Hannah zoomed through her entire 3rd grade math book last year, finishing a month before school was over, so I knew she'd be a great candidate to review an online math program. Jack struggled a little more with his 6th grade math, and I felt the chance to practice math concepts in a different format would be beneficial to him, as well.
We received a 12 month subscription to LearnBop for Families. LearnBop offers a Single Student Plan or a Family Plan with access for up to 4 students, which costs $199.
I have to admit, I like the idea of online math programs. I struggled with math in school, and I've often said, "Go ask your brother," or "Go ask your sister," when the older kids come to me with math questions. Having it all online means I don't have to explain it. When there was a concept Jack didn't understand, LearnBop broke it down and walked him through it.
The program is very easy to navigate. There are different "roadmaps" and several units to each roadmap. For instance, Jack's 6th grade roadmap has 11 units, such as rates and percents, decimals, variables, positive and negative numbers, graphing, etc. Within a unit, there are "building blocks" a child must know before they can master the concepts in the unit.
Each building block has 3 videos the child can watch to help them understand how to do the work, then a series of "bops" or problems to solve. The program adjusts to the needs of your child. It's not going to ask him or her to do problem after problem of busy work after they demonstrate mastery. But it will provide extra problems and help for students who are struggling with "getting it."
LearnBop keeps track of not only a child's progress, but also the amount of time they're spending on the program.
The program awards achievement stickers for various tasks, to help the child stay motivated.
Hannah and Jack like to work on the computer, as it makes a nice change from pencil and paper, but it's still math. Jack got frustrated a couple of times because he was sure he was putting in the right answer, but the program said it was wrong. Turns out, once he clicked to have it explained to him, he wasn't as right as he had thought he was! A couple of times, Hannah had to work on and on and on in order to master a concept. The computer is far more patient than I am!
In addition to the full year we received, LearnBop is also available month by month ($14.95 for a Single Student Plan, and $19.95 for a Family Plan with up to 4 students). This would be a great way to help prevent the dreaded "summer slide" or loss of skills that most kids go through having 3 months off school. LearnBop is also a good way to approach something from a different angle, if your child is struggling with a certain concept. I know, personally, if I'm explaining something, and one of the kids is not getting it, sometimes it clicks for them when someone else explains it.
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It was good to see each of the children hard at work. :)
ReplyDeleteMath is not a favorite, but it's nice to have the option of changing it up a bit by using the computer. :)
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