The math just doesn’t add up. There is only one of me, but there are 5 children being homeschooled, and an ever-increasing number of things to teach them. Their abilities range from preschool to precalculus. I just can’t teach it all on my own, at least not if I want to do it well and without turning into a crazy-brain mama.
Choosing when and how to outsource classes, especially at the high school level, has become a necessary part of our homeschool plan. Mr. D Math has become an important part of keeping our school year running smoothly… and has saved this homeschool mom from the overwhelm of trying to do it all alone!
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Online Homeschool Math with Mr. D
Mr. D Math provides both self-paced and live online math classes for homeschool high schoolers. Mr. D is actually Dennis DiNoia, an experienced teacher who has been equipping teens to truly understand math for over 25 years. With Mr. D Math, he has brought his engaging style online.
Not only are there class options for high school math from Pre-Algebra to Pre-Calculus, but Mr. D. Math also offers 6-week bootcamps for ACT Prep and SAT Prep!
Live classes are taught in an easy-to-use online classroom format. Students can privately interact with the teacher during class, asking questions and replying to the teacher’s questions. The virtual whiteboard enables the teacher to work through practice problems with the students in real time.
Homework, quizzes, and tests are part of the online math curriculum provided; there is no need for you to purchase any additional materials. Everything is either done online or can be easily printed from your computer at home.
Have a question outside of class time? Struggling to understand a concept? Online live help sessions are offered twice a week to all Mr. D Math students. It’s essentially like having regular tutoring sessions at no additional charge!
Not only that, but you can also directly message the teachers at any time. Mr. D Math encourages students to actually understand the math they’re learning rather than merely jumping through hoops to get by. The goal isn’t the grade; the goal is true understanding.
Online Math: Geometry
My daughter, Emma, has been taking Mr. D’s self-paced Geometry class this year and has been loving it! She has thrived on the clear, engaging video instruction and on the ability to independently work at her own pace. She especially likes that there is just enough review within the curriculum to solidify the concepts, but not so much that it drives you crazy.
So imagine our delight when we were able to observe a LIVE Geometry class and virtually-meet Mr. D in real time!
Upon entering the online Zoom classroom, the students began some friendly conversation with each other in the chat box. Once Mr. D began class time proper, however, the chat was shut off so that students could only interact with Mr. D and not be distracted by one another.
The class had recently finished chapter 6 and were taking a day to review chapters 1-5 in preparation for an upcoming exam.
I immediately noticed how cheerful and friendly Mr. D comes across to his students, setting all of us at ease. He gave simple explanations for even complicated topics. He provided definitions, formulas, examples, and practice problems from the previous material. He also gave helpful tips for how to prepare for the exam itself.
Emma and I were participating in the class as well, and at one point we (well, actually it was mainly I) made an error while working an equation and submitted an incorrect answer in the chat box. Mr. D helped us, and others who were struggling, by going through the original problem step-by-step, giving us tools for deciphering word problems. It was abundantly clear that his goal is for students to actually understand the material, not just get through it.
ACT Prep
My oldest son, Joshua, is preparing to take the ACT for the first time this spring. While he’s always been a confident test-taker, the ACT format is different from other standardized tests he’s taken in the past. I wanted him to be able to gain the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful on the test.
We were thrilled to have the opportunity for him to take the ACT Prep course at Mr. D Math! Joshua says that not only is the course material easy to navigate, but the instruction “helps me focus on the actual question and not on the extraneous information included in the questions.” The ACT Prep course is more than just math concept review; it’s training students how to take a test.
In fact, when we attended a live ACT Prep Bootcamp class? That’s exactly what the instructor, Mr. H (Henderson Riley), said to the class: “Know the actual question and answer it. Make sure you’re answering the real, actual question.”
Repeatedly, Mr. H went over the process for deciphering the questions themselves, throwing out distracting information, and zeroing in on what was really needed to find the solutions. With dry humor and an appealing, teasing personality, Mr. H encouraged the students that the more they practice, the more comfortable they will get with the test questions, and the better they will do on the actual test day. “Don’t overcomplicate it,” he reminded them.
The live ACT Prep Bootcamp provided opportunities to work problems in semi-real testing time. After giving students the opportunity to try to figure out the answer themselves, Mr. H would go step-by-step through the solution. Alongside explaining the math concepts, he also gave tips for what things to skip, taught the skill of educated skimming, and trained them how to look for the key information on the page.
Try Mr. D Math Yourself!
Do you have a child who loves math but is out-pacing your own ability to teach them? Do you have a child struggling in math who needs personal instruction? Or are you, like I was, looking for outsourcing options that will continue to facilitate both a love of learning and a depth of knowledge? Check out all the options available at Mr. D Math today!
- Pre-Algebra
- Algebra I
- Geometry
- Algebra II
- Pre-Calculus with Trigonometry
- SAT Prep Bootcamp
- ACT Prep Bootcamp
- Consumer Math
- Advanced Writing
- Study Skills
- College and Career Readiness
- and MORE!
