When parents ask about “Math programs”, the questions are usually vague and the common responses in private school and homeschool circles are lazy. The study of Mathematics is very complicated and what students should do depends entirely on what a student’s goals are with respect to mathematical studies.
I. Classical Mathematics
In the Classical Liberal Arts Academy, we teach the four classical mathematical arts, known as the
“Quadrivium”:
II. Modern Mathematics
In addition to our courses, which focus on the theory of the mathematical sciences, we recommend that students practice problem solving using popular online resources, to get as much practice as possible. We recommend that students be encouraged to use these resources instead of video games as a means of productive recreation.
- Teaching Textbooks
- IXL.com (Practice)
- Khan Academy (Practice)
III. College Prep Mathematics
For students seeking admission to selective colleges and universities for future STEM studies. We have chosen to Openstax, which provides high quality open-source math textbooks used by millions of students in private schools, colleges and universities.
- Openstax Mathematics (used in CLAA)
1. Pre-Algebra
2. Elementary Algebra
3. Intermediate Algebra
4. Pre-Calculus
5. Calculus
6. Statistics
Against Homeschool Math Programs
Parents must guard against unrealistic expectations and lazy curriculum-shopping. No student is going to become a great Mathematics student using the popular homeschool catalog programs. Programs like Saxon Math or Modern Curriculum Press or Singapore Math became popular because they were the only options marketed to homeschool families in the 1990s. They are confused programs that serve modern school courses to homeschool students, which makes no sense. Again, they were developed at a time when homeschooling was a new idea and they are obsolete today.
Mr. William C. Michael, O.P.
Headmaster
