We just began using TT 4 for my daughter. She has been using Saxon for the last 2 years and we have just grown tired of the program. My question is for those of you that have used TT 3-6, is this program enough on its own. It seems to be really easy for my daughter. She is in 3rd grade, but we are using 4. Any input??
I know TT, like most programs, tends to start easy as it's a review of the previous level's material. My son tested out from Singapore a grade level ahead of where he was. At first, the material was very easy for him; however, it did get more challenging as he went into it more. Of course, part of that was that I realized he wasn't doing all the work, and I doubt he was listening to the lectures. Now, he's finishing up redoing those sections and has found that they were a little more challenging than he thought. Does she feel like it's way too easy? We asked my son [age 8 - TT 5] if it was too easy, too hard, or just right because we were concerned it might be too easy. He felt like it was just right, and his more current grades [near the end of the program] indicate that the material did get a little more challenging for him.
Same here with Phillip. We put him in TT5 this year, changing from Saxon mid-way last September. The important thing for me is that I'm no longer fighting with him over math. If it's too easy, you can always move him up to a higher grade. Take what Shelley said. Her 8yo is doing TT5. By "age", he should be around 3 or 4. But obviously that would be WAY too easy for him, so she put him WHERE HE BELONGED, not what his age "dictated" him to be at.
Shelly and Jackie,l that is what I did. I put dd in 4 because that fit her academically. My ds started TT pre algebra last year in 7th grade and did fine until about half way through and hit a wall. He had used MUS up until then and was lacking in several areas. So I used the summer to focus on those with the Key to series and now ds is doing excellent in Pre-Algebra. I do agree the lessons get harder as they go. It is a lot of review at the beginning. We tried Abeka but it just overwhelmed my dd. She went from having full lessons on new concepts to being just thrown into it. After 3 days we had a melt down. I just don't feel we are getting anything from Saxon any longer. I love the program but it has become a battle of wills when it comes to doing the lessons. I hardly ever second guess myself, but it seems like their is more pressure among my homeschool moms to over do the curriculum. Some do up to 3 different math programs at a time. I think it would be confusing for the child, IMO. But as many of you know being around that can make you feel inferior in your choices. In the end, I guess I felt that maybe it was too easy because dd doesn't fight about doing math anymore. But then neither has my ds since switching to TT. Hmm, maybe I should just listen to them and do what works. LOL
It is a lot of review in the beginning. My son - who was behind in math a bit last year (3rd Grade doing 2nd grade level work) did test into TT level 4, and even for him the first 30 or so lessons were review and very easy for him. I let him double up for a few weeks, when it started getting harder, he slowed down to one lesson a day. He's still gonna be done before the end of the year - and I might use the Key To series (thank you!) supplement before moving into TT 5. BTW...fighting over Math ended with TT in our house as well. It's been a total blessing and the best decision I ever made. HTH.
I agree with you all... TT had been a God-send to us! My DS in 3rd gr tested into 4th, and the first 20-25 lessons were easy. But know that he's into lesson 35 it's starting to get a little tougher. I only add in multiplication drills because we were slack on them last year. Hope this helps!
We do TT 5. My daughter skipped 3rd grade and went from 2nd to 4th last year and is now in 5th, this is a little easy for her...but she loves math and progresses fine. At the end of the year she schored really high in computation and lacking in a couple of areas that TT did not cover much of, but all in all she did great. For us, it is all about no tears in math class...mine, or hers! lol! When it gets to calculus and algebra, how can it be too easy? I don't even know what calculus is. lol!!!
What I have done both with TT and Saxon is to not bother with all the review. I would give the first test, and if the child did well, we would go to the next one. We would do a test each day, until the grade dipped down from 90's to 70's. This year, Phillip came to me and told me himself that THIS was where he should start. He was half-way through the test, and he said that he got two right that he was going to count wrong, because he guessed and really didn't know what he was doing. Then he missed another two, so he figured he wouldn't even finish the test.
Yea, I agree with Jackie. In the beginning of TT, my dd was flying through and a little bored. I had her jump to the quiz. If she missed more than two, we stayed there. If she got them all right, we went forward and skipped some lessons.
Same here. We started TT5 when ds was n 3rd grade and plan to use it til the end of 4th grade. Then we're doing TT7 from the beginning of 5th grade to the end of 6th. (we do math 3 a week)
Our kids worked through TT 7 and Pre-Algebra with scores on every lesson of 90% or better. We were thrilled because our math battles seemed to be over. That's when we realized they were able to plug numbers into a formula but didn't really understand a few really important concepts for Algebra (specifically, the distributive property and exponents.) So, we changed for Algebra. It's easy to let the computer (TT 7) do all the teaching/grading and it's easy to just check answers in Pre-Algebra. I know if when I checked their work with the answer key and they got it right, I didn't give it a second thought. If you choose to use TT, I would suggest doing a few follow up questions/problems and make sure they understand - not just get it right - or you'll end up having trouble later. Luckily my husband is a math whiz and has been able to catch the gaps and reteach what they needed. Best wishes!
I second that idea, Jill. My son has had few lessons that he did poorly on, so I had him re-do those lessons in the workbook. Almost all of them he did correctly, and the ones he didn't we went over until he did understand. It is VERY easy to let the computer do the work, but I think we have to stay on top of things and make sure they aren't just good guessers! LOL
Jill, thanks for that reminder. We have not hit that too much, yet....but I can totally see how that would happen. My kids do the workbook first, then they watch the lecture and fill out the computer program. So, for us, I usually know they're not getting it. If they're not getting it...we watch the lecture part together, then they do the workbook pages and go back to fill in the computer (shhhhhh....they don't realize they're doing it twice!!!). I really wish they would ALWAYS watch the lecture first, then do the workbook, etc. But...alas...I like no fighting!!!!
I am so glad I searched for this thread. I was about to post a question, but this answered it for me I am about to order TT. My son is in grade 4, but I am ordering Math 3. He has been very resistant to math for the last year or more. He HATES workbooks, and fell in love with the sample lessons. I am ordering Math 3, for the review and so he does not miss out on any of the multiplication. He is definately not ready for Math 4 yet.
