Spectrum Math Grade 1 Paperback – December 25, 2006

We home school and this book is a very helpful part of our curriculum.All Spectrum books give good clear examples before each exercise and have answers in the back of the book. If you are concerned about your child looking up the answers while working out of the book do not worry. The pages in the book are perforated and can easily be torn out to work on separate from the answer key.The book, and their line of books can really show you where your child's strengths are and if there are some areas that need some work then you can focus on those areas. If it means going to the library to get a another book that goes a little more in depth in that portion your child is struggling to grasp, then off to the library we go.I will keep buying Spectrum until the end of their curriculum "Grade 8" I believe.Very affordable, Nice compliment to a home school curriculum or a great summer vacation prep for the up coming grade (This way your child has a great grasp on the knowledge prior to entering the grade).

I use this with my 4 year old to reinforce addition and subraction concepts. My daughter showed interest in numbers and adding before she was even able to write numbers themselves. She's slightly ahead of the curve, and this works well for her. However, this book is by no means too juvenile for kids in the lower elementary grades. There is a good amount of work on each page. Not so few that I feel it's a waste of paper. But, not so many problems as to be overwhelming. She is getting a sense of mastery doing the addition and subraction (which is great, this adds to her feeling like she's "good at math"). However, the money, pattern, word problems, we do together, so I like that this is book has challenges for her as well. I like the introduction into word problems and also money, shapes, and patterns. I have tried a few other less expensive books, but found them to have way less content and to overall not be as good of a value. I will continue to by the Spectrum Math books.

Since my 6 year old started this book, he started being able to "conceptualize" math better. He's getting better at his basic math facts. There is a lot of repetition. I like how in the beginning the child has to write out the spelling of the numbers. I will say though, there isn't a ton of ground covered. But I think it's a great start and he'll be through the entire thing in about 3 months after he started it. It's easy for him to do yet he is learning. The best combo, in my opinion!

I am a 2nd grade teacher. I bought this book for one of my students who was having difficulties counting past 30 at the beginning of the year. I love this workbook because it's very visual and progresses at a very natural pace. I love that it has a pre and post test for every chapter and a place to track your grades at the end. The only thing I would consider before buying this book is that the material seems to be aimed for children who are slightly lower than the average first grade math level. It's great for any kid who needs a little extra practice, though!

This is a great workbook for kids. I homeschool my children and the Spectrum series workbooks are a great tool for learning and curriculum ideas at a great price. They give you a lesson and follow it up with questions to make sure that students grasp the concept. They also have a review at the end of every chapter that I use as a test. My only complaint is that some of the lessons could be a bit more detailed. Overall, a great product and I would definately recommend!

This school year I have been using the book to buttress my daughter;s math skills, who is in second grade. As a result, her performance at school has increased exponentially. I think the book have given her a chance to learn concepts that she missed last year. In other words, students are being pushed so fast they often do not get enough time to learn everything. The spectrum book has given her an opportunity to fill in some missing links, which has accelerated her performance at school.

Here's why I don't like it.... too much reading for a 1st grader.... and when it comes to doing money problems you cannot tell the difference between a nickel and a dime-- the images are almost identical... I have to go and write on the a number 5 and a number 10, so my daughter knows which is which. I like Total Math better, if you are just wanting something cheap.

I looked at a lot of math books before buying this one. The bad part is it starts so low that I skipped the first section and just gave them the review pages. The good part is it is better than the review books that have all the subjects in one. Those only have like five problems and it just isn't enough to keep my kids on track for the next grade. My boys like the look of it and couldn't wait to start.

Not bad. Found written instruction easy to follow.