Homeschool Math | Thoughts & Reviews 

I think Math with Confidence is a good gentle approach to math, but at the same time incorporates good number sense and conceptual thinking. I too was surprised my 5 yr old was able to grasp some of the concepts so fast as well. I think because it explains it so well, instead of just reiterating math facts. I’ve heard good things about Math Mammoth. It’s supposed to be very similar to Dimensions, but more affordable. It’s on my list to check out if for some reason Dimensions ever stops working well for us.

Can yo make do without the home instruction/teacher book?

@@jilltorres8952 I would say it's possible to do so in the early levels, like PK-1st. But I really needed the answer key and activities after that. I also really liked the suggested games and storybooks in the early level teachers guide.

Thank you! I really like that it is taught similar to higher levels of math. Where the focus is about coming at a problem from different angles and using different mathematical strategies. Like you said creative. Allowing yourself to explore a problem instead of just always looking for a simple solution.

I think both versions are great options! It just really comes down to teacher & student preference. I’ve really enjoyed discovering the beauty of math and understanding that it’s more then just a set of numbers 😃

Thanks! It’s definitely been a journey.

Thank you! My goal with this channel has always been to be a helpful resource 😄

I’m glad you found the video helpful! Navigating math can definitely be intimidating at times, especially when you’ve struggled with math yourself. I really think Dimensions sets a solid foundation and helps me feel confident in teaching it.

I’ve been surprised that I haven’t seen more people talk about the drawbacks of TGATB. To us, the material covered was very surface level and never went very deep 🤷‍♀️ I can see it being used as a supplement, but not deep enough to be a core curriculum.

I think they have a cult like following that will come after creators who do not sing praises for TGATB.

@@lawnerd80 It’s disappointing when people can’t take others opinions or critiques about curriculum. If your curriculum can’t stand alone on the basis of the information it provides and relies on influence pushers to sell it, I’m sorry but that’s pretty pathetic!

I’m glad you found the video helpful!

I’m glad you found the video helpful 😃

It’s definitely been a great fit for us! 😃

Yes! The whole part about math trauma was very eye opening for me. I also really enjoyed the notion that math giftedness is a myth and we all have the potential to learn higher levels of math 😃 It was definitely the encouragement I needed to teach math to my daughters.

@@michellegf yes! It was really refreshing to identify my own math trauma

What book?

Great question! I think MWC does a great job at teaching conceptual math and number sense. However it moved at to slow of a pace for my youngest daughter and was too easy. She tends to grasp math concepts quickly and can do a lot of mental math fairly easily. We switched to Singapore because it provided a more challenging opportunity for her to grow with her math skills. My daughter doesn’t need a slow, gentle approach to math. With that being said, when my son is old enough for school I will most likely start him out with MWC because I think it’s a great program.

Great questions! We do math Math 5 days a week (M-F). We do a lesson a day. I agree the workload is intense and I think it’s not necessary. My daughter and I do the textbook lesson together and then I have her do the workbook lesson that corresponds independently. I do cut the number of problems in the workbook though. I appreciate the thoroughness of Dimensions, but if my daughter is getting the concept I feel no need to drill the problems.

I’m glad you found a math program that works for your family. It can be hit or miss a lot. TGATB definitely lacks depth, but I think thats the appeal for some people. 🤷‍♀️ I mean you take away the nice pictures and games and your left with a pretty lackluster math curriculum.

I’ve never tried primary. We’ve only done Dimensions. My middle daughter enjoyed Math with Confidence but it was just too easy for her. She tends to grasp math concepts fairly quickly. That’s why we switched to Dimensions after Kindergarten. My oldest uses Dimensions and I’ve been able to see how it builds upon itself every year. Dimensions does have a ton of problems! My kids usually do the textbook with me as their lesson and then I assign problems for them to do independently from the workbook. I rarely have them do all the problems as I thinks it’s too much. The way I approach it is that Dimensions gives a lot of opportunities for practice, but if your child understands the concept you can just move on to the next lesson. There is no need to do every problem.

I just filmed a video of a DITL of a 5th grader and I go over how we use Dimensions. It will post next week so keep an eye out. To sum it up though this is how we do it. We do the textbook lesson together and if she is getting the concept I have her move to the workbook independently. If she isn’t, we work more problems out together. We very rarely do all the problems. Dimensions provides a ton of practice problems, so I usually cut the amount of problems in half. I also let her choose which problems in each section she wants to do. It helps her feel like she has ownership over her work and it’s less overwhelming for her.

@@michellegf that’s great! Thank you very much Michelle.

I’m glad you found the book helpful! I haven’t checked out Tang math games yet. Thanks for the suggestion!

I looked over the home educators guides when they first were released and I wasn't impressed. Some of my favorite things about the original teacher guides were that they included book recommendations and lots of game/ activities. It felt like the home educators guide left some of the best parts out. Here is the link for the Math with Confidence video I made ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-XmAXbCbYBmc.html

I’m not really sure. I plan to use Dimensions thru middle school, but I haven’t really looked into high school level math programs yet.

I’m glad your found helpful 😀

Yes, I’ve definitely been surprised with how much I’ve had to relearn for myself. I prefer Dimensions for a couple reasons. When comparing the 2 I prefer the layout of Dimensions. It’s more straight forward. I like all the games/activities to reinforce the concept. Although many were written for a classroom setting, I had no problem adapting it for 1 student. I like the resources (Black Line Masters). I got the impression that Dimensions was a bit more challenging and offered more practice problems. Which was a huge plus as my daughter really needs to work a problem several times before she gets it. My daughter also really enjoys the challenge problems included in each lesson.

@@michellegf That was very helpful thank You Michelle! I already bought Math with confidence for my Kindergartner next school year but I have Singapore Math on my list just can’t decided which Version. Thanks again 💙

@@mywarriorshaven8280 your welcome! I think either version is a great option, it just really comes down to student & teacher preference.

I agree that Singapore has many options and it can be confusing. I watched some comparison videos mainly between primary and dimensions and ultimately chose dimensions as a better fit for my daughters. I’ve heard great things about math mammoth. It’s supposed to be very similar to Singapore, just more simplified.

I think both are great options. Math with Confidence is definitely a more gentle approach to math. Short lessons, recommend books and short real life activities. I started my youngest daughter out with Math With Confidence K and although she liked it and it offered wonderful opportunity to engage in mental math strategies it was not challenging enough for her. I don’t think it would be a smooth transition from Math with Confidence K to dimensions 1. Number bonds aren’t introduced in Math with Confidence K and that is something that is introduced in Dimensions K. I think it really depends on your child and where their at.

@@michellegf Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts comparing the two. It helps so much hearing other homeschool families' perspectives!

No you don’t need to start with KA. My daughter went straight into KB with no problems. Number bonds aren’t introduced until the second chapter of KB

I think both are great options! They both create a solid foundation. I think it really comes down to teacher and student preference. I think the Singapore method in general boosts math confidence, as it really helps the student understand the concepts and what the numbers in the equation/problem actually mean. It has helped tremendously with my daughters confidence and math anxiety. Dimensions does have more problems, which is a positive for my daughter. She often needs to work a problem several times before she really grasps the concept being taught. Also in regard to math confidence, I shared some of the information and pics in the Mathematical Mindsets book with my daughter. It definitely helped change both of our perspectives on math 😃

Thank you so much for your advice. I’m really looking forward to using Singapore math. I’ll look more into how many problems there are in Dimensions. I am also surprised by how popular TGATB is…it seems that everyone in our circle (and it feels like out of that circle too!) uses their math. I tried both the old and new SGAB math and even though my daughter enjoyed the colors and activities, I could tell that she wasn’t understanding the math concepts at all. There seemed to be no conceptual teaching or sequential skill building at all. In grade 1 of the new SGAB I was surprised that there is almost no use of the tens frame, for example. It almost felt like it just expected her to know how to do the math before it was taught. So I am hoping Singapore is it! Thanks again for taking the time!

@@ljks1755 I hope Singapore works well for your family 😃. I too don’t understand why TGATB is so popular 🤷‍♀️. I’m guessing because it’s easy and visually pleasing. Parents find it easy to teach and kids find it easy to learn because it doesn’t provide any number sense or conceptual thinking. My daughter retained almost nothing when we used it. It always seemed so all over the place. I also think it’s mass marketed and heavily pushed by YT influencers🙄

Yes! I have to agree with everything you have said here!

I’m glad you found it helpful! 😁

I think Dimensions goes deeper

I meant to type Math with Confidence not conference 😂. Thank you so much!

@@specialkap01 your welcome! and my brain auto corrected and I didn’t even notice the misspelling 😆

Thank you!

For math I’ve used Singapore Dimensions since the beginning. I’ve also heard Math Mammoth is very similar to that but a lot more cost effective. For LA my oldest uses Lightning Lit. It starts becoming more independent in 4th grade. My younger daughter uses Core Knowledge which is completely free but more teacher intensive. Hearth & Story has a very similar layout to TGATB but it only starts in 5th grade.

No I haven’t. Thanks for the recommendation, I’ll have to check it out 😃

Yes! My 5 yo son has watched & LOVED all the Numberblocks episodes. Engaging and smart education is key, but because of this show...it has made my choice for a math curriculum so difficult (I don't want him to become bored from K math, but he's also not ready for 1st "their would be gaps").

Have you heard of math u see? It has number block manipulatives and although I’m only using it with my 5 year old right now, my three year old also loves to play with the manipulative and says oh that’s like “3 number block” It’s really cute to see

@@iliannarivera9008I was going to ask the same question!

I haven’t tried TGATB newer math. My only experience is with the original math the company created. I know both programs are spiral based however, MWC tends to move at a slower pace.

Thank you! I have not looked into RightStart Math. Dimensions has worked so well for us, I haven't felt a need to look at other options.

Right start math doesn't trigger my anxiety at all. I'm actually enjoying doing math now

It was a great program but ended up being too easy for my daughter. She was getting bored and wanted more of a challenge

My daughter went from Math With Confidence K to Dimensions KB and looking back she would have transitioned fine going straight to 1A. I think a lot has to do with his previous math exposure. For example number bonds are introduced in KB. My daughter is just about to finish 1A and I would say it beginning to approach 2nd grade level now, but it started at a much slower pace.

Michelle, looking back would you have started with Dimensions KA and not done Math with Confidence K? Trying to decide whether to go straight into Dimensions KA with my 4, almost 5 yr old (he's 5 at end of Aug) or ease into things with Math with Confidence.

I would recommend Math with Confidence. I think they do a better job with number recognition. That being said I only have personal experience with Dimensions KB, I never tried KA. So it is possible that is covered more in KA.

Thank you so much I really appreciate the input from you!

I have a few videos on readers, but no dedicated reading curriculum videos. I’ve always used All About Reading and it’s worked really well for us.

Thanks! I’ve looked into Saxon math a little. My daughters do better with a mastery approach to math and Saxon takes more of a spiral approach.

@@michellegf okay yes I think I’d like to switch my daughter to mastery as well but I keep seeing moms talk about dimensions as a spiral as well which is odd. Unless it’s a mixture of both spiral and mastery. Anyway did you find that the teachers guide is a must have for level 1 or 2? Thank you!

@@Motherhood1 I would say it allows the opportunity for review. So for example the chapter test, cover all concepts covered in that particular chapter. However I’ve found it very much learn a concept and practice it repeatedly. It definitely builds upon skills already learned and incorporates it into future lessons, but I very much find it a mastery approach. I do find the teacher guide a necessity. Not only does it include games and activities for reinforcing the concepts learned, but provides discussion opportunities in the chapter openers. It really leans into conceptual, deeper level understanding of math. Many of the concepts taught I was never exposed to (again number sense and conceptual math) therefore I’ve found it beneficial to have the problems laid out for me and the reasoning behind how to solve them. That and the answers are in the teacher guide. There can be quite a few math problems on one page and there is no way I’m going to solve everyone to correct my daughters work 🤯

I think both are great options! We will be doing Dimensions 1A for first grade. My daughter picks up math concepts really quick and I just found she needed something a bit more challenging.

I have not tried either. I don’t like the way Math U See is structured and the reliance on math manipulatives. I’ve never tried Abeka as I prefer secular curriculum and that company is definitely conservative Christian based.

Thanks for sharing!

I have actually. I love the logic end of it. My daughter really loves math puzzles, however I feel like she needs a more straightforward approach to math right now. I’ve considered adding it as a supplement to her Dimensions, but at this point I don’t want to overwhelm her in math. It’s definitely on my radar though! 😃

I will make a note of it and try more. Thanks for the feedback 😃