If your student is new to Saxon Math, then we highly recommend taking the free placement test. Remember Saxon Books are skill level books, not grade level books. It is essential that each student is placed in the text that meets the skill level of the individual student.

Just click the links below to view and print the free Saxon placement guide and tests. Instructions are included.

For a Placement Overview: Saxon Homeschool Math Placement Guide

For primary grades K-3 use: Saxon Homeschool Math K-3 Placement Test/Inventory

For Middle Grades 4-8 use: Saxon Homeschool Math Middle Grades Placement Test

For Upper Grades 9-12 use: Saxon Homeschool Math Upper Grades Placement Test

Or to determine if your student is ready to take Algebra 1 use:

Saxon Homeschool Math Placement Test for Algebra 1

Or to determine if your student is ready to take Algebra 2 use:

Saxon Homeschool Math Placement Test for Algebra 2

Let’s clear up a couple of things that usually cause some confusion when talking about Saxon.

First, there are two versions Saxon Math. There is a Homeschool edition, which is what we sell and a school edition which can only be purchased from Saxon.

Thus students attending schools can not purchase the answer keys on the Internet and cheat.

We regularly have students, and even school districts attempt to purchase the Homeschool Math from us thinking that the editions they are using in school will match. If you are looking to purchase the school edition Saxon Math, please click here.

The second area of confusion is regarding the publisher. Saxon Math is published by Saxon Publishers but in 2004, Saxon Publishers was purchased by Harcourt Archive. So it is not uncommon to hear someone refer to Harcourt when talking about Saxon Math. To read about Saxon’s history, click here.

In reviewing our math curriculums this month, we have to start with Saxon Math for Homeschoolers. This is our best selling math curriculum.

Why? Because it works!

Based on over 20 years of research and teaching success, Saxon Homeschool Math is the most complete, comprehensive and thoroughly researched math curriculum available to Homeschoolers today.

Saxon uses an incremental “building block” approach to help your child develop a complete mastery of math concepts from kindergarten through advanced high school levels.

Textbooks feature easy-to-follow scripted lessons, providing you with the best and most effective teaching techniques.

Some parental involvement may be required, especially in the beginning of the lesson and to check daily assignments.

For more information regarding Saxon Math click here

When selecting curriculum for your Homeschool, an important consideration is the amount of teaching that is required for successful completion of the course. Some curriculums are designed to do the teaching and others are designed to be taught by a teacher.

Choosing the right “tool for the job” is an important aspect of successful Homeschooling. Do you want to teach your child the subject or would you rather supervise their learning?

If you have the time, ability, and desire to teach the material, then you will want to choose a curriculum that favors a more traditional “classroom style” curriculum. If you are uncomfortable teaching the material or lack the time to commit to teaching it, then you will want to choose an independent study curriculum.

Independent Study

These curriculums are designed to teach the student with little or no involvement from the parent. Textbooks or smaller consumable worktexts written in this format include text for students to read, follow up questions and quizzes. Tests are usually given at the end of each topic to ensure material comprehension before moving onto the next topic. No direct teaching of the material is required. Parents often operate more as a supervisor than as a teacher.

Some examples of independent study curriculums we offer at PWL are:

ACE/School of Tomorrow
AOP LIFEPAC
Saxon Math with DIVE
Switched On Schoolhouse

Traditional (Classroom) Study

These curriculums most likely were written to be used in a classroom setting and have been adapted to be used in a Homeschool setting. They require parent/teacher involvement and preparation. The teacher’s guide is usually the most valuable component of the curriculum.

These curriculums are a great choice for parents who want to be directly involved in teaching their children. Many of these curriculums offer greater ability to adapt to multiple learning styles.

Some examples of traditional (classroom style) study curriculums we offer at PWL are:

Bob Jones Homeschool
Christian Liberty Press

Please feel free to post any questions or comments by clicking on the “comments” link below.

This month I am reviewing the math curriculums we offer as well as researching some new curriculums we hope to add. If you have any suggestions for a math curriculum you would like to see at Pennywise Learning, please let us know.

When we started PWL, I figured all math curriculums where created equal. Math is math, right? Since that time I have learned that I couldn’t be more wrong. Perhaps math is math but the approaches to teaching it can be very different. Start researching various curriculums and you begin hearing terms like traditional math, new math, mastery based, incremental approach, spiral based, applied math, standards based math, integrated mathematics, etc.

Like everything in Homeschooling, I do not believe that there is a one size fits all solution. It is important for home educators to determine their own educational philosophy, identify their student’s abilities and style of learning, then choose the educational approach that fits best. Most home educators favor a more traditional math approach. Our personal education philosophy favors traditional/mastery based approaches to learning.

Most all of the math curriculums offered at Pennywise Learning are considered traditional approaches. We can break them down a little further as well:

Mastery Based Approach

The first is mastery based. A mastery based approach introduces a new topic and then drills on that topic until it’s mastered. New concepts are not introduced until mastery of that topic is achieved. Of the math curriculums we offer, we would generally categorize the following curriculums to use a mastery based approach:

ACE/School of Tomorrow PACES
AOP LIFEPAC
Liberty Baptist Curriculum
Switched On Schoolhouse

Incremental/Spiral Based Approach

The second is spiral or incremental based. With this method, mastery is not required before the introduction of new topics. Topics are introduced and mastered incrementally over a period of time. The following are curriculums we offer that we would consider use this approach:

Bob Jones Homeschool
Horizons Math
Saxon Math

Knowing the approach used is important when matching a curriculum to your student. Some students do very well using a mastery approach where only one concept is taught at a time. This is especially true for students who struggle in math or in special needs circumstances. For others a mastery based approach can be very boring but they excel when using an approach that is a little faster moving and multiple concepts are being learned and worked on at the same time.

Please feel free to post any questions or comments by clicking on the “comments” link below.

The best way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time.

Being able to set goals and achieve them is an extremely valuable skill to learn. Studies show that those who set goals achieve far more than those who don’t. One way to teach our children to be goal oriented it through the use of a simple goal sheet.

Pictured here, we are pleased to offer this printable goal sheet: goals_sheet_pdf.pdf

Instructions for Use:

1. Click on file, print sheet, and fold in half.  This should cover 2 weeks, front and back.

2. Across the top of the sheet, write the child’s name and the beginning (Monday’s) date.

3. Write the subject your child is currently working on in the light blue boxes, ie Math, Eng, Soc, Sci, etc.

4. For each day of the week, in the gray shaded area, under the corresponding day of the week, write the page numbers that need to be completed. For instance, on Monday put pages 1-3, on Tuesday put pages 4-6, on Wednesday put pages 7-9, etc.

5. At the start of each day, your student simple begins working on the goals for set for that day. Once a goal is completed your student simply puts a check in the box or crosses the goal off completely.

For PDF File: goals_sheet_pdf.pdf. 

Please feel free to post any questions or comments by clicking on the “comments” link below.

Prioritize Your Task List

One day, Ivy Lee a management consultant called on Charles M. Schwab of the Bethlehem Steel Company. In that meeting, Lee gave Schwab an idea to make his company more efficient and told him to try it for one month and when the month was over, Schwab was to send Lee a check for whatever he felt the idea was worth. Schwab had the know-how, he just needed more time in a day to get it all done.

At the end of the month, Ivy Lee received a check for $25,000, an enormous amount of money in the early 1900s. Charles Schwab said that it was the best idea he ever received. The idea:

1. Write down on a sheet of paper the six most important things you need to do tomorrow.

2. Prioritize the list and order them from most important to least important.

3. First thing tomorrow, look at the first item on the list and work on it until it is completed.

4. When the first item is finished, then move onto the second item and work on that item until it is completed, and so on.

5. At the end of the day, make another list for the next day, and do the same.

Don’t worry if you only finish two or three tasks in a day. You are finishing the most important tasks and not getting distracted by the insignificant ones. By doing this simple prioritization of your tasks, even if only mentally, you will be amazed at how much more you can get done.

Please feel free to post any questions or comments by clicking on the “comments” link below.

 E-Sword is a Free, easy-to-use, yet extremely powerful bible software. The free download includes the King James Version with Strong’s numbers and Strong’s dictionary. Additional Bible translations/versions are available.

This is an awesome free resource to help Christian Homeschoolers study the ultimate textbook.

Please feel free to post any questions or comments by clicking on the “comments” link below.

Influence That Lasts a Lifetime

My 20 year old daughter is a graduate student at a University that is 600 miles away from home. Someone who knows my family and realizes that she is a physically disabled young woman who was Homeschooled for her entire K – 12 grade experience, asked me how I handled her living so far away from home. I answered, “I raised her to be independent and it worked!” Who doesn’t love to see the fruit of their labor?

One of the many things that I loved about teaching Meaghan at home (pictured here at her college graduation) was the realization that we could limit the outside negative influences in her life. When society tried to label her as physically disabled, hearing impaired or a ‘less then perfect’ person, we were able to block those words and surround her with people that spoke excellence into her life.

She could never ride a bike, but she could ride a horse at the age of 2. By the age of 16, she was taking courses through a local Christian College. When she moved away for her undergraduate work, she said to me, “All of my life I knew that I was loved by everyone.” Now, as she pursues her graduate degree in psychology, she hopes to be the person to help people realize that they, too, are loved and have great worth.

When all is said and done, I feel the greatest advantage of Homeschooling is not the education (although that can be excellent), but the realization that God gave our children to US for a reason. What a great privilege to build their character and influence them in a way that will last a lifetime. - Dawn

Dawn, a Homeschooling veteran is a member of our Help Desk Team working to assist other families in achieving success in their Homeschooling endeavers. We are blessed as a company to have her experience and success to draw on and share with others.

Please feel free to post any questions or comments by clicking on the “comments” link below.

“If at first you DO succeed, try not to look too surprised.” - Anonymous

If your Homeschooled child has graduated and is thriving in the workplace or in school, we would love to hear from you. Your story and words of wisdom will help motivate and inspire other Homeschooling parents to “run the race with endurance that is set before them” (Heb 12) until they experience the sweetness of crossing the finish line victorious.

To tell us your success story, please click here

“They do not ‘witness’ as if they were merely spectators, looking down from heaven and watching believers’ lives; instead, they witness through the historical record of their faithfulness that constantly encourages those who follow them.We do not struggle alone, we are not the first to struggle with problems, persecution, discouragement, even failure. Others have ‘run the race’ and crossed the finish line, and their witness stirs us to run and win also.” The Life Application Bible Commentary: Hebrews (Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers, 1997), 204

Please feel free to post any questions or comments by clicking on the “comments” link below.