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Homeschool Math Curriculum- The TOP Choices

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Homeschool Math Curriculum- The TOP Choices

Are you looking for a homeschool math curriculum for your next school year?

Welcome to my Homeschool Curriculum Favorites series. In these posts, I am sharing the results of polling hundreds of homeschool moms and asking their favorite homeschool curriculum resources. Today I am focusing on favorite homeschool math curriculum. There are SO many options, but that’s a great thing, right!? Read on to see the top choices from the poll, and MY top choices.

 

homeschool math curriculum- top picks

 

Math is always a tough subject for me. I spent so much time researching math curriculum and feel like I know ALL about each one. I have tried a new one each year of homeschooling so far!

The great thing is that I am sticking with the same ones next year. I think we are finally happy with our choices. (We have been using Teaching Textbooks for three of my kids and The Good and the Beautiful for my youngest).

This coming school year I will have one in algebra, one in pre-algebra, one in 4th grade and one in 1st grade.

Top 5 Homeschool Math Curriculum Choices:

I surveyed a lot of homeschool moms asking their favorites, and the following are the top 5 choices for Homeschool Math Curriculum.

 

1. Singapore Math– This is a very popular choice for homeschoolers. I have used the K level & am buying 1st grade for next year. It is a very colorful picture approach to math and works well for my daughter. They have all levels (K-12).

2. Math U See– This one is a favorite of so many people. It is highly recommended by many moms. I have no experience with it, but I do know that it is all video based. They have varying levels from K through High School.

3. Saxon Math– We tried this one with my son one year and it was not a good fit. I do know that many people use this curriculum with a lot of success. It is probably one of the more well known maths. They have K-high school levels.

The Saxon math lessons are used in many schools. If you want to stay closely aligned with your public school, this is often a good bet.

4. Life of Fred– We have several of these delightful books. They are story books that teach math. We have been using the elementary level books, but they also have higher level math books.

I wouldn’t likely use these as a full curriculum, but lots of people do extend it into a full curriculum. We use them as a fun supplement!

5. Teaching Textbooks – We used this program in 3rd and 5th grade with great success!  It has DVD lessons as well as in text format. It is a great way to teach math for those parents who struggle with it or need kids to work independently, because the lessons and grading are all done for you.

 

I you need help making your homeschool math curriculum choice, check out my e-book: The Quick Guide to Choosing a Homeschool Curriculum. You can find it in my shop!

The Quick Guide to Choosing a Homeschool Curriculum- 10 tips to help you make the best choice for your family

Also check out my podcast: Called to Homeschool for even more homeschool tips & support!

 

 

Homeschool math curriculum

 

We have tried a LOT of math programs. There are 4 that stand out as my personal favorites. After trying SO many different ones, these caused the least amount of grief with my kids!

 

1. CTC Math is one of our favorite math programs. It is all online with video lessons and practice drills, you get weekly reports emailed to you and can set a passing level that your kids must meet in order to move on to the next lesson. We used it for a few years. See my Review here.

 

2. Christian Light Publications Math– We used this program for several years with great success. I was really impressed with the content and quality of the materials.

It is all in workbook format, but is simple to use. I do not love using it for the older grades because there is not a lot of explanation for difficult concepts and I struggle with upper level math!

 

3. Teaching Textbooks – I have used this for a lot of years. It is what we are currently using, too. It is a great one that is fun for kids.

It’s all online and starts at grade 3 and goes through High School math. See my Review Here.

 

4. The Good and the Beautiful Math– We use a lot of the curriculum from this website. We have so far only use the math for grade K as they are still creating it for the older grades. But, we loved it! IT’s very hands-on and interactive for your little learners.

 

 

More Homeschool Math Curriculum for You to Consider: 

 

Touch Math (My Review)  I am VERY impressed with this curriculum. I would probably keep using it were it not for the cost… It is great for early elementary & also for special Ed. I highly recommend it!

Miquon Math– This curriculum is a more hands-on approach to learning math, using cuisenaire rods. It is just for grades 1-3.

Aleks math is an online math program that tracks what kids know and teaches to their needs. It uses assessments and responses and tailors learning to that. It is for grades K-12.

Math Mammoth–  This curriculum is all PDF downloads. We have used this & I like it a lot. It is very reasonably priced & there are often discounts available.

I use it as a supplement/variety to the other math we are doing. Lots of people use and love this curriculum!

Math Essentials– This program is for grads 4 and up. Its focus is to improve essential math skills with 20 min/day practice and instruction.

Loving Living Math – This is a short e-book to teach about the concept of “living math” which is just math in the real world all around you. Many people use living math instead of a standard curriculum. It is a wonderful hands-on approach to math!

Right Start Math- this programs emphasizes hands-on learning with lots of manipulatives and minimal worksheets.

A Plus Math is a great website with practice games, printable worksheets, a flashcard creator and more. I am not sure this would work for a full curriculum, but would be great for additional practice.

Khan Academy– This is an amazing FREE website that has videos to teach different Math (& other subjects) concepts. there are also practice lessons to help learn. I know lots of people use and love this site. Be sure to check it out!

Math on the Level– This curriculum is designed to teach math to your whole family at once. It teaches math concepts that you can cater to different levels.

IXL Math– This site lists all of the concepts to learn in each grade level based on standards, then has practice problems for each concept. There is a membership fee, but some of it can be accessed for free.

Pearson Homeschool Math– (My review)  This program has all grade levels. It comes with a text book and a CD-ROM with games. It is meant to reach varying types of learners. I was quite impressed with this one!

 

What is your favorite math curriculum? Check out the other posts in this series:

homeschool language arts

Favorite Homeschool Language Arts Curriculum

homeschool science

Favorite Homeschool Science Curriculum

homeschool history

Favorite Homeschool History & Geography Curriculum

art-music-curriculum

Favorite Homeschool Art & Music Curriculum

 

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43 Comments

  1. I’m glad to hear that you are happy and continuing on with Christian Light! I purchased it after an exhausting search for something that would be a good fit for my son. Hope this is it!!

  2. Math is a big issue at my house. My daughter did not do well with Horizons, BJU Press or Math U See. She only like Life of Fred, but she’s not remembering all of the facts.

  3. I have 3 boys and they are all doing Teaching Textbooks this year. My oldest son went to this after doing half a year of the Saxon math and hated the Saxon. He loves teaching text books so far. Am hoping it works for my other 2 boys too.

    Thanks for the review, they look great. So many options.

    Manny

  4. I haven’t had experience with the other curriculums listed on this page but we use Math U See and for us it’s been amazing. My daughter has thrived being able to focus on one topic at a time and feeling like she “knows” it at the end. She continually wants to rewatch the dvd lessons and loves the manipulatives as well. This program has been a blessing but I am considering checking out some of these others listed here as a supplement next year.

  5. I would love for you to review Multiplication Education. My mother created it (she was a math teacher and brain gym certified) She used a child’s 7 intelligences to teach and tutor. Multiplication Education uses the 7 intelligences to teach children the times tables. I would love to send you a copy or down load!

  6. Last year we tried ‘math in focus’ and it was good. My daughter really liked it. It’s bold n colorful which helps hold her attention. It’s a Saxon’s Singapore type of approach..it’s a fairly new program, do not everyone has heard of it. We will be using it again this year for sure.

    1. I have used Primary Mathematics Singapore Math for kindergarten and first grade. While I like the abstract concepts they teach, I find the problems are too simplified and require me to purchase supplemental books. I am considering a switch to Math in Focus and I am curious on your thoughts now that you have had sometime to use it.

  7. I am just curious why you are choosing Christian Light over Saxon lets say…
    I am someone new at Homeschooling and all public schools that I know of use Saxon?
    I am not questioning your teaching…I am just earnestly trying to find the best math out there…
    I have a 2nd grade daughter and an 8th grade daughter who has used Abeka and Saxon…
    Could you share why…I would great appreciate it.
    Thanks so much!

    1. We tried Saxon our first year. It was the name I had heard most often, so that is what I got. Honestly, it caused my son to melt into a puddle of tears every day and I had to find something that caused less of a fight and moved along with less repetition. Christian light is a great program because it has a lot of practice and repetition, but it isn’t overkill. It also has a lot of variety within each lesson so my kids don’t feel like it is all just exactly the same day after day. I also like that it isn’t full of colors and cartoons like some programs are. It has just been a really good fit. I read about a million reviews before deciding and it paid off. 🙂

    2. Thanks for replying…I hear Saxon and Christian Light are similar…Christain Light is done with more flow…not so much jumping around? Would you say that is correct?

    3. Be careful as Saxon Math is aligned to Common Core standards. I have heard they have not changed their homeschool curriculum, but I haven’t found it yet. Suzanne

  8. We’ve tried Singapore math before at home. It was a big challenge for my son. It doesn’t re-teach math skills so kids would easily forget about what they learn a few months ago, at least my son needs to review math knowledge in different periods.
    Then his teacher recommends Beestar’s free math program to us. We went back to traditional US math. Thanks to this home learning site, my son has gained strong interest for math in just one year. He completes Beestar’s weekly practices on time and likes to compete with other peers online to get on the honor roll. I’ve seen the practices, very clear and interesting. Many of the questions have vivid pictures. Although not taking too much time, the questions cover almost every math skills. My son’s math ability is improving very fast by using it. Love it!

  9. Hello everyone, my wife and I are 2nd Gen homeschoolers with 2 sons, 9 and 7, and a daughter who will be 3 in May. We have developed an online math curriculum that we are very excited to share with the homeschool community. We have completed UnLock Pre-Algebra, suitable for grades 7/8 or possibly 6 depending on the student, and we are working on Algebra 1 & 2 and are going to follow with Geometry and Calculus.
    We take the stress and frustration out of the math equation for parents and their children, taking care of all the teaching, testing, and grading for you. My wife is an excellent teacher and our videos are not your typical boring math videos, they are exciting and engaging, often the whole family will gather around just to watch 🙂
    You can take a look at our program at http://www.unlockmath.com
    My wife was a high school math teacher when we met 13 years ago and LOVES teaching math and it shows in UnLock Math.
    Thank you!
    Matthew

    1. Hi Matthew,
      I clicked on the unlockmath.com link and just checked out your wife’s demo. She is a good teacher and I’ve sent you a message with some questions I have. We are interested in pre-algebra for the summer. I’m glad you posted here; I don’t think I would have found you guys otherwise.

      And thanks to teachbesideme.com for this forum! It would be helpful if people could list the age or grade of their child with their reviews.

  10. We LOVE Singapore Math! We have used it the past 2 years for my 1st, 3rd, and 5th graders and we never thought they could be so brilliant since math was not a strong suit for them in public school. It does seem to be quicker paced, but the beauty of it is in the mental math practice (at the back of the instructor’s guide) and the fact that it teaches more than one strategy to find an answer. It also approaches from different angles for all types of learning: hands-on, visual, and finally abstract. I highly recommend this program if your child is a quick learner.

  11. Hi My name is Windy. I have been being employed as a TESOL teacher
    in Greece for many years.I first discovered your blog when I was searching for spring decoration crafts resources
    for my ESL class some time ago. I keep returning ever since.
    It’s my most liked post to date. Thanks for
    sharing your mind and putting it all up.

  12. thanks you helped me find new math to try out next year. My daughter loves math and we have not use anything formal yet but look forward to try teaching text books thanks for you help.

  13. We are using Liberty Mathematics and will use MCP Mathematics next year. The teacher’s manual for MCP is awesome. I can’t wait to teach out of it! We’ve tried MUS, Mammoth Math and Singapore. We like traditional math and the way it teaches, thus our current choice!

    1. I love the teacher’s manuals for MCP. My dd is doing so well with math. I’m looking ahead for 7th grade. MCP only goes to 6th. Any suggestions for what to use for 7th? I have looked at Saxon and am not encouraged. Thanks!

  14. We used Khan Academy for almost a year before we realized it is aligned with Common Core. My daughter was in 7th grade at the time and we were wondering why we were having trouble helping her with some of the problems. Then we discovered the above. Also since it is from another country they used a calculator with a term we don’t even have on our American calculators. We don’t care for Common Core so we quit our subscription. Suzanne

  15. I tried various math programs such as Saxon, Singapore, Life of Fred, and Teaching Textbooks. None of these programs clicked with my children. Saxon and Singapore, while thorough brought frustration and tears to my children. Life of Fred and Teaching Textbooks left gaps and seemed better suited as a supplement. Then I found MCP Mathematics. My children soared past grade level in their standardized tests and finally seemed to really grasp the concepts and be able to progressively move forward in their math abilities and knowledge base. No the only problem is my oldest has completed the curriculum. Does anyone know of a middle school curriculum that builds upon MCP Mathematics?

  16. Great list of awesome resources. I never knew that Pearson had a homeschool section available. I think you missed http://www.mathworksheetsland.com and Purple Math too. Purple Math is more upper level, but the math worksheets land covers everything pretty well at those lower grades. I love PDFs, so I am a bit biased.

    Thanks for all your help.

  17. I have used math picture books for kids to stimulate interest in the subject. Girls especially loose interest if they don’t understand WHY they are learning something and why it works. For example, why do we learn about sides of a triangle? What’s Your Angle, Pythagoras? explains 1 practical use which I never thought about when I was in high school. Here are a few of my favorites:

    https://amazingwizkids.com/great-childrens-books-that-demonstrate-math-concepts-in-a-fun-way-kids-understand/

  18. HI there, I will be 100% new to homeschooling. I will be having a 9th grader to be homeschooled. I have heard great things about the “teaching textbooks” math. But I am very lost on how to buy the proper math book for him? How do I do that?

  19. Hello

    I like to know what is the differences between Pearson and Art of problem-solving( AoPs). I used Singapore math for 6 years and I think to switch to something more advanced. As I researched, I figured out the SP is not a good fit for my kids. I appreciate your response and feedback.

  20. My daughter is very slow with mAth. She’s a 4th grader and we just finished third grade Saxon. I don’t feel it’s a fit for her. Do you have any suggestions for a curriculum that is great for those who are slow and don’t seem to understand the patterns in math?
    Thanks!
    Missy

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