http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/teaching_now/2011/06/singapore_math_tough_to_adopt.html read the comments too! It's short...
I really liked the writer's analysis of how the program works. I don't know enough about math curriculum to explain WHY singapore worked for us, just that it did. Now I get it - we are not great with "spiral learning" though the reviews after each chapter are valuable for reinforcement. It also explains why my ds does better with the Keys to Algebra program - each booklet focuses on mastery of that ONE particular aspect of algebra. And while there are some problems I just can't figure out (even with the teacher manual -- we even stumped a library tutor with one of the 5th grade word problems!) the concrete to abstract flow does change the way kids see and understand math. I just wish I had discovered Singapore earlier with my son. Oh, and EVERYTHING is done in fractions (even pi!) which took some getting used to!
