good math curric for 2nd grader who needs "hands on"?

[inky leeuhhh]

the title basically says it all! dd has special needs and will be doing first grade math over again. she needs things like manipulatives to help her learn (ideas for those would be appreciated, too!). what do you all think?

[moominmamma]

Obvious programs to look at would be Miquon Math (highly conceptual, somewhat chaotic for the parent, unconventional, inexpensive and IMO brilliant, based on cuisenaire rods) or RightStart Math (expensive, conceptual, well-laid out, fairly conventional, based on the AL-Abacus and numerous other supplementary games and manipulatives). For a kid on the spectrum I might lean towards RS for its clear, sequential structure.

Miranda

[~Boudicca~]

Math-U-See is working great for my 2/3 grader right now.  She is a very hands on kind of kid, she loves the blocks and the demo videos and teacher manual have definitely helped me figure out how to present this stuff to her (omg do I feel like  fish out of water trying to teach math to anyone).  And my 4 y/o can play with the blocks while I'm working with big sister so she stays out of my hair for a little bit with those.

http://www.mathusee.com/

[queenofchaos]

Saxon is probably the best.  If you really need something that uses manips, and the pace is very gentle with lots of repitition (of course you can tailor the pace).  Minquon is brilliant, but there is a lot of prep (I have 8 kids which include infant twins, so time spent of prep is a huge factor for me).  Saxon has little prep and all lessons are scripted ( I always just read the lesson and did my own thing).  MathUSee is ok, but it doesn't cover as many topics as Saxon.  Saxon is a bit pricey, as all the lessons are laid out and has good instructions, it is worth it (cuts way down on teacher prep).  We use Christian Light Math (very little religous content actually), but I don't think it would be suitable for what it sounds like your DD needs. 

[wombatclay]

We use RightStart (dd1 is a carbon copy of DH, right down to his ADHD, and dd2 has some neurological quirks that force us to be a bit more creative with teaching than we might have been otherwise) and have found that actually holding/touching the abacus makes a big difference in terms of their learning and retention.  There are other hands-on tools in the program (geoboards, pattern blocks, tile squares, tally sticks, etc) and the approach is more "relaxed" than most math programs (meaning the program actually encourages parents to back off and "just play the math games and try again in a few days" when a child is having difficulty instead of trying to push through) which is nice in terms of helping both parent and child avoid frustration.  There are several songs and poems used in the early levels, and activities that involve whole body learning (clapping, tapping, dancing, holding up fingers, etc) so that might help, depending on your daughter's specific needs.

It IS a pricey system, but once you've purchased one level, you can purchase "add on kits" for the next levels so it's not as bad as it could be.  I think they usually suggest level B for first grade, but level A and B actually overlap a lot and I'd suggest starting with level A... your daughter probably already knows a lot of the material covered in the first 30-40 lessons of level A (there are 70-80 lessons per level) and that could give a nice confidence boost while also reinforcing foundational skills that will come in handy later on no matter what math program you use.

[inky leeuhhh]

great ideas guys, now i have something to go off of. thanks!

[AllyRae]

Yes, this, exactly.  We use RS, and have a child on the spectrum, and it works out well.  If you know anything about the Montessori method, RS fits in that really really well.  In fact, some of the manipulatives are taken directly from the Montessori method.

Originally Posted by moominmamma 

Obvious programs to look at would be Miquon Math (highly conceptual, somewhat chaotic for the parent, unconventional, inexpensive and IMO brilliant, based on cuisenaire rods) or RightStart Math (expensive, conceptual, well-laid out, fairly conventional, based on the AL-Abacus and numerous other supplementary games and manipulatives). For a kid on the spectrum I might lean towards RS for its clear, sequential structure.

Miranda

[Aeress]

We use Hands on Standards, which follows the NCTM standards, and it very hands on. It is manipulative and paper based, which has worked well for my visual/spatial learner as well as my kiddo who has a reading/vision issue.

 The curriculum itself covers Pre-K, K, 1-2, 3-4, which I like. In fact we are on our 2nd yr of it and I can see how coming back to the concept is really helping to reinforce concepts. I found it cheaper to purchase the manipulatives on my own, and you need to make copies of the BLM (black line masters) but that is pretty inexpensive and if you laminate them, you can use them as a wipe off board.

They also have 5-6, 7-8.

Edited by Aeress - 7/9/11 at 8:02am

[mommy68]

I have known a lot of people use used Math U See over the years. My son tried it in 3rd grade but didn't like it. We also have used Switched on Schoolhouse for all curriculums in the past and it's all software based but presented in an easy to learn format. :) Good luck!

[inky leeuhhh]

ok, so we ended up ordering the right start program. i needed to order asap before i spent our money on something else  . i looked through everything for a couple hours this morning, and this one looks like the best fit. i'm so excited to try it!  it was pricey, but i'm willing to spend more money on math because it's one of her problem areas. i'm going to be saving this thread to come back to in case we need to try something else, thanks everyone!

[wombatclay]

Not sure if this will help, but the tally sticks that come with RightStart are plain old wooden tongue depressor type things.  I went to our local dollar store and bought a few packs of brightly colored/patterned wooden pencils.  They're not perfect (they roll unless I put down a towel first), but the plain tally sticks just didn't hold my dd1's attention, and my dd2 didn't like the way they felt (she has sensory issues and don't like "rough" texture on her hands so the smooth painted surface of the pencils made her happy in terms of actually touching/countin with them).

Your daughter may not care one way or the other, but just in case... dollar store pencils can be a handy tweak!

[inky leeuhhh]

Originally Posted by wombatclay 

Not sure if this will help, but the tally sticks that come with RightStart are plain old wooden tongue depressor type things.  I went to our local dollar store and bought a few packs of brightly colored/patterned wooden pencils.  They're not perfect (they roll unless I put down a towel first), but the plain tally sticks just didn't hold my dd1's attention, and my dd2 didn't like the way they felt (she has sensory issues and don't like "rough" texture on her hands so the smooth painted surface of the pencils made her happy in terms of actually touching/countin with them).

Your daughter may not care one way or the other, but just in case... dollar store pencils can be a handy tweak!

thank you, i think she might like the colors more. good idea!