A beka Math users, Do you find the Curriculum/ Lesson Plan book to be helpful?

[jacqui in mo]

I've gotten by without them so far but now I'm starting 4th grade math & wondering if the book would help.

Thanks

[Ms. Riding Hood]

I've never used them or even looked through them, and dd is doing 5th grade this year. We just go over whatever new concepts are presented in the yellow box at the beginning of a lesson. Maybe the plan book has great ideas for extension or something, but we haven't needed them to cover what's in her book. And I am Not a math person.

[Melissa in CA]

I used them in 1st-2nd grade. Personally, I wouldn't want to teach without them. I don't know how the 4th grade book is, but in the younger grades you were given lots of fun exercises to cement in the concepts the children were learning. Also, they give you ideas for review. I used to pick and choose the review areas my son was the most weak in. You were also given wonderful auditory math problems to say to them, that they would then have to do in their heads. It was a great resource for me and worth every penny.

I remember reading peoples comments on how Abeka doesn't have hands-on learning, and then finding out that these same people did not purchase the curriculum guides which list all kinds of fun hands-on learning (at least they did in 1st & 2nd grade). We used apples, and Popsicle sticks; all sorts of things we had on hand to teach with. I would not have known to do these 'hands-on' things with my son had I not had the curriculum guide. It really helped make me a teacher, and my son learned gobs and has a good understanding of math.

Again, I do not know about the higher grades as we now use BJU's HomeSat for our math (which I LOVE). Maybe the curriculum guides are not as helpful in the higher grades, hopefully someone with actual 'usage knowledge' will post for you. ;)

Blessings,
Melissa

[awanama]

I also wouldn't teach Abeka math without them. There is many things included in it that is not included in the workbook. I don't do everything it suggests, but I do make sure we cover some of the review (what my dd hasn't mastered) and the new concepts.

[Myrrh]

This is very helpful to me as I'm strongly leaning toward switching from Singapore to A Bekah for 2nd grade and was wondering whether to purchase the curriculum plan. From these posts, it definitely seems worth the $35, but if anyone else has anything else to add (since I dredged up an older thread), I would appreciate your input before I finalize my order (or hunt around for the best buy).

[Lovedtodeath]

I also wouldn't teach Abeka math without them. There is many things included in it that is not included in the workbook. I don't do everything it suggests, but I do make sure we cover some of the review (what my dd hasn't mastered) and the new concepts.
:iagree: My DD would have serious holes if I didn't use the curriculum guide.

Abeka has extensive hands-on teaching explained so well in the Curriculum Guide. We like it much better. Today we skip counted with our chart, did oral story problems, counted coins, played "hide the marbles", wrote roman numerals on the white-board and measured with a yard stick. There are games too, but we don't do most of them. I love Abeka's Curriculum Guide, thoroughness and variety. When we are done with the teaching part that I just described, I sometimes feel that we can skip the worksheet. On other days I don't have much time for teaching, so we might do more worksheets and less hands-on instruction. I can also go over 2-3 days in the curriculum guide and see if I missed reviewing anything and catch up in only one session by picking and choosing what we do.

[Lovedtodeath]

I have tried several things and DD was ready to go to PS because she hated math so much. A few weeks with Abeka and DD likes math, she is learning her facts, I know exactly what, when, and how to teach thanks to Abeka's awesome curriculum guide. She is doing great with their speed drills, and she hated every other kind of drill I tried. (flash cards, stories, oral, online, my own worksheets, etc.) I couldn't be happier. I found a group with used materials also, so I saved a ton on the curriculum guide for 2.

The Horizons IG is no help at all. You really should get hold of an Abeka curriculum so that you can see how thorough it is. I was amazed and so grateful. I hope you can find samples of the Abeka curriculum guide. I bought mine used from an Abeka yahoo group for only $20 including shipping!

I also want to know if Abeka teaches the concepts and make the young kids "see" math? HOw is that done, Carmen, with manupatives, do you think the way it teaches this is unique since you have tried other program? There are charts which I think are invaluable, (I didn't buy them from Abeka, but using their instructions along with the charts really works) and there are suggestions. For example... to learn the math facts up to 7, I take 7 marbles and have DD count them. Then I get a cup and hide some of the marbles. She has to tell me how many I hid. Voila! She is subtracting without even knowing it. It works way better than MUS and I don't know why. For place value it has all been done in pictures so far. There will be a bunch of ten ballooons tied together, and there will be two balloons and the child writes 12. Roman numerals and coins are used to teach place value as well. I think that Abeka works well because it uses multiple approaches.

Hey Carmen, what do you think about combining Abeka with Singapore Math 1A, have you looked at Singapore? It teaches a lot of number bonds which later helps with mental math. Do you know if Abeka does a lot with number decomposing, like what makes up a 7, 3 plus 4 and 5 and 2 and 1 and 6, etc. TONS OF THAT! It's just not called number bonds. I have never looked at Singapore. You may want to post something about specifically combining Abeka and Singapore and see if someone has done that. If you get Abeka you may need to cut it down... but that has been easy to figure out.

Also, what is the name of the egroup that you mentioned where you can buy and sell Abeka curriculum? http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ABEKAFORSALE/ (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ABEKAFORSALE/)

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AbekaHomeschool/ (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AbekaHomeschool/)

[Myrrh]

Great--thanks! I had found it but it's nice having all this in one thread :)