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Math Tutor DVD (TOS Crew Review)

As member of the 2009-2010 The Old Schoolhouse Homeschool Crew, we received 2 Math Tutor DVDs to use and review: Young Minds - Numbers and Counting, and The Basic Math Word Problem Tutor.

I think the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting might be the best counting video out there!  It is low-key, not overwhelming or overstimulating for young children as many programs are, and it has natural world images, which we love in our house.  There is also background music that is calming, but not boring - classical music that is known to stimulate a child's brain.  I could see putting this video on weekly for The Littlest Princess, especially since she has started asking to do her "school work" and numbers.  At $24.99, it is a bit pricey, but if you have multiple children in your home, you will certainly get your money's worth with this DVD (and it won't give you the guilt that comes when they watch too much Disney!).

The The Basic Math Word Problem Tutor covers adding whole numbers through ratios and would be very helpful for students for many years.  It was a bit difficult to review for us because we have used Math-U-See as our primary math instruction, and MUS teaches with stories and concrete, real-world examples.  Thus, word problems are not much of an issue for my kids.  (what bogs my children down with math is the repetition required to put that stuff into their permanent memory - they know HOW to do the stuff the first time we teach it, though - they are just lazy!) Of course, keep in mind that they are only in elementary school, so I cannot be sure this DVD wouldn't be a lifesaver in high school when the mathematical concepts become much more "abstract."

To see what my fellow Crew Mates had to say about MathTutor, click here.

*Disclaimer: I received the above DVDs for free to use and review.  This review is my honest opinion of those DVDs and I have not been compensated for the review.

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