CTCMath Homeschool Review: A Top Online Math Program

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If you’re looking for an online math program, check out this comprehensive CTCMath homeschool review. Decide if this curriculum is right for your homeschool.

Math isn’t everyone’s favorite subject. Especially if you struggled with it growing up.

But it’s also one of the core subjects that are important for children to learn well, even as early as Kindergarten. So finding the right math curriculum for your homeschool is pretty important.

Which is why I was really excited to try out CTCMath. If you’ve been curious about this math program or just looking for a curriculum that will give your child a solid understanding of math, then keep reading.

In this CTCMath homeschool review, I’m going into all the details about CTCMath to help you get a good idea of whether or not this program would be a good fit for your homeschool.

Let’s dive in!

I was compensated for my time reviewing CTCMath and writing this post. This post reflects my personal opinion about the information provided.

What is CTCMath?

CTCMath is an online math program designed to help children learn math skills at home. This award-winning program was founded by Pat Murray who is well-known for his work in developing math education programs.

CTCMath offers a comprehensive math curriculum that covers all the major math concepts. The program is completely online and allows students to work at their own pace.

Grade/Age Range

CTCMath is created for children in grades K-12. The program is flexible and can be adjusted to meet the needs of each individual child.

Because you assign the lessons individually as opposed to following a set course, you have a lot of freedom to let your child work at their own pace. The Homeschool Family membership gives you access to all lessons for every grade.

So your child can work across different grade levels if needed or advance to the next grade at any time.

What’s included with your purchase

When you purchase a Homeschool Family membership, you get access to all lessons across all grades for your whole family. This includes a teacher account and separate student accounts for each child.

From the teacher’s account, you can manage every student’s progress and assign lessons or practice problems.

Price

Right now, the Homeschool Family Membership is being offered at half price to homeschoolers for only $19.97 per month or $148.50 for the annual membership. I think this makes it one of the more affordable programs, especially for larger homeschool families.

Also, if you want to try it out before you buy, they offer a free trial you can check out here!

Don’t want to read? Watch my review here!

How Does CTCMath Work?

CTCMath works by providing children with a step-by-step approach to learning math concepts. The program starts with the basics and gradually builds upon what has been learned. Each lesson is followed by a practice session to help solidify what was taught.

When you’re student starts a lesson, they will sign into their account and go the Tasks section of their profile. From there they can see their assigned lessons.

Once they click on a lesson, it will take them to all the assignments listed in that lesson. From there, they click “Start task” to begin.

After that, they’ll be taken to the assignment page where a video lesson teaching the concept will start playing. The videos are short and easy to understand.

Despite math being a somewhat dry subject, I think the teacher does a good job explaining the concepts in a way that keeps the students engaged. Once the student finishes the video, they move on to the questions section of the assignment.

Some assignments have additional worksheet pages the students have to complete. As the teacher, you get to decide what grade your student needs to achieve before being able to move on to the next assignment.

To watch a video of how CTCMath works, check out their website.

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How to Assign Lessons 

One of the things that I like about CTCMath is that they give you a lot of control over what your child learns. Instead of having a pre-set lesson plan, you decide what they’ll be working on.

This means you do need to assign lessons for your student to complete. Here’s a quick step-by-step process on how to do it:

Step 1:

Sign into your parent account and click the “+” button under the latest tasks.

Step 2:

Click “+ Add recipients” and choose which child you want to assign lessons to.

Step 3:

Click “Lessons,” scroll down, and choose which lessons to add to this assignment.

To choose a lesson, just click the checkmark next to each assignment.

You can filter the assignments by grade, stream, or topic to make them easier to search through. Lessons that have already been assigned to another task will have a yellow circle with a lowercase “i” in the middle next to the assignment.

You can assign up to 20 lessons for each task.

Step 4:

Scroll back up and add a title and due date to your task. Make sure you give plenty of extra time on the due date.

Once a task expires, it shows up in a different area of the student’s dashboard and it can sometimes be hard for your child to find.

Step 5:

Click the blue “Save Task” button in the upper right-hand corner. That’s it! Your child will now be able to find their task in their dashboard.

If you’re unsure where to start, CTCMath also offers a diagnostic test that can be used to assess your child’s current math skills. I had both of my daughters take one before I started assigning lessons and it helped pinpoint some areas they needed some extra review.

CTCMath Homeschool Review

Now that we’ve covered the basics of what this online math program is and how it works let’s get into the fun part of this CTCMath homeschool review – what’s it’s actually like using the program!

Teaching style

CTCMath uses a mastery learning approach, which means that each concept is learned thoroughly before moving on to the next one. This approach has been shown to be very effective in helping children learn and retain math skills.

Unlike other math programs, CTCMath doesn’t use a spiral approach. Going back and reviewing previously learned content is not built into the program.

However, if that’s something that you feel like you’re student would benefit from you can use the Question Bank Wizard to create cumulative reviews.

What we liked about CTCMath

The next thing I want to cover with this CTCMath homeschool review is what we liked about the curriculum. I used this program with both of my daughters who are in 2nd and 6th grade for math.

Math isn’t always a favorite subject at our house, so I was pleasantly surprised at how well my children took to this program. Here were some of the things we liked most about it:

No grading!

This was a huge one for me! As a working homeschool mom, grading is something I struggle with. The fact that I didn’t have to think about checking their work bumped this up to one of my favorite math curriculums.

Full control over what your child learns

I really liked that I could pick and choose which lessons and topics to assign my children. Since we switched to CTCMath partway through another math curriculum, it meant the girls didn’t need to waste their time slogging through lessons they had already learned.

They could get straight to the new topics and start working from there.

I also liked that I could decide what passing grade my children needed to get to move on to the next lesson. This gives the parent a lot of control over how rigorous they want to be with the concepts their child is learning.

Can easily review old concepts

It’s super easy to review old concepts with CTCMath. My oldest daughter often gets frustrated when she can’t remember how to do a problem she has learned before. With CTCMath, it’s really easy for her to rewatch previous lessons to refresh her memory.

Works well as a full curriculum or a study aide

I also really like the flexibility that you get with CTCMath. You can use it as a full curriculum or just for extra practice.

After an initial trial, my oldest daughter wanted to start using her previous math curriculum. However, whenever she gets stuck or is having a hard time mastering a concept, I assign her a few lessons on CTCMath.

The video lessons often explain the concept in a way that helps her better understand the lesson and she gets a chance to practice a new set of problems.

My second daughter is thriving with CTCMath as her only math curriculum.

My children can work independently

As I mentioned before, I am a working homeschool mom, so my time is limited. I loooove having a subject I don’t have to teach.

The video lessons do a fantastic job explaining how to solve the problems and my children very rarely get stuck or ask me for help.

Minimal planning on my part

I like how easy it is to schedule and plan lessons in advance. This meant I could easily schedule weeks and months ahead in just a few minutes.

Mastery stars

Another feature that I really liked was the mastery stars that they have for each lesson. As your child works through their questions, they are awarded stars for correct answers.

The more they answer correctly the different colored stars they earn. This was extra motivating for my second daughter.

There were even a few lessons where she went and redid them just to earn a certain colored star. Considering how often she spends trying to get out of her schoolwork, this was a huge win.

Convenient

Using online homeschool curriculums is super convenient and CTCMath is no exception. You can access their program from your computer, phone, or tablet, which makes it super convenient for those days when we’re running around or traveling.

Progress reports

Another feature I really like about CTCMath is that they email you progress reports each week and whenever your child completes a task. It even includes the average grade they’re getting on their lessons.

I found this really helpful for the weeks where things were crazy and maybe I forgot to check in with how their work went.

Super affordable

The last thing I really liked about CTCMath is the price. I definitely homeschool on a budget so the fact that it’s so affordable is huge.

Who would CTCMath be a good fit for?

Next up with this CTCMath homeschool review is who it would be a good fit for. Not every curriculum works well for every homeschooling family.

Here is who I think would benefit from this curriculum the most:

• Busy homeschool parents: As a very busy homeschool mom, I think this curriculum is great. The planning is super simple and there is no grading required. This frees up a lot of time for the parent.
• Someone who doesn’t have strong math skills: If you, as the parent, don’t have very strong math skills, I think this is a great choice. The video lessons do all the teaching for you and you don’t even have to worry about grading.
• Visual learners: This program is great for visual learners. The videos are easy to understand and very visually engaging. My younger daughter is a visual learner and this program is working great for her.
• Children who need lots of review before understanding a concept: If you’re child benefits from extra review or practice when it comes to learning math, this program is a great choice. Students can watch and rewatch the teaching videos as many times as they need. Plus, there are lots of opportunities to solve practice problems until the concepts are mastered.
• Traveling homeschoolers: CTCMath is easily accessible from a computer, tablet, or smartphone, so it works great for families that travel while homeschooling.
• Large homeschooling families: With the Homeschool Family membership, you get access to all lessons across all grades for the whole family. This is a way more affordable option than having to pay for separate accounts or curriculums for large homeschooling families.

FAQs About CTCMath

Still have some questions after reading this CTCMath homeschool review? No worries, I got you covered! Here are some frequently asked questions:

Is CTCMath a full curriculum?

Yes! CTCMath is a full curriculum. It covers all math concepts from Kindergarten to 12th grade.

It also works well for families looking for something to help with extra practice or to stay on top of their skills over break and avoid the summer slide.

Is CTCMath common core?

No, CTCMath is not aligned with Common Core.

Is CTCMath rigorous enough?

Yes, I think CTCMath is a rigorous enough program. Because the Homeschool Family membership covers all lessons across all grades, you can work through as many lessons at whatever pace you want.

You can assign as many lessons per day for your child as you feel they need.

How long will my child need to spend on this curriculum each day?

CTCMath offers a lot of flexibility for homeschoolers when it comes to assigning lessons. Therefore, it’s really up to you how long they spend on it a day.

If you have a timeline you’re trying to stick to, you can check your homeschool schedule, check how many lessons are in your child’s grade, and see how many they need to complete a day to finish by a certain date.

Where can I sign up for CTCMath?

To sign up for CTCMath’s Homeschool Family membership, click the button below!

Conclusion to This CTCMath Homeschool Review

I hope this CTCMath homeschool review has helped give you an idea of whether or not this online math program would be a good fit for your family. We’ve truly enjoyed using this curriculum and I think it’s been a great addition to our homeschool.

If you still have questions about this CTCMath homeschool review, feel free to leave them in the comments below and I’ll answer them as soon as I can. And if you’re interested in signing up for CTCMath, be sure to use the button below!

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