Cummins Life: Smartick Review

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Smartick Review

You guys know that we really enjoy math and fun math programs. My kids were super excited to receive a 6 month online subscription to Smartick by Smartick. Smartick is a math enrichment program that combines math, reading comprehension, logic and reasoning all into one! Even though it is geared for children ages 4-14, I went ahead and set up an account for F-A (ages 5-15). Smartick recommends just 15 minutes a day 4-5 times a week for best results with their program. I do want to warn you, my kids like to spend much more than 15 minutes a day on Smartick, they love it so much. Smartick can be used on a computer but my kids prefer using in on our Ipad.

Children learn at their own pace and individual needs.

Smartick doesn't just focus on a student's age and grade but adapts to how quickly a child learns, or their learning pace. I'm not going to pretend to understand this but the Smartick methodology alternates math with logic and reasoning sessions and using their algorithm adjusts to the students needs - this is great for optimal learning.

D's Homescreen and Virtual World

Let's go inside the program. Each student can set up their account with their chosen avatar, hairstyle, clothing, etc. Above you can see D with her dark hair and purple dress. After completing their 15 minute daily session, students can do a plethora of things including purchasing items from the store (using ticks that they earn during their sessions), participate in competitions at the gym, and play a variety of different games to name a few. The questions range in difficulty and topic depending on the progression of the student - remember, it adapts to them.

Here is an example of a question during one of D's sessions.

Here is a question during F's session.

F during a session

F completing a session.

D starting a session.

D working on a session

This session for B is going to be a logic session.

E starting her session.

E working on her session.

In this session, 10 ticks were earned.

If corrections are made accurately, students earn an extra tick.

After completing their 15 minute session, students are always given the opportunity to earn an extra tick by correcting all the problems that they missed. I love this because it helps them see what they got wrong and they love getting the extra tick.

The Smartick Store

As I mentioned before, students earn ticks as they answer questions and progress through the program. They have the option of spending those ticks in several ways. One way is to purchase things at the store. They can purchase clothing, accessories for your avatar, pets, food and items for your pets like a pet bed and you can purchase gifts and send them to your friends. There are some items that are only available as gifts. The kids like to buy gifts and send them to each other.

Here D is thinking about getting the butterfly costume. She can try it on her avatar before deciding if she wants to purchase it.

C's Homescreen, he loves his house with a pool. You can see above that the various houses range in price.

Here you can see inside C's house with a pool. You can see he has a pet dragon.

Here you can see inside E's house and all the pets she has acquired.

Here is F's Homescreen with the nighttime background (there are several background options to chose from). You can see his avatar near the wishing well.

Inside the wishing well you can spend a tick to make a wish. You will get a response or answer to your wish, usually within the next day or so. Above you can see E asking for help with her math and then asking for the snake to not be sold out.

D's Homescreen Again, you can see the game console in the center of the screen. There are lots of games that you can choose to play.

Here you can see some of the game options available. There are four different categories - memory, reasoning, attention and flexibility.

Here you can see inside a memory card game.

And here is an online version of the classic game Simon.

Inside D's treehouse you can see that she is friends with C.

In the gym, you can participate in math competitions with other students. You can choose your theme - multiplication, division, etc.

Currently D is in the top 3% in competitions.

Smartick is not parent-intensive but there is a parent section that allows parents to monitor usage and improvement. You can also set up email notifications. I really enjoy getting notifications that tell me how the kids are doing in their sessions. I get the date, time and breakdown for each child's session.

Here is an example of a progress report that was emailed to me for F. It tells me that he was outstanding at his session and breaks down the exercises into speed and accuracy. It also sends you a reminder that your student should be performing the sessions on their own so that the course adjusts to their current level.

Here is an example of one of C's progress reports for a logic session.

Students also earn diplomas and certificates along the way. Above you see one of E's diamond diploma.

All of my kids absolutely love this program. They talk about it so much. I have never heard them talk about a math program more than this one. In fact, G is a bit jealous that he doesn't have a Smartick account. He tells me that when he is older and he can chew gum and play Smartick he will be so happy. If you are looking for a fun math and logic program for your child, this is definitely worth looking into.

Check out Smartick's short video below for more information.