ALEKS.... cintinued....

COULD it be??? a mathematical match for our extended European trip??? I do believe things are looking good ... mathematically speaking...
Thus far, my children are really enjoying the addition of ALEKS to their day!

Did I say ADDITION? You betcha! I don't have the time to throw out perfectly working curriculum to "see" if something May or May not work... So we are PLOWING full speed ahead and simply adding ALEKS to our day.... and they are LOVING it!

When they sit down in the morning and login to ALEKS, they are greeted with their personal colored pie. The pie is broken into pieces; each piece identifying with a different area of study. They have the option of choosing which area they want to study that day. There is also a review area to check out.

So what is there to motivate them to review, or to pursue anything at all, BUT whatever interests them... Well, every time they master something, that section of the pie gets bigger... Once the pie is all FULL... they are on to the next grade level! That is pretty motivating! Just the idea that they can move a grade level at THEIR will and motivation, with their own determination is huge!!

I liked that there is a nice review section. I liked that it shows the percentage via a fraction circle in the parent/administrator section of approximately how likely my child has actually mastered the material.... and will continue to review it until full mastery is achieved.
I like the section in the parent/admin area that shows me how many hours my child worked/vs how many skills per hour my child achieved.... I just liked it... I found it so ... I don't know... refreshing :)

So thus far the beginning of my "free month" is going pretty well. But I will hold out a little longer. I found having to upload and download, and unload different versions of Java a BIG pain in my neck! A pain that is STILL there, and now occasionally causes my computer to just freeze....

But ALEKS really does keep it's promise to remember JUST where your child was at :) so that when they reboot and re login, they pick up exactly where they left off, no data lost. :) good to know

more later!