I am a Saxon devotee.
I love Saxon. I really, really do. I like the spiral approach and I like how ‘schooly’ it is.
However. I am running out of time in my day and find it hard to teach three grades worth of math. I had intended to continue with Saxon but use their teaching videos, but after previewing them on the Saxon website, that’s a no. Then I found Khan Academy.
I love Khan Academy.
I love you, Sal Khan. Do you hear me? You are a geeky dream come true.
Khan Academy has math videos starting with basic addition and continuing through calculus. And they’re amazing. They manage to be simple, understandable, funny and concise and you never feel talked-down-to, even in the very simple videos. And my kids like them! In the very first video, Mr. Khan uses an avocado as an example and, I kid you not, every one of my kids laughed when he said it.
Laughing during math time is a blessed occurrence.
The site also has some absolutely fantastic features that allow you to log in and track your progress through points, badges and graphs. There are interactive activities (read: online worksheets) that measure progress as skills are mastered. It’s really, really fantastic.
Oh yeah, and it’s free. Did I mention I love this site?
So it looks like we’ll be switching over and using the Khan Academy videos and worksheets. I’ll also be using Math Mammoth workbooks, and between the two I think we’ll do very well.
Check it out: http://www.khanacademy.com
What’s your favorite math curriculum?
entropymama 
I think I’ve heard of Khan Academy, but never in detail. It sounds fantastic. I’ll pin this post and look into it tomorrow.
We’ve been using Math-U-See for a couple years now. Steve’s way of teaching is highly unusual – he really is passionate about teaching kids to understand the whys of math, not just the hows, and that has been a bit much at times, but as my kids are getting older, I’m seeing the amazing math skills they have gained. Plus, with the videos and manipulatives, they are able to do most of it themselves which is great. I would only recommend it to someone who is committed to homeschooling at least through junior high, because the methods are so unusual they do not meld well with a typical public school math program. (That being said, the end knowledge of math through Math-U-See is definately superior than the other programs I’ve seen. It’s just the unique way of getting there could make switching midstream difficult.)
Great post – thanks for sharing.
Blessings,
Alyson
Thanks for the explanation of Math-U-See. I have to admit that when my oldest was in kindy we tried Math-U-See and I couldn’t reconcile it to the way I thought math should be taught. That’s why we went with Saxon, because I was so dedicated to creating school at home. I’m glad to hear it’s working so well for you!
We’ve tried Singapore and Saxon. I was struggling with getting the concepts through to Cade in a way that he could grab on and run with it. Then I discovered Khan Academy too! A friend told me about it, and Cade LOVED it! That got my wheels turning, so we tried Teaching Textbooks. We’re in Math HEAVEN! It’s a mother’s DREAM– they teach the lesson, and the kids do the lessons by themselves. I’m always there to help, but he honestly doesn’t need me very often. And the best part? They keep track of all of the grades/ quizzes!
I’ve always been interested in Singapore but it seemed so different than what we were doing that it would be hard to switch. I wish I could love Teaching Textbooks! We tried it last year and it didn’t work for us at all. But I know people who love it. Isn’t it funny how that works?