Disclosure: I received this complimentary product through the Homeschool Review Crew.
After several years of homeschooling (and as a teacher), I’ve found that at some point, many kids will have some gap in their math skills. For example, my daughter struggles with negative numbers, while my son always forgets some skill with fractions. So, as part of the Review Crew, we’ve been using Basic Math Skills Rescue Part 1 and 2 from Math Essentials. We have been impressed at how well these workbooks have helped with those math skill gaps in our homeschool.
What is Basic Math Skills Rescue Part 1 and 2
Basic Math Skills Rescue Part 1 and 2 consist of two workbooks. Each book focuses on different math skills to help kids prepare for Algebra. In addition, with each workbook, you have access to video tutorials.
Part 1 covers the following topics:
- Whole numbers & integers ( addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division of larger numbers)
- Fractions (all aspects of fractions from shading the parts to reciprocals and comparing)
- Decimals and percents (basics and working with them in all operations)
Part 2 covers these topics:
- Geometry (points, lines, angles, polygons, circles, triangles, volume, etc.)
- Problem Solving (using all the skills in Part 1)
- Pre-Algebra Skills (sets, positive and negative integers, coordinate system, graphing, etc.)
As you can see, these math workbooks work on many essential math skills kids need to master in order to tackle the more challenging topics covered in Algebra courses. Therefore, the books are geared for Grade 3 and up.
More About These Math Workbooks and Videos
When you look inside the workbooks, you will notice each lesson begins with a review. Kids have six review problems that focus on concepts covered in previous lessons. This is perfect for keeping your kids’ math skills sharp.
Next, there is a brief section called Helpful Hints. Here the author, Richard Fisher, provides some tips on tackling this topic. Sometimes it is tips on important things to remember. At other times, he gives examples that demonstrate how to solve the problems. Take a look.
After the Helpful Hints are the practice problems. Kids have two sample problems and then ten practice problems. These problems are only on the current topic. In all, kids have twelve problems to help them practice what they’ve learned.
Each workbook page concludes with Problem Solving. Kids are given a real-life word problem that uses the concepts covered for the day.
When your child is done, you can use the answer key at the back of the book to correct their work. There are only answers provided, not complete solutions. As with some math programs, I didn’t find it to be a problem not having solutions.
Free Videos
For even more assistance, kids can go to a website and watch a lesson on the topic. Each video gives step-by-step instructions with examples. The instructor encourages the kids to do the problems along with him. I find the instructor to be excellent at explaining things.
With the workbook and videos, kids can work on mastering the basic skills needed to be prepared for Algebra.
Using the Math Workbooks in Our Homeschool
For this review, I received a copy of Basic Math Skills Rescue Part 1 and Part 2. This worked out perfectly in our home. My son, just starting 7th grade, used Part 1, while my daughter, starting 9th grade, used Part 2. We were still on our summer schedule during the review period and transitioning into our full fall schedule. So the timing was actually great. It was the perfect way to review skills my kiddos struggled with before jumping into their regular math programs.
Part 1
In Part 1, as mentioned above, there are three areas of concentration: whole numbers and integers, fractions, and decimals and percents. My son REALLY needs a constant review in fractions, so that is where we started. During math time, my son would watch the video and work through the problems with the instructor. After, he would do his workbook page.
One of the biggest struggles for my son is he needs constant review. I liked how each concept had a couple of practice pages PLUS review problems at the top of each page after that. This kept things fresh in my son’s mind, so he wouldn’t easily forget what to do. It also wasn’t too overwhelming with too many review problems. I felt the workbook had a nice balance.
My son worked on the fractions section and covered equivalent fractions, mixed numbers, and adding and subtracting mixed numerals. While he practiced his fraction skills, he also reviewed addition and subtraction covered earlier in the book. This was perfect for him.
I also noticed that later in the book, the review problems began including multiplication and division review problems from the whole numbers and integers section.
How Basic Math Skills Rescue Part 1 Worked for My Son
Overall, my son liked the videos. The instructor took things slowly and explained things in simple terms. My son liked how the instructor did enough examples to make sure he had practice, but not too many that it was annoying. So, if you have a kiddo that doesn’t want example after example explaining the same thing, these videos should be a good fit.
The workbook didn’t overwhelm my kiddo either. There weren’t too many problems on a page, and the page was laid out nicely. It wasn’t a bunch of math problems in small font on the page. My son never complained about having too much math (and believe me, that has been a problem). He was able to work independently too. Best of all, he was retaining what he was learning.
After the fractions section in the book, decimals and percents are covered. We have not done this section. However, as my son works on these skills in math, I don’t doubt we will use this book to practice and reinforce these skills. We may even use the beginning half of the book to strengthen his long division skills.
Part 2
As with my son, I did not start at the beginning of the book with my daughter. My daughter has already begun Algebra but needed to brush up on her pre-algebra skills: mainly working with negative numbers. So for her, we started on the third section of the book: Pre-Algebra.
My daughter began with the addition of integers and worked her way through multiplying and dividing integers. All involved negative numbers. From there, she moved into positive and negative fractions, decimals, and exponents. Her videos and workbook pages were set up the same as my son’s in Part 1. All and all, this was an excellent review for her.
When it came to the videos, my daughter enjoyed them too. The way the instructor explained the negative numbers and broke the steps down worked for her. She finally got it! Both of us were elated. Learning to work with negative numbers has been such a struggle, and she gets it now. For that, I am grateful.
We didn’t do the first two sections of the book. The beginning half of Part 2 spends a lot of time working on all aspects of geometry. It also works on problem-solving with graphs, whole numbers, fractions, decimals, and percents. When looking through the Problem Solving section, I realized it worked on problem-solving using the skills taught in Part 1 that my son was using. So I thought this was a clever and meaningful way to continue to practice the concepts in Part 1.
How Basic Math Skills Rescue Part 2 Worked for My Daughter
Overall, as with my son, my daughter found the workbook and videos very helpful. It is something I will continue to use with her as we come across gaps in her learning. I can foresee using the Problem Solving and Geometry sections as review work.
Overall Thoughts on Basic Math Skills Rescue Part 1 and 2
All in all, I would recommend these math workbooks for parents to use in their homeschool. I am usually not big into using workbooks. Still, I think the inclusion of the video lessons makes this a well-rounded review program. These books are perfect to use to review concepts regularly. I can see using them once a week to review something to keep my kids’ math skills sharp. These math books are great to fill in learning gaps you find as you move along in math. This is how I’ve been using it.
My kids and I find the video portion to be an excellent fit for our family. The instructor’s approach works well for my kids (and me too). He uses a traditional approach to math, takes things one step at a time, and gives just enough practice.
Both books are very similar, but Part 2 continues to build on and review the concepts in Part 1. You’ll notice it in the review problems on each page. Those review problems will help you gauge if your kids have mastered the previous skills or not.
Overall, we enjoyed these books. My kids felt they were a helpful tool. Now take a look at what other families thought of Basic Math Skills Rescue Part 1 and 2 by clicking on the banner below.
Happy Homeschooling!
