Laura Feller, a mom using OpenEd in Utah, made a confession on the OpenEd Podcast: "Math is not my strong suit. It is where I struggled most in school."

She never expected her teenager to reach calculus (after all, she had never taken it herself). She worried she wasn't qualified to teach it; that her own math struggles would somehow transfer to her kids like an inherited curse.

Then she found Math-U-See.

This curriculum didn't require her to have all the answers. Her son learned through video lessons, and when he occasionally got genuinely stuck, Laura could call the company and someone would actually answer the phone.

The lesson to be drawn from this story is not that Math-U-See is the best curriculum for your family. Rather, it's an illustration of a change in the way parents are approaching math—less as frontline instructors who have all the answers, and more as architects.

How many parents who would otherwise consider an open education have kept their kids in schools that weren't working simply because they thought they needed a teaching credential? Or because they feared they couldn't teach advanced subjects?

Laura's family shows a different way. She didn't need to master calculus herself. She just needed to find resources that could teach it effectively.

Understanding Homeschool Math Curriculum

To be a good architect, you have to understand the job. And the first job is busting a myth: the belief that you either have a math brain or you don't. This myth of the "math person" ranks among America's most damaging educational myths (right up there with the food pyramid and "you'll use cursive every day as an adult.")

According to Shalinee Sharma, founder of Zearn and author of Math Mind: The Simple Path to Loving Math, "All humans have an inherent number sense and ability to think mathematically. Babies only a few days old can distinguish between two and three."

Yet somewhere between birth and pre-algebra, things go sideways for many kids. Most often, a child falls behind when they don't fully grasp a foundational concept before their class moves forward. In a traditional classroom setting, a teacher can't pause for individual students, so the child gets moved along anyway—sometimes with remedial options, but only after they've already internalized the belief that they're "not a math person."

Moving to a self-paced model is so powerful because it lets you interrupt that pattern. That requires you, as the architect, to make a choice.

In the early days of OpenEd, founder Matt Bowman and his wife Amy surveyed 92 families with what seemed like a simple question: "What is your favorite core curriculum for math, English, history, and science?"

They expected clear winners in each category—something to standardize around. Instead, they got 92 different responses. Even more surprising: different preferences within the same families. One mother had triplet teenage girls. Same DNA, household, and parents. Surely they'd all thrive with the same approach to math, right?

It turns out Jane and Jackie loved one curriculum, whereas Julia needed something completely different.

If even triplets—sharing identical genetics and environment—require different math approaches, what does that say about a standardized system trying to work for millions of unique children?

This was the aha moment. True personalization in education doesn't mean finding the One True Curriculum™ that works for everyone for all time. It means curating the best options and letting parents, teachers, and students choose what works for them—by subject, by grade, by provider, and especially by child.

Isaac discovered this principle accidentally as a homeschooled kid. Between ages 4 and 13, he estimates roughly half his time was spent playing with LEGO. His mom felt guilty. So did he—worried "real school kids" would be far ahead.

That day never came.

His mom would sometimes assign Saxon Math, which he'd complete as fast as possible, not caring or comprehending. He'd grade it with the answer guide and fix errors, but mostly he stared out the window at the excessively fat Squirrels of Milwood running some kind of animal cartel. The fattest was an albino squirrel, probably immortal. He called him The Godsquirrel.

Only later did Isaac realize how much more valuable playing with LEGO was than pretending to learn from textbooks. Building entire cities with plastic blocks taught problem-solving, spatial reasoning, and confidence. You want to make a lightsaber but don't have the right pieces? Break some in half and improvise. LEGO building is nothing but complex design problems with constant absence of the right pieces.

That's algebra. That's problem-solving.

So if every kid is different, what's the common goal? It's not just to memorize rules; it's to develop a deep, intuitive feel for the concepts.

In the film Oppenheimer, Neils Bohr captures this idea when he tells the young physicist, "Algebra is like sheet music. It's not important if you can read the music, it's can you hear it... Can you hear the music, Robert?"

He’s talking about this intuitive leap. But "hearing the music" isn't magic; it's a specific cognitive skill. All humans process mathematics through visuospatial working memory—the brain's ability to manipulate visual patterns and spatial relationships. Math savants who "see" the math aren't doing anything different; they're just exceptionally skilled at this visuospatial manipulation. This is the skill that predicts mathematical reasoning, and it's the skill you can build.

However, everyone builds this skill differently. Some need to see it. Some need to touch it. Some need to hear it explained. Some need all three, just not in the order you'd expect.

The Three Main Approaches to Math

As an architect, your "building materials" fall into three basic philosophical camps:

Mastery-Based Programs teach one concept at a time until complete understanding, with constant review to maintain mastery. I.e., You don't move to division until multiplication is automatic.

Programs like Saxon Math, Math-U-See, and Math Mammoth exemplify this approach.

Conceptual/Visual Programs prioritize understanding the why behind math before the how. Singapore Math uses bar models to make fraction relationships visible. Beast Academy turns multiplication into puzzles where the operation is the key to solving, not just the assignment. RightStart Mathematics builds number sense through hands-on manipulation, and the puzzle-based ST Math teaches concepts visually without words.

These programs follow a concrete-to-pictorial-to-abstract progression: physical manipulatives first, then visual models, then pure symbolic manipulation.

Spiral/Incremental Programs touch multiple concepts and return to them repeatedly in deeper ways over time. This is the model used by programs like Horizons Math, which builds connections by seeing how addition relates to multiplication relates to fractions relates to algebra. Great for kids who like variety, but can leave gaps if a child doesn't master something before moving on.

These three approaches aren't mutually exclusive—they're different tools for different learning styles. Your visual learner might thrive with Singapore Math but prefer IXL for practice. Your mastery-focused kid might need Saxon for structure but supplement with Beast Academy for problem-solving.

You can switch mid-year. Math is unusually modular—if Teaching Textbooks isn't working in October, you can switch in November without destroying continuity.

Kindergarten Homeschool Math Curriculum

Your kindergartener's brain processes math through visuospatial working memory. Dr. Claire Honeycutt, a neuroscience researcher who left her tenured position at Arizona State University to homeschool her own children, identifies two key components: visuospatial manipulation (recognizing and mentally rotating patterns and images) and spatial sequencing (keeping steps and locations in order). Dr. Honeycutt shares her research and homeschooling insights at ClarifiEd.

"Visual is processing images or patterns," she explains, "while spatial means handling locations or sequences. Together, this means that your brain thinks of math as objects or patterns in different places or sequences."

When your five-year-old instantly recognizes there are three blocks without counting, they're using this same visuospatial system that will later handle fractions, geometry, and algebra.

At this age, less formal curriculum is often better. Blocks, puzzles, and pattern games are curricula masquerading as toys, building the cognitive architecture math requires.

For Visuospatial Manipulation:

• Wooden blocks, magnetic tiles, and LEGOs – Let children create structures, then ask them to copy it "upside down" or "on its side" to practice mental rotation
• Puzzles – Start with 24-piece puzzles and increase complexity
• Shape sorters – Create custom sorters with objects that have rotational symmetry for added challenge
• Mirror play – Can they build "mirror objects"? Use an actual mirror to help them see reflections
• Train tracks – Look for sets with unusual connections. Mix brands and see how kids figure out how to connect them

For Spatial Sequencing:

• Simon Says with spatial moves – "Left, forward, spin" (2-3 moves)
• Obstacle courses – Navigate 3-4 moves, then repeat from memory
• Clapping patterns – Clap short rhythms, have them repeat exactly
• Bead patterns – Make necklaces with 3-4 color patterns, mix them up, rebuild from memory
• Beginner dance routines – 3-4 moves in order

As Honeycutt puts it: "I know it doesn't seem right but letting your kid become great at origami or model planes will help them be better at math!"

Same goes for LEGO. Isaac may not have known it, but he was adhering to the science when he skipped algebra homework in favor of his building sets.

If you want formal curricula, the programs from the three philosophical camps all have kindergarten levels. RightStart Level A uses manipulatives heavily. Math-U-See Primer provides video-based instruction. Singapore Math Kindergarten takes a visual, concrete approach. For a gamified, app-based approach, many families also use Math Seeds for this age.

Elementary Homeschool Math Curriculum

Third through fifth grade is when many kids start deciding they're "not math people." The curriculum you choose can either reinforce that myth or dismantle it.

Elementary math must build two things simultaneously: speed and understanding. Your child needs multiplication to be automatic and needs to grasp why multiplication works. They need to drill fraction operations and understand what fractions actually represent. You can't trade one for the other.

The programs from the three philosophical camps continue through elementary (Singapore, Math-U-See, Saxon, Beast Academy, RightStart). Choose based on your child's learning style and your family's needs, not on which program is "best."

Remember the triplets? This is where their paths diverged. Jane and Jackie thrived with the mastery-based approach of Math-U-See—they needed to own one concept completely before moving on. Julia, however, hated this. She needed variety, multiple concepts at once. Same mom, same family, completely different architecture needed.

If your child is already deciding they're "not a math person" because worksheets feel like punishment, this is where AI-adaptive platforms shine by removing the "worksheet" feel:

Zearn (K-5) — Free digital lessons serving 1 in 4 elementary students. "If a student gets stuck, the lessons adapt... helping them visualize it," Sharma explains. A RAND Corporation study of 10,000+ students showed students using Zearn gained 11 additional weeks of math learning per school year. Strong research backing.

DreamBox — Intelligent adaptive learning that adjusts to student in real-time. DreamBox analyzes 48,000 data points per hour per student. Research shows students completing 5+ lessons weekly (one hour/week) averaged 30 points more growth than non-users.

Prodigy Math — Gamified practice with 100+ million registered users battling through fantasy world. The free version includes all curriculum, but the freemium model creates two tiers of students with premium members ($75-360/year) visibly distinguished through exclusive pets and member badges. 

IXL — Comprehensive platform with strong research backing (Johns Hopkins study shows effectiveness, especially for Hispanic students, special education, and ELL students). However, student reviews reveal significant anxiety issues. The SmartScore algorithm drops 5-20 points for one wrong answer while adding only 1-3 points for correct answers. Multiple reviews report students "came up to me crying" and being "sent to guidance because IXL is so frustrating." Choose carefully based on child's temperament—high risk for anxiety-prone students despite strong effectiveness data.

Imagine Math — Personalized pathways with bilingual support and live tutoring. Particularly effective for students furthest below grade level.

Middle School Homeschool Math Curriculum

The transition from elementary to pre-algebra is where "I'm not a math person" becomes self-fulfilling. But it's also where good curriculum can make the biggest difference.

The core programs continue (Saxon, Math-U-See, Singapore all have middle school levels). But new options become relevant:

For Independence:

Teaching Textbooks becomes more appealing here. Automated grading, video explanations, less parent involvement needed. It may not be rigorous enough for gifted math students, but for average students needing confidence or busy parents managing multiple children, it can be liberating. Video-based programs like CTC Math also cover all grade levels (K-12) in one family subscription, allowing students to work independently.

For Challenge-Hungry Kids:

Art of Problem Solving (AoPS) — Problem-solving over procedure. Community of mathematically curious kids. Rigorous, proof-based. Not for everyone, but life-changing for the right student. Since 2015, all USA International Math Olympiad team members have been AoPS students. In 2024, Team USA won first place—all six members AoPS alumni. But AoPS itself warns: students accustomed to 100% accuracy may start answering just 50-60% correctly. This is where you go if your kid is bored by traditional approaches.

AI-Adaptive Platforms:

These create custom learning paths, adapting in real-time:

Math Academy — AI-powered adaptive learning from elementary through calculus. Uses spaced repetition and mastery-based progression. Internal data claims students progress "4x faster" with some completing calculus in under a year from 6th grade math. However, no formal peer-reviewed studies found—effectiveness claims rest on internal data. Math educators note it "overstates value of procedural fluency" and may not expose weak conceptual understanding until too late. Best as supplement to conceptual resources rather than standalone curriculum.

Aleks — AI assessment creates custom path based on knowledge gaps. When ALEKS determines a student is ready to learn a concept, they master it 90-95% of the time—the highest success rate reported. Works well for filling specific holes in understanding.

Khan Academy — Free, comprehensive. Adaptive practice with instant feedback. Good for review, filling gaps, extra practice. The key metric: 30+ minutes per week leads to 20% greater-than-expected learning gains.

High School Homeschool Math Curriculum

High school is where a parent's confidence in their ability to teach often wavers. You might remember enough long division and basic algebra to guide elementary work. But geometry proofs? Trigonometry? Calculus? That's when panic sets in.

When we spoke with Laura Feller on the OpenEd Podcast, her youngest was working through algebra. She explained that Math-U-See goes all the way through calculus—a course she'd never taken and never planned to. "My youngest son may get to calculus," she said, "and this curriculum will help him do that because I certainly won't be able to."

There's liberation in that statement. Parents don't need to know the math—they need to choose resources that teach it. The video lessons walk both parent and student through concepts together. When Laura gets stuck, she calls and someone answers. Her son isn't limited by her math education.

Not every student needs calculus, but algebra proficiency is essential. Sharma's research is clear: "Algebra completion is one of the best predictors of high school and college graduation, getting into college, and future earnings."

The core programs continue through high school (Saxon Advanced Mathematics, Math-U-See through Calculus, Art of Problem Solving Algebra through Calculus, Teaching Textbooks through Precalculus).

What's new at this level:

Specialized Programs:

VideoText Algebra — Particularly strong for algebra specifically.

Thinkwell — Video-based, college-prep focused. Professor-led lectures.

Jacobs Geometry — Proof-focused, challenging. Excellent for students who struggled with algebra but excel at geometry—they can see the relationships.

Dual Enrollment — Community college math courses provide high school AND college credit. Built-in credential validation. Access to professors for help. Often more cost-effective than AP courses.

Online High School Courses — Derek Owens, Outlier.org

"What If They Fall Behind?"

Isaac's son refused to do math for years. He considered it boring and irrelevant.

Then at 13, he wanted to attend a part-time school program with friends. The only catch? He needed to be at grade level in math.

With sudden motivation, he said, "I'll catch up this summer."

Starting at kindergarten level on Khan Academy, spending just 1-2 hours a day, this teenager who "hated math" caught up to grade level in less than three months.

He wasn't a math prodigy. He had his own motivation (not external pressure), the right tools, freedom to progress at his own pace, and no artificial timelines.

You can absolutely guide your child through high school math without having taken calculus yourself. Video lessons exist. Answer keys exist. Phone support exists. AI tutors exist. Your job: keep them moving, and find resources when stuck.

Free Homeschool Math Curriculum

For the architect on a budget, free resources are plentiful and powerful. They just require more of your "curation" time.

Khan Academy (K-12) — Comprehensive video lessons and practice problems. Weakness: pure lecture format, no physical textbook. Best use: supplement for practice, review, filling gaps. Can work as core for motivated, independent learners.

Zearn (K-8) — "Teachers and families can access our full library of digital math lessons for free," Sharma explains. Serves 1 in 4 elementary students and over 1 million middle schoolers. Designed by teachers, research-backed.

CK-12 Foundation — Free textbooks, adaptive practice. Comprehensive K-12.

Math is Fun — Explanations, worksheets. Good for reference.

YouTube Channels:

• Professor Leonard — College-level math explained clearly (Calculus, Statistics, Precalculus)
• 3Blue1Brown — Visual, intuitive explanations of higher math concepts
• PatrickJMT — Clear, concise math tutorials covering algebra through calculus
• The Organic Chemistry Tutor — Comprehensive tutorials for high school and college math

The Trade-Off: Free often means you do more curation work. Not worse—just different architectural challenge. Many families use Khan Academy plus Singapore workbooks, or Zearn plus supplemental problem-solving from other sources.

When to Invest: When free isn't clicking. When parent support/structure matters. When you need phone support (Laura's Math-U-See experience).

Tips for Homeschooling Math

The Architect's Toolkit: 5 Core Strategies

1. Make abstract concepts visual. Use manipulatives even in upper grades and bar modeling for word problems (a core of the Singapore Math approach). As Shalinee Sharma notes, "Understanding lies in bridging abstract concepts to the concrete and physical world." Consider fractions: Is 1/3 or 1/4 larger? Cut a cake into thirds and fourths. It becomes intuitive—especially for a kid.

2. You're allowed to switch and mix. Math is modular—if Teaching Textbooks isn't working in October, switch in November. Different kids in the same family can use different programs (remember the triplets). You can even use different programs for different topics: Singapore for conceptual understanding plus Saxon for practice, or Beast Academy for problem-solving plus Khan Academy for fluency.

3. Make facts automatic through play. Math facts need to be automatic, but skip the worksheets. Board games (Battleship for coordinates), card games (multiplication war), and apps like Prodigy or DreamBox all work. Shalinee Sharma explains that "purposeful practice builds fluency, making basic math processes automatic and freeing mental capacity for complex problem-solving."

4. Leverage AI strategically. Platforms like Zearn, DreamBox, and Aleks adapt in real-time to student performance, freeing up parent time. Tools like Khan Academy and Synthesis Tutor don't just give answers—they walk through reasoning. Use these to supplement curriculum, not replace human connection.

5. Consider tutoring without guilt. Einstein famously had tutors. It's not a sign of failure; it's a sign of good architecture. Consider it for topic-specific struggles (fractions, negative numbers), building confidence alongside curriculum, or preparing for high school placement.

Building Your Math Architecture with OpenEd

You don't have to be a math expert, choose one curriculum forever, or re-learn calculus. You just have to be an architect—someone who sees what's available, understands what your child needs, and builds the combination that works.

Through OpenEd, you can:

• Access any secular math curriculum (Singapore, Math-U-See, Saxon, Beast Academy, RightStart, Art of Problem Solving, Math Mammoth, and more)
• Use adaptive platforms (Zearn, DreamBox, Aleks, IXL, Math Academy)
• Access specialized programs (VideoText, Thinkwell, Teaching Textbooks, CTC Math)
• Assist with tutoring when needed
• Switch programs if something's not working
• Use different approaches for different kids

The "math person" myth is just that: a myth. Every child can develop mathematical ability—they just might need different tools to get there. Your job isn't to be the math expert. It's to be the architect who finds what works.

Ready to build a math approach that actually works for your child?

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