DISCLOSURE: I RECEIVED THIS COMPLIMENTARY PRODUCT THROUGH THE HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW.

One of the biggest issues parents face when deciding if they should homeschool is FEAR. Fear of missing something, fear of not knowing enough, or just fear of being able to handle it all. And I absolutely get it. Every age and stage of parenting brings new things to face and handle. Doing a new thing can be really scary. One of the things I’m learning, about homeschooling and life too, is to use the tools you need and not feel bad about that. Sometimes that is admitting when you don’t know and asking for help. When it comes to curriculum, there are times when we have to be honest about what we can handle and what we can’t. I really value unplugged curriculum as much as possible, but I’m learning I’m only one person and can’t always focus on each child and each subject the way I would like to. Finding resources and curriculum that can cover bases that you might miss is really important. For today’s review, we’re talking about an all-star curriculum, CTCMath, that has proved to offer just about whatever we need in the math department.

What We Received:

We were given a 12 month subscription to CTCMath, an online math curriculum with accounts for as many students as we need for our immediate family.

How It Works:

For each student, the parent/teacher sets up an account that will then log all of their activity, scores and assignments. From the parent dashboard, I can assign any tasks to all students, individually or all together. Since my 10 and (almost) 8 year old already had accounts from previous use, this time around all I did was set up a new account for my 4 year old. He’s still young, but we decided to try him out from the very beginning to see how it worked. Once each child has an account, they can then start watching videos and answering questions on any topic they choose, or simply start at the beginning of their grade level. The really great part of CTCMath is that each student has access to all levels of work, regardless of their input age and grade level. That means if your child needs to revisit a concept from the past or is ready to speed forward, that’s no problem! Another nice perk is that it saves the students activity and reports indefinitely. We have used CTCMath off and on through our years through the Homeschool Review Crew. Even though our account has lapsed at times, their information (going back several years) is always available. While this is an online program, there are printable worksheets available for every lesson, as well as weekly revision tasks and diagnostic tests that makes it a complete curriculum.

What We Thought:

The voice giving instructions in the videos has always been an Australian man. One time I heard a family say they couldn’t use this program because the accent threw them off so much. Our experience is the exact opposite. An otherwise unexciting math concept is made interesting simply by the speakers voice. We love the accent!

The two older kids are used to the program and have continued as they have in the past. My 4 year old had never used it before but things went well, all things considered. He is 4 and not reading yet, though his letter recognition is coming right along. The videos contain bright pictures and the questions all have an audio button to play the question. He needed some assistance in maneuvering the mouse and submit button at first, but started to get the hang of it. Even though he is young and not quite at full kindergarten level, I felt like all the math concepts and questions were things he could grasp with a parent close by when he needed help. He enjoyed it and I felt confident in the educational value. Win/win!

Our experience with CTCMath has consistently been a positive one! We’ve used grades K-4 now at one point or another and have no complaints. With so much flexibility, it really can work for most situations and large families! If you are in the market for a complete math curriculum, CTCMath is certainly one to consider.

Follow CTCMath on Social Media Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ctcmath
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ctcmathofficial
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ctcmath
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com.au/ctcmath/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWn5e6974bpIEAe46VnovZw

Do you have middle or high school students? If you’re interested in how CTCMath does with higher level math, check out the reviews through the link below.

 Mistaking Impatience for Serious Learning Problems

In our diagnosis-heavy culture, a good-hearted mama can convince herself of all kinds of trouble at the slightest hint of a learning challenge.  Normal developmental issues - like turning words around or crying over math that is 'too hard' - suddenly become scary things like dyslexia and failure to thrive in a mathematical world.  I don't know about you, but as a homeschool mom I can overthink and overreact, especially as it pertains to the success or failure of my kids.  One of the lessons I have learned over the last 5 years of homeschooling is that impatience is the cause of way more problems than legitimate learning disorders.  Maybe impatience is a legitimate learning disorder?! Of course, learning problems are everywhere and I don't mean to take away from their reality.  What I have seen, though, is that it is terribly easy to give up and slap on a diagnosis before we have considered the less complicated analysis.  What if your student is just in a hurry to finish their schoolwork and tries to work too quickly to notice all the mistakes?  What if it's easier to cry (in hopes of getting out of it) than to spend 5 extra seconds concentrating on that new math concept? 

My 10 year old son has cried foul a lot, especially when it comes to math.  A couple of years ago I panicked (a complete overreaction) thinking he just wasn't getting it and would always struggle with math.  After a couple of months of beating myself up over it I discovered he wasn't struggling like I thought.  In fact, his struggle wasn't really with math at all. He was an impatient boy who was in a hurry to be done.  When you try to rush new things, they can seem hard when in fact they are simply new and take time.  This applies to all subjects and ages alike.  Too hard is a very relative term and often false.  If we expect something to take a week to master and it realistically will take 3, there is bound to be frustration.  If we go into a new thing with the understanding that it isn't going to click right away, students are more likely to keep steadily at it. 

The next time you start to diagnose a major learning issue, you might try one of these ideas first.

-Accuracy. Reinforce that the goal is for work to be done right, not fast.  Double-checking work will actually save time in the long run.

-Time Commitment. 30 minutes of reading rather than 3 books can encourage students to take more time with their work allowing for fewer mistakes.

-Discuss expectations.  Sometimes we don't realize what we are expecting until we discuss it out loud. Are you expecting too much? Does your child understand what this subject is supposed to look like when done well?

Before you throw in the towel on a new skill or program, determine if someone (maybe even you, mom) is getting impatient rather than truly struggling.  For better or worse, the simplest answer is also the most likely answer.