Life of Fred, written by Stanley F. Schmidt, Ph.D., is a series of math books that are based on the story of 5 year old math genius Fred Gauss. Once children have mastered addition, subtraction and the multipication tables, they are ready to begin using Life of Fred, which carries the student from fractions through two years of calculus and beyond.
"In one of the Life of Fred books, Fred Gauss was born on the western slopes of the Siberian mountains. By the end of the eleven books, he is six years old. In his everyday life he first encounters the need for each new part of mathematics, and then comes the mathematics. Never again will students have to ask their perennial question: 'When are we ever gonna use this stuff?'"
Website: Life of Fred Math
(26 Reviews)
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Contributor Reviews
Reviews are solely the opinions of the contributor.
Cons: It is based on a story, so reading (or being read to) is necessary, but the lessons are short so it's mostly painless
Grades Used: Fractions, Decimals and Percents, Beginning Algebra, Advanced Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry
The story is silly and unrealistic (a 5 year old math professor?), and that might put off some more serious-minded or literal students. My sons have enjoyed the absurdities and not only learned the math but learned to see other applications because they aren't simply applying formulas but are actually grasping how the process works.