Mr. D Math: 3 Reasons to Love It!

Mr. D Math for middle & high school students may be the perfect curriculum for your kiddo. Find out why we love it.

Before you taught it to your kiddo, how well did you remember the steps for long division? Did you remember what a polynomial is? But did you know what to do with polynomial long division?!

All of these math terms (let alone how actually to do them) are the stuff that puts fear into the heart of many homeschool moms. We want a great math education for our kiddos, but even math-confident moms may get nervous when it comes to high school math.

Finding a homeschool curriculum that matches our goals & wishes that also fits our budget, AND teaches in a style that works for kiddo? Well, when you come across something like that, you grab hold of it & don’t let go!

Our Path to Mr. D Math

My oldest thrived on Math Mammoth & then Lial’s Math. They are orderly programs, fairly traditional in their approach. I was confident I’d use Math Mammoth with all three of our kiddos.

And you can guess what happened next. (Ah, the confidence of a new homeschool mom!)

Kiddo #2 is a solid math student who doesn’t enjoy math a bit. (Yes, my math-loving heart breaks!) The repetition of problems and pages that were FILLED were just too much for him. After several programs, we ended up with Beast Academy & Life of Fred. The strong emphasis on mental math, math-via-stories, and just a few practice problems made them a great fit.

And then he finished Beast Academy & we needed an algebra program. I cried at having to start the search again. It had taken so many attempts to find something that didn’t lead to tears. After I pulled up my big girl panties, I got to work.

My Algebra Wish-List

1. Self-paced classes & online grading. (Math is a mom-led subject in elementary school, but then I like to hand it off.)
2. A middle-of-the-road program. Strong but not challenging.
3. A program that didn’t require pages & pages of practice problems. 

<ding, ding, ding>

We had a winner with Mr. D Math. What’s so great about it?

1 . Classes are self-paced.

Do you remember sitting in classes with your homework done, wishing others were ready to move on? Or those times when it just didn’t make sense to you but the teacher had to move on?

The opposite of that is the beauty of self-paced classes. Your kiddo can take as long as they need to master a skill. Or move on quickly when they already have.

(Mr. D offers live classes; we’ve just chosen not to use them.)

2. There’s real-life help. 

Obviously, self-paced classes don’t have a live teacher. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t live help available. In addition to help via e-mail, twice weekly, your kiddo an attend live’ office hours’ to get real-time help. This is a HUGE advantage that few other self-paced classes offer.

Between the videos & the answer key (and the PhotoMath app), I’m confident — at least through Algebra 2 — that I can figure out how to get to the answer to most math problems. I’m not as confident that I can explain the why & the answer well. An expert at explaining math is a huge bonus.

Not sure what credits your teen even needs for high school? Grab your free checklist here.

3. Videos are short & sweet.

Video lessons are almost always under 20 minutes, often closer to 10 minutes. Now, my kiddo usually takes longer to finish the lesson but that’s because the worksheets are designed to be the ‘notes’. That means he’s frequently stopping & starting the video as he completes the exercises alongside Mr. D.

Kiddo #3 took a live math class last year, the same one that worked well for his older sister, but struggled with all the extra talking that was included. The teacher greeting them, giving test instructions, answering questions. By the time the lesson started, his focus was gone. While I don’t think #2 would struggle in the same say, his willingness to sit through all of that would be low!

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