Why We Left TGTB and Switched to Math With Confidence | Elementary Homeschool Math

[@JoleenGraves]

We’ve used preschool, second grade, and currently using Kindergarten MWC. We love it! If you wait to purchase from Well Trained Mind in June/July (can’t remember which month) they always run a 40% off sale on math and MWC is included ❤

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Yes, I've heard they have a great sale then. :)

[@pitcherperfect11]

Wow! Thanks for this info!

[@JoleenGraves]

@@pitcherperfect11 the sale is this week!

[@lisaharvey2986]

We made the same switch last month. I am so thrilled with the changes from TGTB. And let me just say, of all the homeschool channels I’ve found, yours is my favorite. We seem to be very similar in our pedagogy, life values, and ages of kids. Thank you so much for what you do. You’re a breath of fresh air!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

That's so kind of you to share, thank you!

[@julie9299]

We are using MWC Kinder now. I am so happy we found it. Thanks for sharing

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Wonderful!

[@JoyfulNoiseLearning]

Math With Confidence is AMAZING! We’ve been using it for 3 years now (Kinder-2nd) and it’s honestly the math curriculum I had been dreaming of 😊

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

It is pretty awesome! Both my kids are enjoying it. :)

[@monicaraney5649]

We are on week 4 for Kindergarten and love it. It takes the time to build a strong foundation and it feels natural to teach.

[@rebeccanieuwesteeg4165]

We went from TGTB to Math-U-See and finally landed on MWC and we are staying put!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

It's really great!

[@mandigibson30]

Currently doing Preschool Math at Home with my preschooler. So I’m glad you made this video!

[@amandab.6815]

We loved that program!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

You're welcome!

[@crystalh28]

I agree with everything you said. Our recently turned 5 year old loves to do school. She completed Level K with TGTB and moved on to Level 1 in January, but I could tell she was not ready for it at all. I decided to try MWC Kindergarten and I can see her number concept has grown leaps and bounds. I agree that it is conceptually deep and thorough. We are loving it and all 3 of our littles will be doing it next year (continuing Kindergarten, Grade 2 and Grade 3). So happy that it is working out well for your family and that you can download it as opposed to paying those huge shipping costs.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

We're seeing very similar results.

[@noellemichalski1163]

Excited to see a flip through and also a lesson of math with confidence. Thanks for sharing

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Coming soon!

[@DanielaNoel143]

We also switched from The Good and the Beautiful to Math with Confidence. When I first received MWC, I thought it might be too simple, but then I started reading the instructor's guide and I have to agree this will give a deep understanding of math.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Absolutely. Simple doesn't necessarily mean shallow.

[@gracefullychaotic9811]

I can't wait to see the flip throughs! Thanks for sharing this video.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

You're welcome. :)

[@jamiesundblad9830]

So exciting! I’m glad this works well for you and your kids. I too am going to be switching to math with confidence! I’m obsessed with spiral bound books though it just makes my life so much easier. Thanks for the idea to buy the PDF instead! Can’t wait for the flip throughs!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Spiral books are far easier to handle. :)

[@mellisa5016]

We made the same switch and have been enjoying it 😊. I can already see a big difference in things sticking more with MWC and we’re not too far in.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Great to hear!

[@SevenInAll]

Loved hearing about your reasoning and how the switch is going!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Thanks for all your great videos too! They have helped. :)

[@rachela.5311]

What amazing timing! I started TGTB when my son was in first grade and he is thriving on it. But *I* don't like it. I don't like all the stories and we skip a lot of the busy work. I already made up my mind that we'll no longer use TGTB when my youngest starts K later this year. I heard so many good things about MWC that I decided to switch to them. Once the new grade 3 flip throughs come out, I'll make a decision for my oldest, too. Thanks for the video!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

MWC has been really awesome for us. I hope it works well for you too. :)

[@ravenbird3014]

I couldn’t handle TGTB’s cluttered pages. My son would always miss a problem or take forever staring at art. We finished early and are doing select units MWC 2 to reinforce concepts while waiting for the third to come out.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Yes, it wasn't an issue in the younger years, but level 3 was a big jump.

[@Dreblueskies]

Your hair looks gorgeous!!! Ok now I’m going to watch 😊 So excited!! My MWC just arrived for 1st grade.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Thank you! And yay!

[@SouthernCouture4]

This just confirms my decision to use MWC. I had been so torn between both of these. Thank you! I will be using K with my son in the fall but still can't wait to see the flip-throughs.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Glad it was helpful!

[@shaunajoyce5889]

Oh I love this, we had just placed our order for math w confidence. We have 3 weeks left of our school year and I still had decided to switch over and use the curriculum for the remainder and very gently through the summer. I loved TG&TB but my son just dreaded schoolwork. Same with their language arts. I loved how it held my hand as a new homeschooling mama, told me exactly what to say and I was really grateful for that set up! But he just wasn't connecting with it. I appreciate you explaining the mastery vs spiral. It was difficult even for myself to have him jump from place to place in there before he had finished the previous concept. An example I can remember was counting by 2s. It just came out of nowhere and then it's by 5s and I think it was just too many introductions to things without follow through. Love how you explained it being deep and not wide. Exactly what I'm looking for, super excited to get started with it! Thanks for the video!😊

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Yay! Hope you enjoy it!

[@amandab.6815]

I have a son and a daughter 2 years apart. He is in Kindergarten MWC and she is moving into 2nd grade MWC. They always insist on doing the games with each other. It works great. They have such fun and learn so much.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Yes! I can see my kids playing games with each other for sure.

[@haleyblue3204]

I would love to hear what binder you have as well! Being able to print and bind at home sounds so nice!

[@samanthashirley206]

Im also wondering what kind of binder she uses because I can't find one big enough to bind a textbook!

[@faithfullyinfertile]

You nailed it with deep vs wide. And yes I totally agree that it is so important to go deep vs wide at these early elementary ages. I started KMC with my son this year and I LOVED it but sadly I had to stop because it didn’t fit my homeschool. With so many kids and special needs, I need something more straightforward as far as implementation goes so I have decided on Math U See for my youngest two. If however MUS doesn’t work for whatever reason I will definitely try MWC again. It is a phenomenal program. Probably the most thorough math curriculum I’ve seen (besides MUS which I would say is comparable). I look forward to hearing how it goes for you and your children!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I've heard wonderful things about MUS as well!

[@mospinn4084]

Thank you for this! I was sold on Math U See but now I’m really considering this. My child loves learning with games. And I need as simple as possible to teach lol!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

We're enjoying it so much!

[@tatyana1324]

Thank you for sharing and I would love to see a lesson in progress 😀

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Yes, I plan on filming one. :)

[@lorieflanders]

Level 3 TGTB is really hard. Level 4 has video instruction that goes along with the books and it is FANTASTIC. You may want to go back next year.

[@Brigsgirl22]

I was going to say the same thing!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

That's good feedback to get. Thanks. :)

[@kelseyhall9925]

I'm doing Preschool Math at Home with my 4 year old and love it! Thanks for making this video 😊.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Yay! You're welcome. :)

[@GardenMinistry.]

We've been using Abeka Arithmetic the past 3 years, which has worked for us because of it's spiral approach and lots of practice. But I love that MWC teaches conceptual Math better (the reasons behind it.) I was thinking of using MWC as our spine to teach conceptually, and since we already own next year's Abeka math workbook, we can just use it as enrichment if we need extra practice... although we may not even find that we need it. I also like that MWC isnt very expensive, so if it doesnt happen to work out, you dont feel the guilt of having spent the money. MWC seems like the secret that just got out, because Im seeing so many people are switching to it, not in a "fad of the moment" kind of way, but in a "I truly love this because its effective" kind of way. 👍🏽

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Yes! I think it's pretty darn wonderful. It's working very well for both of my kids.

[@tiffweilbacher6206]

We just ditched TGTB math too. My older son was halfway through Math 2, and it was just frustrating how long the lessons took, and how there was not enough repetition for new concepts. I took a look at the level 3 math, and decided it was much too big of a leap. So we switched to Math U See, and it is already working way better!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Yay! Glad you found something that works. :)

[@melissatokar2797]

I wanted to love TGATB so badly for math, but it was not good. We made it to lesson 95 of level 1 and switched to MWC 2 and Abe loves, loves, loves it. I love how well math is explained.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Yay! Glad it works for you. :)

[@athomewithdorothy]

We LOVE MWC! We used it this year for kindergarten and it was great. Continuing next year.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Yay!

[@RockSimmer-gal4God]

We struggled with level 3 math from TGTB!!! I don’t want math to be frustrating!!! We bought base 10 blocks for TGTB level 2 as my twins struggled with place valve!!! They had gaps from public school!!! We need more mastery but not complete mastery approach!!! We love it when math is fun!!! I encourage the question why? And I try to teach why things happen!!! My twin son gets more why in his curriculum but he works best with just mastery!!! Nothing wrong with gentle especially when it’s also deep!!!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Yes, mastery with review seems to be a really good balance. :)

[@tanyacagle2423]

I’m using the good and beautiful and some lessons are ok in it and my daughter finds fun sometimes and other times it’s too much on the page. I’m going to try this one out. I like the layout and simplicity of it and the hands on and it tells you how to teach it simply too! Thank you for your video! We will still stick with tgab language arts though for now.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

We've been very happy with MWC. :)

[@LearningPlantingGrowing]

We had a similar story. My kids were all in TGTB math because it was colorful, affordable and easy for me to teach and they loved doing it. Then we hit grade 3 and there was zero mastery. My kids just could not do the level after using grade 2. They didn’t have any number sense and two kids in a row didn’t get the way multiplication was taught. My two oldest in 7th and 4th we put into Saxon 5/4 with Nicole the Math Lady with great success. First time we are forging strongly ahead and there is absolute mastery. With the littles I wasn’t sure I’d have the time to teach Saxon so I bought TGTB grades 1 and 2 thinking we would just use them as is for now. One week later my husband said I don’t want them using this any more I want Saxon or something like it. I showed him the lower grades of Saxon and Math with Confidence and he chose Math With Confidence. (As the Engineer in the family I have turned math direction over to him lol) He says after several years of using TGTB our kids are lacking number sense. I’m a little sad because I love the books. But within 2 lessons of Math With Confidence my kiddos were having aha moments and connecting the dots mentally so we have been very happy with the switch over the last few months. We do have some friends very happily still using The Good and the Beautiful though and I am glad it’s working great for them😊

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I'm definitely considering Saxon for higher grade levels.

[@vickie3221]

I'm curious what your husband would suggest for higher grades? I have a child going into 4th grade and she's just a year above the release dates :(

[@LearningPlantingGrowing]

@@vickie3221 He has been very happy with Saxon and we like Nicole the Math Lady to help teach as well. Another thing we have been using and liking is old fashioned textbooks. We printed Everyday Mathematics for free off of google and have been using that over the summer and really like it!

[@user-bn7dg2km2d]

Yes we are having this same issue. My daughter was using tgatb math the last couple years and we hit level 3 this year and she's struggling. So we are switching.

[@PollyPatriot]

You are a wonderful teacher. Sweet and pleasant, well spoken and professional as well as very likable

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Thank you. :)

[@veronicageorge7982]

We love MWC!!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Ditto :)

[@homeschoollifemom]

The same thing happened in our house. My twins started level 3 TGTB math. It was our first time using the revised version and they went from loving math to hating it. My daughter cried almost every day. Way too long of lessons. No review from 2nd grade to start out the year. Almost all of the fun hands on elements were removed. So I switched them to Apologia math since MWC didn’t have a level 3 option. It is such a good fit for them. I’m going to use MWC though with my 2 younger children.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I've heard great things about Apologia!

[@caseyjeanchapman]

We did MWC and TGTB kindergarten because my son loves math so much. We had started with TGTB, found it too random and shallow, did all of MWC and then circled back to TGTB to fill in any gaps. My son's request was to do TGTB for grade one but I'm about to switch back to MWC because it was so much better for understanding, and we will add in TGTB pages and games.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I think TGTB can work great as a supplement.

[@allheartandsong]

For l.a. 6th and 7th grade (tgtb) lessons take at least 1 hour, sometimes 2.5. Hours PER CHILD. it is a robust curriculum, and we love it, but I appreciate you sharing that math with tgtb takes too long too, so now I KNOW I won't be purchasing it. I wish mwc had levels 6 and 7 😢 but ill atleast get that for my younger two....

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I know, MWC is just so lovely!

[@SimplyLivingIt]

I appreciate you sharing this video! I wish they had the upper grade levels available!!!! 😬🙂

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I know! I've heard Apologia Math is a good alternative. :)

[@aimeenorman]

I want to encourage you - we did old level k tgtb, then level 1 and level 2 of tgtb and we kind of hit a wall. She did fine but there was this push back, she felt like she hated math. We started mwc 2 and we have sorta cherry picked because we knew a lot of the material (shapes etc) but my daughter is in week 19 I think. She immediately shut down and said she hates subtraction. It's mental double digit minus double digit subtraction. After she learned the strategy mwc taught her, she said she didn't even understand why she didn't love subtraction. It was easy. She was doing 87-64, 93-58, etc mentally and quickly by then end of the lesson. She was also my kid who needed all about reading to learn how to read - she is do logical she needs to understand why. Why does this work, how does this work? Mwc lays this rich, solid foundation for math concepts. She's also naturally picked up almost all her math facts that she never learned in tgtb just by playing the fames in this curricula. It feels gentle because no one is crying, but my daughter is doing math she absolutely couldn't do, even after finishing level 2 with tgtb. It tricks everyone into having a good time with math 😂😅 my younger daughter will be doing level 1 mwc next year, she is finishing up level k tgtb which I enjoyed but I can say it didn't teach the deep number sense that the old level k did with all those manipulatives.

[@aimeenorman]

Games. Not fames 🥴

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Wonderful feedback! Thank you for the encouragement. :)

[@jessicapullara4759]

I used Preschool Math at Home with my son this year and we are loving it! I plan to use Math with Confidence. I only wish there were programs for the upper grades! Do you have experience with Kate Snow’s Math Facts That Stick series?

[@juliequates9529]

I'm thinking of getting that preschool book to use with my 3 year old! We attempted her Math facts that stick but my son didn't love it. He was a bit older though and wanted something more independent...and so did I. But for younger it might be great. It was very simple set up and games

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I don't, but I believe a lot of the same material is covered in the grades already released (and the ones coming).

[@schultesweeties]

My oldest used old TGTB 2 and 3 then switched to new TGTB 4 and 5. My middle was using old k and new 1 and 2. And my youngest had just started k. But we ended up switching them all. My oldest was getting so frustrated with the length of the lessons even after I tried to take some away. The review was so long in level 4 but the lessons were so long in 5. My middle was getting frustrated with the length of lessons in 2 and I could see her love of math fading. I knew what laid ahead since I was dealing with my oldest. I switched my k now to math with confidence since she was barely in level k. Then I planned to switch my middle to math with confidence but I’m rethinking it now. I do like math with confidence, but I feel like I’ll always be waiting for the next level and I feel like she could probably speed through the levels and I don’t want to slow her down. My middle switched to an online math that she loves

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I've heard Apologia math is very similar and they have more levels out.

[@schultesweeties]

@@ThisHomeschoolHouse yes! That is my new plan for my middle!

[@cadykelly247]

Thank you thank you thank you for this!! We used MWC K, tried TGATB for my son’s 1st grade year and I knew we needed to switch back for the very reasons you’re describing. Would you recommend stopping TGATB midway through and begin MWC1 to finish the year?

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

You can totally do that. I would just look at the contents and do the things he hasn't yet covered in TGTB.

[@woveninstory1290]

We are huge fans of MWC!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

It's pretty great. :)

[@fannybut]

TGTB has such a good Math K. It's such a nice intro to Math & helped my son fall in love with Math. We ordered TGTB Math 1 and of course it looked great and beautiful but I could tell right away after using it that it just wasn't going to work. We use CLE Math currently and it's going well, but I'm still on the hunt for something we LOVE. It was so nice to have you compare this to TGTB! Thank you for doing that! I have noticed people leaving TGTB Math & I think this video is going to be SO helpful for those who do love the TGTB but know they need something different.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I've heard great things about CLE in general.

[@christinelagrone2459]

Hi! This is such a helpful video, and it's inspired me to try this curriculum this year instead of TGTB. I'm not sure if I missed this in the video, but where did you find the spiral-bound versions of these? I can't seem to find them anywhere.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I printed these myself at home which is why they're spiral bound. :)

[@christinelagrone2459]

@@ThisHomeschoolHouse Just saw this. Thanks!

[@emilylong9887]

I’ve been waiting on this video. Finishing up 1st grade this year and have never loved tgtb for the reasons you mentioned about it being more spiral, not enough repetition to really master things. I’ve found myself supplementing. My son those the hands on aspect and games so that’s why we went back to it this year. But MwC caught my eye recently and the more I hear the more I think it will be a good fit for us. Did you find moving from first tgtb to 2nd mwc was ok??

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

We actually moved from level 2 TGTB to grade 2 MWC. We've been skimming through the stuff he knows and then mastering any concepts he still needs to work on.

[@haleyblue3204]

This was so similar to our experience as well which made me super hesitant to use their LA (we basically repeated an entire year of math as she didn't retain any from TGTB), especially as my daughter has really struggled with reading. We ended up going with AAR, Essentials in Writing, and Spelling Connections although it definitely seems easier to have it all in one. Perhaps when she is an avid reader we could try. Do you find TGTB Language Arts to be thorough enough with writing and spelling? I would love to hear your input on this! I have a toddler and a baby and dream of simplicity with homeschool but it just hasn't turned out quite the way I thought haha. I am a first gen homeschooler! Oh last thing, I have a 7 almost 8yr old who technically would be going into third had we kept her in school (we pulled her out halfway through 1st) but is at a 2nd grade level. We are starting MWC Second grade this summer after using MWC First Grade and it's been such a blessing in our home!

[@jengarthaffner2618]

My son has about 20 lessons left in TGTB Math Level 2, and I’m thinking of switching to Math with confidence. Do you think he could start with the new level 3? Math wasn’t a struggle for him until he got about halfway through this level 2 book. His biggest struggle is with the subtraction with borrowing and regrouping. Should I have him go through the level 2 math with confidence before beginning level 3?

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I would look into the Subtraction Facts that Stick book. He could do that and then move onto level 3. :)

[@nicolentwiga7049]

We switched to MWC from TGTB last year in level K. We have loved it. I prefer the more mastery based with that added spiral review. I like all the help for the teacher in the teachers guide. We have had to take a break now towards the end of level 1 to really work on addition fact fluency, but once we get that we will move right along. We already have level 2 for next year and level k for upcoming kindergartener.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

It is a really thorough, yet fun program. :)

[@nicoleowen8809]

I am looking to switch math thank you so much for this recommendation! My son just finished TGTB math 1, would you say the second grade math with confidence is good to use after this?

[@jessicaTX964]

So did you go with Grade 2 just because Grade 3 isn't out yet? Or are the MWC 2 & TGTB 3 comparable?

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Yes, I chose Grade 2 while we wait on Grade 3. However, there were definitely some things he still needed to master from grade 2, such as subtraction facts.

[@anmichele3829]

Off topic but have you ever talked about using American English curriculums when it is written in American English instead of British English? How do you work around that with little kids?

[@kelseyhall9925]

I am Canadian and also curious about this!

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I was homeschooled using American English curriculums. My mum just always pointed out the differences in spelling. It's never been an issue for me and I've been grateful to have an understanding of how grammar and spelling can differ based on location. :)

[@mommys_tnt]

I have been eyeing up MWC for a while. We just bought Level 2 from TGTB. When we are done with that I would like to switch. Would you suggest Second Grade from MWC after completing Level 2 from TGTB? Or could we move along to Third Grade?

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

You should be fine to move into 3rd grade, but I would look over the scope and sequence of both to get an idea of whether their might be any gaps.

[@judiejud176]

Did you get the book from a direct website. I ask because I see they even have it on prime.

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

I got ours from Well Trained Mind.

[@katherinejustine1]

Where do you get a 3 ring binder in nz?

[@ThisHomeschoolHouse]

Kmart sells them. :)