For the past several months, I have been gushing about our family’s new favorite math program: Smartick Math. I have recommended the program to countless friends and family members, Kara and I have chatted about our mutual love for the program on The Homeschool Sisters Podcast, and I’ve mentioned the program on Simple Homeschool.
Well, I’m about to do it again.
I often refer to Smartick as math dessert.
Yes, you read that correctly. I used the words math and dessert in the same sentence.
My children simply cannot get enough Smartick.
My Kids Have Fallen Head Over Heels for Smartick Math
*Disclosure: I received access to Smartick in exchange for a review. I was not required to write a positive review and, as always, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I only choose to share resources that I would use with my own family and those that I believe other families will enjoy. My children *love* Smartick!
Here’s the back story…
Just before the holidays, I was contacted by Smartick about the possibility of doing a review. I’ll be honest here and tell you that I had never heard of Smartick, nor was I particularly interested in taking on more work with Christmas on the horizon.
But…
As I read the e-mail I realized three things:
- Smartick is backed by M.I.T.
- The Smartick Method incorporates game-based learning
- Smartick utilizes Artificial Intelligence technology and adapts – in real time- to your child’s unique strengths and weaknesses
I decided to go for it. I set up a Smartick account for each child that afternoon. It was simple and the kids were “playing Smartick” within minutes.
Yes, playing.
My children love to “play” Smartick. They are playing math.
And this is why I refer to Smartick as dessert. It’s something they enjoy together, something they look forward to, something they savor.
Since December, “playing” Smartick has been a daily event. It has yet to feel like work. My kids have played Smartick on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, the day after Christmas, birthdays, and – most recently- on vacation.
Here is a photo of my boys, just the other day, playing Smartick while on vacation:
Do you see the joy? They make the same faces when they eat cake. Except they are working on math. Smartick is, for my kiddos, math dessert.
Smartick is more than just math dessert…
Smartick is also a source of connection.
My children chat about Smartick throughout the day. It’s their thing. Smartick is something special that they all share. They inquire about each other’s “tick” levels, chat about the latest tutorial, devise silly questions to drop into the Well of Ideas, debate whether Sinous is easier to play on a desktop or an iPad, send each other owls and fuzzy slippers as gifts, and compliment each other’s room decor…
(Did I just lose you there? Don’t worry- I’ll get to all of this in a minute.)
My point here is this: Smartick has been an unexpected, wonderful, and fun addition to our homeschool routine.
Do you want to add more awesome math resources to your homeschool day?
What is The Smartick Method?
Smartick is an online math program for children ages 4-14. New to the U.S., Smartick is supported by the European Union and is used in 52 countries worldwide. You can access Smartick from your desktop, phone, iPad, etc.
The Smartick Method utilizes Artificial Intelligence (AI) to meet your child’s unique strengths and weaknesses. It doesn’t matter whether your child is performing below grade level, above grade level, or somewhere in between… Smartick adjusts to your child.
Do you know what I love about that last bit? Smartick is meeting your child’s unique needs. Smartick does not follow Common Core or state standards. Smartick follows your child. In many cases, this allows your child to go beyond the classroom. Smartick reports that 94% of their students see an improvement in grades.
Smartick is easy to implement. The Smartick Method uses a 15-minutes a day approach. These daily lessons work on mental calculation, algebra skills, logic, and more.
These short daily sessions help to:
- maximize attention and concentration
- create routine
- foster positive study habits
- avoids boredom and burnout
- keep kids coming back for more (dessert!!)
In order to experience the benefits of the program, it is recommended that children complete daily 10-15 minute sessions at least five days per week. (You might be surprised and they might ask you to play Smartick on Christmas Eve. Ask me how I know!)
Each daily session begins with a check-in…
… and ends with feedback about the session’s difficulty:
I love that Smartick is individualized to each child, and that it is fun and engaging. It is rare that we miss a session because my children wake up asking to play.
The Smartick Method merges math and play
It’s no secret that we are a family of game lovers. Smartick works well for our family because it incorporates games and play.
As children complete Smartick’s daily 15-minute sessions, they earn “ticks.” Ticks are the currency of Smartick.
A child earns ticks by:
- Completing problems
- Choosing to correct all errors at the end of the session
- Error-free sessions
- Using Smartick for three consecutive days
- Completing a full week of Smartick without skipping a day
- Students receive 10 ticks on their birthday
In addition to earning ticks, students earn diplomas for mastering skills.
Smartick’s virtual world keeps kids coming back for more
Once a child’s daily 15-minute session is complete, the child is free to explore Smartick’s virtual world. The virtual world includes the child’s house, a treehouse, a store, a school, the well of ideas, and more.
Children can customize their avatars, and also their Smartick bedrooms. Students can purchase objects, pets, and more from the store. They can even send gifts to their Smartick friends. My children will often log on to find they have received a fun gift from a sibling.
This is my 5-year-old’s Smartick bedroom. Yes, he’s wearing a wolf suit. (It cost him forty ticks.)
The treehouse is a space to check in on Smartick friends. Children can see their friends’ recent diplomas and achievements. The well of ideas is a place for children to leave feedback. They can make suggestions and ask questions… and they often get a reply from Smartick!
In the school, students can watch tutorials… and these tutorials aren’t grade-based they are interest based. The other day, my 5-year-old was learning about irreducible fractions. (And he was getting all of the tutorial questions correct!) I did a double-take and then I felt so thankful that we homeschool.
Smartick Math incorporates game-based learning
Throughout the virtual world, students have access to a variety of games. These gamification elements keep children engaged and help to improve concentration levels.
Once in the game area (“Smartick Brain”), students can select games from four different categories/cognitive skills.
All of the Smartick games are scientifically designed to reinforce the following cognitive skills:
- perception
- attention
- memory
- logical reasoning
My kids’ favorite game right now is Bubble Pop! I love that Smartick tells them what skills they are working on before they play.
New areas of the virtual world are unlocked as children progress through Smartick lessons. My children are delighted when they log on to discover a new element of the virtual world, game, or tutorial. Smartick continues to be fresh and exciting for them, even after several months of daily play.
So, what does this homeschool mom think about Smartick?
There is so much to love about Smartick.
Bottom line: my children adore the program. My kids have such a positive view of mathematics right now. They wake up asking to play math! How often can you say that about a program?
I appreciate that Smartick is individualized. It doesn’t matter if your child is working years above grade level, if your child is below grade level, or if your child is asynchronous. Smartick is designed to meet your child.
I love that I receive immediate emails, as soon as my children complete the daily session. In that instant, I know what my kiddo was working on and whether the child ran into any difficulty.
I can also tell when a child has completely goofed off during the Smartick session and we can talk about it, in that moment:
If I want more information about that day’s session, I can click the link to access the Smartick Parent Dashboard. The dashboard includes a summary of the child’s results including study plans, questions and units the child answered, response speed, and more.
The results and summary are there immediately, in real time.
I also appreciate that Smartick is responsive. Although it is an online program, Smartick has a team of educators behind the scenes to answer questions via phone, email, or chat.
Are there any cons to Smartick?
Yes, there is one big con to Smartick and that is the high price tag. It’s super expensive, particularly for homeschool families and families with multiple children. I have shared this feedback with Smartick.
What do the kids think about Smartick Math?
By now, it’s clear that my kids are head over heels for Smartick, but I thought it would be fun to have them talk about Smartick in their own words.
My 9-year-old:
7-year-old:
5-year-old:
Try Smartick for free
We think Smartick is absolutely fantastic, but you don’t have to take my word for it. You can head over to Smartick and sign up for a 15-day free trial to see for yourself!
Smartick offers several pricing plans, depending on your choice of payment plan and the number of children. All current pricing plans are available on the Smartick website.
Smartick also has a referral program. Families will receive a $27 discount for each friend referred and the new friend will receive 25% off their first subscription.
Follow Smartick
You can follow Smartick on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
Love math?
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Now, it’s your turn. Tell me: Do you have a “dessert” item, like Smartick, in your homeschool? Share here!
Are the games timed? I have a kiddo that is good at math but kind of freaks out if anything is timed. Can’t wait to check it out. Thanks.
Hi, Molly!
Great question and I should have addressed that in the post. Some of the games are timed and some are not. Some of the math has a time element too. My daughter also hates to be timed. She freezes (I did too) when timed. That said, she still loves the program despite the timed elements. Hopefully, with the trial, you will get a sense of whether or not it would work for your kiddo.
Wow. As awesome as it might be, it is not at all affordable. What they want for a month is what I paid for my 6 year old’s math for a year and my daughter’s math for the year is three of their months. I appreciate that your kids love it, but it’s always discouraging for my family – on a tight budget and smallish income – to see this awesome stuff I can’t afford. 🙁
That said, we have math dessert of a different sort. Maybe not an Sundae, but at least a vanilla cone. 🙂 My kids right now enjoy doing their math lessons from our chosen curriculum (Horizons for the 6 year old and Teaching Textbooks for the 8 year old) and then they play Prodigy Math – tons of math, games, earning points to buy things, tradiing – it’s like Pokemon and Legend of Zelda combined. And it’s free. I still get emails about how they are progressing, what they got wrong and right, etc. Anyone else who might not have the funds to jump in to Smartick might check that out.
I agree that it is pricey, Sally.
And I love your vanilla cone. Prodigy is a hit over here too!
Hi Cait,
Thanks for the review! You say this is dessert – what do you use for the main course?
Hi, Ann!
My oldest uses Beast Academy and the little two use Singapore. We dabble in LOTS of math resources here so we also love math games, storybooks, logic puzzles, Khan, Prodigy (app).
Hi Cait, Thanks for a thorough review of Smartick! I’m looking into Beast Academy and am wondering why you did not continue with BA for your younger children. What do you see as main advantages/disadvantages of BA vs. Singapore? Thanks!!
Hi Jamie!
Thanks for your question. My younger two use Beast Academy Online as their math spine. Smartick is a fun extra. We discontinued Singapore because my children loved Beast more.
Take care,
Cait
Thanks so much for suggesting this! My kids have loved the free trial and I wanted to make sure we used your coupon code when we buy the membership so that you will get credit. Can you please provide your code? Thanks again!
We are mid trial on Smartick and my son is loving it. Here is my problem though: it’s super crazy expensive! How are others managing this? In a year, this program will cost more than his piano and karate lessons combined, and they are more instructive. It is a good program, and clearly attractive to kids which is very helpful to us as parents. However, since it is only supplementary, and not a comprehensive curriculum replacement, how are other homeschooling families finding the cost? Am I the only one who finds $550-650 per year excessive as well as prohibitive? Last night I spent ages reading through parent reviews and blog reviews looking for answers regarding cost and hoping for a promo code to be found. Instead I found that every blogger reviewer Only vaguely mentioned that there are pricing options and didn’t touch in value for money at all. Then I realized that, of course, reviewers get it for free. Reviews from other Homeschool moms are helpful and I frequently will use them as indicators for whether I will pay for a product or service. In oreder to do this, there had to be an honest disciple value for money should you have paid for it like we will have to. Do you continue to use it Cait, past your free period? And if so, how is it working out for you guys? Have your kids continued to use it enough that you could justify $600 per year?
Laura, It is CRAZY expensive. That’s my biggest gripe with Smartick and one that I have addressed with them several times. They should cut the cost considerably or have a family membership, in my opinion.
Ok. Glad I am not the only one!
My kids are also loving the free trial. But, like others, I cannot possibly justify the cost, especially as a supplemental resource. The price for 1 year is about what I spend on ALL the curriculum I use for the entire year for both of my children combined. They don’t take music lessons because it’s not in our budget, so I certainly (and regrettably) can’t continue past the trial. I had to tell them that from the beginning, so that they are prepared. If the price drops in the future, I would definitely consider it, although with my kids finishing 1st and 4th grades in 2 months, I’m not sure how valuable it will be by that time, at least for my older child.
We did the trial too!!! My kids loved it! I loved it! I didn’t even look at the pricing beforehand. 😔 I wish it was more affordable. Thank you for sharing though!!! I did email Smartick and tell them how I felt. Maybe if enough of us do it, they will consider a few more affordable options. Their staff was very kind and quick to answer, I just wish it was more affordable! Right now I am going to check out prodigy and see how we like that!
I would love for it to drop in price!
Hi Caitlin
Awesome article!! By any chance do you have a promotional code for Smartick?
I do not, sorry!
I saw this article was from last year. Did you continue it’s use? If so are you happy with the results? Thank you. Just signed up!
We love it still! The only thing I don’t love is the price-point, to be honest.
I got on here to say, “Oh my heavens! The price is almost comical!” But I see others beat me to it. Thanks for the review; my kids do love it. But, I guess the only AI my kids will be hearing from in the near future will be Data on TNG. 😉 Thanks again!
Another bummed parent here! I signed my kids up for a trial after seeing your recommendation, and my daughter loves it! And now one of them is really upset that we can’t spend that kind of money on a math supplement. I was expecting $15 / month, and thinking how we could make that work, but $45 per child is crazy high!
Do you think y’all would still use it if you were paying full price for all the kids? I’ve loved your blog, but I suspect this post hasn’t been particularly helpful for a lot of your readers, except to make us feel bad at what we can’t afford. I’ve so enjoyed so many of your game recommendations though and added several to our bookshelves!
Hi, Laura!
I chose to share this resource because my kids love it and I know some families feel the price is worth it. That said, the price point is far too high. I have brought this up to Smartick multiple times, as you can see from reading this thread.
Hope this helps!
Cait
I shared my feedback with them too… it is a really great program, and I’d love to see them make it more widely affordable!