Best Homeschool Math Curriculum for Struggling Students – Middle School

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Note: this article is part of a series on homeschool math curriculums for struggling students. This article discusses middle school math curriculums. If you have an older or younger child, check out our articles Best Homeschool Math Curriculum for Struggling Students – Elementary and Best Homeschool High School Math for Struggling Students.

  • Best All-Around Program: Saxon Math
  • Best Story-Based Curriculum: Life of Fred, Stanley F. Schmidt
  • Best for Visual and Kinesthetic Learners: Math-U-See, Demme Learning

If your middle school student struggles with math, you are not alone! Students learn in many different ways, and this is especially true when it comes to math. Unfortunately, because of the way math is usually taught in traditional schools, many students do not receive the type of instruction they need in order to progress in math. Homeschooling, however, gives parents the opportunity to choose curriculums that are a good match for their kids’ learning styles. In this article, we’ll discuss three of our favorite homeschool math curriculums for middle school students who struggle with math.

If you have a younger or older student, don’t forget to check out our related articles: Best Homeschool Math Curriculum for Struggling Students – Middle School and Best Homeschool High School Math for Struggling Students. 

Best All-Around Program

Saxon Math

If your student has not yet used Saxon Math, we recommend giving it a try. Saxon has long been one of the most popular homeschool math curriculums because of its user-friendly structure and effective methods. The program works well for many types of learning styles, and its incremental, step-by-step approach helps students gain confidence in their math skills rather that becoming overwhelmed. 

Saxon Math uses a spiral teaching method wherein a concept is introduced, taught, and then frequently reviewed to ensure comprehension. Supplementary video and digital resources are also available to help students understand the concepts being taught. Most middle school students using Saxon Math will be able to work through the program fairly independently, especially when given access to the video and digital instruction supplements. 

Most middle school students struggling with math will use either Saxon Math 6/5 (grade 5-6), Saxon Math 7/6 (grade 6-7), or Saxon Math 8/7 (grade 7-8), though some eighth-graders may be ready for Saxon Algebra ½ (grade 8). Required materials for each course include a textbook, a tests and worksheets book, and a solutions manual, all of which can be bought together in a homeschool kit. Also highly recommended are the DIVE CD-Rom, which provides brief lectures on a digital whiteboard, and the Teaching Tape DVDs, which features a state-certified teacher demonstrating the concepts taught in the textbook. The materials you’ll need for each grade level are listed below.

Grade 6

Grade 7

Grade 8

Best Story-Based Curriculum

Life of Fred, Stanley F. Schmidt

Life of Fred in one of the most unconventional math programs you’ll ever encounter. Written in the style of a funny novel, the series follows the life of Fred Gauss, a six-year-old math professor who finds the need for math in his daily life. Students are challenged to help Fred by doing math in this fun and surprisingly effective math program.

Life of Fred is a wonderful alternative curriculum for students who struggle with traditional textbook curriculums and repetitive math drills. The program really helps students understand how math relates to “real life”, and the math exercises incorporated into the narrative books are simple and approachable. Students also pick up lots of fun facts about science, geography, and other topics as they work through this complete math curriculum disguised as an adventurous, lighthearted book series.

Middle school students who have already mastered their addition, subtraction, and multiplication tables and who can do long division are ready for the Life of Fred Pre-Algebra Course, which consists of five books that should be done in order and can be purchased as a set. If your student has not yet mastered all these pre-requisite skills, purchase the Life of Fred Intermediate Mathematics Course first, which consists of three books that will better prepare him or her for pre-algebra. 

Best for Visual and Kinesthetic Learners

Math-U-See, Demme Learning

If your middle school student struggles with math but does well with visual and kinesthetic instruction, we highly recommend Demme Learning’s popular Math-U-See program. This program is specially designed to give students a tactile, sensory experience with math that really helps them “see” how math concepts work and better retain the information they are learning. 

The program uses a variety of learning tools, including video demonstration and traditional workbooks, alongside its unique manipulative kit, called the Integer Block Kit. This kit is necessary for every level of the Math-U-See program, but it only needs to be purchased once and can easily be used by multiple kids simultaneously. Kids who struggle with traditional math curriculums tend to do really well with Math-U-See, in large part because of the way the Integer Block Kit is used to illustrate every concept taught. 

Whereas some programs teach math using a spiral approach wherein concepts are introduced and frequently reviewed, Math-U-See focuses on having the student master particular concepts at each level of the program. The program is thus most effective when used for at least a couple of years so that a variety of different concepts can be covered. 

Math-U-See identifies its levels using Greek letters rather than grade level, a feature that helps keep students from worrying about whether they are “ahead” or “behind” in math. In general, however, students will use one of the following programs based on their grade:

For the most convenience, purchase the universal kit for your child’s level, which includes the Integer Block Kit, workbooks, instructional DVDs, and everything else needed for the full course. If you already own the Integer Block Kit, you can instead purchase the appropriate Level Up Set. 

Conclusion

Math can be a struggle for many middle school students, but fortunately, there are several excellent homeschool curriculums that cater to different learning styles and can make math instruction more effective and enjoyable. If you have an older or younger child who struggles with math, check out our related articles, Best Homeschool Math Curriculum for Struggling Students – Elementary and Best Homeschool High School Math for Struggling Students. If you have questions or would like more information on this topic, please email us!