If you’re in the throes of attempting to teach middle school math, you have my sympathy — and my empathy because I’m right there with you. So let me share one of my secrets to maintaining everyone’s sanity: a website called MasterMath.
MasterMath Middle School Online Math
Created and developed by Stan Lisle, MasterMath Middle School Online Math offers:
- video lessons arranged by grade and quarter
- downloadable/printable worksheets with answer sheets
- online quizzes
- links to other sites for further practice and explanation
- quarterly exams
- and a final exam at the end of each year
— all for free. Let me say that again: MasterMath is FREE.
At the heart of MasterMath are the video lessons, which are based on Florida Middle School Math Benchmarks and taught by Mr. Lisle. Each lesson focuses on one concept. During the video, the student has the opportunity to pause the video for the “You Try It” problems to practice what she is learning. The worksheet(s) and quizzes reinforce what she has learned. For more practice, there are Cool Links for each lesson, linking to such sites as Khan Academy or IXL.
MasterMath Homeschool Page
There are over 160 lessons, scheduled as 6th, 7th, 8th grade or Algebra 1 curriculum. Each lesson includes a 10 – 20 minute Video Lesson explaining a concept. Unlike other video math lessons, our videos include “You Try It” sections, where the student is given a problem, asked to pause the video, try the problem, and then restart the video. I then tell them the correct answer and show them how I did it.
Each Lesson Also Includes:
- A printable Worksheet with problems similar to those covered in the video;
- An Answer Sheet with solutions to the Worksheet Problems;
- An Online Quiz: If the student gets a problem wrong, an explanation of the solution appears;
- Cool Links to other websites for practice and further discussion of the concept.
Overview of the Program
FOR EACH VIDEO LESSON:
- FREE Downloadable Worksheets – Print Worksheets, and do math practice at home. Mom and Dad can check the work on these math problems
- FREE Online Quiz – The math tests give immediate feedback, reinforcing learning. When a student gets a problem wrong, they are shown how to do it correctly
To give you an idea of the program, sixth grade lessons are divided into four quarters with between seven and nine lessons in each quarter. Lessons include “Multiplying Fractions and Mixed Numbers” and “Fraction-Decimal Equivalency.” Other sixth-grade topics include percentages, ratios, rates, and geometry. A Cool Link for the multiplying fractions and mixed numbers lesson is “Converting Mixed Numbers to Fractions” on the Math Goodies website.
In a nutshell, I appreciate MasterMath’s focus on mastering mathematical concepts; links to other websites (now I don’t have to search out supplemental resources myself!); the video-based format; AND the price. Another great thing: you can use MasterMath to aid and supplement your child’s math studies no matter what curriculum you use!
All of this adds up to great news for those of us nervously facing middle school math — for the second time around. With MasterMath at my fingertips, I’m feeling pretty sure I can handle this stuff. (And I’m confident my children will do well, too!)
More Homeschool Math Resources
The Very Best Options for Homeschool Math – If you are like me, when it comes to homeschool math, especially in the older years, I want more help from the curriculum I choose so I can teach less! This is a collection of math resources, everything from full curriculum, to advice from other homeschool parents, and even supplemental resources.
~ Originally published August 2012, written by Ellen
Ellen,
I read your post today and decided to make sure I checked out the website. We are currently using Mathematics Enhancement Programme (MEP). My daughter just finished the Y6 curriculum and really did excel in it. However, I have been less than satisfied with the next level and the way it is layed out.
So…I think I am going to give this a try. I just had a couple of questions…How long have you used this site and what years have you used? How do you feel that the website compares with other curriculum you have seen? I am asking you, but if anyone has any other ideas…I would greatly appreciate the imput. I don’t want to start something else with her and have to change again in the middle of the year!
Thanks for the input and thank you for your original post. i appreciate you sharing your information!
Karen
Way cool! Some very valid points! I appreciate you writing this post and the rest of the website
is very good.
google blog list
Hi Karen! My youngest dd used MEP since the first grade, but she’s now wanting to try something new, hence my decision regarding MasterMath. Moreover, I think she’ll do better with a mastery approach. I’ve looked a quite a few math curricula in my day, and I’m pleased enough with MasterMath to give it a go. I’m of course going to follow Stan Lisle’s directives for homeschooling parents (see his website) in order to ensure the best possible success for my dd.
In the past, I’ve used several MasterMath sixth grade videos as instructional supplements, so I’m familiar with the program. This will be my first year using it as a complete, stand-alone curriculum.
I hope this helps answer your questions! If you’d like more info, feel free to ask. Blessings!
UPDATE: My sixth-grader has used this curriculum all school year now, and we are very pleased. We watch the video together so she can pause it to ask any questions she may have. If she seems to have a bit of difficulty with a concept, we look it up in our math handbooks for further explanation and practice.
All in all, MasterMath has worked well for us!
Yes, i have noticed the children using the math program and the curriculum in the middle school. This is an awesome video explaining about the math. Found the blog interesting. Thank you for the blogging