IXL is a well-known name in Homeschooling and education. What began as a Comprehensive Math program has expanded to include Language Arts as well. This amazing program can be used to supplement any math or language program available.
IXL provides thorough instruction and practice of important skills in both Math and Language Arts. The program is designed to be set up to meet State Standards but can also be used to simply supplement extra practice in subjects or units as needed. Covering grades K-12 in Math instruction and grades 2-4 in Language Arts, with future plans to expand, this program provides just the right amount of supplementation at home.
The formatting of the program is set to basically allow children to read through the problem then choose an answer through A, B or C options. This allows a child to process and answer quickly when using the program. Children can work on, above or below grade level as needed and parent/teacher options allow this to be set per child as needed.
There is audio available for math skills in the younger grades, which is helpful for students who may struggle with reading skills. An iPad app is available as well for extra math practice. Students can work either by grade level or by topic as needed. Working by topic allows the student to work strictly on Addition or Estimation or Algebra as needed, wherever the student needs the extra help.
Language Arts is set up similarly to Math, allowing the student to work on grade level or by topic. So if your student needs extra practice with Sentences or Nouns and Pronouns, you can simply choose that topic to start them on.
In parent mode, you can set up each child’s account through the Profiles and Settings options. I was able to set up a parent account and one account for each of my older children. I input their names and chose a picture to fit them so they can tell who is who. These are fun little images to help them distinguish their personal accounts. I can also opt to set a secret word for each of them to log in with or to leave the account without a word in this section.
Through my parent account, I can check the progress of each student. I can print reports of their progress, as well. I am able to view awards for each student’s progress to see how well they are doing in their work. I can also view my state standards to see how well my children match up to their grade levels and their educational knowledge through the program.
We’ve used IXL for several years off and on now. It’s a program that I have personally enjoyed though it’s not always been appealing to my children. However, it’s a wonderful program to have them use as a go to just to cover review lessons quickly and gauge their personal progress.
The style and set up of the program lessons remind me of the Standardized Testing that I used to take yearly in public school. It’s pretty much presented as a problem with fill in the blank answers, or online choices in the place of fill in the blank. This isn’t necessarily a problem but it doesn’t completely mesh with our homeschooling style. My children are extremely hands-on and prefer to watch a video on a math lesson or to actually work out a lesson using blocks or some kind of manipulative over choosing the correct answer from a group of answers.
This program would be amazing for students who are preparing for testing in their state. In our state, testing is not mandatory, so it definitely doesn’t benefit us there. It would also be a great program for a family who wishes to meet their state’s standards or to stay aligned with the public school’s standards for education.
My children enjoy being able to see their accomplishments through the Awards in the program. They also enjoy seeing the information they’ve covered in lessons, and I enjoy that as well. It’s also nice to be able to print off the areas they have covered and passed thoroughly so I can see what we need to work on next. This allows me to bypass parts of lessons that my children aren’t struggling with and concentrate on those areas they are struggling with.
IXL is available by subscription for $9.95 for Math only, $9.95 for Language Arts only, or $15.95 monthly for both. A years subscription of $79 is available for either Math or Language Arts or $129.00 for both subjects for the year. Additional subscriptions for each child are $2 a month per child, or $20 per year per child.
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