Everyday Math, Everyday Smath!

If your child's school ever decides to introduce the Everyday Math curriculum.... PROTEST!
Seriously it is the craziest thing I've ever seen! If your child is great at math, they may enjoy it. I mean what could be better than 90 minutes of math to a K-6 grader!
My son is in the 4th grade. They switch classes and he has one teacher for Math and Science. He is in her class 90 minutes. She HAS to teach Math 90 minutes. So when does Science get taught? It doesn't. He is 1/2 way through the 4th grade and has had 3 graded papers in Science. The 2nd 9 weeks he had absolutely NO Science. He bought home his grade card and I noticed there wasn't a Science grade so I emailed his teacher. She called me back and told me she wasn't happy about it, but 4th grader's are not state tested on Science but they are on Math so she had to make a choice and she had to let Science slide the last 9 weeks. Again she HAS to teach 90 minutes of math. The thing is the kids are in math 90 minutes and STILL don't understand! This is not a teaching problem it's a curriculum problem. The teachers voted AGAINST this curriculum but the administration or who ever, made the decision to get the curriculum in our schools. (WHY EVEN ASK THE TEACHER'S OPINION?)
Can you imagine the poor Kindergarten or 1st grade teachers trying to keep those little kids attention on math for 90 minutes a day!
Here's an example of why I HATE this curriculum.
Monday they may teach subtraction this way
356 First subtract the 100's
-173Then Subtract the 10's you can't subtract 5 from 7, Oh yes you can just write it as a minus
____Then subtract the ones and since it is doable you write it as +
+ 200
- 20
+ 3
_____
183

But today is a new day! It's Tuesday now do the same problem but use the old cross out and borrow way to do subtraction!

Wait, another day is gone, now it's Wednesday, I went to their website and copied this because I can not even explain it!

Closest to the traditional standard is a method that Everyday Mathematics calls "trade first". It is the Everyday Math focus algorithm for subtraction. It is a two stage process, first working right to left to do all the borrowing (recording the intermediate results above the top number) and then a second pass, in any order, doing the subtractions. The intermediate results are two-digit numbers, so one needs to use wide columns, and it is recommended to separate the columns with clear vertical lines. In the example at right, 325 - 58, we first recognize that the ones column needs borrowing, so we replace 2*10+5 by 1*10+15. Then we recognize that the tens column also needs borrowing, so we replace 3*100+1*10 by 2*100+11*10. Then we do the subtraction in each column.
211
115
3 2 5
- 5 8
------
2 6 7

I can't even keep the methods straight!
And that's not even all!!
There's also the same change
so
356 363
-173 -180
____ Make the bottom number end in 0 so add 7 to top and bottom_______

Not only are they shown these methods. I can see showing them the methods and letting them choose what is easier for them. No, they have to master ALL the methods! Also, they are all taught in the same week!
You've seriously got to check out the lattice method of multiplication! There are also 4 methods of multiplication taught too!
What's wrong with the old fashioned way of just practice, practice, practice!
Another thing is the younger grades get lots of homework like "find things in your home that show"_____ whatever. Busy work. I hate stuff like that, clipping out of magazines and all! YUK!
I'm posting (complaining) about this today because I've talked to the Principal and he's not happy with the curriculum either. I told him if Isaiah fails the 4th grade math state testing this year he is NOT going to summer school because it's the curriculum that has failed him. He's not spending 90 minutes a day plus 6 weeks of his summer in math because someone chose a crappy curriculum. They send them to summer school and they re-test on the subject that way if they pass the school system looks better. Well no way! The school system is going to look exactly as it should, failing!

I work with him all summer and had him doing multiplication the old fashioned way then they show him 3 other ways and mess him all up. Nope sorry! I'll keep working with him. Eventually he'll age out of this crappy curriculum!