Math U See- AIM Multiplication- A Review – The Delight Directed Homeschooler

Disclosure: I received this product free through the Homeschool Review Crew

Y’all. Math is going to make me LOSE MY MIND. Some days, I wonder if I should just cut my losses with the older two and send them out into the world as is… failing algebra… but they are lovely people with great character. So… they should be fine, right??? I realize one of the biggest mistakes I made early on with my kids was not requiring mastery of math facts. Well… that’s not entirely true. We did work on mastery, but we did not KEEP working on it. We didn’t do much review or math drills. Y’all… this was a mistake. I am seeing the (bad) fruit of my (insuffucient) labor and am trying to right the wrong with my younger two. Take it from me… if your kids do not have the basic addition, subtraction, mulitplication, and division facts memorized, Algebra will be a nightmare. In light of all this, you can imagine, I was excited when given the chance to review Accelerated Individualized Mastery (AIM) for Multiplication with a Bridge to Division- a program from Math U See with the expressed purpose of developing mastery of math facts.

Math U See is a well established company. We have been using their products from the very beginning. The program is solid and tested and worth it. The Accelerated Individual Mastery (AIM) Multiplication with a Bridge to Division program combines hands on and digital instruction and is for students ten years of age or older. Ten years and up includes the teenagers that I so woefully failed early on. The program is designed to increase retention of basic multiplication facts. You will need internet access to get the full experience.

Included in the box:

Resource Guide
Online videos and materials
Blocks (integer blocks)
Flashcards
Math Facts Strategy Posters

Confession: We had been using Math U See for about 4 years before I realized the answers were in the back of the teacher’s guide! So… learn from my mistakes and get to know all the materials in your package! The Resource Guide contains a “Before- AIM Assessment” to determine where your student is in their math fact mastery.

The resource guide is clearly laid out and easy on the eyes. It contains instructions for accessing your lesson videos. You will receive a card in your box with a code to access the digital pack. It is super easy. The resource guide also helps you as the instructor to understand how the program works and how to set up your student for success.

Using a multi sensory approach, AIM Multiplication helps students work on the 2s to 10s times tables. They manipulate blocks, write things down, speak it out loud, etc. This program hits all the learning styles!

The overall sequence/ lessons at a glance of the program:

The Integer Blocks
Rectangles, Factors, and Product
Doubles and The Commutative Property of Multiplication
Tens Facts:Increase Place Value by One Place
Fives Facts: Use the tens fact, Find Half the Product
Nines Facts: Use the Tens Fact, Subtract One Group
Multiplication by 4: Doubles, Doubles
Multiplication by 6: Use the Fives Fact, Add One More Group
Extras, Facts Known, and The Distributive Property
Solve for an Unknown
Introduction To Division

The resource guide contains a road map for each lesson that lets you know which materials you will need, which videos you will watch, and teaching tips for the specific lesson.

AIM- Multiplication with a Bridge to Division would be a great supplement to any math program. In my opinion, you do not have to be using Math U See as your primary math curriculum (although I recommend you do… it really is a great program) in order to use AIM. Math U See has made this mastery system available for students who have already learned the basics of multiplication and division, but need that extra boost to really master and retain.

Let me say it again… you want your kids to master their math facts. When they are doing upper level math and still trying to remember what 6×7 is, they will spend all their mental energy on trying to figure out the basics and will burn out by the time they get to the meatier parts of the problem. Set them up for success by taking the extra time (just a few minutes a day) to review and master these facts.