Pre-Algebra: Basic Mathematics II, second edition [eighth grade]

A Beka Book

The second edition of this book sticks with A Beka’s traditional approach to math. It relies on rules and procedures rather than conceptual understanding. It reviews basic math, ratios, decimals, and percent. It continues work with measurement and the metric system. It introduces algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and scientific notation. There is an entire chapter on graphs, statistics, and probability, topics which increasingly appear on standardized tests. Another chapter on “business math” might better be titled “consumer math” since it covers income (including withholding deductions), sales tax, budgeting, checkbook maintenance, borrowing, installment buying, savings/interest, stocks, and insurance. This sort of practical application relating to money is great for junior high students who are questioning the value of math in real life. Some of the other topics are generally taught in high school level texts, so be cautious about overwhelming students with work that is too advanced. For example, algebra proceeds through solving equations and graphing lines, typical Algebra 1 topics.

Texts for pre-algebra vary greatly in what they cover, but one topic that I think should be covered is missing: calculators. While I am not an advocate of calculator use in the early grades, I believe that junior high students should have access to calculators as they start working with concepts like square root more extensively. This text spends quite a bit of time teaching students how to use square root tables and calculate square root without mechanical assistance; while it is essential that students understand what the calculator is doing, it does not make sense for students to spend a great deal of time performing such calculations since derivation of square roots in real life is almost always performed with calculators or computers.

The text itself is a worktext, with instruction and problems set up such that students should be able to work independently. Word problems and review exercises appear in most lessons. This text should work well for the self-motivated independent learner who grasps math concepts easily. You will need both the student worktext and the teacher’s key. A Test and Quiz Book and companion answer key are available, and there is also a solution key for those who need extra help.