Name: CHEC Rocky Mountain Homeschool Conference
Start: 2025-06-12T00:00:00-05:00
End: 2025-06-14T23:59:59-05:00
Location: Denver, CO

Tagged: homeschool, math, Math U See

This topic has 9 replies, 9 voices, and was last updated 15 years, 3 months ago by Karen Smith.

Viewing 10 posts - 1 through 10 (of 10 total)

Author
Posts
March 7, 2010 at 3:50 pm
bauhauswife
Member
Hi there,
We use a bit of an amalgamation of homeschool philosophies in our family with an emphasis on Charlotte Mason’s Literature-based approach. This is great for me, because I have always been a voracious reader. In terms of maths though, neither myself nor my husband are very strong. For this reason, I am considering using a pre-set curriculum for maths. I have heard lots of good things about Math-U-See. Does anyone else have any experience with this program? Thank you!
March 7, 2010 at 4:23 pm
thepinkballerina
Participant
This is our first year using Math U See (Alpha). I was drawn to the program because it has a video with Steve demonatrating the concept and you can view alone or with your child. Plus the teacher book gives you more examples of how to teach the concept. So far I think it’s a wonderful program! You can get a demo dvd to view the program before purchasing. If you have any other questions, let me know!
Tara
March 7, 2010 at 4:57 pm
momto2blessings
Participant
This is our 5th year with MUS and I love it. The kids like watching the video with me (Mr. Demme is fun, humorous as he teaches). Then I help them once with the new concept and they pretty much do the rest independently. Sometimes they need a bit more help with tougher concepts, but overall they do it themselves. Blessings, Gina
March 7, 2010 at 6:34 pm
missingtheshire
Member
I don’t use math u see, but I have a friend who wants to use it for higher math for Algebra 2 and above. As she has never used it before, could anyone say if it would work for someone just jumping in at the higher grade? She has been using Bob Jones, but her teen does not like it. I said I would ask – so has anyone started with a higher grade and been successful. Thanks.
March 7, 2010 at 7:54 pm
Rachel White
Participant
I asked about transitioning at the pre-algebra stage in my HIgh School math options post recently here because I’m going to be moving from Dev. Math at the Pre-Algebra stage and am looking around; I asked about transitioning and here is what Karen, the SCM Team memeber said:
We started using Math-U-See with the fractions book (Epsilon) for my third child because he was struggling with the curriculum I had been using. He had no problem transitioning to MUS. Another child started with decimals (Zeta) and my two oldest started with pre-algebra and algebra. None of them had any problems transitioning to MUS.
Rachel
March 7, 2010 at 8:08 pm
missingtheshire
Member
Fantastic – thanks Rachel. Linda
March 7, 2010 at 11:59 pm
LindseyD
Participant
bauhauswife,
We use Math-U-See and LOVE IT! We started with the Primer and finished it in about 4 months (with a 6 week break in between). We are now on Alpha and haven’t missed a beat. When we began this homeschooling thing I was more concerned about teaching math than reading, and it put all my fears to rest. A truly great resource!
Lindsey
March 8, 2010 at 3:18 am
SCMconvert
Member
I’m not strong in math either. It was really hard for me to word/explain things to my daughter, even though I understood what I was doing in my own mind. It was the most frustrating thing! We started Math U See and I LOVE it!! This is our first year and she’s just starting second grade. It’s an awesome way to build math foundations. Both my daughter and 5 year old son seem to “understand” math better this year.
Having the DVD with Mr. Demme teaching the concepts is invaluable to me. Using blocks has been an amazing tool.
Someone just told me that it gets confusing at the higher levels. I’m nervous! For now I’m sticking with it, it’s been a great fit for our family:)
Tracy
March 8, 2010 at 4:15 am
Rebekahy
Participant
We’ve used MUS for two years – primer and alpha = and we love it and don’t plan on switching. One of the things that is super helpful in addition to the dvd is the teacher’s guide, which sometimes gives a little bit different explanation for when they just aren’t getting it. Also an excellent resource is the Yahoo Group for MUS. There you can get personal coaching from LOTS of very experienced MUS families. It would be the ideal place to ask your question about switching to MUS at a higher level, because there will certainly be a number of families that have done it and can give you specific insight about how to make the transition. The flow of MUS is NOT the same as most standardized tests, which I’m assuming also means that it is not the same as most standarized curriculums, so there may be things MUS will expect your child to know that they do not yet know, vice versa, there may be things that MUS teaches that you will have already covered at whatever level you go in. The yahoo group is truly an exceptional resource, it’s the perfect place to ask questions when YOU’RE not understanding the lesson, let alone trying to help your child with it. It’s also a great place to get ideas for how to teach a concept differently or in different terms to help a child that is struggling. HTH!
Rebekah
March 8, 2010 at 1:13 pm
Karen Smith
Moderator
Some of my kids have used MUS through Pre-calculus. My kids watch the videos and work on their problems with minimum help from me. They only ask me questions if they really get stuck. They did not find that MUS gets more confusing at the higher levels. Even my daughter who has a hard time understanding math had few problems understanding algebra 1 & 2 and geometry with MUS.