How I Teach Algebra to Earn College Credit

As far as exams go, the College Algebra CLEP exam seems pretty straight forward. Learn algebra, pass exam in sha Allah (God willing), done. Still, it requires a little advanced planning.

In our 9th Grade curriculum, we’ve chosen to stick with Saxon, using their Algebra 2 program (3rd edition, specifically). Saxon isn’t the prettiest curriculum around, but it holds water when looking for a rigorous curriculum to get you ready for exam time. Knowing that Care Bear’s plans are for college, we wanted something well known and respected.

I think there are a lot of great math curriculums out there, and Saxon just seemed to fit the way I was taught (making it easy to step in and help when needed). At the high school level, the parents aren’t always at the student’s side helping each day. I’ve found when we used other curriculum, I couldn’t just jump in and help when she had a question because they were teaching in a completely different way than I was as a student. Since Saxon makes sense to Care Bear, and it makes sense to me, we stick with it.

So, what does our weekly work look like?

Care Bear is expected to work on math every school day, 5 days a week on a typical week. It’s pretty straight forward with a “do the next thing” plan. Simply, she works on one lesson or completes a test each day. Normally she does all her work independently. Test days are admittedly very easy, and aid in making for a shorter work day. In years past we would use the test as the practice set, rather than the problems in the lesson she just completed, but this year we’ve chosen to make test day its own day. It works for us, and it takes the full school year rather than ending early, narrowing the summer gap between math programs.

This year has been relatively easy for Care Bear, with her needing very little extra explanation. When she does need assistance, I’m ready and waiting, though she dislikes asking me for help. Why? I get too excited! Haha! Math was always my favorite subject, with Algebra and Trigonometry at the very top of my list. Care Bear doesn’t share in the math love, so she gets annoyed at my excitement. Instead, Khan Academy fills in for me (and they are more monotone than I, so my teen is happy). I’ve offered to buy the Saxon Teacher CD if she is having troubles on a regular basis, but since it is pretty expensive, we hold off until it’s necessary.

CLEP College Algebra Prep

I have to remember, college algebra is harder than high school algebra. The concepts are the same, but you will be faced with more challenging problems than you might see in a high school test. Knowing that, we use some test prep to fill in that potential gap (though, I do think this is being quite prudent on our part, and probably unnecessary). Since we are aiming for the CLEP College Algebra exam, we will be purchasing the REA CLEP College Algebra Review book, and the fact that it is one edition back shouldn’t be any trouble. You save money, can get the Kindle version, and math doesn’t really change, so yay!

That’s about it! Math is right or wrong, black or white. At this level, there aren’t many manipulatives, so it isn’t as fun and pretty as the earlier years, but it’s just as important!

This post is part of iHomeschool Network’s January Hopscotch. Please visit other great bloggers as they explain how they teach various subjects as well!