Review: Mastering Essential Math Skills Book 2

Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

Today’s review features a detailed look at the new Mastering Essentials Math Skills Book 2 Middle/High School workbook from Math Essentials. Their products are designed by Rick Fisher, a veteran math instructor of over 30 years. His award-winning workbooks are known for providing material to teach and review math concepts for students of all ages.

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION:
Mastering Essentials Math Skills Book 2 Middle/High School is a math workbook that features a math instruction system and practice worksheets. Each lesson includes review exercises, new material, teacher tips or helpful hints, speed drills, and daily word problems. The best thing about this book is that you do not have to work through it from beginning to end. The text provides so much flexibility for new topics to be introduced. The exercises also leave room for guidance and structure to ensure each student has the time needed to comprehend.

The book is divided into eight chapters with 10-20 pages of material. Here are the topics covered:

Pre-algebra
Whole Numbers
Fractions
Decimals
Algebra
Percentages
Integers
Geometry
Charts and Graphs
Problem-solving

CLICK HERE to read our review of Math Refresher For Adults

Daily use is suggested for those that plan on using this for math instruction. Several pages are also provided at the beginning of the workbook that describes the eight-step teaching method in detail. The purchase of each book also includes access to FREE video lessons. These videos are password protected and can be accessed solely from the Math Essentials website. Each of the 8 aforementioned sections has instructional videos. The subtopics are covered with clear teaching and several example problems completed on a dry-erase board.

Want to see inside? Watch our Math Essentials flip through video!

OUR ROUTINE & FINAL THOUGHTS:
We used this book each week as a practice supplement to Bear’s current honors math curriculum. The table of contents at the beginning of the book was very helpful in deciding which lessons we needed to use for that week. Each section includes one review worksheet for the various subtopics listed. It took Bear approximately 5-15 minutes to work through the pages. The length of time to complete the work always depended on whether he was familiar with the concept. Some pages were used to review math concepts in preparation for me teaching a new one. Other times we used it to practice material I had just taught him.

I like the layout of this book, a variety of subjects covered, and that it can be used for several years. The worksheet layout is designed with borders around each component. There is also a separate place to write the answers for the problems which makes them easy to find when grading. I also appreciated the Helpful Hints section which included tips for solving the problems, math vocabulary, and example problems. After using the Mastering Essential Math Skills Book 2 Middle Grades/High School book for several weeks, we recommend it as a math supplement or homework tutoring program for students in 6th to 12th grade. Each Math Essentials product we have has been a great addition to our homeschool.