I see ads for IXL math ALL the time on the Internet. Has anybody tried it? The website looks good, but I was wondering if it was worth it.
I prefer Dreambox. IXL is fine, but Dreambox seems to have a method to the madness so to speak. I know that isn't much of an answer... but I can't really put a finger on what it is about IXL that bothers me. Maybe that Dreambox feels much more like a game to my kids which makes them want to play?
We just bought IXL and we love it. I actually like the fact that it's less game-like than other sites. I know totally varies by kid, but too much of a site that's too gameish or flashy is not something my kids can use on a daily basis. You can do many problems for free each to get a feel, if you like it and your kid likes it and responds... But I can't compare it to dreambox because we haven't used it. I do like that you can hide grade levels and the timer. I like the the way the reports pages are set up. I figure $62 for 2 kids for a year for something they enjoy doing and are learning/practicing math skills that they can do alone while I wash dishes or fold laundry is worth it. LOL
I think we tried it a couple years ago and it was alright. It was good practice but the kids had to know how to do it, so if the practiced something they did not learn yet it was frustrating. But things may have changed since then- I agree with if you can get a free trial, go with that to get a sense of it and your kids too! =)
We've used IXL off & on for a couple of years, but not as our main curriculum. We have a love/hate relationship with it. The kids really enjoy the fun ones (the ones they know how to do), but they don't enjoy the hard ones (because it teaches by trial & error rather than actually teaching something).
I agree it's not a teaching program at all, if that is what you are looking for. But, if you're looking for easy math drills/practice/review to supplement whatever you are using, then it's totally worth it IMHO. That's why we have it. I suppose you could even use it as a test, as it does score...but we don't do tests so...
I looked at it too, but didn't seem like it would be a good fit for us. We chose CTC math instead. We have been using it as our math curriculum. IXL would work more like a supplement to a regular math program.
