Life of Fred

LOF makes math fun and silly. I will be honest that I wondered how much the kids were really learning because it is such a different approach. But, things are sticking... especially with my middle child. I think LOF helps kids to see math in every day life. The kids look forward to reading it and they even named our kitten Fred :)

We have found this method for teaching math to engage our children and remove the angst that was brewing over math before we started LOF. We haven't found anything yet that we don't like about LOF, and we are currently up to the Intermediate Series with our oldest. The quirky story has been perfect for our boys; they've learned so much other than math even; they have learned things typically not introduced until older ages in traditional math curriculum; and instead of math being a collection of facts and equations you have to memorize, it has taken on a real-life purpose as they have seen Fred use math in everyday circumstances. I have no rating for support, because I have not needed to use it.

A lot of people don't quite understand that in the younger years it is meant to teach concepts and the books are meant to be gone through more than once. You are to practice math facts separately. This can be accomplished through games, flash cards, and everyday life tasks. We even reinforce basic fractions and fraction conversion understanding through cooking. It is a rigorous curriculum without being complicated and boring. It seems too easy to many only because it is explained properly and easy to understand. For most maths it's more important to understand the concept thoroughly through explanation than to do endless problems hoping that the student "gets it" after problem 6,423. I have 2 highly gifted children and 2 average children and they all love it. The older three went from hating math to loving it and my youngest who has only ever done LoF tells everyone that math is her favorite subject. If you feel your child wants or needs extra worksheet practice you can simply get some smile workbooks. It is our only math curriculum and we absolutely love it!!:)

I have used Life of Fred math with my 10 year old and 14 year old. My 10 year old is thriving with it. One thing I like about Life of Fred is how he introduces advanced concepts on a simple level much earlier than any other math curriculum. For example, he introduces Sigma in one of the elementary books, and my 10 year old totally understands it. It's not really a HARD concept, just not one that is normally introduced at such an early age. Of course, the main thing most kids like about Fred is that there is an ongoing story being told throughout all the books. This keeps my son interested and engaged and helps math not be quite so dry.

One thing I will say is that once you get to Goldfish or Honey, your student might need to take a break from doing lessons in his textbook to focus on learning his multiplication facts for a little while. From Honey on, he will have much more success and much less frustration if he's able to recall those facts easily. "Fred" even encourages the reader to make what he calls "Honey cards," which are just multiplication flash cards, and to practice them often.

Unfortunately, my 14 year old needed more explanation than was offered at his level. He started Life of Fred in Algebra II during his first year of being homeschooled. I could have gone back to an earlier curriculum to give him the foundation he needed, but decided to switch to a different curriculum. He was really enjoying the way LoF teaches math, but he was struggling too much with the concepts and getting frustrated.

This haas been especially helpful in our first yr of homeschooling. My 4th grade son and 6th grade daughter love it.

A five year old college math teacher may sound like a crazy premise for a math book, and it is. It is also inventive, fun, and full of imagination. However, don't think these books lack a solid math foundation. The math is solid, as are the science, art, and other subjects your student will encounter throughout Fred's story.

My 8 year old daughter has enjoyed getting to know Fred and his doll Kingie through Apples and Butterflies. The chapters are interesting and hold her attention. She is not yet ready to read the books independently, and we do the exercises orally. A more advanced reader could work on his own.

Each chapter has a few problems to work, and I do mean a few. There is no drill; there are not sections of practice, practice, practice. I have not used Fred long enough to know if that is a "con" or not, but it certainly is not the norm in a math book. Life of Fred works well in conjunction with other more "typical" math programs if you aren't quite ready to use it as a stand alone.

If there is one group of students who might struggle with the Fred series, it would be very concrete thinkers. I have one, and he has a difficult time focusing on the math principles in the story because he is distracted by Fred's improbable story. He is very interested in the new ideas introduced once he looks past the fact that Fred is only 5. It is almost as much an exercise in imagination as math for him.

The books themselves are well-made and hold their value. If your child is struggling with traditional math programs or if you are looking for something a bit different, Fred is definitely worth a try.

My son (11) uses this as his main math curriculum. He loves it. It gives the information in a story format which coincides well with his learning style. The question at the end of each chapter are called "your turn to play". There are usually just a few questions which also makes my son happy. He does not like to drill things he if can prove he understands the concept. My daughter (12) prefers more direct instruction without the story so this curriculum does not work for her.

Dr. Schmidt is wonderful about answer any questions by email or by phone. He really wants the students to independently work the math once they hit a certain age so he makes himself available to them.

I have used this with my own children in a limited way (they are only 1rst and 2nd) and with students I tutor. My tutoring students have all done really well with this program and enjoy learning the math with relative independence.