Parents' Guide to

Algebra Touch

By Jenny Bristol, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 13+

Rearrange, solve polynomials for procedural understanding.

App iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Windows app Paid Education
Algebra Touch Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this app.

  • Algebra Touch App: Screenshot #1
  • Algebra Touch App: Screenshot #2
  • Algebra Touch App: Screenshot #3
  • Algebra Touch App: Screenshot #4

Community Reviews

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age 10+

Based on 2 parent reviews

emanders
emanders Adult
October 11, 2011
age 9+

Algebra Touch is a Great App.

I am a teacher and have used this app with several students to try it out. I love this app. It's very affordable and does a great job helping kids solve problems. Students should practice telling you what they are doing to solve the problem to check their learning/strategies. They learn to simplify (condense/collect like terms, eliminate), factorize, substitute, and distribute. It also helped me brush up on skills I hadn't used in years.

This title has:

Educational value
momsue
momsue Parent of 11 and 13-year-old
August 15, 2011
age 11+

Superb

This is what an app should be. This is suited to all math learners, especially those who are frustrated by stupid games that have the added stress of time limits. This app makes math beautiful, almost hypnotic. I never understood algebra until now. Worth 10 stars. I hope they make many mire apps like this one.
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What’s It About?

In ALGEBRA TOUCH, kids choose a lesson, and then a basic problem related to that lesson appears with a written explanation. Along with the explanation comes an instruction ("Tap the +") telling kids what to do next to make the answer appear. Practice goes beyond the expectation that kids will enter the final answer. Instead, kids tap the steps involved in solving the equation, and the app gives the answer. Tap incorrectly, and the image simply wiggles. Choose correctly, and the next step appears until kids arrive at the final answer.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (2):
Kids say: Not yet rated

For procedural understanding of algebraic skills, this tool is a hit, but it doesn't teach concepts. It allows kids to manipulate and solve single-variable algebraic equations and terms in a very creative way. Kids drag their finger on the screen to move terms from one side of the equation to the other, or they can tap to factor or solve. Tapping will compute all the arithmetic automatically, except for division, since the app requires fractions to be fully reduced before the answer is correct. Students who want extra practice or a new way to approach procedures can find both in Algebra Touch, a unique supplement to basic algebra education.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how technology can help with learning. Which other apps might be helpful?

  • For kids who seem to be ahead of the math curve in school, offer Algebra Touch as a way to allow them to dig deeper into the concepts and challenge themselves in a fun way.

  • Encourage kids struggling with certain areas of algebra to choose those specific topics on this app to approach the problems in a different way.

App Details

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