Opening a Miquon math book is like opening a rainbow.  Each page jumps out at you in a different color.  But not in a distracting or annoying sort of way.  While each page contains color, it's the problems themselves that are colorful.  There are no images and few introductions or directions to detract from the assignment itself.  Yet, the color inside of a Miquon book welcomes you into its very pages. 

The Miquon math program can be a little difficult to understand.  It's actually very simple.  Miquon books are designed to be used in first, second, and third grade.  There are 6 books in all, 2 per year.  The difficulty comes with knowing the order of the books themselves.  That's because they aren't numbered or lettered, but are labeled by color.  There is the blue book, purple book, orange book, and so on. So how do you know which to do first? or which book to work on after the blue book?  The order in which the books are designed to be used is listed on the back cover of each book, or you can go view the scope and sequence from Miquon.

Because of its emphasis on hands on activities, Miquon is advertised as a math lab program.  The most important manipulative used in this program is a cuisenaire rod set.  You can find cuisenaire rods at Amazon or any other curriculum store.  The activities in Miquon include using your rods, or completing mini books by cutting out and stapling sections of the workbook. 

Miquon often uses symbols instead of letters to represent higher concepts.  For example, in a graphing section, Miquon uses a square to represent the X-axis and a triangle for the Y-axis.  It's sort of a back door method of introducing abstract concepts to children.  Some students' minds work in such a way that this is exactly what they need to not be intimidated by the material, while others find it frustrating to not learn it the "official" way the first time.  This is one of those, "know your student", moments.  

The practice problems in Miquon are sufficient for grades 1-3 and Miquon does a good job making the work fun.  It is simple yet effective.  My mathematically minded brain struggles with the apparent lack of direction and formal instruction in Miquon so I rarely recommend it as a primary math curriculum.  The practice pages and instructions rely on a student's intuition.  There is an instruction book for teachers available that may clarify some of the pages.  Because of the format, Miquon tends to be teacher led as the student often needs more direction than a blank page.  For example, one of the games is based on the 100s chart and traveling between numbers with arrows.  The text doesn't explain how to use a 100s chart, but relies on the teacher to give the proper instruction to the student.

By relying on discovery with numbers and a students intuition to discover patterns, Miquon does a good job engaging the student in playing with numbers.  If your young student is struggling with math and starting to have some anxiety around the subject, then Miquon math is your solution.  I have found myself using Miquon through the years to help students slow down and understand a concept without becoming overwhelmed by the material.  

Miquon math is a simple, fun, and effective way to introduce your young elementary student to the joys of mathematics.