Community reviews for XtraMath

Overall, this is a very useful site that has only one focus: basic math practice. The quality is quite good for a site that is free. This should not be used as a site where students are first exposed to math facts. Students should first be taught efficient strategies for solving math facts, not thrown in front of a program like this or any other. I worry that Xtramath.org (and sites like it) might get seen as a teaching solution rather than accessory. The feature where students should try to get it in the first few seconds (by the time they get to the smiley face 3 seconds in), is great because if a student can give the correct answer within that time they likely have the fact automatized. Xtramath does well when it states in a video that the goal is to get children recalling facts without resorting to inefficient methods like counting. As students learn efficient strategies, they will be see their scores go up. The main motivating factor for students learning mathematics is success in mathematics, not a website pumped with graphics. It can be challenging to create a climate of success like this, but I have found that some children respond well when competing with themselves. Xtramath.org also has an interesting solution for classrooms with only one computer. There is a class mode, where students spend a few minutes on the drill, and when they are finished it tells them the next student to get (if that child is absent, they click absent and are given a new student to fetch). In this way, everyone can get the practice that they need.