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kristinannie
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| Posted: March 01 2012 at 3:30pm | IP Logged
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I just watched one of the webinars (thanks, Jenn!!!). I just love the way they teach math. I actually considered Right Start when I was first starting homeschooling, but I posted a topic on another board and was dissuaded. Here are the main complaints I heard:
It is too time consuming for the teacher so it is hard with big families.
Most people switch after level B or definitely after level D so it is better to find one program and stick with it.
It is too expensive.
I ended up going with Singapore (supplemented with Miquon). My son is very bright and is about half way done with Singapore 1a. I like the program over all, but the one thing that really upsets him is the reliance on counting. They do eventually group by 10's, but in teaching subtraction and addition, they rely on counting. There will be a picture of 6 birds and then 4 more coming or there will be 10 eggs, but 3 are used...etc... This really bothers him. It looks like Right Start will not have this problem. I already use the Right Start games and have most of their manipulatives (which I guess should have told me that I should use their curriculum  ).
So...can you please tell me what you think of Right Start, when you switch to something else, and what you switch to. Also, if anyone has used Right Start and Singapore, I would love to hear about it.
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John Paul 8.5
Meredith Rose 7
Dominic Michael 4.5
Katherine Elizabeth 8 months
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jawgee
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| Posted: March 01 2012 at 4:23pm | IP Logged
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I'm wondering about a math program for my young son, too. He is 6 and seems to really have a mind for math (like my DH).
This year I just used Everyday Mathematics (grade 2) for him, because someone had an extra workbook from our local public school.
My 4th grader is using Teaching Textbooks, which obviously isn't available for children as young as my 6YO, so I don't have any experience with the math programs avaiable for young students.
Is Right Start too time consuming for a mom with a larger family? I've heard good things about Math-U-See, but I've never seen it in person. Any recommendations there? Math Mammoth and MCP are available right now on Homeschool Buyers Co-Op, so I'm considering those, too. (Wow, Math Mammoth looks like a great price).
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Monica
C (12/2001), N (11/2005), M (5/2008), J (8/2009) and three angels
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Claire F
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| Posted: March 01 2012 at 5:26pm | IP Logged
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We use Right Start and really love it. David is 7 (1st grade) and we're using Level B this year. I can't compare it to anything else, since it is all we have used, and I can't speak to using it later on either, since, well, we're not there yet  . But, I can tell you a little about our experience with it so far.
I don't prep for the lessons at all, I just open the book and go. I'll read through the objectives and materials (manipulatives, worksheet, etc.) and kind of see where we're going, but other than that, I just go with it.
I do have to sit and teach him the lesson. There aren't worksheets of problems to do each day. Sometimes it's a game, sometimes it's just working with mom on the concept. So yes, it does require one on one instruction. I'm fine with that, but I can see if you needed something that allowed for mostly independent work, this wouldn't work as well. Having said that, we keep our lessons short, between 20-30 minutes.
Sometimes I stretch out the lessons over more than one day if it is taking us longer to get through it - sometimes there will be a lot of teaching and working together through problems, then a worksheet at the end, and I'll save the worksheet for the next day so we don't spend an hour on math. We will easily cover all of Level B this school year, so there's been plenty of flexibility that way. I usually plan for 4 days of lessons and Friday we just do games (mostly).
I really like the approach. Using the manipulatives and games keeps it interesting and multisensory. There is a big emphasis on mental math - my son is at the point of adding two digit numbers, and he does it all in his head. So you can ask him, what is 64 + 72, and he'll figure it out mentally. It teaches a lot of strategies for different situations. Like the "two fives strategy" - if you have 7 + 8, make the 7 into 5+2, and the 8 into 5+3, add the fives together to make 10, and then you add the rest to make 15 (it sounds kind of convoluted when I type it out, but I find myself doing it since we learned it). For the two digit problem above, we've learned a few ways to approach it, but I'm finding David will do something like add 64+70, then add the 2, or sometimes add 60+70, then add the 4 and 2.
It places a big emphasis on understanding why the concepts work, not only memorizing facts, and I like that. We do work on memorizing the basic math facts, so as we work with larger numbers, he isn't struggling to remember what 8+4 is, etc. That is built into it to a certain extent as well, but we do a bit extra - the games help with that and I've found some things online that he likes to use that give him some extra practice with the basic facts.
Overall, I'm a fan. I'm definitely using Level C next year, but I haven't researched further ahead to see where we'll go after that. But even if we wind up using something else in a couple of years, I'm happy with this right now for sure.
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Claire
Mom to DS 12/04, DS 5/07, DD 8/09
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SeaStar
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| Posted: March 01 2012 at 6:09pm | IP Logged
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Love RS here as well...
Math is so crucial... I am never sure what to say when people comment that RS is too time consuming for the teacher. I wouldn't expect my children just to learn math on their own from a workbook. RS is scripted- you just have to read from the script. And prep is maybe 5-10 minutes at most, and not usually every day, or even every week. And once you've done it for one child, prep is even shorter.
Some thoughts:
You can buy RS used on Cathswap fairly inexpensively. I bought my math games book for $10 ppd. I have also bought the teacher's manuals and worksheets that way. That brings the costs way down.
Level B- very meaty. I took 2 years to do this with my ds, and with my dd we will probably take longer than that. But it lays a tremendous foundation. For example, my dd, who is 7, can easily add problems like 47 plus 50 in her head. She is no math genius. (believe me  ).. she just knows the strategy: adds the tens first (40 plus 50 is 90), then add the ones (90 plus 7 is 97).
Level C- also very meaty, but you are using a lot of what you have already learned, and that was fun for my ds. Love the way multiplication is taught.
Level D: breezing through this with ds... lots of good review and new concepts.
What is next? I am not sure. Maybe right into level E. But I am *so* glad RS has given my dc such a solid math foundation.
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Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)
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Maryan
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| Posted: March 01 2012 at 6:28pm | IP Logged
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There are times when I have found Right Start difficult because no matter how I try, I can't seem to nurse a baby *and* teach *or* read. I have just never developed the ability! 
I have used Right Start with my oldest from A to E with two breaks. Once when there was a sudden death in the family and last year we switched to a workbook after the birth of my daughter and then went back to E at the end of the year.
So my second child had the same two breaks and switched to workbooks. My third child has done straight Right Start.
I don't have any experience with Teaching Textbooks or MUS. There are some years when that sounds tempting -- math on tv/computer!?!?! And since I didn't start with them, I won't know which is better! I do like Right Start, and this year we have done a great job getting it done.
My oldest now does Saxon 6/5 and I think we're going to follow Saxon for a few years. I plan to have my children enroll the Catholic school where my husband works, so I will not be teaching upper level math.
Right Start is more time consuming than a workbook; however, now I know it. So that time factor is cut way down because I'm not learning and teaching it. I'm just teaching. I've also learned either to skip things that just don't seem to mesh with my child at that moment or to slow it down for a few lessons.
Their math sense and mental math skills amaze me -- and I liked math as a kid, but I've learned so much teaching Right Start.
I think the other programs have their strengths too! So I'm not saying Right Start is best. It's what I started with and I like the emphasis on 5s, the abacus, mental math and problem solving that Right Start offers, so I didn't bother looking elsewhere.
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Maryan
Mom to 6 boys & 1 girl: JP('01), B ('03), M('05), L('06), Ph ('08), M ('10), James born 5/1/12
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Aagot
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| Posted: March 01 2012 at 9:38pm | IP Logged
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My oldest is in Geometric Approach to middle school math by RS and moving into Video Text Algebra. So far so good. I now have 4 kids in RS and would not spend my time teaching math any other way. As far as, I can tell, after RS and Video Text we are on to college Calculus ( i could be wrong, but I am pretty sure that is what the VT guy said).
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MNMommy
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| Posted: March 01 2012 at 10:58pm | IP Logged
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We have used RightStart exclusively, and my 4th grader is in Level D right now. My 2nd grader is in Level C, and my PreK/Ker is in Level A. We also use Singapore Challenging Word Problems when my kids get to RS Level C. I have owned Miquon, and I own a few of the Math Mammoth topical workbooks.
I am very glad I started with RightStart A because I think a lot of teacher training is in that level. That is where I learned to think and teach the "RS way," and that level really laid a fun math foundation for the kids. Level B is very meaty, and C and D have been great as well. I plan on moving to E next year, and after that ???.
I hear over and over how time consuming RS is, but I don't have the same opinion. Here is how much time we spend by level:
Level A - 15 min, 3 days/week
Level B - 20-25 min, 4 days/week
Level C - 30 min, 5 days/week
Level D - 30 min, 5 days/week
In Levels C and D, the kids start having small practice worksheets at the end of each lesson. I sometimes have the kids do those independently. Also, every 6th lesson in C and D are independent review worksheets.
I don't know how others teach math, but I think teaching math in the early years should take time. But....I don't want math taking all day either. I really like RS's comparatively short lessons. I may spend more time teaching that I would with other programs, but we seem to spend less total time on math with achieving equal or better results.
ETA: In Levels A and B, the best time cutting idea I have is to prep the materials for the entire book before school starts for the year. I cut and collect everything I might need, and put the materials in envelopes. Each envelope is marked with the lesson # and retrieved when needed.
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Jennifer
Tired mom to - 10yo dd, 7yo ds, 6yo ds, 4yo dd, 2yo ds
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Marcia
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| Posted: March 02 2012 at 2:44pm | IP Logged
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We've done Right Start Math for the past 8 years. VERY happy here.
It is time intensive with kids, but worth it. Math is VERY important.
I have right now, Geometry, Level D, Level C and Level B I am teaching. (yes it takes up a lot of my day! I was able to meet the author and really enjoyed listening to her. I use a lot of Montessori manipulatives in our home and she suggested that we start with Level B. I've never used Level A. I am currently teaching Level B to my fourth child. I have two more to go. :)
Oh and I don't think it's too expensive if you have several kids you teach through the series. But the CD for the worksheets and you have it made. The manipulatives are awesome and the card games are too fun once you have a group of kids to play with. (invite the neighbors over to play math games too!)
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Marcia
Mom to six and wife to one
Homeschooling 10th, 7th, 5th, 2nd, PreK and a toddler in tow.
I wonder why
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Barbara C.
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| Posted: March 03 2012 at 7:16pm | IP Logged
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I use Singapore, and one thing that I think I should point out is that Singapore usually tries to teach multiple ways to see a problem. For instance, they might do adding/subtracting groups of objects on the page, using manipulatives, or counting backwards or forwards on a number line. It's kind of like "Let's throw every method possible at the kid and see what sticks."
And most kids at an early first grade level are still going to be very concrete in their understanding and need to "count" until they memorize the basic math facts. You can always just skip any of those exercises if you know he already gets the concept, or just let him solve the problem his own way. We don't always follow the directions exactly.
I don't really know anything about Right Start, but I've been happy with the price, the process, and how little preparation it requires. My nine-year-old doesn't like it much, but let's just say that she has some "issues". But my kindergartner (age 6) is almost finished with Singapore 1B and would do math as her only schoolwork if I would let her (but I insist that she practice reading, too).
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Barbara
Mom to "spirited" dd(9), "spunky" dd (6), "sincere" dd (3), "sweet" dd (2), and baby girl #5 born 8/1/12!!
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4Real Forums : Living and Loving Numbers
Topic: Right Start Math
