Merry was working her way through the elementary series quite quickly at the beginning of the year. And while I liked her learning at her own pace I was concerned that the pace of the books might be a little too quick. So when she finished book "Goldfish" I had her start back at "Apples" to review.
As she rereads the books she is still enjoying the story. She is also making connections that she had missed the first time around. I have more confidence that this time when she finished. "Goldfish" she will be more that ready to start "Honey" and to start memorizing her multiplication table.
Charry also started the year reviewing. She had a bumpier year. First she flew through "Fractions" only to struggle with the final quiz. After a week of trying to find what she had missed I had her restart the book. The second time around I made sure to work with her daily until I knew she understood the concepts.
Having to redo the book was a struggle for Charry. She felt stupid for not understanding the first time, and I felt stupid for not realizing she was missing things. So I started looking at other math curriculum for next year, something with a different approach.
Taking a placement test helped both of us to see we were overreacting. Charry did great, easily scoring a level above where I had hoped to put her. The boost in confidence did wonders and she is now working through "Decimals and Percentages" with determination.
Beside "Fred" we also have been working through "daily math practice." The grade level workbooks help me to see where the girls are at and help them prepare for state testing. I wanted to make sure they had been exposed to the style of questions and the vocabulary that will be used on tests. When Charry takes her test next month we will see how well I did.
The true measure of a curriculum is whether you will use it again next year or not. Yes I will! Next year Merry will once again be on the Elementary Series, this time starting at "Honey" and multiplication. Charry will be working on pre-algebra, looking at other choices made me feel even more sure of the one we had made. Our goal will be to work slowly and review often! We will also be using the daily practice books again.
If you are interest in "Life of Fred" you should check out the authors website: http://www.stanleyschmidt.com/FredGauss/index2.html
This review is of course just my own opinion and I am not being paid or compisated in anyway for expressing it, although I wouldn't mind free stuff to review.
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