Question: I'm curious about your new math curriculum. What level does it go to? My son is twelve. He's still working on single digit addition and subtraction, although I believe he's ready to move on to double digit. Would this be suitable for him? Thank you for your help!

Answer: Thanks for your enquiry. It's really hard to judge level as the maths is not just about addition and subtraction. My son is 8 years old and he can do single digit and double digit addition and subtraction with a maths aid and some assistance from his teaching assistant but he can't relate it to a situational question yet. He is still firmly in the realms of this book. There is also more breath that crosses into time, money and understanding of information. Like knowing the days of the week and being able to sequence them, being able to extract information from a list - 'how many sausages does he need to buy?'. It covers the whole of the foundations of maths. The children who tried some of the sample questions ranged from 8 to 16 years old... a couple who are 10 to 12 years old with solid maths skills could attempt the maths but found the questions difficult to understand. Highlighting the need for more situational learning. For example, one girl knows that 3 plus 4 is 7 but when asked the question, 'you buy 3 apples and 4 oranges, how many pieces of fruit do you have altogether?' she didn't understand what to do and the use of 'altogether' as meaning 'add'. The parents of some of those children have bought the book to give to their schools to help focus the learning and ensure all the gaps are filled. I am writing the next level at the moment and hope to have it completed by the end of 2020. But as it is a building block system, it will be essential all the blocks are in place. Hope this makes sense!