Math Rider {a review}

My 10-year-old son struggles with math.  I believe that the main reason he struggles is because he has not mastered the math facts.  More than not, tears accompany our math lessons together.  It pains me to see my son struggling and upset, and as a mom, I want to make it all better.  I’m confident that if he can just master the math facts, that his experience with math will take a 180.  We’ve tried flashcards, drill worksheets, iPad apps, and DVDs, but nothing has seemed to work.  So, imagine my enthusiasm when I was given the opportunity to review Math Rider, the “intelligent math facts game.”

Math Rider is a computer game that was created by a dad that was having the same problems as me – his kids were struggling in math and he couldn’t find the resources to help them.  So, he made his own math training game, and Math Rider was born.  Math Rider is a fun way for kids to practice and reinforce the math facts – addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, ranging from 0-12.

Math Rider can be used with any child that is learning or needs reinforcement of the math facts; so it’s roughly for ages 6-12 (grades 2-6).  Math Rider comes in the form of a digital download to your computer for $47 – supported on Windows and Mac OSX.  This program can be used with up to 8 players and can be downloaded onto three separate computers in your home.

How does Math Rider work?

After you create your child’s player (rider), your child will go on quests that are made up of multiple rides, through the Mathlands, to earn various rewards and achievements, and ultimately rescue the princess.  Each of the four math operations contains four quests – easy, medium, advanced, and master.  To earn mastery in an operation and earn the reward, the player needs to be able to answer all questions with consistent speed, resulting in 100% mastery and the coolest rewards.  Your child may have to repeat a quest several times before they reach 100% mastery; it all depends on how well your child know the math facts.

The unique feature about Math Rider, and the one that impresses me the most, is that it adapts to your child!  The game constantly adapts its speed and question difficulty based on the answers your child gives.

While the rider is playing, the game learns what the rider knows and what he or she still needs to practice. Every single response (or non-response) is stored in an internal database and statistically analyzed by the software. In this way the program is able to custom-tailor to each rider, which questions are asked next. No repetitive drilling of random number facts the rider already knows – but real practice of what actually needs to be practiced! – from the Math Rider website

Pretty cool, huh?

How we used Math Rider:

I used Math Rider with my 8 and 10 year old sons.  They used it on a daily basis (5 days a week) to practice their math facts.  I had both of them start right from the beginning – the easy addition level – and work their way up.  They generally do about 3-4 rides per day (a ride consists of 30 problems).  They both love playing and the storytelling and rewards makes it very enjoyable.  No more moaning, groaning, or tears when it comes time to reinforce the math facts!  That makes this mom pretty happy!

Why do we like Math Rider?

• It’s fun!  Practicing math facts is no longer boring.  The storyline and rewards keeps a child’s interest.
• The game can support up to 8 players.
• The game is smart!  It adapts to your child and has the child practice the facts that they need to practice – it doesn’t just present random problems.
• Your purchase price includes free software updates for life.
• Math Rider offers a free 7-day trial so you can try it out before you buy.
• No nagging from mom – the kids happily go to the computer to practice the math facts!
• It’s affordable – in my opinion, the $47 is worth it.  When your child masters the math facts, they will have built a solid math foundation, and to me, that’s priceless.  Plus, if you have multiple children, it makes the price even sweeter.
• You can easily check your child’s progress with the extensive visual charts provided.

Overall, I feel that this is an excellent resource.  I highly recommend it for any child that is learning the math facts or needs reinforcement of the math facts.  I will continue to use this product with my boys until they master all the operations, and I plan on using it with my other children as they come up the math ranks.

I’ll leave you with a short information video about Math Rider: