CTCMath- A Review – The Delight Directed Homeschooler

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product through the Homeschool Review Crew.

If you know me at all, you know math is just not my thing. There was a brief moment a couple of years ago when I thought I could be a math person…but reality quickly set in and I remembered the harsh truth of my non-mathy brain. And that’s ok! We can’t be good at everything!! We must know our weaknesses. My girls recently completed their yearly standardized test (in NC, we are required to do this) and it came to light that my middle gal might need to slow down and work on her mathematical foundation. Now… here’s the thing… if I have her repeat the curriculum she just completed, she will be doing the same level as her little sis… and that might sting a little. So I’ve been looking for something else for her. Enter CTCMath!!! We received a 12 month subscription to CTCMath through the Homeschool Review Crew. Yay!

CTCMath is a full math curriculum for grade K-12, designed for catching up, keeping up, or moving ahead. Students are able to learn at their own pace. You can use this with your desktop, laptop, iPad, iPhone, Chromebooks, and Android devices.

I’m going to make this a straightforward review and give you ten reasons why I think this is a great program.

Easy to Navigate– Y’all know I like the easy to navigate online programs. I don’t want to get bogged down in a lot of fluff or links or uncoordinated colors that just don’t go together and hurt my brain! Well… CTCMath is visually appealing and easy to navigate, even for young children. When you first log on to the parent dashboard, you have the opportunity to add your students. You create a user name and login for each one. When students log on, they can choose which lesson to visit. You can see at a glance what is included in each grade level.

Video Lessons- Each lesson is accompanied by a video that explains the concept. In our experience thus far, the videos are not too long and hold attention well. They are very straightforward.

Independance- Students can work independently… yay! I mentioned in a previous review that more and more people are turning to homeschooling. One of the main things I hear from new homeschoolers is the desire for open and go curriculum that requires little effort on the parent’s part (yeah… I know, I know). Programs like CTCMath are great for parents who are desiring to be a little more hands off. The videos and lessons allow for independence in learning and completing work. Even students who are not great readers should be able to find their way around and complete the lessons with ease.

Customizable– When setting up my children’s accounts, I was able to pick their grade level and difficulty of the questions. Progress reports are sent to me, the parent, so I can adjust as needed. I also like that this program does not keep questions locked until you complete the previous level. Students can move ahead or return to visit concepts that need to be reviewed. They can watch videos over and over as needed. PDFs of the lesson are also available.

Practice Questions- In addition to the video lessons, each lesson contains practice questions. The questions are interactive and directly related to the video. There is a progress bar across the top that allows the student to see how far she has come and how much farther she has to go. The question also has a speaker icon so a student can hear the question and not just read it.

Diagnostic Tools– Not sure what grade level your student should start with?? No worries! You can have them take a diagnostic test. The last thing you want is a frustrated kid… either bored with the material they have already mastered or not understanding the material needed to complete a task. Take the time to have your child complete the placement test.

Games– Yes, games! My kids love math games and it just makes things more fun! Speed drills, multiplication, logic puzzles. It is all there.

Tasks– In addition to the lessons that my children can navigate through and complete, I can assign them certain tasks. When they log into their account, they have a menu from which to choose- Lessons, Tasks, Results, History, Settings. From my parent dashboard, I can send them certain tasks to complete. I like that I can “hide” the year level from the student. I don’t think my rising 6th grader would appreciate a constant reminder that she is working on a 3rd and 4th grade level. I just want her to progress at her own speed without reminders that she is “behind”… whatever that may mean.

Safe– We play a lot of math games online and have used various websites for curriculum, etc. I hate having to deal with the ads and navigate the junk. Well, with CTCMath… there are no ads!! I can trust that my children will be focused on math and math alone.

Easily Track Progress– Thorough progress reports are available on the parent dashboard. I can use the detailed progress reports to note where mastery has taken place and which topics and concepts might need a little extra time. This curriculum works for parents who want to be hands- off and just open and go AND it works for parents who want to customize and be a little more involved in their child’s work. WIN- WIN!!!

What do you look for in a math curriculum?

While we haven’t been able to dive fully into CTCMath because … well… summer break, I plan to use this as the primary curriculum for my rising 6th and as a supplemental tool for my rising 4th. And … to be honest… I’ll create accounts for my high schoolers as well. Because… why not?!