Saxon Math vs Math-U-See
The main differences
Both run from kindergarten to high school, but they teach in opposite ways. Saxon adds one small step a lesson and mixes earlier topics into every day's practice, from printed books. Math-U-See stays on one skill, such as multiplication, until the child can do it and explain it, and the parent teaches each lesson with blocks after watching a short video. Math-U-See sells direct with an online placement tool; HMH sends homeschool families elsewhere for Saxon's books and has no placement test on its own site.
| Saxon Math | Math-U-See | |
|---|---|---|
| Subjects | Math | Math |
| Grades | Kindergarten to 12th grade | Kindergarten to 12th grade, in 13 levels placed by skill, not grade |
| Method | Traditional | Mastery |
| Format | Books and workbooks | Books and workbooks |
| Faith label | Secular | Not labelled |
| Cost a year | No price on the publisher's own site when we checked. | $220.12. Gamma level set (multiplication): instruction manual, student workbook, tests booklet, block kit and a one-year online subscription with the lesson videos, $220.12. |
| Placement | None on the publisher's site | Online placement tool ↗ |
| Parent time | Not stated by the publisher | Not stated by the publisher |
| It fits | A family that wants a printed, step-by-step math series from the early grades to high school, with steady review built into every lesson. | A parent who wants to sit with the child, teach with hands-on blocks and move on only when each skill is secure. |
| It doesn't fit | A family that wants to buy everything, placement test included, straight from the publisher, or a child who needs to finish one topic before starting the next. | A family that wants the child to learn alone from a screen, or wants a course that lines up with one school grade each year. |
Saxon Math
Saxon Math is a kindergarten to 12th grade math series in which new ideas arrive in small steps and each lesson's practice keeps mixing in earlier work, with regular cumulative tests. The homeschool editions run from the early grades through algebra, geometry and advanced math. HMH's own shop sells only the optional teacher CDs and DVDs, which give video lessons and worked solutions; HMH sends homeschool families to a partner retailer for the books.
Does well: Each lesson adds one small new step, and the practice keeps bringing back earlier topics, so old skills are reviewed all year.
Watch for: HMH's own site no longer sells the homeschool textbooks or posts placement tests; it points homeschool families to a partner retailer.
Math-U-See
Math-U-See is a kindergarten to 12th grade math program in 13 skill levels, from Primer to Calculus, named by skill rather than grade. The parent watches the lesson video, then teaches the new idea with manipulative blocks, and the child practices it in the workbook until it is mastered before moving to review pages and the next lesson. A level set includes the instruction manual, student workbook, tests booklet, block kit and a one-year online subscription with the lesson videos.
Does well: Each level centers on one area, such as multiplication or fractions, and the child moves on only after showing they can do and explain the skill.
Watch for: The parent presents each new lesson with the child using the blocks, so this is not a course a young child works through alone.
Lists with both
- Homeschool math curricula 14
- Homeschool curricula for pre-K and kindergarten 48
- Homeschool curricula for middle school 51
- Homeschool curricula for high school 38
- Print homeschool curricula 44
- Homeschool math curricula for pre-K and kindergarten 10
- Homeschool math curricula for middle school 13
- Homeschool math curricula for high school 8
How we label
Every fact on a card was read on the publisher's own website on the date shown, and the page it came from is linked. A fact we could not confirm there is left out. Costs are for one child and one year of the main package, as the publisher's page showed them that day; prices and sales change. Method and format are the publisher's own description where it gives one. The only thing we say about religion is one label, secular or faith-based, given by the rule above; where the publisher's pages don't settle it, the card has no label.
Something wrong or out of date? Send a correction; publishers can send corrections, never money. Every program compared