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Pam, last year you posted (in answer to a question of mine) how you think
algebra is a bad idea for kids under 13 or 14. At the time it was my husband
wanting our son to get to algebra way early, but thankfully he backed off
from that, partly because of what you said. However, just the other day a
friend of mine asked what I thought about her son doing algebra this year.
He's ten, a very bright, happy and funny boy. This is their first year
homeschooling and they're not unschoolers. The mom is really wanting to know
if algebra is wrong for her son, though he wants it. He has already finished
all the Saxon math books up to the point of algebra and wants to go on to
that. I had a vague memory of what you said then and looked it up in the
archives. Here's the quote from you:

>>Oh dear. I don't have time right now, or I'd go into a long rant about how
dangerous it is to push kids into algebra before they are 13 or 14 or 15 at
least. It is worse than counterproductive.

There is "algebraic thinking" - that is fine -- kids do it pretty naturally
anyway and it can be really satisfying and fun -- and there are ways for
parents who aren't skilled in this area to encourage it in their children,
but that is VERY different than formal algebra studied in a systematic,
standard way. I have super strong opinions that that is a major mistake to
start early. I'd try to find other mathematical things to do even for a kid
who was WANTING to study algebra -- there are so MANY other areas to explore
that are so much more appropriate and that a younger kid will get so much
more out of. <<

Could you elaborate a little on that? Explain your super stong opinions more?
Thanks!

Priss










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