Customer Reviews

Ace's Algebra 1 Exambusters Study Cards (Ace's Exambusters)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

On my own, I studied my two texts on algebra. I also took algebra in college. With the texts, I would have to finish 50 or so problems and then look in the back of the text. And by that time, I didn't care about the problems that I had stumbled with! In college, it would take several days before I knew the results of the math tests. This is not good learning! This method does not provide immediate reinforcement. And you forget the problems that you had stumbled with.

I've corresponded with a Dr. Osher Doctorov. He is a math and physics teacher who has so many credentials that it will make your head ache (see his comments on flash cards in his reviews on mathematics). He is the one who turned me onto the idea of flash or study cards.

One disagreement with Exambusters. The flash cards need to be used during the math courses and be given top priority. Not just for exams. But for the study of math in general. This is all based on learning theory. One doesn't have to take an opinion about it. If B.F. Skinner used immediate reinforcement on pidgeons and it worked, why do we assume that pidgeons should be treated with more respect than our children or us? I study algebra for relaxation (once I did so for 6 hours without stopping). But Dr. Octorov believes that the torture used on not knowing an answer to an equation that we have tumbled with can be a great pain. Or at least this is his implication. He has taught all ages of students and take a look at this reviewer's credentials! Do you and your kids a favor. Buy these flash cards. And then test your children if you like! Make it a game! Also see my review on Polya's book, "How to Solve It!". Math is a question mark. Not a period. Than you.

I bought several courses. The cards offer basic concepts in small bites. The information was relevant to what was presented by my teacher. The cards and CD's gave good review before exams and a head start at the start of the new school year. The cards had a lot of questions; you can carry them in your pocket and learn a few each day. The software was easy to use. It is like the cards but on the screen. You can take a test or just review. Front is question, click for answer on back of card. The software can also show the cards on the screen at random, first the question, then the answer. They change every few seconds. That keeps you reading and wondering what's coming up next. It's entertaining while you're studying.

Every year I recommend them to my students. The ones who buy them seem to do a little better than they might have. The cards are numbered, so it's easy to tell them which ones they need to know, and which they can set aside based on the curriculum. It's harder to accomplish that type of culling of information with a review book you'd buy at the superstore.

My students love them. We use them in class for group study and a jeopardy/trivia game. They're good review before finals and good preview for upcoming lessons. Exambusters cover the basics in an unconfusing format. In our learning center, we use the software. It's easy to figure out. Just click around and all the functions are clear. Students can remove cards they know or don't need from a virtual stack of cards, the same as if they had index cards printed. The screensaver helped with vocabulary study especially. The computer test was different each time and no matter how many times it was taken. There are three lengths to choose from, quiz, mid-term, and final.

I bought the cards for students I tutor for SAT/ACT/GED. I have them memorize the cards first. Otherwise, I'd have to dictate a vocabulary and formula list to each of them and that wastes time better spent on solving problems together and discussing concepts.

Try these first to review math and/or vocabulary you haven't seen for awhile. Just the basics are presented and I found I already knew some of the answers, but other times, the cards filled in the gaps. That's what's good about flash cards, you can pull out the ones you don't need. Can't do that with a work book unless you want to rip out some pages and use a lot of white out!! The software and the cards were both helpful; the same information in two different forms. Thanks, Exambusters. You've covered it all and given me more confidence!

Helpful to my four children in junior high and high school. They have most courses and also the tests like SAT, SSAT, AP. Easy to use and fun (which is saying a lot when your kid would rather be out with friends than studying!)

I've tried several courses: math, science, history and language. My kids especially love the Sign Language cards! I purchased all three card sets and the CD-software. The photographs are more realistic than drawings which you mostly find in ASL products. Great for younger kids too. My daughter's using them in her Brownie troupe and my three-year-old has picked up on some of the alphabet and numbers already. My older son has some mild learning disabilities and looking at a page in a book with so much information all together makes him nervous. I put one card at a time on a cleared table. It helps him focus and that gives him more confidence. People have been making or using flash cards forever, and I think they always will be no matter how fancy computers and software gets (but the Exambusters software is good too). I've recommended them to others.

When I was in school, flash cards were the best way to learn and I always made my own. The exambusters cards cover many of my daughter's courses and I bought her several. Sometimes we work together and she and her friends study in a group too--making a trivia game. Try the software. The screensaver function is great!! In our house, we love to learn new languages. The program flashes words or phrases and then translation every few seconds. The material goes into your brain by osmosis and the constantly changing cards on the screen keep pulling you back to read more. The software is much easier to figure out than some other brands we've purchased. It's intuitive; you don't need to read a lot of confusing instructions. All in all, good investment.

In junior high, my son got a head start on high school courses and that helped him get better grades. He used both cards and CD. My son liked the software, so he studied more than he would have from a book. Learning is hard work, but the exambusters made him feel like it's not quite so bad. The software is well-laid out, colorful, and user-friendly. The messages they give when they score the tests are amusing.