Omma wrote:I'll have to think about whether to get the HIG or the lesson plans or what. But I do strongly feel that Singapore Math is worth trying to figure out... and this is only 1A!!!!!Brenda
Brenda,
Here is what I know of the teacher manual options for Singapore.
Standard disclaimer: I know MFW would NOT suggest you spend the time & money involved in using all of these! MFW always encourages simple & inexpensive, while retaining high standards!
1.
Textbooks. These are your "teaching books" that you do together with your child. They are designed for you to present new information, illustrate different ways the material can be tackled, review previous information, & start looking at the next set of information.
2.
My Father's World's original Singapore guides. The first guides MFW published are mostly daily assignment plans which you could plug into your MFW teaching grids (from Adventures on up), to make your life easier. There are a few other things included, depending on the level.
3.
MFW is in the middle of revising their guides. They will include more teacher guidance and activity ideas. You might call to find out availability.
4.
Singapore Home Instructor Guides. These were originally published (funded) by Sonlight but are sold by SingaporeMath and others as well. They are written by Jennifer Hoerst, the gal who monitors the Singapore Math message board. That message board is a good resource if you get stuck at all. HIGs include a daily assignment grid as well, but it is not as easy as the MFW grid IMHO. The HIGs do have explanations of new topics, optional games, and answer keys. They also have U.S. pages for those using the 3rd edition, and other additional pages. There used to be a free 1A/1B guide, but Ms. Hoerst took that off her web site in preparation for publishing those guides -- don't know where she is on that but you could ask.
5.
Answer keys. These are sold by MFW. They are strictly answer keys, and may not be needed in the younger grades. They are already included in the Home Instructor Guides.
6.
Teacher's Guides. These are written by someone from Singapore (1A/1B) or SingaporeMath (SingaporeMath is the company that sells the materials from Singapore to the U.S. market). They are designed for classroom teachers.
7.
College textbooks for training teachers. The one I am familiar with is Elementary Mathematics for Teachers, by Parker & Baldridge. It's a college textbook which chose to use Singapore texts to illustrate as it explains how to teach math, because the authors believe Singapore texts are good.
The SingaporeMath web site has samples of both the Teacher's Guides and the HOme Instructor's Guides, as well as textbooks & workbooks that MFW sells. You can look around by clicking on a level you are interested in, then finding the "tab" that says samples or go over to the right margin to find related guides, go to their pages, and click on their "tab" for samples...
http://www.singaporemath.com/Primary_Ma ... d_s/39.htm
Start here to find the college textbook sample & other parent helps:
http://www.singaporemath.com/Math_Teach ... e_s/27.htm
Julie