Russian School of Math vs. AOPS
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Anonymous
DS has not complained about his RSM Teachers, he has had three this year. He started on grade level and then moved up a grade level. He also does competition math. We have not asked him how he likes his Teachers but he has not said anything negative and has asked to do RSM again next year. He misses classes for Scouts or his Rec Sports and the school has always offered an online class for him to make up the missed class or a 30 minute tutoring session to discuss any homework issues. It has not been an issue. We have found the Teachers very approachable. DS told us that the math he was doing was fine but kind of slow. We talked with the school and the teachers and they agreed to move him from his grade level up a grade. We have been talking with both Teachers to find the best fit for next year. Both have stopped to talk after class and via email. I have seen Teachers talking with parents outside of class. The material moves at a quick pace but there are supports in place to help kids. We have had a positive experience so far. |
Anonymous
Usually in RSM you wouldn't move up a grade but up a level (accelerated -> advanced -> honors) within the grade cohort... but if you mean over time he made that progression and then also up a grade level thereafter, that makes more sense. I wouldn't say that the teachers are strict and intimidating in our experience, but probably only "somewhat" rather than "very" approachable either... that is, they tend to be neutral-to-warm (varies) but with a pretty quick "to the point" approach. That's not a negative, just emphasizing there's an appropriate difference in tone and focus between their math-focused supplementation teachers vs. your standard ES all-day classroom teacher. They aren't at all harsh or uncaring though. |
Anonymous
He started in honors for his grade level. He was finding it easy. We talked to the Teacher who agreed that he was at the top of class. RSM agreed to let him try the next grade level, he joined that grades Advanced class. He was solving problems on the whiteboard in week once and scored 100% on the unit assessment that was given in his second week. After a 4 week trial run in the higher grade level, he was added to that class. He has stayed in that class for the rest of the year. He has not had a problem with that material. When we approached them we told them we would accept where they wanted to place him because they knew their program better then we did. If they had not thought it was a good fit, he would have stayed in his Honors class. I am guessing that this doesn't happen all that frequently but he is happier in the next grade level up and is learning concepts that are new to him. My point was that the program is approachable, or at least we have found it approachable, and flexible. We accepted their recommendation for next year. We approached them because the whole reason for him doing RSM or AoPS is to be challenged in math, there is limited reason for him doing the class if he knows the material that they are presenting. Like I said, we would have kept him in his original class if the program thought it was not a good idea to move him up or if the higher level material was too hard. I don't get the feeling that the classes are filled with warm fuzzies but pretty matter of fact and to the point. The homework is pretty cut and dry. That said, it is a voluntary program for supplementation. You get a feel for how they approach classes when you do the evaluation. The evaluators tone and explanations are what you can expect in class. The program will offer tutoring for kids who need it, I have heard them talking to other parents. AoPS was different, we only did that during the virtual program. The teacher was calling on kids to read the various parts of the comic strip that was teaching the material. Kids were invited to solve problems. I could hear that there were some kids that were reluctant and the Teacher was making an effort to call on those kids. The few RSM classes that I heard (December was virtual because of Omicron) did not involve kids reading anything. The Teacher would explain a concept, the kids would do practice problems and one would show their solution and explain their answer. Both were fine but they have different approaches. I don't know what either looks like in the physical classroom. |
Anonymous
| I think RSM tends to be more traditional in terms of teaching math skills which can be helpful for some kids. It may not be suitable for different learning styles but for some it could be great! Another more flexible curriculum we have been using is Beestar. The kids really enjoy it and it has been suitable for different learning styles. |
Anonymous
| What about for those who are not necessarily into math competition? My DC is in first grade has been doing BA online and with books and enjoys it a lot. I thought maybe could do a summer camp but concerned it might turn DC off if it's too competition focused and not as fun as the online version (he loves the comics of course). I just want to nurture curiosity and love of math and not necessarily competitiveness. RSM might be too boring? |
Anonymous
Beestar has curriculum? I thought it's an online practice website. |
Anonymous
| I can't speak to RSM but I've been delighted with Beast Academy online over the years. My older son did it started at level 2, and my younger will start level 1 this winter. Since we have time, we do a combination of an online class, books, and online content. It prepares them well for competition math. |
pettifogger
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Many BA questions tend to be very similar to questions from typical elementary math contests such as MOEMS, etc. So if he enjoyed Beast a lot, then by extension he enjoyed many math contest like problems. The common theme is that both are a source of thought provoking and interesting questions. Working through math competition problems doesn't necessarily have to mean competing live in timed contests with others. He can work on past math contest problems at his own pace at home without competing against anyone. All the AMC 8 past contests are freely available on the AoPS site. Just treat math competition questions like any other math problems, but with the additional benefit that they are typically more creative and challenging which will end up stimulating his curiosity and teaching him many interesting things. |
Anonymous
Beestar offers a wide age range of worksheets for different age levels. If you look under the Progressive Exercise it actually lists an outline with dates for different subjects. It is actually pretty similar to the curriculum I have been using at my school for years so yes, it my opinion Beestar does offer a curriculum you can follow! |
Anonymous
Thanks. I know the founder was also a math competition afficionado. But we have no experience with that. It might be that DC will want to participate in it and that's fine but we like BA because of what he learns, not to prep for competitions. Was just wondering if that makes us weird among BA parents. |
pettifogger
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Not at all weird. The BA curriculum is extremely well done for the purpose of teaching authentic mathematics in an inspiring way to develop critical problem solving and thinking skills. While it's true that those who learn it thoroughly would get a leg up in math contests, that's just icing on the cake and purely optional. The main event is the wonderful mathematical content developed to engage and challenge kids. Back in the late 90s, before BA was conceived, and before the main AoPS curriculum books were created, RR wrote the first two original Aops books (Volume 1 and Volume 2) which do indeed focus on math contest material (they are relatively small and sparse, introducing mainly content aimed at students who had some initial experience with contests). While these books are still great, they are a far cry in terms of teachable content from the subsequent AoPS core curriculum books, and the BA books that came after them (which supposedly were developed to supposedly ease the difficult transition that students had to make when diving into their first AoPS book, such as Prealgebra, etc). |
Anonymous
I would stick with Beast/AOPS. For for really advanced kids who love math, AOPS is just incredibly fun and challenging. They have competitions but you don’t have to do them. I would recommend looking into a school year in person class if your daughter loves it and you want to nurture curiosity and love of math. My son started in first grade and loves it. |
Anonymous
RSM moves a kid up if needed. This is our second year that we were in 4th hour in the fall. Then October, we moved to 5th advanced. Then December, we moved to 5th honor. My kid loves the class and enjoys hw. Once you find a problem fit for your kid, stick with it. Also BA and RSM curriculum is different, I do not recommend just move back and forth. |
Anonymous
| I think the problem is that none of these programs offer a trial class. We pretty much make blind decisions. We choose RSM 6 years ago, and sticked to that for the past 6 years, and now the DS is a 6 Grader in 7 grades Algebra and Geometry. We had RSM competetion as well, but my DS didn't like it, so he sticks to just the regular class now. To be honest, though myself is also strong in math, I am not a big fan of competition math problems, either. So I don't blame him. |