Saxon Math users?

[dubatatamama]

I am currently researching K math curricula for DS. He is almost 5 and working at a K level on some things, and higher in reading. I was researching Saxon Math K and 1 last night and it looks pretty much like what I was looking for.

I have a few questions...do I need to buy the manipulatives kit? We already have pattern blocks, linking cubes, teddy bear counters, etc.

Is the meeting book necessary?

Can you give me some honest reviews of it for those of you using it for your K or 1st graders?

Now my next statement is going to sound strange, but I am kind of looking for something similar to how I learned in PS when I was growing up...I know, I know, I shouldn't be saying that as a HSer, but that seems to be my gut instinct on where my comfort level is. Maybe that is because that is all I know??

Can anyone give me some insight?

Thanks!

[elizawill]

saxon k & 1st are very gentle imho, so whether you like it or not will depend greatly on your child's readiness. saxon k really involves very little writing at all & it assumes your child knows nothing. i used it with my daughter & it was too slow moving for her (although i personally loved it).

however, my little boy is in first grade now (he's 6 1/2) and we use saxon grade 1 with him. it is the perfect fit! it is slow moving, repetitious, hands-on, and requires little writing. it is wonderful! for kindergarten, we used making math meaningful, which was also very gentle.

saxon is expensive, so it could be a costly mistake - but we love it for the grades mentioned above... i just wanted to give you the cons that i see mentioned most often, and that is it's too gentle and slow. hth.

[mommeeoh]

We used Saxon K last year for my oldest and we both liked it. This year she will be doing Saxon 1 (maybe even 2 ...) and her sister Saxon K. We didn't use the Meeting book at all. I made up a blank calendar that I could use for each month and we colored in the patterns as needed. I didn't really follow their system of 13 or so lessons per month either. We started it in January and finished up in May. The beginning lessons were pretty easy for her so we often did 3 or 4 a day 2 or 3 times per week, as the book progressed though we slowed down and were at 1 or 2 per day (depending on the lesson) still 3 or so times per week. But every child is different, I worked on it with dd2 last winter a little when we were snowed in and running out of busy work and 1 lesson per day was plenty for her and I wouldn't exceed 3 per week with her either. It will be interesting to see if/how things may have changed in 6 months.

It sounds like you have the most used manipulatives, at least that I've encountered so far. The only one I can think of (besides a clock, which you likely have too) that you might want is the rubber band board thingie (tanagram??), you might be able to come up with a workaround for that though. We are happy enough with it that we purchased 1, 2 and 3 at a used curriculum sale this summer.

[StormySar]

I love saxon. It isn't expensive - at least for the teachers manual. I bought K and 1 on amazon for a few bucks a book, used teachers editions. I don't buy the workbooks but duplicate the worksheets that are pictured in the teachers manual. I usually hand-write them on scrap paper, but this year am switching to a notebook so all the papers are kept together easier. The meeting book, IMO, is not necessary. I think you can pretty much figure out what to do without the book, and if you already do a daily calendar/weather graph you're already covering most of what's in the meeting book.

I love the approach saxon has, with all the review and hands on activities. I do not think the manipulatives are necessary - I don't have them - and make do with similar objects when I don't have the objects they refer to.

I have found K to be very basic, which I think will be good for my son entering K, and 1st is a bit more advanced. I started my daughter on saxon 1 instead of k because she was ready for something more than what k offered.

[sarajonah]

We just started homeschooling my 4 1/2 year old this year. We are using the Saxon 1 with her. She was already starting to add/subtract herself, so I thought the K curriculum would be boring. We haven't got too far into it yet, but I will say it is slow going if you follow it to the 'T'! We have already learned to do the beginning of one lesson where it goes over the calendar, weather etc... and then go straight to the lessons for several lessons in a row and skip the calendar/weather for the lessons we cover in that day. I did not buy the manipulatives. So far we've used wooden toy blocks and crayons for the counting and towers. I doubt we'll need to buy much in the future either. Looks like we'll be able to use what we have at home for most of the lessons. I believe part of the success of Saxon is that it keeps the kids learning at their current learning level while going back and repeating what they have already learned to keep it fresh as they progress. My daughter likes it so far, so we'll probably continue using it.

[dubatatamama]

Thanks for the great input everyone!

So I am still unsure of where to begin for him...maybe you guys can help me that? He can count to at least 30 by himself and then I usually fill in the 10's (for example, he will count 31, 32...39-then he might not remember where to go from there so I will say 40 and so on), he can identify most numbers up to 100. He is not writing numbers yet, but can write most letters. He can also do one-to-one correspondence counting up to at least 30. He is pretty good with patterns, too. For another example, if I were to put 3 teddy bear counters on his left and 2 on his right, he could count them and say there are 5 bears. But if you wrote "3+2=?" he would not know what that meant or how to figure it out in his head. So when you they talk about addition and subtraction in K or 1st, so they usually mean with manipulatives? He also is not skip counting or anything like that. He can read at around a 1st-2nd grade level, knows the days of the week, months of the year in order, and can read each month if shown a calendar, so I am not sure if we would need the meeting book since that is something we go over each day. We also made a weather chart with a paper plate and clothespin , so he is good with the weather. I know that was a lengthy example, but I am just trying to figure out where to start him. I'm afraid if I skip right to Saxon 1, I might miss something, but I don't want the Saxon K to be too easy for him, you know?

Mommeoh-thanks for the idea about the blank calendar. Also, I know the thing you are talking about and I think it is the geoboard. My husband does woodworking, so he could make one of those very easily.

StormySar-great idea to look for the books used on Amazon!! Thanks for
that!

So, again, thanks everyone for you input and keep it coming!

[elizawill]

i own the manipulatives, and we have used them for over 4 years now - so it's been worth it for us, but they were $60.00! you could just google a picture of saxon k-3 manipulatives and substitute with most things you find at home. we love the meeting book, but it's nothing more than a calendar and weather chart--easy to make at home. the geoboard would be super easy to duplicate with a square piece of wood and nails (or just buy one, they're only a couple of dollars). you could probably buy a TM for cheap at www.homeschoolclassifeds.com too... that's where i find some great deals (along with amazon).

[dubatatamama]

Bumping for any other input

[Naturally organic]

I was HSed and used Saxon in highschool and loved it as did my brother. I'm a reader and my brother is very hands-on and it worked well for us both.

Question about workbooks for K and 1: I haven't seen them for sale anywhere! All I've seen are the teacher's books and meeting books. I flipped through the teacher's book for K and 1 at a used book sale, but I don't need or want the scripted lessons. I'd like to just get the workbooks. Anyone know where/how to find them?

Thanks! Hope the hijack is okay.

Also, instead of the meeting book, what about using a weather/calendar pocket chart? I can see children really enjoy changing the cards in the pockets.

[elizawill]

the student books are consumable, so you probably won't find them used. with K, you reall need the TM, as i don't even remember there being a student workbook (apart from the meeting book)...to my memory, there isn't any writing in K, aside from the meeting book ....but it was a few years ago, so i could be wrong. in grade 1, there are 2 big student books...so far i could get buy using those without the TM...not sure about later lessons though...we haven't got there yet. the meeting book is really cute imho, but you could easily substitute it with any kind of weather chart or calendar.

[dubatatamama]

Originally Posted by Naturally organic

Thanks! Hope the hijack is okay.

Also, instead of the meeting book, what about using a weather/calendar pocket chart? I can see children really enjoy changing the cards in the pockets.

No problem!

I think the pocket chart idea would work really well as a substitute.


Elizawill-You are correct about there not being any writing in the K program. It is all oral. The good news is, that my library has the entire Saxon 1 program so I can decide if we should start there or with the K program.

[heatherdeg]

Saxon has a placement test online. My son was very borderline but falling on the K side. I did K with him in the hopes of filling any gaps just in case. We were able to move through it quickly as a result and I think it was the best thing because he doesn't have that immediate "I can't do math" attitude that many kids get.

You could likely do without the Saxon manipulatives and just buy what you need as you need it.

I actually like Saxon, but I'm someone that believes firmly in the whole "having a solid foundation" mindset for math. So although I'm way NOT big on the school-at-home thing, we will continue to use Saxon. It works for my kid. The lessons are mercifully short and manipulative-based... perfect for my ADHD tactile son. We did the K year when he was Pre-K age-wise and we could often do 2-3 lessons in a day with no difficulty at all.

I'm actually really sorry we didn't do the meeting book. Notsomuch for the patterns but for the calendar familiarity. You can find them unused on eBay, etc.

Oh, and some people hate Saxon because they say Saxon repeats a topic during the year--and it does, but with increasing difficulty each time. So it's not exactly just repetition, it's building complexity.

[LemonPie]

It didn't turn out to be a good fit for us, but I do think it's a very solid program. K is very basic--identifying numbers 0-20, patterns, etc.

[dubatatamama]

Thanks for your reviews guys!

heatherdeg-I actually just found out about the placement tests from one of the mom's in our HS group and printed it. I am in total agreement with you that I'd rather start with K even knowing that it would be on the easy side for him and have him gain confidence, then to start with 1st and have it be too challenging for him. My DH wants to start with level 1 after looking at it for 5 seconds because he feels like he can already do 50-75% of it and doesn't want to have him be bored. I think I might get both because I have DD who is only 14 months behind DS.

[MyFullHouse]

I love the idea of Saxon Math, but the lower levels didn't work in our house. My girls much prefer the colorful, engaging pages of Calvert Math. I know a lot of people say that Calvert's graphics are too distracting for their child, though. Plus, the price tag is MUCH higher than Saxon!

Otoh, Saxon has been perfect for my ds for Algebra 1/2 and Algebra 1. He prefers straight forward instruction and exercises.

It really does come down to each child's learning style. If you can get Saxon cheap, try it out. I'd personally start with 1, rather than K, but I have kids who give me attitude when I try to give them "easy" work.

[tankgirl73]

I haven't used Saxon K, we did try Saxon 5/4 with DS but it was a disaster, totally the wrong fit for him at the time. I do hear quite frequently that Saxon K is a totally different beast, so it may be just what you're looking for.

In regards to your second statement, though, about your comfort level. That's fine, we do all have our limits of what we're comfortable stretching out of and what we're not. But I *do* still suggest you investigate all your options before committing... maybe you already have, but I do have to say it. For instance, I always highly recommend Right Start for ANYONE looking for a math program. It is VERY different than how we learned math in school, and takes somewhat of a leap of faith to trust the different approach.

But I can tell you, and pretty much everyone who has used it will tell you, that the payoff is enormous and it really is a brilliant program. It's based on Montessori methods and also on how math is taught in countries like Japan. The concepts of place value and recognizing quantity/adding/etc WITHOUT counting are just so solid. My DD is not yet 4yo, and she can accurately identify any quantity up to 100 using these concepts, and we're only at lesson 26 in level A.

They truly learn how numbers relate and interact, how patterns of numbers work together, rather than just 'counting on' or using your fingers or memorizing fact families. DD is already seeing how 4+2 is the same as 5+1 just by sliding one over to the other side (and she knows that 5 and 1 is 6, just as she knows 5 and 4 is 9 instantly).

With what your son already is able to do, he'd probably start with level B instead of A, both are beginning levels, A is for younger kids.

Anyway, maybe you'll still decide that Saxon is best for you and that's fine. I just had to make my usual RS plug.