Homeschooling Maths Online Review

Here a my Maths Online Review after using it for 10 years with 4 children.

When I look for a homeschooling math online curriculum I’m looking for a few things:

  1. Is it easy for my child to use? Is it well laid-out?
  2. Will my child feel like they are successful in math?
  3. Does the resource explain things well?
  4. How much help will I need to give them?
  5. Is it sequential? Can my child easily follow what is coming next?
  6. Does it fit well with the Australian curriculum? Does it use metric?
  7. Can I see progress with my child?
  8. Can I set the lesson times?
  9. Does it have drill?
  10. Is there revision?

My Homeschool Maths Online Review

Disclaimer: I wrote this Maths Online review because I loved it and it helped my homeschool. I have not been paid for it and get no commission if you purchase this product.

We used Math Online in our home for over 10 years. It was a great option for homeschooling in NSW. There were so many reason I found it worked for us. It met all of the above list and some. Plus it included a summary of work completed that I could use for documenting my child’s work. This was great when applying for registration. You also got certificates that you could print off when sections were completed. These went into the children’s portfolios.

Often I found when I tutored my children in math I helped a little too much. I had a tendency to race them through the steps and they didn’t get it. With Math Online this wasn’t a problem because the children could work independently through their lessons. I did need to help now and then. This usually involved us both watching the lessons online and then me helping with a few of the questions. We set an approximate time limit for daily maths.

Another thing I loved about Math Online was that their built in incentives (certificates and progress bars) were not a distraction to the lesson. In the primary years when we tried another leading math program for kids, my children spent most of their time working below their grade in order to gain rewards and earn points for a new hat for their avatar, or to change their background instead of doing their actual lessons.

Assessing progress is also done easily using their topic tests. During a topic test I realised I hadn’t taught 24 hour time or Roman numerals. You can also quickly work through lessons seeing if your child understands a concept or if they need more work. This is great for remedial work or if you want to fast track your child.

I also loved the search feature. For example,  when my high school son was studying for a math test and he wanted to know about polynomials and surds (I had no idea), we looked it up in the math online search box and listened to the explanation.

I couldn’t believe it—I even understood the explanation! My son commented that he found the Math Online tutorials so easy to understand.

We didn’t use Math Online exclusively in the primary years, it was mostly a valuable supplement. We  moved to Math Online as our main high school resource for Years 7 to 10 (after trying a few programs that didn’t work for us). Two of my children did not choose to pursue math at an HSC level, however they both were able to progress through the grades of Math Online up to Year 10. For the child who did do math at university level he used Math Online as a supplement to what he was learning in his Math course.

Is Math Online All Online?

The lessons/explanations are online and you enter the answers online but you will still need to print off some of the worksheets. Your child will also need an exercise book to complete their working out, especially in the high school years.

Could Math Online Be Used As A Complete Math Program?

Well many homeschoolers use it as a complete course and some choose to supplement. This is an individual decision that really needs to be made depending on your families strengths and abilities. You also need to consider what level of Math your child will need when they graduate your homeschool.

I hope you found this review helpful.

Michelle

PS: You get a 50% discount to the Math Online parent subscription when you become a paid member of  the My Homeschool community.

Disclaimer: I have not been paid for this Maths Online Review . I do not get any financial compensation if you purchase a Maths Online subscription.