Life of Fred

by Jack
(Vancouver, WA, USA)

Life of Fred is a story-based presentation of math revolving around the life a fictional character named Fred. We began using the Life of Fred program this fall for our 7th grader who needed a thorough refresher before digging in to Pre-Algebra.

Fred uses his every day experiences as a child prodigy who teaches at Kittens University as the basis for his math lessons. My daughter, who is a prolific reader but is a little challenged when it comes to math, is able to do her daily lessons on her own, only needing me to grade her bridge tests once a week. I expect her to need a little more coaching when she gets to the algebra and beyond, but by then she will be used to this unusual approach and will undoubtedly continue to benefit from the literary presentations.

Created by Dr. Stanley Schmidt, the series begins with "Fractions", "Decimals and Percents", then moves on into "Pre-Algebra", "Advanced Algebra", "Geometry", "Trigonometry", "Calculus", and ends with "Statistics". There are also a couple of home companion books designed to assist homeschooling parents.

This is probably not for everyone, and those using a classical curriculum may roll their eyes, but for some it will be a blessing as it has been for us.

More information can be found here:
http://www.stanleyschmidt.com/FredGauss/index2.html