- All access – Membership will get you access to all of the grades and levels to use anytime, which means you can move around in them with your child as needed.
- Quick lessons – The lessons are mercifully short (which my kids appreciate) and just get to the point.
- Pre-tests – for each topic in each grade your kids can take either a standard or a comprehensive test to help them know what to evaluate.
- Mobile access – CTCMath runs on iOS devices such as iPads and iPhones, and Android. Very convenient!
How We Used It
We used CTC Math as a core curriculum for a while when my kids were a bit younger. (We would have continued if our internet connection had cooperated – we’d like to pick it back up soon as a reinforcement for our kids in grades K-9!)
Here’ how it looked each day: My 6 year old logged on to do his math and got to choose one module. I would choose another one for him to do as well. He watches the tutorial video and then does the questions.
Sometimes I’d have him skip certain modules and do a test to see where he is on that skill. So you can really zoom through the stuff they already know and hone in on where they need more instruction.
My son particularly enjoyed the awards he can earn by increasing his scores in the modules. It took him some time to understand that every time he did a high score, the overall average score on the module would increase. (“Mom, I got 100%! Why does it say 90%?) His competitive nature keeps him going back to increase his score so he can get a gold or platinum award.
Pros and Cons
- Pro: Tutorials. The module tutorials are very well done. They are to the point, with no extra bells and whistles, and they explain the concepts very well. My 4 year old even enjoyed using them although I had to read the practice questions to her.
- Pro: Reports and Awards. For my purposes, the reports were very helpful. I mostly skimmed them to get a feel of how my son was doing with the math skills and to see if any areas needed work. The awards granted for high scores are digital and can be printed out, which provides excellent motivation.
- Pro: Speed Drills. The speed drills were also great for my competitive son and he had a great time practicing his skills there. The drills are organized by levels so that he didn’t dive into something over his head that would tank his confidence. We definitely liked this feature!
- Con: Review. The program doesn’t have great review features in place. There are questions to answer after each tutorial and you can take tests that go over that material, but there are no review sections or sets of questions that cover several modules. It does help a little to have them take tests from previously mastered modules as review. [Actually, I am told by other moms who are currently using CTC Math as a core curriculum that this is no longer an issue due to recent improvements.]
The Bottom Line
You can use CTC Math as a main curriculum or as a supplement. For kids who don’t need too much review it works great, especially if they do well with online curriculum.
I definitely recommend checking it out if you have anybody in your homeschool struggling with math or just want to change things up!
FIND OUT MORE about Homeschool rates here.
by Stephanie, The Multi Taskin' Mom
This Post Has 2 Comments
danielle
13 May 2016Thank you for your review, you’re the first person to give a con and was given the program for free. Sometimes you want to know if the review is really “real” because it was given to them. I’m looking to purchase a math program for my kids and I don’t want to get this just because of the cost.
Tauna
16 May 2016You’re welcome! There are pros and cons to every curriculum so I always try to list both. 🙂 Hope you find the right fit for you!