Disclaimer: Complimentary Product Received
Math is always at the top of our watch list. There are so many choices out there in curriculum and with the varied learning needs of students that learn at home, it never hurts to show everything we run across. So we’ve got another one for you, by the name of Christian Light Education’s Sunrise Math (www.christianlight.org) and we REALLY like it.
Christian Light Education’s Sunrise Math, is available for grades K – 12, and according to their website, “Christian Light Math relates math to everyday life and makes it practical . . . and doable for every student.” This is mixed, incremental learning, meant to keep your student engaged and still make sure they master the concepts being taught. The majority of the lesson is review so that the student actually retains and internalizes what’s being taught. You’re not just going to get math with Christian Light – beginning with the 2nd grade LightUnit, there is a theme that includes reading passages and related word problems. Math 201 reviews first grade math, and then beginning with 202 new concepts are introduced along with more review. The “small bites” of work in each LightUnit makes for easy handling for small hands and the cost of the books makes them a valuable consumable for the homeschool family on a budget.
Without getting too wordy, here’s what you need to get started with Sunrise Math 200 and how it works.
Course Materials:
* Teacher Guides (2)
* Addition/Subtraction Flash Cards
* Multiplication/Division Flash Cards
* A Teaching or Student Clock
* LightUnits (total of 10 workbooks)
* 1-200 Counting Chart
* A Dry Erase Marker
Teaching a Lesson:
* Preview and Prep the Lesson (Do this by reviewing the lesson information, planning for Oral Activities, pulling flashcards to review, and studying the section in the Teacher Guide titled “Teaching the Lesson”. There are also Helpful Hints to extend the learning past the class period.
* Present the Lesson to your Student(s)
* Assign Review for Independent work (The We Remember Section)
That’s it. The work on the part of the Teacher is minimal. The lessons themselves are short and concise. Christian Light’s Sunrise Math is meant to take the stress out of math with your children. The Teacher Guides are well done and simple to follow with an Overview provided before each Unit with suggested teaching aides that can be easily found You won’t get lost while teaching or learning, because all of the LightUnits include appropriate symbols to indicate what needs to be accomplished for that lesson.
Wondering about testing? Well you can’t miss them in the LightUnits. You’ll find a number of PreTests and Practice to see if your student can bypass some review concepts based on their score. Unit Tests are bordered green on on the outer edge of the pages at both the beginning and the end. Also at the end of the LightUnit following the Speed Drills, you’ll find Quizzes you can administer as well. There is no shortage of review and extra practice.
So, I bet you’re wondering – did we like it?
Christian Light Education’s Sunrise Math is well suited for a variety of learners. For my Gifted learner, I enjoyed the mixed reviews and lessons included in each LightUnit. Learning math typically takes a linear when it comes to textbooks and curriculum. You start with counting, then addition, then subtraction, then larger addition and subtraction, until you eventually reach Algebraic concepts. With Sunrise Math, concepts are introduced with other concepts instead of waiting for their own individual units. Within one lesson, Cash practiced clock skills, Addition/Subtraction, Skip Counting, Pairs, measurements, AND fractions. Cash was in love with this layout, and quickly finished his math lesson. Speed Drills were fun for him as well but you have to be careful letting a kid with perfectionist tendencies see a timer. For our subsequent lessons, I turned off the buzzer for the timer and timed him in secret. He even enjoyed completing the flash card sets on his own.
Text in the LightUnits are large and easy to read, and can definitely be done independently. I rarely interrupted his math except to time his Speed Drills and check over his answers. It’s not just pages and rows of numbers – every lesson includes interesting facts, bold graphics and word problems. There was plenty of room to write answer and space to work if necessary. The only problem I had was getting Cash to stop at a single lesson. If left alone, he would complete a LightUnit in its entirety. For me, that alone is a good reason to have 10 separate workbooks books. They are sturdy consumables that travel well and when I needed on-the-go Math, Christian Light was my math of choice.
If you’re like us, and prefer to study metric measurements, Christian Light’s Sunrise Math includes both metric AND U.S. measurements and are taught simultaneously. Multiplication is introduced to the 2nd grader by LightUnit 206 which is much earlier than some other curriculum’s as well.
One of my favorite parts of Christian Light Education was the cost. You would assume with the amount of materials included that the cost would be equivalent to other curriculums or even higher. Not sure where to start because you’re coming from a different curriculum? You can find a placement test right on their site at www.christianlight.org as a free download or purchase an actual test booklet for $2. You can get everything we used in this review for under $100. Need a replacement LightUnit or more sets? You can order them individually as well for only $4.10 each at the time of this review.
We are really enjoying Christian Light Education’s Sunrise Math. It’s rigorous, fun, easy to teach, inexpensive, and perfect for independent learners. Both Cash and I give it our full stamp of approval and would love to take a look at Math 300 as well. We are a Christian family that appreciates the values that are the basis for this curriculum but I encourage ANY family that needs great quality math to give them a try. You and your kids won’t be disappointed! You can find this level of Sunrise Math at https://christianlight.org/curriculum/by-grade/grade-2/math
Thanks So Much Christian Light and the Melanated Gold Review Squad for giving us the opportunity to review this fabulous curriculum. Want to read more reviews from the Melanated Gold Review Squad? Check out https://melanatedgoldhomeschool.org/melanated-gold-review-squad-christian-light-education-review/
@Mamasweetbaby 
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