saxon math : When Saxon is an Appropriate Choice
I am not a fan of Saxon math, but a few years ago my daughter used Saxon 65 and started Saxon 76 the following year.
Before we got to this point, I had heard all the negatives about Saxon math. I had also heard a lot of so-called positives: the higher test scores, the spiral approach, the constant review, and the fact that my daughter could probably do it independently. These pluses didn't address criteria that are important to me in a math program, however, so I remained mostly unpersuaded that Saxon was a great choice.
The one positive I had heard from time to time, almost as an aside, is that Saxon is good for building confidence. Kids who had had a bad time in math, once they got going with Saxon, often found math easier, liked it better as a result, and felt better about math in general.
It was confidence I was after for my daughter. She had burned out on heavy thinking programs like Miquon, and then a long break from formal math had left her feeling as if she couldn't do math. So, despite my years of promising never to use Saxon, Saxon was the program of choice for us that year.
My daughter did find math to be fairly easy with Saxon's incremental approach. She did well, rarely making anything but careless mistakes. My guess is that, had we tested her, she would have scored well. Her confidence grew, thanks to the daily practice and hand-holding Saxon provided. I found the promise that Saxon could build confidence to be true in our case. (No doubt it would not hold true for every child!)
The negatives I'd heard also proved to be true, so we abandoned Saxon 76 for Singapore Math. We are much happier in general with Singapore Math, but Saxon served its purpose. Had I not been willing to work at Singapore Math with my daughter, Saxon might have remained a viable choice because my daughter, like most children, really was able to use it independently. For families where there isn't an adult who is willing or able to teach math, Saxon may be the best choice. Not everyone needs an excellent understanding of math in their adult lives, though everyone will benefit from the best math education. Some children are more natural mathematical thinkers than others, and they may have no trouble bridging Saxon's gaps on their own. If the family's goals are merely good scores on the SATs and reasonable computing skills, Saxon may fit the bill.
I don't regret using Saxon for that year. I don't recommend it lightly, but Saxon has its benefits that may, in some cases, outweigh the negatives, especially for short-term use.
From: Laura in CT
Before we got to this point, I had heard all the negatives about Saxon math. I had also heard a lot of so-called positives: the higher test scores, the spiral approach, the constant review, and the fact that my daughter could probably do it independently. These pluses didn't address criteria that are important to me in a math program, however, so I remained mostly unpersuaded that Saxon was a great choice.
The one positive I had heard from time to time, almost as an aside, is that Saxon is good for building confidence. Kids who had had a bad time in math, once they got going with Saxon, often found math easier, liked it better as a result, and felt better about math in general.
It was confidence I was after for my daughter. She had burned out on heavy thinking programs like Miquon, and then a long break from formal math had left her feeling as if she couldn't do math. So, despite my years of promising never to use Saxon, Saxon was the program of choice for us that year.
My daughter did find math to be fairly easy with Saxon's incremental approach. She did well, rarely making anything but careless mistakes. My guess is that, had we tested her, she would have scored well. Her confidence grew, thanks to the daily practice and hand-holding Saxon provided. I found the promise that Saxon could build confidence to be true in our case. (No doubt it would not hold true for every child!)
The negatives I'd heard also proved to be true, so we abandoned Saxon 76 for Singapore Math. We are much happier in general with Singapore Math, but Saxon served its purpose. Had I not been willing to work at Singapore Math with my daughter, Saxon might have remained a viable choice because my daughter, like most children, really was able to use it independently. For families where there isn't an adult who is willing or able to teach math, Saxon may be the best choice. Not everyone needs an excellent understanding of math in their adult lives, though everyone will benefit from the best math education. Some children are more natural mathematical thinkers than others, and they may have no trouble bridging Saxon's gaps on their own. If the family's goals are merely good scores on the SATs and reasonable computing skills, Saxon may fit the bill.
I don't regret using Saxon for that year. I don't recommend it lightly, but Saxon has its benefits that may, in some cases, outweigh the negatives, especially for short-term use.
From: Laura in CT
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