By Pam Woodbury

If you have been looking for a program that teaches your children how to use problem-solving techniques to solve word problems that require a lot of thought, this is it.  I have been using the Figure It Out books with all three of my children since we started homeschooling.  Going beyond the typical math-book word problems, the exercises in these books provide the student with first the training and then the opportunity to practice various problem-solving techniques.  Level 1 has first grade level problems, and so on.  However, depending on the child's experiences, you may want to start at a level below or a level above your child's grade level.  The teacher's manuals include full solutions to the problems, along with excellent teaching ideas and problem extensions.  This series is an excellent preparation for both the national Math Olympiads and MATHCOUNTS programs.