hey!
so we are in our 3rd year of HS and have used horizons all alongand were fine with it. We started third grade this summer and as many have confirmed I felt like concepts were just THROWN in with NO instruction as to what to do..and i have the TM. The first few times it happened basically i just didnt understand what they were asking her to do then a concept would kindof drop into the lesson out of nowhere i could ususally figure out what they wanted by looking at the TM and the answers and figuring it out that way but talk about time consuming i was worried this problem would get only worse thru the years as the concepts got harder and harder...so out of frustaration i researched and switched to TT. TT has actually been really good from our experience im using TT grade 4 (even tho my daughter is in 3rd) its polar opposite because they explain everything to her and it takes almost NONE of my time. Heres my concern..it is definetley EASIER than horizons. My dd was doing fine with the CONCEPTS in horizons we just couldnt understand the instructions so now i wonder if shes being challenged. shes getting 90s or above on everything but feel like she may be being "dumbed down". if shes capable of more shouldnt i push her? Should i try to incoporate both horizons and TT? should i just stick with TT? should i try a totally different curriculum? thanks in advance!!

IMO - it depends on WHY your child is finding TT easier than Horizons. If TT is "easier" because your kiddo is understanding the explanations better and there is less confusion going on, then that's a good thing and you should just keep going with TT and pat yourself on the back for a job well done!

But if TT is "easier" because it's a review of material your kiddo has already mastered, then it may be that you may need to skip over the already-mastered material and pick up when something new is introduced. That may mean that TT4 only lasts you a few months before your child is ready for TT5.

Scope and sequence vary between publishers, so it's usually best to ignore the numbers on the books and use the level indicated by the placement test.

It's funny you should ask. I just spent yesterday doing a very detailed and in depth study of TT.., I did all the demos on their website and looked at all the grades...

I decided to stick with Saxon.

If you like Spiral, take the Saxon placement test and out her in either 5/4 or 6/5 ... And use the DIVE or Saxon Teacher Cds. Saxon also has lots of support so you might find co-ops later on using it.

Everyone is different but I felt that since my son wants to be an engineer, I would choose a proven program over a new one. Even for my dd who wants to be a stay at home mom, I wAnt to prepare her for anything- if she should go to college.

That's my take.

We didn't like Horizons from 2nd up. It was just too much
and not enough time to grasp a concept before moving on.
We opted for BJU and now we use it in combination with TT.
TT's wonderful for the visual and auditory learner. We use the workbook with the CDs. The workbook gives AMPLE room to work the problems and we love that. The automatic grading is neat too. I don't think TT 3 is out just yet. Maybe you could do one year of something else before TT?

Michelle32

I agree with the first poster that it depends on WHY it's easy for her.

For what it's worth I haven't shared this here yet in the discussions about TT but my highschool geometry teacher and I are very close, I use to babysit his kids and I see him off and on throughout the year. He is interested in our homeschool and always asks what I am using for math. a year or so ago when we switched to TT I mentioned to him that we had switched math. later when I ran into him later, he said he had a look at it, and based on what he had seen and what I told him my dd was doing (the first time we talked) that it seemed like a really solid program. I know that is not worth much as he hasn't fully reviewed it so take it with a grain of salt but his first impressions were good. VERY good based on his comments. BTW, his wife is a college level math teacher, so they are certainally mathematically inclined ;-)

We used Horizons for both 1st & 2nd. Switched to TT 4 this year for 3rd grade for basically the same reasons. TT appears to be "easy" at first, but if you look ahead it does become more challenging. Many of the lessons are a review of concepts already learned in Horizons, but there also seems to be several new concepts mixed in, so I think the review is definitely worth it.
Dd is loving TT, and so am I. I started to lose my confidence as the "teacher" with Horizons d/t the lack of explanation in the teacher manual (math is not my #1 subject - lol). Now I feel confident that dd is getting clear explanations of concepts in the TT lessons. I like how they seem to present the info. in "bite size pieces" too so dd is not given too much to take in at once. Of course love the spiral approach (just as we had with Horizons). Dd is understanding and retaining more of what she is learning with TT. Horizons is a great math curriculum, the TM is just lacking in my opinion.

Okay, we started with Horizons and then went with TT. (Went from Horizons 3 to TT5). I did allow my son to finish TT 5 quickly and we went on to TT6 in the same year.

I does seem easy. In fact, for Pre-Algebra and up we will be using Chalkdust, but only b/c ds asked for a more mastery type program.

I always had misgivings about TT....but the FACT of the matter is, my son's math scores went UP in state testing after a year of using TT. I think significantly up. So....it must have been doing something right. That said, my ds took the end of 4th grade test after completing TT5 and a large portion of TT6...So..age up appropriatly in TT. (At least one year)

jules

I just started TT4 with my son who is in 3rd grade. It is easy at first going over basic additon and all. I agree with the pp that when you look ahead it gets much more difficult. I am using TT with my dd in 5th and my son. My dd16 is in her 4th year as she has used Alg 1, 2, geometry and now pre-calc and loves it and is doing very well.