April is curriculum review month on TheHappyHousewife.com. We want to help you find the best curriculum for your family by posting a curriculum review every day! You can find all the curriculum reviews here.
by Linda Etherton
You may have already read Toni’s Teaching Textbook review and how she was unhappy with her daughter’s ACT math scores. But hopefully you also know that there is no curriculum that is right or wrong for every family and every student.
I’d like to give a a different perspective on Teaching Textbooks by sharing why I used it and how it worked out for us.
I used high school level Teaching Textbooks for two of my three students. I believe it was a good choice, but I chose it for both of them for completely different reasons. One really struggled with math and the other really excelled at it.
The Struggling Math Student
For one of my sons, math was that subject that we both dreaded, and over the years, math time often ended in tears. He did learn and grow in his math skills, but the curriculum also kept getting harder. By high school I knew he would not be majoring in anything in college that required much math, and I was tired of math being such a burden to us both.
It was in the middle of a school year that I switched him to Teaching Textbooks, and once I did we never looked back. Math didn’t suddenly become easy for him, but it became manageable. It didn’t cause so much frustration. He was able to follow the lessons and do the problems without it taking all day. He could work independently, and most of the time he used the discs to figure out the problems he got wrong.
I used Algebra 1 and 2 and Geometry with this student, and then he went on to community college math. He did have to take a non-credit remedial math class there (which really wasn’t helpful due to a bad teacher), but he did fine with the college algebra class he took the following semester. He will take a statistics class next year, and then be done with math.
The Excelling Math Student
Another son was just the opposite. He was always way ahead in math, and by seventh grade was ready for Algebra 1. Considering that he is also on the young end of his grade level, I wanted something that wasn’t over his head in terms of the word problems that were used. One program that I liked was actually written for college level, and I felt it would be overwhelming for this student.
I did have concerns about Teaching Textbooks not covering enough material or properly preparing him for standardized tests. However, I figured that at the pace he was going, we would have time to go over things again.
He is currently in 11th grade. Last year he finished the pre-calculus book, which is the highest level that Teaching Textbooks goes to. This year I had him spend time doing SAT preparation (including the Chalkdust SAT Math Review), and he enrolled at the local community college for this spring semester.
I was curious to see how he would do on the college’s math placement test. He had no problems, and the woman giving the test was surprised and asked if one of his parents was a math teacher. He placed into the calculus class, but we decided for several reasons to start him with pre-calculus. One reason was that I wanted to be sure he had gotten a good enough pre-calculus course before moving on. I need not have worried. He is easily getting an A in the class.
He has not yet taken the SAT, so I can’t say how well the curriculum prepared him for that. Plus, he did other math preparation anyway. I do know that some people say you need to complete the entire Teaching Textbooks program to get everything. We did that, and it worked for him.
I’m not sure I would recommend Teaching Textbooks for an average learner, but I can say that for us, it worked for the struggling math student and the student who excels and was ahead of schedule with math.
Linda Etherton is the managing editor here at The Happy Housewife. She also blogs about gluten-free living at The Gluten-Free Homemaker.
Laura says
TT Algebra 1 has now been updated in a 2.0 version and is now in line with Saxon Algebra 1. Please compare TT Alg 1. (2.0 version) and Saxon Alg. 1 and you will find they now cover the same material.
Toni Anderson says
That’s good to know. Thanks, Laura.
Cally says
Thanks for this review. We are currently usin TT and I will say it has saved me when it came to teaching my kids math. I am not good at math and wasn’t doing well teaching it. I have a daughter with ADHD and sensory processing disorder and we were struggling! I also have another child who is an advanced learner and my math skills just couldn’t keep up with her. We gave TT a try this year and I will likely never use anything different. I LOVE it!
Nita says
I love Teaching Textbooks as a supplement. I’m using it for MATH 5, Geometry and Algebra 1. My kids both love math. They do a DVD based worksheet curriculum, but I have them do 1 lesson of Teaching Textbooks as a ‘math lab’. I have to admit, while sitting with them and closely comparing their learning on both programs, I’d have to say the dvd based, worksheet curriculum sticks much better with my kids. However, the Teaching Textbook gives them a quick review, solidifies what they are working on in their companion program and sneaks in a bit of math without them feeling as though they are doing more work.
Charmagne Thomas says
What DVD based worksheet curriculum did you use (guessing as your primary curriculum)? Thanks!
Lisa says
Hi, Can you share what DVD based worksheet you use alongside TT? Thank you!
Sharon says
Linda, It’s now more than a year later and I’m wondering how your son did on the SATs.
Toni Anderson says
Hi Sharon. He missed only 3 problems on the SAT. He did do the Chalk Dust SAT prep DVDs and he had taken one community college math class, which was mostly review for him, before he took the SAT. He did TT pre calc and tested into calc 1 at the college, but we decided to put him into the pre calc class anyway. He aced it.
Mitzi says
Thank you SO much for taking the time to write this review! My oldest 2 students were exactly the same, (One struggled and one excelled) And now I find myself questioning if I want to continue my youngest in TT. Not exactly sure which type of student she is in math yet. With the one who excelled, we tried other curriculums and always ended back up with TT. Interestingly enough, she did very well in her community college math classes too, (even worked part time tutoring in the math lab) but she did not do well on the SAT in the math section. I want to give my youngest the best shot possible for scholarships! I think will stick with TT and add in a year or a semester of SAT prep. Thank you!
Colleen says
I have used TT for about 2 years and my only complaint with it is that it isn’t a mastry program which one of my daughters really needs. That is easily dealt with though by stopping where we are and doing practice problems until she has mastered the concept that she needs. I suffer from adhd and depression so this program has helped with our math consistency. I do concur however that math facts aren’t stressed enough however I just have my kids do math facts worksheets everyday.