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We have used Heart of Dakota for many years and love it! We also love Singapore math. It has a few weak points but overall I have enjoyed it.

I wanted to see if anyone else has struggled with the year you do 3A/3B. I have taken both of my girls through it and it has been a very challenging year both times, with a lot of tears. We eventually repeated 3A/3B the next year, BOTH TIMES! I am not sure if it goes from being concrete learning in level 2 and then to more abstract in level 3.

I have not found a great way to make 3A an entire year and then 3B an entire year, to go over them slowly, because 3B is so much easier covering shapes, angles, and charts. I have thought about doing another math curriculum for that year (ie-Horizons, Lifepacs, Saxon...), but have been advised against that since it can be confusing going between different ways of learning and even different teaching so far as mastery vs. spiral learning.

My boys are getting ready to do 3A/3B next year and I would really like a better plan than a year of tears only to repeat again the next year. I will say, when I repeated the next year with my girls, it was very easy for them to master. My kids have been in 3rd grade (8-9 years old) each time we did 3A/3B. Any encouraging advice would be welcomed. Thank you!

Have you considered some of the supplements Singapore offers? There are extra practice and I think one other "basic" workbooks plus the word problem workbook (which is higher level and wouldn't necessarily be what you want).

I will look in to those supplements, thank you. I would love to hear ideas from anyone that has something more to share about it. Thanks.

One thing to consider is that there is a pretty big jump between Singapore 2A/2B and Singapore 3A/3B. It is also important to note that in Singapore students don't begin grade 1 until they are 7, instead of at age 6 as we do here. So, Singapore 3A/3B doesn't mean third grade. Instead, in Singapore, students use 3A/3B at age 9 (which would be fourth grade here in the U.S)

So, with that in mind, you can see that you are getting to 3A/3B a year early. Instead of planning on repeating 3A/3B, I would be inclined to slow it down as needed. Cut the longer lessons in half, limiting the time it takes to do math. I wouldn't plan on stretching it out over 2 years. Instead, cut the longer lessons as needed. Make sure you are with your child for the entire lesson... helping, guiding, and directing for success. Don't worry about mastery. Think of 3A/3B as an introduction to a whole host of new concepts that will come around again later. It is the first layer in a multi-layered approach.

Blessings,
Carrie