of anything else we opt to work on, reading/language and math are the biggest focal points in this house, with science simply along for the ride daily as it just lends itself to being taught efficiently through every activity, exercise, book, etc. :slight_smile:

The very first thing we did officially, although we started ‘math’ almost from the day Alex was born, was to
adopt a ‘Marshmallow Math’ style approach. However, I never did it topic by topic, but read through in its entirety and adopted as many ideas concurrently, in addition to my own. This was the impetus for adopting several various programs, and portions of programs into our math activities.

We started with Jones Geniuses Math Matrix, as this was very easy for a tiny tot to work with. But I constantly had to find more and more math games, activities, challenges to implement during play, because she begged for it and, of course, a toddler’s attention span required VERY short bursts in incredible frequency!

So…now, as Alex fast approaches her third birthday, she is ready for more structure.
The one thing I think is absolute most important: PICK A SPINE to follow, and set aside time every day for it…it doesn’t have to be a huge amount of time…the idea is that you are teaching them that math is an everyday activity, important, and worthy of your time and theirs! If you tend to just slot it in when and if there is time, in a haphazard fashion, I think this sends them the message that it isn’t as important as other things…don’t get me wrong, we still ‘play’ math all day long, incorporating into driving time, board games, songs, her jumping on trampoline, etc., but a structured time is expected, and she looks forward to it.

We have been using RS as our Spine, but we also do bits of Singapore (much better at concepts such as weight, length, number bonds, and more), working on ‘equations’, c-rods and Miquon for a ‘lab’ approach, Jones Genius Math 3 for its memory work and peg system, Life of Fred, Adventures of Penrose, for fun. We occasionally still jump on iXL for a treat, she has almost mastered her multiplication tables via multiplication.com materials, and we sometimes pick and choose an approach from other sources. She loves Peter Weatherall Math now, but that is a ‘treat’ she earns:)

How do I fit it I ? I read ahead by about a week in RS, then go through the other materials to pick and choose their approaches to the same topics, and try to incorporate them into either play or activities leading up to the RS lesson…when the actual RS lesson comes, I often find that it is a bit of a non-event! She is oftenso well-prepared by our ‘hard preparation work’ prior, that the RS lesson becomes just fine-tuning and reinforcement. This also ensures that our sit-down lessons have very little stress and mutual frustration.

I also LOVE that we read a huge number of math literature books as she gets reading practice with a good helping of math. These are some of her favorites, and there are SO many to choose from!

I also REALLY benefitted brom the Kitchen Table Math books…but again, I read through the entire first one and began implementing ideas concurrently, rather than a truly linear approach. It is SO much easier to do the prep work day to day…for example, temperature…every time we go out, from the time she was small, we told her the temperature. We gave her relative temperatures, like a pleasant day, a coat day, swimming outside days, how hot the oven, a bath, the refrigerator, etc are…now, she can tell you approximately what temperature it is in both degrees Fahrenheit and Celsius it is just by experience. Showing her how to do it on a thermometer was a breeze.

It does get to the point where she thinks of ‘math’ as her lesson at the table (usually 15-20 min), and the rest is just fun and games throughout the day!

Oh! And there is a great McGraw Hill app called Tric-Trac that masters addition (it is fun and addicting, strategic as well!) that is her reward of choice!

This is great! Thanks for verbalizing the idea of a “spine”, Kerileanne. I’ve seen you use it in a different thread and had already transferred that idea to my math conundrum…seeing it here is an affirmation :slight_smile: I’m not sure why, but sometimes I feel less confident than I need to. I know being cocky isn’t good either, but sometimes I just need my hand to be held for a little bit - so thanks, to both of you who have commented! Your suggestions will be read again, and applied!

I am curious about the other programs you’ve mentioned, but knowing myself (and I’m slowly starting to) I know that a great program that sits on the shelf isn’t fulfilling anyone’s dream for it…so, I will resist temptation (for a bit anyway!) and review what I do have, make a plan and implement it…THEN maybe poke around for more supplementary ideas. Thank you!

I use multiple programs with all of my kids and just maybe because I am crazy they don’t all use the same programs! Or maybe it is because they have such different personalities… :yes:
I agree that choosing a spine to commit to is a great idea. in fact you don’t even need to actually use your spine with your child! You spine program could just be the most comprehensive math program you can find ( I am hinting at IXL if you don’t have one chosen and you decide to choose this path) and you use it to decide WHAT to teach your kid, than teach them using something else.
Personally I love card and dice games for learning math facts. It’s easy to get the repetition up.
In our house. Each day ( OK most days) the kids all do a small amount of math from their spine curriculum. Then I may add in something else if they have a weekness I have noticed, or I think they could handle some extention work.
If your spine curriculum is good you could find yourself racing through it and rarely looking elsewhere for supliment. I only occasionally supplement my oldest daughters Saxon but often supplement my younger two who use rightstart and another little known text book.
Now after saying all that one program ( provided we already Bragg about it here on the forum :laugh: ) is enough for a good math education. So don’t feel pressure to purchase more. Especially as you say they end up gathering dust on the shelf!

We use many programs. We still really only play math. Lots of games. James does several workbooks if he is in the mood. But we aren’t strict about them. He is only 2.

We use IXL.com as our spine and testing site.
I gather all my programs together and I make sure they cover all the content on IXL.com.
Currently James is doing level Kindergarten math. He passed all the Pre-K stuff over the summer.
We have 4 Kindergarten math work books by various publishers (Spectrum, SchoolZone, Math Mammoth and FlashKids) We do Miquon Math, RS math, Singapore Math concepts like number bonds and JG dot matrix.

I use Kitchen Table Math and Marshmallow math for content and ideas also. I read both books completely and we do math through our daily life. For example we talk about fractions when I am cutting my son’s lunch. We use positional words all the time. James counts out money for the ride on toy at the store. We talk about fewer, more and equal as we play cars on the floor. We talk about more, less, full, empty as he fills and drinks a cup of water. The math implementation in daily life goes on and on.
We do play math games. and frankly my son makes most of those up as we go. Right now his favorite is to match dominos to flash cards and to add each set of numbers to get the sum. That was one game he created.
We also do math apps on the iPad. Although he seems to be on a app hiatus at the moment. Instead he is a big fan of a Mathtacular DVD.

I mentioned that I use IXL.com for testing. The site is almost free. This means that you can access the content. And you can do a few free questions each day. What I opt to do is buy an unlimited monthly subscription for a month or however long I need it. I then let James go through and do all the questions for each grade level and prove his mastery. Earlier this year I paid for a month so James could complete all the Pre-k math. I then suspended my account. In a few months when I feel he is ready I will reactivate my account and pay for a month or 2 and let James work through the K level content. I will then deactivate once he has completed it. And we will move onto 1st grade.
Which means regathering all my programs, purchasing a few cheap mainstream workbooks for 1st grade. And using IXL.com for my 1st grade math content.

For math programs, I don’t they are the more the better…I think two is the best, one for ordinary-day practice and the other for weekend review. :smiley: My daughter is currently using only one math program beestar. It’s helpful. There are two worksheets per week, so I help DD review school work everyday and DD does the practices at weekend. I am still looking for the ordinary one…
Lisa