DIVE CD ROM For Saxon Math Review

Dr. Shormann Is A Great Video Math Tutor

After using Saxon for nearly twenty years both in school and homeschool, I love using the DIVE CD ROM for Saxon Math with our kids. They have been able to

* watch Dr. Shormann teach the Saxon Math lessons,

* take notes as they watch,

* and do their assignments with very little help from my husband or I.

* his CDs are more concise than the Saxon DVDs.

Dr. David Shormann teaches Math on his Dive Math CDs for every lesson in the Saxon Math books, which which is a huge short cut for learning the Saxon Math lessons whether the kids are in school or home schooling.

Dr. Shormann has a video Math tutor CD for every Saxon Math textbook and many science texts so that if you have several children using Saxon, you can get the right CD to match each Saxon Math book.

My children have been using Saxon for over fifteen years and have had the great benefit of using the DIVE for the last ten or more. Well, actually, I benefit as a parent/teacher, too, as these DIVE CDs have done a lot of patient teaching in our house. What follows is my review of the DIVE Into Math CDs.

Dive stands for Digital Interactive Video Education and uses a digital whiteboard showing Dr. Shormann's Math lessons and more. He shows the shortcuts and I think that he is the best Math tutor I've ever seen. Our children love his instructions!

DIVE - Digital Interactive Video Education

We are so grateful to Dr. Shormann for his Dive Math whiteboard videos of the Saxon Math books! Clear from the time that a child knows his tables, Dr. Shormann shows his students how to do their Math Lessons so that they can then do their work.

He's always patient no matter how many times you listen to his explanations. Our older children started when when they were using one of the Algebra text books. That was so successful that we bought a CD for each of the levels we were using that year and now own all of the levels that we use. 

He teaches each lesson in Saxon Math's textbook on a digital whiteboard using QuickTime which is so much more concise than using DVDs - also, there's no losing one of several discs. He's an excellent video Mat tutor.

Even though the lessons would seem relatively fast, students can pause and play to be able to copy the notes from the board and this is what he means by "interactive", not the kind of interactive that is invasive.

Dr. David Shormann teaches from a Christian worldview in the DIVE or you can use the COMPASS version without the extra Bible quotes. He also provides a weekly syllabus to help students stay on track with the lessons which is helpful whether your main Math book is Saxon or not. Just match your lessons with the titles in the syllabus that applies to your text books. See them at the website address on the cover of the CD.

The Best Video Math Tutor I've Used!

Our younger children started with Saxon Math 5/4 - The DIVE software teaches each Saxon lesson step-by-step on a digital whiteboard, with lessons that last about 10-15 minutes; because each lesson is stored separately, you can easily move about from lesson-to-lesson as well as maneuver within the lesson you're watching. The numbered icons are easy for the children to navigate.

You can get them at Amazon. His DIVEs also cover:

• Saxon Math 6/5, 
• Math 76, 
• Math 8/7, 
• Algebra 1/2, 
• Algebra 1, 
• And more including many science CDs.

and all the rest with an excellent presentation that allows students to progress at their own speeds. Believe me, it is a joy to hear the children say, "Dr. Shormann did it this way...."

Review of My Experience Using A DIVE CD ROM For Saxon Math Homeschool Editions

We really like John Saxon's books as our kids sure learned more Algebra than I had learned through college.

We began to use the DIVE Math CDs with the Algebra I course and were so relieved to have had Dr. Shormann's patient teaching on tap. The dreaded high school years were dreaded no longer.

At the same time, we started our third child on the Math 54 DIVE. While he is not very interested in Math itself, he has always been able to follow what Dr. Shormann said to do and got the work done. We've used the DIVEs ever since 2005 and Dr. Shormann has had our gratitude ever since.

There were one or two times that we ventured another program, but within two months returned to Saxon Math and the DIVE video Math tutor because they kept our children at a higher level with less effort and less expense.

Homeschool DIVE Math Shortcuts

Dr. Shormann gives many short cuts. Hypothetically, he'll say something like: "You'll be learning to do this kind of problem this different way in 5 chapters, so let's do it that way now since this is how you'll do it the rest of your life." What a gem!

He also advises that the student only needs to read the Saxon Math book itself if he did not understand the DIVE Math lessons. This presupposes that your children read well.

In the long run we have found that it helps our students, who do not read easily, to read the Math lessons in the Saxon text so that they can better understand the word problems in the lessons. I find that if my children are used to reading the examples in the text, they are more easily able to solve the word problems in the lessons.

We know family and friends who were not even using Saxon Math that were able to rescue their grades by using Dr. Shormann's Dive. All they had to do was get the right syllabus for their book from the DIVE website.

• One was a sophomore in a private school,
• another was a home schooled child,
• and the grand finale, another "student" was a school teacher increasing her qualifications as a certified teacher!

All of us are grateful to have been able to use Dive Into Math CDs!

Interactive DIVE CDs

These CDs are the kind of interactive that means students can pause and play.

They are not collecting information so as to repeat questions for remediation later.

DIVE CDs Compared To Saxon DVDs

Some of our children have used both the Dive and the Saxon CDs.

Several preferred the Saxon as they cover exactly the same material.

Several preferred Dr. Shormann's DIVE as it was more concise. It took less time to listen to the lesson.

For three of our children, I really appreciated that the children had to do the math on their own using the Dive, yet two others were "not getting it" so the Saxon CDs were a rescue.

If your children are self starters and handy with math, they will really appreciate the DIVE short cut.

Homeschool Math Program

I have used many homeschool math programs and have found Saxon with its textbooks and solutions manuals to be the best. 

Many schools use it.

The DIVE was invented to help homeschooling families improve their math courses.

Dr. Shormann himself tutored math to his own children and to other children. These CDs are a perfect answer to teaching Math.

If I had not had his CDs, there are years I would have been teaching math all day long to our children's different levels.

Math Tutorials

They're also excellent for other self learners. I know students who used DIVE CDs to better understand their high school and college Algebra. I even know one teacher. :-)

These people weren't using Saxon books, yet the DIVE company has the table of contents to download for the chapters in many other math books. His work is universal.

Buy the DIVE CDs at Amazon

The best prices for a DIVE CD ROM For Saxon Math and the Saxon Math books that we've seen are at Amazon since you can buy them new or used. 

Amazon also carries Dr. Shormann's science DIVEs. The Dive Into Chemistry CD-Rom saved our first homeschool year in Chemistry. These have been a God-send to our high school children. You can supplement your home school Math and science curriculum with Saxon and Dive products at Amazon.

I whole heartedly endorse both Saxon and the DIVEs. I think they'll make your homeschool day much easier. 

~Mary

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