Singapore Math

Regarding Singapore, it is supposed to be one of the best.  According to my research, either families absolutely love it or absolutely hate it.  Unfortunately, we went through Singapore for 2 long years before realizing we were the type of family that hated it!  I am not a math mind and neither is dd, and maybe that was the problem, but I just didn’t get all of the mental math stuff.  Additionally, they would introduce a totally new concept, practice it for 2 lessons, then move on to a another new concept for 2 lessons and so on.  Then you wouldn’t see the concept again until the review.  By the end of Singapore 2B, she was in tears every day and I was right there with her. 

We switched to Christian Light Sunrise Math, starting over at the 3rd grade level.  I’m glad I did, because the Sunrise Math review of 2nd grade (before you enter the true 3rd grade level) has her reviewing calendars, thermometers, polygons and geometry terms to which she was never even introduced with Singapore. 

I hope this was a good review.  I am not trying to be negative.  I guess Singapore would be fantastic if you have strong math skills and your dc do as well, but if you are of more the literary type of mind as we are, please save yourself some tears and go with a more concrete math program.

Yes, have you been spying on our homeschool?  My dd did the same thing.  I have a friend of mine who is a homeschooling mom, her career before was engineer.  Very, very smart and Godly lady.  She had never laid eyes on Singapore until I asked her to look at it when she was at my house one day after I had spilled all of my Singapore troubles into her lap.  I halfway expected to be scolded for whining. 🙂 She kept looking through it saying “what”?, “what”?.  I then knew my concerns were valid and maybe it wasn’t just me.  The Christian Light Stuff is a blessing to us.  My daughter gets her math out now before I even ask.  No tears.  The new concepts (actually concepts Christian Light studied for their 2nd grade which they are now “reviewing”) are very easy to explain and she is doing extremely well…even with the word problems!!

Hi Joy, I was so nervous about changing programs.  I kept thinking , what will I make her miss?  I like the idea of continuing with the same program to cover my bases because that’s just the way I am.  But, I knew we couldn’t continue.  I quit Singapore about 5 or 6 lessons before the end of 2B, before the end of 1st semester.  I researched and researched and decided upon CLE.  Like I said, I am so glad I did.  The first few weeks, even now, she says it is fun math.  I know it’s not because she knows everything, and that maybe it’s just easy, it’s because she is not stressed and enjoys the learning process now!  You can check out the math on their website at  http://www.clp.org/store/by_subject/4  .  I don’t think you can look at samples, but you can see what each level contains.  It is very cut and dry, and as I said, I purchased the 3rd grade set and started her at the beginning which was a review of their 2nd grade curriculum.  I am so glad because I’ve been able to catch anything we may have missed to fill any so called “gaps” from switching curriculums, and have been able to get her up to speed with absolutely no tears!!

We use Singapore Math and we are not a math family. My opinion of the curriculum has changed over the years, improving as I learned how to use it in a different way than I originally intended.

I originally chose Singapore because of its great reputation. After purchasing the books, I saw the program is not how I learned math and it required more involvement from me as a teacher than I anticipated. The first couple of years were okay, but then my eldest and I went through some struggles and I even took almost an entire year “off” from math.

That year off was a wise decision. I think part of our frustrations was my daughter simply wasn’t ready for the material. This year, after essentially a year off last year, she is whizzing through the program with ease and speed I never would’ve imagined. The progress she has made this year (without tears) absolutely amazes me and makes me kick myself that I thought she had to master certain skills by a certain age when she was younger.

My son, who is younger, seems to have more of an aptitude for math and enjoys the subject. He’s finishing 2B now and he’s not struggling with Singapore like his sister did, though I started him a year later than I started my DD. He says math is fun and easy.

Now, what I’ve learned:

* Buy and use the supplemental books. The extra practice books give you the repetition that many of us find lacking from the textbook and workbook. There are extra word problem books that I think are excellent, and the “challenging” practice books are indeed challenging. It’s worth taking the time to do the extra books, if you chose this program. (My biggest complaint about the curriculum is all the books you have to juggle…wish they were all in one book.)

* I had to use flashcards to really make the math facts stick, especially with my non-math child. She went through the flashcards day after day until she (finally!) memorized them. My younger child doesn’t seem to need as much drilling, but I also have him do flashcards to supplement Singapore.

* The teacher’s manuals include extra activities to reinforce the new concepts and skills. Lo and behold, those extra activities really do help the child. The activities do require some prep work from me, but not much more than reading ahead to see what the activities are.

* The Mental Math exercises are worth the effort.

I stuck with the program, despite a year or so of struggles, because I was uncomfortable switching mid-stream and I wasn’t convinced the problem was Singapore as much as it was me. I wasn’t paying attention to what my DD was ready for….and I wasn’t putting in the effort myself to use the extra books and activities. The difference between now (a confident child) and before (a frustrated child) makes me happy I stuck with Singapore.

Do I think Singapore is the best of all programs? No. I think it’s good, solid curriculum among many good programs. I share my experience in case it helps you make a decision.

We have just started using Singapore.  So far I love it!  We switched from MEP math, so I think just about anything would be easier than that!  We barely started thE 1st grade in MEP and I knew I just had to switch.  I just couldn’t figure out what my kids were supposed to do!  So that gives you a glance at my math mind! 🙂
I am using 1A U.S. edition along with the Home Instructor’s Guide.  I do not think I would be successful with it if I did not have the HIG!!!  It is very valuable to have.  For example, among the first few lessons they introduce “number bonds”.  My kids have never heard of that term (or me either, for that fact) and in the HIG it tells you to take your time going through the lesson, and gives you lots of extra activities to practice what is being learned.  We spent a full week playing with number bonds up to 10, before moving on to the next lesson.  If I hadn’t had the HIG I would have done the lesson in one day, and my kids would never have had a chance to practice and learn the concept.  I am not a math person myself…I hated it in school, but I do like Singapore. 
I would never recommend doing it without the HIG though!!

Hope that helps you some!