The one subject that both our boys are not keen on is math. It’s not that they find it hard, unless they are learning a new concept. I am always on the lookout for a good math program and recently we have had the privilege of reviewing the Family Plan of this math program created by LearnBop called LearnBop for Families. This program is designed to be used on a computer/laptop at home or one a tablet which is great for when you are on the go.
The LearnBop for Families is a new addition to the LearnBop curriculum that allows homeschoolers to receive the same level of math help that has been available to schools for a while now. There is a multi-student subscription available for $199.95 per year or $19.95 per month or a single student plan for $149.95 per year or $14.95 per month. This program was created for students in grades 3 – 12 and contains warm-ups, in-lesson videos and practice problems which are named ‘bops.’
LearnBop is a self-paced, online math program which works best on the latest versions of Chrome, IE, Safari and Firefox. You will also need a quality broadband connection to watch the videos. We are on ADSL2 and used our Apple Mac laptops and had no problems at all.
Since we were given access to the family plan, I was able to create an account for both of our boys. I placed them in their correct grades as I know they can do the work if they would only sit down and apply themselves. At the start of each topic, there was a warm-up session. These sessions usually consisted of about 10 questions that helped LearnBop assesses your child’s knowledge of the current math concept and determine the best place for your child to start.
Each student has their own roadmap that shows them the concepts that are covered in their grade level and where they are on the map. Roadmaps are paths that you wish your child to follow. Below is an example of the roadmaps you can choose. As you can see, you can choose by grade, by subject or by High school roadmaps. This is a great for allowing parents to customise their child’s learning. As I said above, I chose to set up each boy by grade level.
In B’s roadmap below, you can see the concept he is currently completing: Factors, Multiples, and Patterns. In each concept, there are three videos to watch before having a go at solving the ‘bops.’ We found the videos did a great job at explaining the concepts, giving a few examples which really helped our boys. If it was a particularly hard concept that they were struggling with, there are also extra video lessons that they could watch which would break down the concept, making it easier for them to understand.
Once the videos were watched, it was time to solve the ‘bops.’ This consisted of answering questions by using either multiple choice, matching or fill in the blanks. If your child answers the question wrong, they are told immediately and are given the option to have another go. There is also an optional of following the programs step-by-step process to work out the correct answer. Though, if you chose the ‘show answer’ optional, your child will not receive a credit for that bop. If they are struggling with the concept, they can always go back and watch the videos again. To complete the unit, your child will need to get 90% or above mastery on the bops. They will need to complete at least 5 bops correctly to be able to move on, though you can do more if you wish.
Overall, we found this program quite challenging at times. It seemed quite advanced and our boys (and I) were not familiar with some of the ways they presented the explanations. I did like how each concept started with a warm-up, testing the child’s knowledge on the concept before they moved on. If they weren’t able to answer many of the questions correctly, they were to complete some ‘building-blocks’ before they could move on.
Another great thing about this program was in the parents areas. I loved the option of being able to move your children around to a different level or roadmap and to see how they were going with each of the concepts.
In the child’s area, we found the videos were short and good at helping lay the foundation. The one thing which wasn’t included was a ‘work area’ to help your child work out the answers. Our boys can do a lot of calculating in their heads, but even I couldn’t do some of their work without having to grab a piece of paper and working it out for myself.
We found this program was great for providing instruction, practice and for encouraging your child to keep trying.
Personally, I would recommend trying a one month subscription (with a 30-day money back guarantee) to see if this program was a good fit for your family.
Social Media: