On my first day of university, my English professor opened her arms wide and welcomed us into her lecture hall with the words, “Welcome to the world of people who have escaped numbers.” It made me smile because I have always struggled with math. I can remember feeling stressed out about math as a first grader and now as a homeschool mom it’s the one subject I really don’t enjoy teaching. I want my children to be in awe of the world of numbers, of the magical way numbers work together, but considering my (lack of) math skills, I don’t feel equipped to inspire them.
And so I have turned to CTCMath to help my children develop a love of all things numbers-related.
(This is a sponsored post which may include affiliate links to help you find what you need. I have used CTCMath in the past and liked it so much that I reached out to them and asked to write a sponsored post, so I could share their product with my readers. Everything stated in this article is my honest, unbiased opinion. See my complete disclosure policy.)
My Honest Review of CTCMath
There are many extremely wonderful math programs available “out there.” Picking just one is overwhelming and over the years I tried several. Here are 5 reasons I have chosen to use CTCMath with my family.
#1 – CTCMath is Pleasantly Affordable. We Have Access to All The Grades.
The first thing that caught my attention about CTCMath is that it’s a really affordable choice for large families. Pat Murray is the main teacher of the program and he and his wife have 10 kids… so he GETS IT. Other programs require families to pay per child or per grade level each year. I only have 5 children, but that cost adds up and can be prohibitive! With CTCMath a single year long membership gives every child in your family unlimited access to all the grade levels (K-12). It doesn’t matter if you have two children or ten, a family membership’s price doesn’t change. (There is also a cheaper option for a single membership.) This makes it super easy to homeschool multiple children. All the children can have access to all the lessons and this lets me completely customize each child’s learning experience. One child can move forward quickly (at their own speed) while another child goes back to cover a topic from a previous grade where there may be gaps.
#2 – The Website is very User-Friendly
I always dread signing up for a new online service because of the learning curve, trying to figure out how to navigate a new website. UGH. But I found the CTCMath website fairly intuitive and very easy-to-navigate. In the parent dashboard there’s an entire library of step-by-step tutorial videos for parents who are just getting started with the system. I’m a visual person and the video user guide helped me get our family account set up and running very quickly.
#3 – This is (or Can Be) a Mastery Program
Guess what… I’m the one who determines what’s a passing grade and I’ve set the passing grade to 90 percent! High expectations? Perhaps, but I want my kids to really master the math concepts they are learning. I love that I can set what grade my children have to earn before they can move onto the next lesson in the program. If they’re having difficulty understanding something there are 3 options for them: CTCMath encourages them to review their work and try to figure the problem out. If they’re still stuck they can watch the video again and if they still can’t figure it out only then are they supposed to look at the solution and see if that helps. Also, from the parent dashboard I can quickly see exactly which questions my child got wrong, identify any patterns of areas they’re struggling with and have them go back and try those questions again. Because we have access to ALL the lessons, it’s super easy to go back and fill in any gaps, or repeat lessons until the children have completely mastered the concept.
#4 – The Video Lessons are Extremely Well Made.
The video lessons in CTCMath are direct and to the point. They are simple and easy to understand, basic in the best way possible. I want you to see this for yourself so here’s a sample from the lesson about 90 degree angles:
As you can see, the videos are short and only one concept is taught at a time. The explanation is very clear so students don’t get overwhelmed or confused. Following each video lesson there is a series of interactive questions for your child to answer. They use pencil and paper to solve the problem and then enter their answer into the computer. The computer instantly tells them whether or not their answer is correct and also records their results within your parent dashboard so you can see how well they understood the lesson.
#5 – CTCMath Encourages My Children to Be Independent Learners
With CTCMath it’s easy to put the responsibility for their own learning directly into the hands of my children. Each morning they wake up looking forward to their math time! They can sign in on their own and easily go right to the lesson they want to do that day. (Yes, I let them chose their topic, as long as they are progressing and working at the correct level). The games are fun and the kids enjoy working towards earning badges, awards, and certificates. In fact, when I asked my kids, “What do you like best about CTCMath?” both my boys had the same answer: “We like that we get to pick what we want to do!”
#6 – Record Keeping is Super-Easy! I don’t need to keep track of lessons and grades anymore!
When I log into the parent dashboard, all the information I might need has been automatically compiled in a way that’s easy to find. It tells me the last time my children logged in, shows me their grades, and even color codes their results so I can see in an instant if there are any areas that they need to go back and work on. It tells me their first score, their highest score and how many attempts it took them to get their current score. The information is divided up by lesson so I can have a full, detailed picture of my children’s progress through the program. CTCMath completely removes the time I would have spent grading daily lessons and calculating scores because it’s all done automatically and I love that the most, because it gives me more time to spend enjoying my children!
Try CTCMath Free!
If you’re on the fence about whether or not CTCMath would be a good fit for your family, they offer a limited free trial for new users so you can look around and get a general feeling for how the program works. But even better than a free trial… What if you only had to pay 1/3 of the regular price? That’s right! I asked CTCMath to offer a special discount for Happy Unconventional Life readers and they created a special page for us. If you sign up through THIS LINK, you’ll get one year for half-price, PLUS an additional 6 months free! So that’s an 18 month membership for the price of 6 months!
