Decision to make in math for my 2 grader to be

I personally use Math-U-See. SCM recommends Right Start or MUS for that age. 

I am not familiar with Singapore, so have no comment about that.

A Beka is not Charlotte Mason, but rather traditional, so I could not recommend it at all, as I am a CM die-hard. LOL

Blessings,

Lindsey

We’ve used all 3 of those.  

Rightstart was too teacher-intensive for me.  I’m pregnant with my 5th, so my teaching time is very valuable!  If my DC were more spread out in age, it would have been a better choice.  When I realized I’d eventually have 3 using the program at once, I decided to switch.  It’s very CM friendly…although I found the lessons to be a bit long.  I think many moms set a timer and stop when it goes off, even in the middle of a lesson.  I only used level A of this program.

Singapore was a good program and I think it fits well with CM methods (short lessons, manipulatives, “why’s” of math, etc.).  It’s pretty challenging and would be especially good for an average or above-average math student.  The lessons required a bit of time on my part to study and prepare.  It was different than how I learned math so I had to re-learn a bit.  My DD struggles with math, so we switched to MUS last year as I thought it would be a better fit.  I used levels 1-3 of this program.

MathUSee is CM friendly as well.  I like being able to watch the videos with my DC and it saves on teaching time.  The lessons are short and they love skipping pages when they easily get the concepts.  It has been the easiest for me to use.  So far I’ve only used Gamma, but I’m switching all my DC to it this year.  We’ll have 3 levels of math going at once, so I need easy!  

I think any of the three would be a good choice.  

If you only have a few children – I’d vote for RightStart all the way….

If you have more children….. I’d vote for RightStart if you can combine a couple at the same level/lesson, or can set a timer for what works for your family, or have older kids teach younger kids, or your older ones would be ready to read the lessons independently and learn (even though it isn’t designed that way until level G – I have heard a few people do that for levels D or E) – or are otherwise ready to commit the time to teach independently……

Otherwise the Math-U-See sounds like it can work well for large families as there tends to be a lesson, then a few days of worksheets so you can stagger who has a lesson….

btw – There is a new edition coming out of RightStart and I do think it sounds even better…  Level B is due out very soon.  I’m not sure where your son would place on the placement test (I’d guess either level B or C) – if Level B, I’d be likely to go with the new edition unless you were wanting to find used resources.  They are committed to continue to sell and support 1st Edition (as the do with an even older program (Activities for the Al Abacu).

I think Rightstart is great for a child who learns best with visual examples. Also, for the parent who wants specific instructions in teaching math concepts, as it is beautifully scripted to help the teacher explain new concepts to the students. Ds and I tried Rightstart level B for 2 weeks last year, but it wasn’t a good fit for us. Mainly, my ds and I calculate math mentally or by writing the numbers out better. When I sold my Rightstart lessonbook, I kept many of fhe manipulatives, the Al abacus, and the games. I feel those are a wonderful supplement to any math program, only its less overwhelming for me to use the manipulatives one at a time as needed for reinforcement vs. using different ones for the bulk of every lesson.

MEP (which is an online free CM friendly math program, except for printing costs) is a perfect math fit for ds and me. I haven’t seen Singapore, but think it might be similar to MEP.

If 5yo dd doesn’t take to the MEP program well when I start formal math with her next year, I plan to try Math U See, since I like what I’ve viewed of that program. I love the idea of Rightstart better, just Math U See seems more straightforward and less teacher intensive.

We use MUS and it works well for me because it is easy to do with a large family. I teach one lesson a week and they practice all week and then do their test when they are ready. Sometimes they practice more than a week or less depending on how well they grasp the concept quickly. I have eight kiddos ranging in age from 12 down to 1 month old. I teach a different child their new math lesson on a different day each week. Works well for us!