Life of Fred--Apples

This is such a fun way to teach math!

I gave up on homeschooling last September because getting my advanced kids to do their math lessons daily was sapping my energy, fu, and my will to continue the struggle.After 3 years of sincere effort and several curriculum including online virtual academies and Robinson curriculum, I had given up and reluctantly re-enrolled them in public school.That lasted all of 3 months. By January I had pulled them out of public school completely and was starting over again.I needed a new plan and was forced to re-evaluate the highly recommended Saxon Math curriculum. It was killing us, robbing my joy! I researched until I rediscovered a review by Cathy Duffy on Life of Fred. An inner voice prompted me to explore.I'd seen Life of Fred before and wrote it off since it sounded so ... silly? Boy, what A MISTAKE!Don't make the same blunder! If I could go back in time I would've started with Fred.My kids are absolutely LOVING math now! It's like night and day the way homeschool mornings used to start. Plus, the older ones are even volunteering to help the younger one do her lessons because they don't want to miss out on any of Fred's adventures! Who are these kids?The other pluses about Life of Fred are:the books won't bust your budget (around $16 -$25 each); you don't need a teacher's guide until later, and they aren't expensive either; no workbooks to buy; no homework or endless boring math problems; your child can jump in anywhere in the series and begin learning, unlike some curricula like Singapore; no computer necessary; enhances reading skills, vocabulary, and other subjects including weather, seasons, physics, biology, history, and more. Also, you the parent educator don't have to know the subject. As long as they can read, the book is sufficient to explain the material effectively.Each math lesson is a day in the quirky saga of little Fred, the 5-yr old math genius and professor at KITTENS University. Every story is concluded by solving the math problems Fred faces, such as adding and telling time. So students are compelled by their own gumption to solve the problems on Fred's behalf, and they do so willingly and readily. No begging, pleading, screaming or threatening required on your part.They do need to write out the problems and not look at answers on the next page. Your oversight is needed here. This, the author insists, is the main criteria for success with Life of Fred Math.One last thing on where to start: go one level down to be safe if you're not sure. Also check the sample lesson for each book available at Life of Fred website. My daughter was in pre- algebra, but we went back and got the Fractions book because she was having trouble with them. She zoomed through the book in about 2 weeks and mastered it. She had decimals & percents down so we skipped ahead to the pre-algebra set of three, which she started with no complaints.I highly recommend Life of Fred to any homeschool family looking for a high quality, fun solution to the typical daily math conflict. If your kid loves reading more than math, this might be for you. At such a low price, I highly recommend at least checking it out even if there's another curriculum that caught your eye. It might be one of the best homeschool decisions you'll make, and your child will thank you for it.Math doesn't have to be miserable. And it can be fun.

I have been reading Life of Fred, apples (LOF in online forums) with my five year old as bedtime math. I think the stories are strange, but my son thinks they are funny and that's really what matters. Imagine a 5 year old kid who at 7pm will gladly sit at the table to work on 4 or 5 math problems at the end of a story? Yup. That's what Fred is accomplishing, so I'm happy.It is concentrating a lot on the numbers that add up to 7. This doesn't bother me, I think it is very appropriate as a supplement for my son. We have been working on adding doubles, and using manipulatives to add up to 10 on his regular schooling. So it works out well.They have questions that require some thinking for little children, such as: "Sunday is the first day of the week, Monday is second, what day is Saturday?" The question made him think and feel a sense of accomplishment when he figured out the answer.We may get some more of the books in the series. One pet peeve I have is that some people claim this can be a full math curriculum. I disagree! I think it is a great supplement. I suppose it is possible to add extra practice and perhaps be a nice break from regular math short term. But in my opinion this is not a rigorous math program, rather a supplement to help young kids have fun with math.I highly recommend it - as a supplement.

Life of Fred - Apples is a great book to keep the kids going during the summer months. My kids have liked the short lessons and the short quizzes at the end of the chapters. They like how it makes them laugh!

My 6 yo was not excited about math- UNTIL THIS BOOK! Odd to believe, but these are a stand-alone course. Some will tell you they supplement with other math; however, it is not needed. This is a fun story about a funny little 5 year old Math professor named, of course, "Fred". It engages children with story telling that weaves multiple levels of math concepts easily into itself and with chapter quizzes and review sections, it always just seems like a read-along, never a math book. Many kids love this book. My daughter always begs to do more chapters (each chapter has several questions at the end of it to ensure the child practices...not a drill book, but teaches the facts via story-telling which is sometimes more effective as kids will always engage in a story.PROS: comes in a series from K-12+, non-consumable (can resell the book as it's never written in), engaging, weaves different math concepts together so child can see relationships easily, fun story, can move at own paceCONS: a little pricey, but still affordable, short chapters, so sometimes if child wants to continue- you may have to do several chapters at a time