This Consumer Math course is so practical that every student should take it whether or not they are college bound. It covers topics that practically everyone needs to deal with at some time or another, yet which most people struggle to figure out on their own. Topics such as buying a car, income, budgeting, food, clothing, banking, taxes, and small business are covered in depth. For example, buying a car is divided into a series of very practical lessons covering factors to consider and work through such as selecting the appropriate car (including cost comparison vs. utility), taxes and fees, financing, depreciation, insurance, maintenance and repair, annual operating cost, and leasing. Lessons on taxes require students to get actual tax forms and learn how to complete them. Plenty of word problems/applications ensure student understanding.
While much math is used throughout these lessons, all topics don't lend themselves to use of all previously learned math concepts. So the Skills and Review Exercises is an important part of this course. Skills and Review Exercises helps students maintain and improve skills in multiplication, division, percent, decimals, fractions, geometry, etc. Reviews cover both skills and consumer math applications.
You might find the amount work provided between these two books adequate without using the test and quiz book. The teacher edition contains a copy of the student text with all answers. The solution key has solutions to problems that need to be worked out, but not for simple problems, so it will not be a complete answer key by itself.
You might use this text any year during high school. I highly recommend fitting this or a similar text into your program somehow, even for students who are taking four years of college prep math.
