Math-U-See Blog

Guest post from Miriam Homer. Miriam has authored several of the Math-U-See books, has been a teacher and is a Pennsylvania homeschool evaluator.

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photo from lillarkie/ / CC BY-ND 2.0

Homeschool books and magazines often suggest that you choose curriculum to fit the teaching methods and philosophy you prefer. Did you ever wonder how Math-U-See fits with different methods of homeschooling? Here is an interesting list.

How does Math-U-See fit with the Charlotte Mason approach?

The lessons are short and free of “twaddle.” There are lots of opportunities for hands-on experience, and students are encouraged to “teach back” the concepts to the parent (narration).

How does Math-U-See fit with Classical Homeschooling?

Memorization of facts is encouraged in the early grades, and mastery of concepts required at every level.

How does Math-U-See fit with Traditional  teaching methods?

Concepts are taught on dvd, and workbooks are used for practice and review.

How does Math-U-See fit with a Relaxed or Unschooling approach?

The books are not assigned grade levels, so it is easy for students to work at their own pace or interest level.

How does Math-U-See fit with Unit Studies?

Topics are grouped together by concept, helping students to see how math ideas are related to each other and the whole structure of mathematics.

How does Math-U-See fit with your approach to homeschooling?

I read this blog post over at Blissfully Domestic and asked if I could re-post it here. They graciously said yes, so be sure and check out all the other great stuff at BlissfullyDomestic.com and check out Nan’s personal blog Life is Like a Lunchbox

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The Great Math Hunt is a sort of Easter egg hunt kind of game using Math-U-See or other manipulatives.

1. Have your student hide so he can’t see what you’re doing.

2. Write two lists of the same random numbers - My student is working right now on place value to the hundreds so normally he has to build, say, and write the numbers out in some fashion as the book dictates. So I wrote down numbers like 123, 17, 222, 741, etc… One list was for him. The other was for me because I am forgetful and lacking in sleep and would likely forget where I hid each of them if I didn’t have it written down. On my list I wrote where I planned to hide each number.

3. Build each number with the manipulatives and then hide them around the house; under your desk, behind a couch, in the bathtub, under giant piles of laundry (just kidding on that one… though I could have done that as I have a neglected Mount Vesuvius of a laundry pile pining for my attention on the couch.)

4. Give your student the list without the answers written on it.

5. Then he has to go around the house and find the hidden numbers, say the number, find it on his paper, and X it out with his marker.

For a twist on this game have your student build & hide the numbers for you to find or have a race between 2 students to see who can find the most in the shortest period of time.

Nan is the sassy wife of a hot reformed pastor. She’s an American expat living in Canada. Her four sons make life like a veritable lunchbox. She blogs regularly at Life is Like a Lunchbox

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Want to submit a guest post? email me ethan@mathusee.com

A special report from Dan Sinclair our Math-U-See rep in California:

Report on trip to Argentina and the fires…

Praise God it was an amazing trip! My son Chad and I flew out at 12:30 am on the 22nd of October for the 16 hour trip to Buenos Aires. The plane flight was good and we slept, watched movies, and rested on the way. We arrived at 8:30 in the evening. Customs was incredibly easy and we were out the door with out luggage quickly. Pastor Hector Montiel and his son Herman picked us up and we stayed at the Suipacha Inn near the central market. The food was good and different. We were well fed!

It was not until late in the evening that we found out about the fires!

[photo source]

So many people worry about earthquakes in Southern California, but fires are much more dangerous! The fires in Southern California forced my wife and daughter to evacuate our home and the business located in Fallbrook. It was a very scary time for both of them. The winds were blowing at over 70 mph and the fires were moving at an incredible rate. I spoke to my wife, who was relocated to Buena Park, and she was very shaken and obviously concerned about our house and business.

We had meetings every night from Tuesday through Saturday, also we had three day meetings for pastor training. I spoke on strengthening yourself in the Lord. Given all of the circumstances that was a very appropriate message. It focused on David before he was king and how he was rejected by King Saul, by society, and when he joined the rejects of society, he joined the Philistines and after a year he was rejected by them, then he was eventually rejected by the rejects, yet he strengthened himself in the Lord, 1 Samuel 30. I too needed to strengthen myself in the Lord with the fires at home. I needed to keep my focus on Him, the solution to all of our problems, and not the problems that were rearing their heads.

I kept in touch with my wife via the internet. I tried to follow the fires through the internet, but when you are 6,000 miles away, it was difficult. Wednesday afternoon, my wife and I agreed that she would go and spend a few days with our dear friends Eric and Marian Solderholm in Long Beach. They graciously kept my family safe, while I was away! Marian www.natureoflearning.com is an amazingly gifted home school friend of ours who has tested our son, Chad, and helped us to better understand teaching to the skills of each child.

Thankfully our house, business and all of our staff were safely protected during the entire event. Things went great in Argentina. It is so awesome to realize that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ can handle all of the needs without even being stressed! He is sooooooooo much bigger than anything we can come up with! Keep your focus on Him and the enemy will lose his power!

Dan Sinclair