Course Details:
- 2 live classes per week
- Subscription continues until paused or cancelled
- Live Class Length: 45 minutes
- 16 seats per section
- Homework is assigned
- Formal grades
- Materials
The sign-up fee covers the cost of the CTC math course. All other resources are provided.
Algebra: Unlocking the Language of Mathematics
$40.00 / week and a $40.00 sign-up fee
Our Algebra course combines CTC Math’s proven mastery-based curriculum with comprehensive live instruction to ensure students truly master the language of mathematics. Students access CTC Math’s concise, effective video lessons while receiving the essential live teaching support that transforms content consumption into genuine mathematical fluency in a nurturing, Christ-centered environment.
Section Options / Enroll:
- Description
- Lesson Schedule
- Class Intro Video
- A Biblical Worldview
- Philosophy of Mathematics Learning
- The Lemons-Aid Way
- Teacher Bios
- Outschool
- Request a Section
- Reviews (0)
Description
“The limits of my language mean the limits of my world.” – Ludwig Wittgenstein
This profound insight reveals why Algebra is called the “language of mathematics.” Just as mastering a new language opens doors to different cultures and ways of thinking, mastering algebraic language unlocks the entire mathematical universe. However, learning any new language requires more than just content—it requires expert instruction, guided practice, and consistent support. While excellent curriculum provides the vocabulary and grammar, true fluency comes through live instruction where students learn to “speak” mathematics with confidence, accuracy, and understanding.
Course Description
Our Algebra course combines CTC Math’s proven mastery-based curriculum with comprehensive live instruction to ensure students truly master the language of mathematics. Students access CTC Math’s concise, effective video lessons while receiving the essential live teaching support that transforms content consumption into genuine mathematical fluency in a nurturing, Christ-centered environment.
Why Live Instruction is Essential: While CTC Math provides outstanding mastery-based content with clear, focused video lessons, research shows that curriculum alone—no matter how well-designed—cannot replace the irreplaceable value of expert live instruction. Our live classes fill the critical gaps that separate content delivery from true mastery.
How It Works
Student Curriculum Access: Students receive access to CTC Math’s comprehensive Algebra program, featuring Patrick Murray’s clear, concise video instruction (typically 4-9 minutes per lesson), interactive exercises, and diagnostic assessments. This subscription-based program allows students to work at their own pace using the proven mastery approach.
Expert Live Instruction: Our certified math teachers provide the essential teaching support that transforms good curriculum into exceptional learning through regular live sessions focusing on:
What Makes Our Live Classes Irreplaceable:
Mastery Reinforcement & Support: While CTC Math uses a mastery approach where students don’t move forward until concepts are solid, our live classes provide crucial support when students get stuck. Our teachers offer alternative explanations, different approaches, and personalized instruction that helps every student achieve true mastery.
Question Answering & Clarification: When students encounter difficulties with CTC Math’s lessons, our teachers provide immediate support, working through problems step-by-step and ensuring no student is left behind when concepts don’t “click” the first time.
Fluency & Procedural Practice: Beyond understanding concepts, students need to develop automatic recall and procedural fluency. Our live classes provide targeted practice that builds speed and accuracy in algebraic operations.
Test Preparation Strategy: Our teachers prepare students not just for CTC Math’s built-in assessments, but for standardized tests, college entrance exams, and future mathematics courses through strategic test-taking instruction.
Mathematical Literacy: Students learn how to read complex word problems, identify key information, and translate English into mathematical language—skills that videos alone cannot fully develop.
Advanced Problem-Solving: Our live instruction extends beyond basic problem-solving to develop sophisticated mathematical reasoning and critical thinking skills.
Prayer & Discipleship: Students begin each class in prayer and discover how mathematical thinking reflects God’s logical and ordered nature, connecting faith and learning in ways curriculum alone cannot provide.
Essential Support Services:
Progress Monitoring & Accountability: We track student progress through CTC Math’s system, identify learning gaps, and provide the accountability that ensures consistent progress through the mastery-based program.
Personalized Pacing Guidance: While CTC Math allows self-paced learning, our teachers help students set appropriate goals and maintain steady progress without rushing or falling behind.
Parent Communication: Regular communication with parents about student progress, challenges, and achievements, along with specific recommendations for support.
Social, Emotional & Spiritual Growth
Building Mathematical Confidence: We understand that Algebra represents students’ first encounter with abstract mathematical thinking. Our combination of CTC Math’s mastery-based curriculum with expert live instruction ensures that every student develops not just algebraic skills, but the confidence to tackle any mathematical challenge. Students learn that with God’s help and proper support, they can DO HARD THINGS and master the language that unlocks all advanced mathematics.
Faith Integration: Students discover that God is a God of logic and order through the beautiful consistency of algebraic rules, the precision of mathematical language, and the power of equations to describe His creation. We begin each class with prayer, thanking God for minds capable of understanding abstract mathematical relationships. As students master algebraic thinking, they learn that mathematical language reflects the logical nature of God Himself.
Developing Mathematical Maturity: Through our live instruction, students develop not just algebraic knowledge but the study habits, problem-solving strategies, and mathematical communication skills they need for success in advanced mathematics and college preparation.
The Value of Expert Live Instruction
The Bottom Line: While CTC Math provides excellent mastery-based content with clear, focused instruction, curriculum alone cannot replace the irreplaceable value of expert live instruction. Students who attempt Algebra with only video instruction often struggle with motivation, lack accountability for consistent progress, miss crucial problem-solving strategies, and fail to develop the mathematical reasoning skills needed for advanced courses.
Our live instruction transforms CTC Math’s excellent curriculum into extraordinary results by providing the human element that no video can replace: personalized instruction, immediate feedback, accountability for mastery, fluency development, and the community that ensures true mathematical growth.
In our Algebra: Unlocking the Language of Mathematics course, we combine CTC Math’s proven mastery-based approach with the expert live instruction that ensures every student not only learns algebraic concepts but develops the mathematical fluency and confidence needed for success in advanced mathematics and beyond.
Content Covered: CTC Math Algebra Scope
Part 1: Foundation Building (Speaking Basic Algebraic Language!)
- Number Review I, II, III – Strengthening arithmetic foundations
- Algebra Review – Connecting previous knowledge to algebraic thinking
- Building confidence with algebraic notation and mathematical language
Part 2: Core Algebraic Concepts (Mastering Mathematical Sentences!)
- Algebra and Equations Introduction – Understanding the language of equations
- Algebraic Equations – Solving linear equations with increasing complexity
- Monomials and Polynomials – Operations with algebraic expressions
Part 3: Advanced Algebraic Skills (Complex Mathematical Vocabulary!)
- Factoring – Breaking down complex expressions into simpler components
- Simultaneous Equations – Solving systems of equations
- Inequalities and Absolute Values – Expanding algebraic reasoning
- Algebraic Fractions – Working with rational expressions
Part 4: Higher-Level Applications (Sophisticated Mathematical Communication!)
- Coordinate Geometry – Connecting algebra to visual representations
- Functions and Relations – Understanding mathematical relationships
- Variation and Rates – Real-world applications of algebraic thinking
- Irrational Numbers, Radicals, and Quadratic Equations – Advanced algebraic concepts
- Univariate Data – Introduction to mathematical analysis
Class Introduction Video
Taught From a Christian Perspective
Our mission is to equip learners’ minds and shepherd their hearts. We want them to have saving faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and then develop a biblical worldview. This means they view their world, themselves, and God in a way that aligns with what the Bible teaches. This brings great peace and understanding to the believer because we serve a good, sovereign God. This course is taught with these goals in mind. In class, we may pray, read scripture, and discuss how to view the content from a Christian perspective.
We have adopted The Master’s Seminary Doctrinal Statement.
MATH:
God has created our brains with the ability to study and comprehend amazing, complex things! Math is such a unique subject to study and master. We can see math in God’s creation, and we can appreciate His order through the complex skills we learn.
Philosophy of Mathematics Learning:
At Lemons-Aid Learning, we believe mathematics education should build both deep understanding and lasting confidence. Our approach combines the best of proven methodologies to create a complete learning experience that serves every type of learner.
Mastery with Spiral Support: We use mastery-based curricula that allow students to deeply understand concepts before moving forward, but we enhance this with intentional spiral review in our live classes. This means students gain true mastery while keeping previous skills fresh and connected—avoiding both the shallow coverage of pure spiral curricula and the “forgetting gap” that can occur with mastery-only approaches.
Conceptual Understanding with Procedural Fluency: Our students learn the “why” behind mathematical concepts through visual models, manipulatives, and clear explanations, then develop speed and accuracy through targeted practice. This dual approach ensures they can both solve problems creatively and execute procedures confidently—essential for success in higher mathematics.
Emotional and Spiritual Growth: We recognize that mathematics often triggers anxiety and frustration. Our classes provide a safe, supportive environment where students learn they can “do hard things” through Christ’s strength. We address math anxiety head-on with encouragement, multiple pathways to understanding, and the biblical truth that God has designed our minds for complex thinking and problem-solving.
Complete Support System: While our carefully chosen curricula provide excellent instruction, our live classes add the human element students need: immediate help with challenging concepts, accountability for consistent practice, test preparation, real-world applications, and the joy of learning alongside peers who share their faith.
Mathematics reveals God’s order, beauty, and design throughout creation. As students master mathematical concepts, they’re not just preparing for the next grade level—they’re developing logical thinking, perseverance, and wonder at the intricate patterns woven throughout God’s world.
✨ 🍋 ✨ Why Lemons-Aid? ✨ 🍋 ✨
A BIBLICAL WORLDVIEW: The Bible, infallible and inerrant, is the very written word of God, who has revealed Himself to man. The Bible is like the light we cast on all content areas in order to understand it, whether that be literature, physical science, history, or geometry. Students learn all content through a Biblical lens. Theology is important for understanding all subject areas. We carefully curate courses that capture learners’ imagination while pointing them to God through sound doctrine. THIS is most important!
EXPLICIT TEACHING: We understand the skills and concepts students need to learn and know how to teach them. Lemons-Aid’s materials are top-notch, organized, and clear for students and parents to understand. We are especially skilled at breaking down a complicated process into understandable parts. Further, explicit instruction is “a structured, systematic, and effective methodology for teaching academic skills. It is called explicit because it is an unambiguous and direct approach to teaching that includes both instructional design and delivery procedures. Explicit instruction is characterized by a series of supports or scaffolds, whereby students are guided through the learning process with clear statements about the purpose and rationale for learning the new skill, clear explanations and demonstrations of the instructional target, and supported practice with feedback until independent mastery has been achieved.”
- Explicit Instruction: Effective and Efficient Teaching by Anita L. Archer and Charles A. Hughes.
Anita Archer trained Mrs. Lemons in workshops, and it changed her teaching. Read a little more about the research behind explicit teaching here and here.
STUDENT ACCOUNTABILITY = ACHIEVEMENT: Students master skills with us and make gains. We have a high degree of accountability. Since we make promises here and parents are paying good money, we understand you trust us to work! Students have to work too, and let’s be honest: they’re kids and don’t always want to. We push it. We teach them how to stay engaged, we cold-call on kids, we tell them to use the chatbox, and we want them to use emojis! If they are resistant, we contact the student through the teacher tab first. If that doesn’t work, we call in the big guns–Mom and Dad. We want kids to learn. We don’t want them to pass through our classes without gaining skills and doing great learning.
DO HARD THINGS. Boost your confidence, master new skills, learn new concepts. This takes a commitment to do hard things. Like the standards we have for our teachers, we also expect our learners to do hard things, whether that means they stand firm in their convictions, learn geometry, write an essay, or give an oral presentation. You can do hard things!
HEALTHY RELATIONSHIPS: To balance our high expectations for their learning and behavior, we build relationships with them. We want them to know we care about and know them. We’ll ask about their play last weekend or the new trick they’re trying to master on the skateboard. We also want students to get to know each other and encourage community engagement.
DEPENDABLE: Multiple teachers are teaching this class, and we have an entire year of lessons planned and scheduled. Since we are a mission-driven organization, we protect our brand and the relationships with our families. We are accountable to our learners. When things come up for teachers, we work to get substitutes and do everything we can before canceling a class. We do not like canceling or changing, and we often teach classes at a loss to give others a chance to join. We have limits, of course, but we are not flippant or irresponsible about canceling! When things come up for students, since we have multiple sections, they can transfer from section to section. All our teachers teach the same content the same week, giving families even more flexibility!
TEACHER FEEDBACK: The back-and-forth work between a student and teacher significantly benefits a student if done well. We follow best practices in designing class time, assignments, and routines. According to Pennington Publishing, effective writing feedback (or grading) is:
- Specific, not general
- Immediate, not postponed
- Routine with a revision / feedback cycle
- Explanatory
- The right amount
- Targeted to the most critical issues
- Varied (written, audio, and video comments)
- Holding students accountable
WORKSHOP TIME: We use “workshop time” so students will work while the teacher answers questions, gets them started, and holds them accountable. In a writing class, the teacher “visits” learners on their Google Documents and watches and helps them write. The immediacy of the feedback/revision cycle with the instructor allows writers to improve rapidly. Additionally, once we started using this method in writing classes, we saw nearly a 100% completion rate in student essays!
GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS: Students need graphic organizers to help them see the structure and breakdown of a concept or process. For example, we use them to help learners understand how to write a paragraph or essay and to use the writing process. This is how they learn to develop coherent ideas. They don’t figure out how to do this magically; the graphic organizers and the intentional, explicit teaching help them learn the skills!
STUDENT MASTERY: Each class includes explicit, direct instruction with teacher modeling. Students are guided toward mastery of skills and understandings to grasp the concepts and become independent. Students are held to a high standard of academic work, including often ignored skills like the use of grammar and neatness in math.
STUDY THE BEAUTIFUL
We are surrounded by the mediocre, which is not good! We see this in expectations at some schools, the poor customer service at a store, and even architecture like in a gray, uninspiring complex of high-occupancy housing.
In contrast, we are surrounded by the beautiful, which is good! We see the beautiful in classic literature, music, and beautiful architecture like pictured here.
The mediocre demoralizes learners while the beautiful inspires.
At Lemons-Aid Learning, we study the beautiful: classic literature, artful sentence construction, art, poetry, maths, God’s hand in all of history, and God’s very creation. His creation glorifies Him, and in our study of all content areas, we learn about who God is.
We do not compromise. This means we don’t choose a graphic novel of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. We read the original play. We know how to make the complexity and beauty of classic study approachable and understandable to a modern audience. It’s more difficult, but worth the effort!
For over a century, progressive education reform has been “anti-content,” which means they de-emphasize rich content and focus instructional time on things such as self-esteem and “skills” they hope will benefit a learner in the future. This is why American kids do so poorly in testing compared to nations with content-rich curricula. We want our learners to increase in knowledge and grow in wisdom, which our content-area experts foster while teaching.
CUSTOMER SERVICE
We serve the Lord and we work hard for families. We work to give quick responses to questions, authentic and careful feedback, and to solve any conflict. As home educators ourselves, familiar with the joys and struggles of teaching our own children, we can relate! We are supporting families, equipping learners, and serving Christ. We are 100% devoted to Him and to you!
To read more about our teaching and learning methods, read our blogs, written by our teachers and staff.
The Lemons-Aid Team
Lemons-Aid teachers have a few things in common.
❤️ They love their students and value each of their unique strengths and personalities that make our classes special. Our classes can be described as fun, personal, academic, challenging, and supportive.
🤩 We work to keep learners engaged, so there is always a degree of student accountability for their attention and focus, whether that be through asking them direct questions or by using the chatbox.
💭 We know all kids can learn, but sometimes things are hard! To support students, we teach them how to develop effective thinking and learning habits that will bring them success in class and in life.
🌟 Building relationships with students so they know we care about them helps us balance the high expectations we have for them regarding their effort, work quality, and behavior. Our students are encouraged, cared for, and they achieve!
KENDRA MANCUSO: Math
#energetic, #caring, #blessed, #organized, #experienced
Mrs. Mancuso’s favorite book of the Bible is James. This book is filled with wisdom, instructions and encouragement for believers. James exhorts believers to grow in their faith and maturity. Mrs. Mancuso remembers James 1:2-4 when she encounters trials; “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. Mrs. Mancuso earned her bachelor’s degree in mathematics from University of Northwestern – St. Paul. She has over 20 years of experience as a private math tutor. Mrs. Mancuso has taught in a private high school setting and as an adjunct at a university. She has taught math levels ranging from upper elementary to college level. She has taught in both a classroom setting and as a private math tutor. Mrs. Mancuso engages her students in her lessons by asking lots of questions. These questions help students discover new concepts, remember old skills and build a strong foundation in math. Her classroom is interactive and exciting for students. When Mrs. Mancuso isn’t teaching or working, she enjoys spending quality time with her husband and sons. She loves to spend time outside hiking, being on the water, or just hanging out in the fresh air.
Christian Teachers on Outschool
Lemons-Aid Coupon Code:
We want to serve you on Lemons-Aid! For first-time learners on Lemons-Aid, you can use the coupon code Newbie20 to get $20 off your first class.
Outschool Coupon Code:
If the schedule on this platform doesn’t work for you, we will happily teach you on Outschool, but we can’t talk about Jesus. Use this referral code and get $20 off your first class on Outschool: LEMONSA2020
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