According to its publisher, “Saxon Math is the only major math program on the market today that systematically distributes instruction, practice, and assessment throughout the academic year as opposed to concentrating, or massing, related concepts into a short period of time--usually within a unit or chapter. Saxon Math's approach to math instruction ensures that students not only gain but also retain essential math skills.” The program transitions students from manipulatives and worksheets to a textbook approach as the students progress to middle school.
Saxon’s K-3 program is designed to teach basic arithmetic concepts as well as geometry, patterns, time, and more. Each lesson is scripted for the parent. Manipulatives accelerate understanding of abstract math concepts, and worksheets provide cumulative review. Saxon Math for middle grades transitions students from manipulatives and worksheets to a textbook approach. The emphasis in the middle grades is on developing algebraic reasoning as well as geometric concepts. Lessons include new concepts plus a review of previous concepts. Middle and upper grades have Solution Manuals which give step-by-step solutions for all problems in the book. Saxon’s high school program offers a textbook, tests, and a Solutions Manual. Homeschool kits are available for Algebra 1, Algebra 2, Geometry, Advanced Math, and Calculus.
Website: Saxon Math
(52 Reviews)
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Contributor Reviews
Reviews are solely the opinions of the contributor.
Cons: Can be boring; no color
Grades Used: 1st
I used this only one year and even though she learned math she was bored. I tried shortening the practice pages by only assigning the odds or evens or just every other row but she still balked at math each day.
It is great for a group of kids doing math together.
Cons: none
Grades Used: 7th
I really like this progam and the approach it takes to math. You are reviewing problems daily while adding new ones. I find that with this repeat method my son does little studying for the test because of his readiness for them. He has improved since the start of this year and is now getting A's on the tests, and his confidence is building as well. This is our first year homeschooling and I will be defintely using Saxon in the future. I couldn't be more pleased.
Cons: can be repetitive
Grades Used: 1, 4, 5
This is my second year using Saxon Math. This year we are using Saxon 1 with my Kindergartener and my first grader, Saxon 5/4 with my fourth grader, and Saxon 6/5 with my fifth grader.
What I love about doing Saxon with all my kids is that everyone knows exactly what is expected each math lesson. As a teacher, the prep time for me is easy, and with four precious elementary students, I need easy prep for at least a few of my subjects. My fourth and fifth grader have become good at reading the lesson instructions and understanding the new concept being taught. The "practice set" each day deals exclusively with the new material, and if they need help understanding it, they can either go back to the instruction material or come see me. The daily "problem set" incorporates the new material with material they have mastered (or are trying to master) with increasing difficulty each day.
My first grader knows what to do with her math worksheets, and she is learning to read the instructions and follow them closely. My kindergartener, if I can get him to sit still for five minutes, will often just do the fact sheet or one side of the practice sheet. But he was just not created to sit still, so I allow him to do other hands-on activities, like sorting or counting.
Overall, my kids do well with this math program. It isn't their favorite subject, but I don't get very many complaints. There is absolutely nothing flashy or glamorous about the Saxon math series, but I believe that it is teaching my kids what they need to know and doing it in a way that is working great for my multi-age classroom.
Cons: too much repetition for levels 1-3
Grades Used: 1-12
with the first 3 grades we had to skip some exercises because there was too much of the same things, but that might be good for someone who needed a lot of practice. Teacher's materials are well laid out. We eventually used another product for the first three grades, then went back to Saxon starting with book 54 and going through high school.
We used earlier editions that are no longer available- I don't know if they have significantly changed current editions.
Cons: Repetition
Grades Used: 1,2 4,5,7
I started homeschooling with Saxon math and we had a very difficult time. The repetition was hard on the kids. I started having the kids do every other and they did better. I stopped using Saxon and moved to something else. We didn't do as well. Last year I went back to Saxon and the kids love it. All 3 of my kids are doing well. At the middle school levels there is not so much repetition and my middle schooler is very happy to be doing saxon.
Cons: can be time consuming
Grades Used: 1st, 3rd, 5/4
Very thorough and easy to use. I like the spiral learning aspect. Great curriculum for those that need specific instructions on how to teach the lesson (upto 3rd level).
Cons: black and white textbooks pages
Grades Used: K-12
I have 4 children who have all used Saxon Math. We used the dive program for these books ( a cd that goes over each class) with only the one high school course on Calculus. My two older sons have went on to college and did very well after using these books from early elementary age.
Cons: none
Grades Used: 4-11
The Saxon math program has made teaching math easy and made learning math a breeze. Our children have gone through each book without tears and without mom and dad pulling their hair out! Our oldest child is using Advanced Math right now with the Saxon Teacher CD-ROM and is not having any difficulties with the concepts at all. We plan on using Saxon all the way through Calculus. Both children have tested in the 98% range and higher every year since we found Saxon on their Iowa Test of Basic Skills on the math sections. I would highly recommend this curriculum.
Cons: None
Grades Used: 7th (Book 8/7)
My daughter loves math and it is the one subject that she looks forward to daily. She looks forward to the challenge of "beating" her previous times on her daily pretest and loves mental math. This is a great program and we will be using it for the rest of her homeschooling career.
Grades Used: K-8/7
I have and hopefully my kids have also enjoyed using Saxon math. I feel my oldest who is in 6th grade and at Saxon 8/7 is being challenged. My youngest 2 children (1st, 2nd grade) struggle more with math concepts and are keeping up with the worksheets and fact sheets. I have my 2nd grader try to beat his own time (he needed more than the suggested). This program allows me some flexibility in scheduling because it has less than 140 lessons. I wish it was packaged a little different for the homeschooler (i.e. having the oral and written tests recording sheets together, I feel like I need to be flipping all around to find what I need).
Cons: Some kids get bored with all of the review.
Grades Used: 1-12
This math program does the best job of making sure the kids learn the skills they need in a logical sequence that builds very nicely from one skill to the next. I've tried a lot of different math programs over the years (started using Saxon when it was first coming out in the mid-80's and before they had the younger grades) and this one is the best for building a solid foundation.
The math whiz kids get kinda bored with the repetition, but for both the "average" math learner and the math struggler, this program is great.
For mom, it's really easy too and the chapter tests let you see where your child may need a little bit more work. That's when I pull in the Cuisenairre rods.
Cons: May move slow for some
Grades Used: K-4th
I love this program for my oldest child because of the constant review of previous taught concepts. It may move slow for some though. I do not always go through the "meeting" or do both sides of the worksheet when I feel he has grasped the lesson. It is easily adaptable that way. The Kindergarten book is more suited for preschool because it is very basic (shapes, colors, etc.). We have very much enjoyed the manipulatives, my boys are always getting into the "math box" to play outside of school time.
Grades Used: 5th through High school
One thing I really love about Saxon is that it covers a variety of math. By the time you are ready for Algebra or Geometry you have already been exposed to it so its not too overwhelming. To my surprise when my son took a little longer then I had planned he wasn't behind. The books cover so much in each book that it averages about a year and a half of public school.
Cons: Not challenging enough, all the materials to supplement are costly
Grades Used: 1 & 2 (Used for Kindergarten & First grade)
At the begining of this year we began using Saxon Math 1 & 2 for our kindergartener & 1st grader. I chose a year ahead after reading the descriptions and knowing what they already knew, knew that they were needed a grade ahead. I had been lucky enough to get some of the materials for free, but purchased the rest new (which I found to be very costly, especially for the math manipulatives.) While, using this curriculum with 2 different grade children was easy, since the lessons run just about the same course, the work just wasn't challenging them. We went back to Horizon's math (which we used last year) and my children are being challenged and love the color pages...unlike the black and white newsprint style of Saxon. The only thing we've kept from this curriculum is the "Meeting Book" and the only reason we kept this was to eliminate our bulletin board weather calendar so we have space for other things. The "Meeting" section to me took up too much of the lesson, while we already dicussed the weather daily briefly, I'd prefer more focus on the actual math.
Cons: Not visually appealing at all, 30 problems a day
Grades Used: 7/6
I have switched math programs several times in my son's six years of schooling. We finally switched to Saxon this year with the DIVE cd rom where he has his own personal teacher. He now understands math better than ever.
Cons: Very repetitive - can get boring
Grades Used: K-2
I liked the lessons plans as they were completely laid out for me. Also, their manipulatives were good for the young kids - although, my kids had a problem getting the blocks to snap together. If I was starting over, I would buy different blocks that snap together easily.
The worksheets did get redundant. While one of my kids would do as many worksheets as you gave her, the other would get bored. I often let her just do the front side if she got everything right. This encouraged her to do this well so she wouldn't have to do the back side. Every child is different but this worked well for our family.
This truly is a complete math curriculum.
Cons: None so far
Grades Used: 2nd Grade
This is my first year homeschooling. I am blessed that the Charter School we homeschool through provides the Saxon Math system. I love the worksheets and the pace of the program. The program also provides lots of opportunity for review and retention. We are very happy with this program!
Cons: can be a little dry
Grades Used: 1st
This is our first year using Saxon Math. My son is in kindergarten, but we are using the Math 1 (first grade) with him. He loves Math, and at first this program was a bit disappointing for me, because he just wasn't interested in it, like he normally is with math. There seems to be a lot of review and practice which is nice, but can also be boring. We are just now getting to a point in the curriculum where it's presenting new ideas and is challenging him (two months in). We are enjoying it much more now. It's really giving my son a good foundation and a deep understanding of math concepts. We love the manipulatives that come with it, and the directions it gives are very clear and easy to use.
Cons: Boring sometimes (for me!)
Grades Used: K
Saxon Math is really working for our family. The manipulatives are fun (yesterday we broke out the geoboard, to much excitement), and my daughter is really learning math. I love the way it spirals, and we cut out about 50% of the review as we go through it, unless she is stuck in a subject and not "getting it." I can slow it down or speed it up as necessary.
It seems thoughtfully put together, and I expect we'll be using this for years!
Cons: I thought it was pricy.
Grades Used: K, 2nd
I think Saxon math provides children with a strong math basis and foundation. New concepts are gradually introduced while previous lessons are reviewed. Thus far it is not overwhelming or boring for our children. The children really like the math manipulatives.
Cons: none so far
Grades Used: 5th
What I like about Saxon Math is that with each daily lesson, you get a 5-minute drill, mental math, new concepts and review of previous lessons. This works very well for my son, who's least favorite subject is math. I also like this for the basic design. There are no flashy colors or distracting graphics. I appreciate the simplicity of the workbook pages. Overall, I see an improvement in my son's math skills. He's retaining more and as a result, his self confidence in the subject has improve.
Grades Used: 6-8
My daughter always struggled with math until we started using Saxon. The way the lessons are given makes it easier for her to understand.
Cons: None that I have found.
Grades Used: 2nd
We are very satisfied with Saxon math and will continue to use it for years to come.
Cons: Have not found any.
Grades Used: K-1
Very easy for me as the teacher. Kids really like it and are doing very well with the program. They love when we get to do things with the scale.
Cons: none for us
Grades Used: 6th
This is an excellent math course. It has challenged my advanced 6th grader and is his favorite of our textbooks! It is very repetitive, which is great to drive home the core concepts of math. The homework is great as well, because it continuously hits the review questions, and it's very easy to see if your child doesn't understand something. There are also supplemental lessons in the back of the books to reinforce a lesson if you hit a hard spot. Just excellent for us.