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GroupBuys for Homeschool Curriculum |
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Thinkwell Math
The Co-op welcomes success stories that will help other homeschooling parents decide whether to add Thinkwell Math to their home school curriculum. If you have used Thinkwell and would like to contribute a testimonial, please click here.
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 We LOVE Thinkwell math! My daughter always hated math, no matter what method we tried - until we hit pre-algebra and tried Thinkwell. Wow! What a turnaround! While I won't say my daughter now loves math, she actually does seem to enjoy it, and I will often overhear her laughing out loud. And since the teacher is a college math professor, I know she's getting the solid foundation she will need for the future. Not only that, Thinkwell provides me with all the information I need to track how my daughter is doing at each step along the way. What a great program!” Deanna M., Co-op Member |
My oldest son recently started two Thinkwell courses: prealgebra and public speaking. Today I heard him yell to me from the other room, "Mom, I LOVE this program you bought! Dr. Burger is awesome." He watched three lectures today and I told him to slow down! He is also eating up the public speaking course which he excitedly told me all about. I am thrilled with our purchases and can't believe the prices we got through the HS Buyers Co-op. THANK YOU!!”The Ebmeier Family, Co-op Member |
Wow! We love Thinkwell! We are doing the pre-algebra, and I have to say it is amazing! My kids really get it, and it is because the visuals are great, the teaching is to the point and the concepts are so clear. I am remembering with the kids, and all I can say is I wish I had had this when I was in school! We have the public speaking as well, and I can't wait to use it as well.”Leslie S. Kelly, Co-op Member |
I've used the Thinkwell pre-algebra and algebra courses with my two boys. Since then, we've tried public school and a virtual charter school. All three of us are looking forward to going back to Thinkwell math courses once again!
My boys like feeling in control of the content; they can skip over material they already know or go back and review. Professor Edward Burger is a fun speaker! It's not dull and dried out. The explanations are clear and the supporting text is well done.
I certainly have told others about the courses. I hope Homeschool Buyers Co-op continues to offer such reasonable prices!”Brighid W., Co-op Member |
My son is really enjoying the Pre-Algebra course. The professor is engaging and clearly explains the material. We will definitely continue using the Thinkwell video courses.”Michele, Co-op Member |
We have used the Thinkwell with excellent results for pre-algebra, algebra I, and geometry. We will shortly be moving into algebra II and will be going through calculus. Thinkwell is, without a doubt, outstanding. If you are serious about math, get Thinkwell.”Carl C., Co-op Member |
We were doing K12 prealgebra straight out of the textbook and my son hated it. We got Thinkwell's prealgebra and found the mini lectures and demos so useful. A good teacher showing the steps and explaining them clearly just works better for my son (and me!) than reading dry text from a book. We love thinkwell and it's quick assessments--all online so no CDs to mess with either. I tell everybody who asks about math programs on all my homeschooler lists.”R Hill, Co-op Member |
When my 11 year old began watching the Beginning Algebra video- his two brothers- ages 8 and 16 joined him and they all watched the first few lessons together. They laughed and enjoyed Edward Burger. They are totally taken with him. They can't wait to continue-these summer vacations keep getting in the way! They have recounted some of the lessons at the dinner table and to friends. These are the first math lessons that have captured their attention and Burger makes it relevant and enjoyable. We will continue to try other courses.”Lori M., Co-op Member |
Professor Berger breathes life and humor into the dreaded, dry subject of math! (It's so fun to hear my daughters actually giggle during their algebra studies.) We have finished both intermediate and college algebra and have been very pleased with the results; the girls understood and retained much more than they did with our Teaching Textbooks experience. We're looking forward to "American Government" this fall.”Janine Perkins, Co-op Member |
My daughter has completed the Pre-Algebra program and will start Beginning Algebra soon. She found the video lectures entertaining, and was able to understand the concepts. I have found this program to be thorough and well-presented. The co-op price is well below the prices I've seen elsewhere.”Leslie W., Co-op Member |
Thinkwell has been a real blessing with advanced math in our family. The students and I both appreciated that the lessons and tests are graded immediately. With the lessons the student gets immediate feedback and an explanation on the problems they missed so they can learn right away and not make the same mistake again. I appreciate that they can do their math on any computer anywhere so when we are visiting relatives they can still be consistent. We once had some technical issue and the tech support was very friendly, helpful and got things resolved right away. We've done at least five courses with Thinkwell.”Mary K, Co-op Member |
We have used Thinkwell Math for YEARS for the upper level maths and now use it from 6th grade to Calculus BC. Prof. Burger is hilarious and able to clearly teach concepts from the very simple to the absurdly complex. He adds little songs, funny demonstrations, and all kinds of interesting examples to make math fun. My kids who have taken the AP math tests have scored 5's, and Thinkwell has been excellent at preparing them for the tests. We are die-hard Thinkwell Math fans and have been happy to tell anyone looking for a math program to look no further!”Diana S., Co-op Member |
My son loves Thinkwell. It is the first math curriculum that we have been able to successfully use for more than one year. math is one of his stronger subjects and he needs a program that can move fast without lots of repetition. I especially like the newer courses with worksheets that let us get more practice in when needed.”Robin G., Co-op Member |
Lectures help in learning the material. Chapter tests are very useful in reinforcing ideas and showing gaps in learning. Kids needed to be provided some motivation to spend the time in listening to lecture. Now they are hooked to it. Yes I would continue to use it. I recommend it to others.”M Bhattacharya, Co-op Member |
My kids have used Thinkwell both as their sole resource and in combination with other materials for some years. We all love Ed Berger.
There are many wonderful things about these programs. You can skip around (you aren't locked in to a certain progression), you can review, you can do exercises as many times as you need. I know that Thinkwell makes a printed book available, although I don't know if you can get that through the Co-op.
The other good thing about their math is that each exercise comes with a fairly thorough explanation, which can be helpful to look at whether you got the answer right or wrong.”Debbie S., Co-op Member |
My son used Thinkwell intermediate algebra, college algebra, trigonometry, and is now using Professor Burger's Calculus course. I can't say enough about how much he learns from this method of learning, and how much he likes it! He likes it so much that his younger sibling asked me to buy 8th grade math for her. Prof Burger makes total sense and explains very clearly. He's funny, too. I know some people, those of a serious bent, can be taken aback by his style (silly at times, or just nerdy-silly), but he grows on you until you enjoy him so much, and his humor is part of what makes you learn so well. After all, a happy, relaxed brain is going to receive information better than a stressed brain!
My son also finished Physics last year and ended up completely excited about Physics after that!
We are longtime users of Thinkwell -- our first course was Biology with Prof. Wolfe "Wolfie," we call him. Again, this is a superb course. I decided at the time that the difference between Thinkwell Biology and Teaching Company Biology is that Teaching Company lectures make you feel like you're sitting in a classroom listening to a very good lecture (I learn a lot from Teaching Company and have bought many courses from them, but the kids don't like to sit through the lectures the way I do) --- The Thinkwell professors, on the other hand, make you feel as though "Uncle Wolfie" is sitting at the kitchen table explaining some really cool things about Biology on scratch paper to you, his niece/nephew, because he really wants to show you this cool thing. The informality and one-on-one feel that you get with Thinkwell is so engaging.
Another reason I think Thinkwell has such an effective format is the actual person of the instructor: Unlike some teaching CDs which admittedly have great graphics and animations, Thinkwell has a live person speaking to you, and animations tend to be rare. This makes all the difference, because when a computer "reads" a script, it sounds like a textbook that is read aloud. To my ear, this is a bit of a slog, because every single word is important, or else it would have been deleted. The more casual nature of a live person speaking directly to you on the screen, drawing images, circling things, rewriting, checking spelling and occasionally saying, "uh" . . . slows things down just enough to make the absorption of all the information very easy. That's not to say the programs are slow . . . ! I think they're very thorough; they're just really clear, too -- probably again because a relaxed brain with a friendly teacher is going to be more receptive than a tense brain trying to catch every single important utterance that a computer voice might say.
Again to Biology, my son used Campbell's Biology book concurrently to cross-reference the Thinkwell lecture, and chapters that looked daunting on first glance were a piece of cake to read AFTER watching the lectures on that material.
So yes, I highly recommend Thinkwell, and have already highly recommended it many times to many people. I only wish Thinkwell offered more Physics: the Physics course thoroughly and excellently covered mechanics, but it didn't cover thermodynamics. I also would love to see Statistics offered! I wonder if Earth Science would work? Maybe.”MG, Co-op Member |
Each lecture is clear, concise, and presented in an interesting and fun way. These engaging and thorough lectures help my son to learn to be much more attentive to details. The immediate grading of assignments, practice tests, tests, and exams provides my son with clear insight to how well he has learned the material.
My son used Thinkwell Pre-Calc last year, and is using Calc I & II this year. I believe this independent approach will equip my son for the demands of college. I have recommended this to others, and they are as well pleased.”Pamela from Waukesha, Co-op Member |
We ordered a subscription of the Calculus for my son who was to retake the AP Calculus B/C exam after scoring a 3 the first time around. He watched the videos at his leisure, focusing on content that he needed to review. He ended up with a 5 on the AP exam thanks to Thinkwell. We highly recommend them!”Rebecca O., Co-op Member |
My ds age 11 have used Thinkwell pre-algebra and are now taking the beginning Algebra. We will continue to use it in the future. He enjoys Mr. Burgers hummer and it keeps him engaged in the math. The courses are very comprehensive and it is easy for use to tailor the speed of each unit as needed. If he shows he can do the math with the practice test we skip the lectures. If he needs more work we use the problems in the separately purchased workbook. We have tried Singapore, Life of Fred and others. This is the only one he has stayed with for more than a courses worth”Robin G, Co-op Member |
Thinkwell Math is the best product out there for students headed into a math or science field in college. My son used Thinkwell Calculus, took the AP Calculus BC test, and scored a 5, allowing him to go directly into Calculus III in college. He loved Dr. Burger and learned so much from the course! My other children will be using it as well.”Linda in FL, Co-op Member |
I purchased Thinkwell College Algebra for my daughter to use this year and she has loved it! Ed Burger is a fun and engaging professor. The price of the course is less than purchasing a textbook, test booklet, and answer key for some of the more popular texts available, and Thinkwell includes a great teacher! We will definitely be purchasing more products from Thinkwell!”Stephanie B., Co-op Member |
This has turned out to be a wonderful curriculum for my son and I would highly recommend it to other families whose children's math abilities outpace their own. The curriculum provided him with high quality video instruction, which included a split screen format showing both the instructor and relevant visual aides and worked problems. All work was done online with complete solutions available when needed. The teacher side of the program allowed me to see what he had worked on, when he had worked on it, his percentage correct and whether or not he needed multiple attempts to complete the problem. The streaming video nature of the curriculum allowed him to do his math regardless of where he was; at home, at the library or elsewhere. With our busy schedule this ensured that math always got done. It was a great relief to have a program that met his math needs so well and challenged him in ways he is rarely challenged. My son is a 9th grader who succesfully completed the College Algebra program.”Lori K., Co-op Member |
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