Right Start Math?

[bookwormmama]

I am having trouble finding a good math program that fits with my Aspie daughter. She is 6 years old. She has done most of the Singapore K program. But its too workbooky for her and she needs to DO something with her hands, so I have been looking at the Right Start Math program and I am curious if anyone here has used it for their Aspergers child before?

Could someone weigh in on their experiences with Right Start and special needs kids?

Thanks so much!

[Misty]

Yes, I use RightStart Math for my daughters with Asperger's.. I would not use anything else for the elementary years, Asperger's or not.. It's awesome!!

[bookwormmama]

Thanks Misty. I heard Right Start was very teacher intensive, is that true?
Is it something that's easy to learn how to implement and teach? I have 6 kids and maximizing my time is important as well as teaching my daughter.

Thanks so much!

[Misty]

Yes, teacher intensive is true.. but worth it. The program is fairly easy to implement as it is all (mostly) scripted. That said, if you have a lot of children and are feeling spread thin, it may not be a good option for you.. I have switched my older two girls to Teaching Textbooks just for that reason even though I like RS better. And I only have four kids!

[Reya]

For my DS with CAPD, it opened the world of math like nothing before had. It was AMAZING to see the connection between language and meaning that he could make after just a little while in RS. I knew my kid was gifted, but other programs, even good ones, couldn't get through the language processing difficulties he had until RS paved the way first.

I also select the curriculum for the neighbors' kids. (They hire a tutor to do most of the instruction. The tutor, who's now a good friend of mine, said she wants me to pick HER kids' curriculum when SHE homeschools them, too!!!) Anyhow, he's advanced/neurotypical, so after giving him a quick test, I choose Calvert for them for the first year, as the tutor was insistent on started out with a boxed program. He got great grades, but it was very evident that he was just "stepping through" the math without comprehension. Calvert does *present* the concepts, but it doesn't require them to master the strategies and concepts to do well. He's not a really mathy kid, in terms of initial inclination, so it was a very poor choice. I switched him to RS mid-year, and he's taken off since then.

So here are two thumbs up already!

[siloam]

We are dyslexic here, so not the same LD, but RS has worked very well.

Before RS I had done Miquon, which they didn't learn well from because they hated. Discovery methods are just not their thing, they need to be directly taught I think.

Then I used Singapore (I am mathy and love their philosophy), but it took a lot of hand holding and extra teaching from me. So much so that I find RS teaching to be no big deal. At least when I cover it with RS they usually get it and own it. In fact after doing RS they can do the Singapore primary texts (below grade level) independently.

My oldest was 3rd grade when we started doing RS. What I find significant is that she went from hating math and knowing that she was bad at it to, no not loving math, that is too much to hope for. She still dislikes math to this day, but now she doesn't hate it and knows she can do it.

Heather

[lauranc]

It's worked very well for my 10yr old DD who has multiple issues going on-- the only thing that *has* worked!

We love it here.

..Laura