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Parents' Guide to

Brilliant

By Emily Pohlonski, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 15+

Advanced math and physics buffs will dig difficult problems.

Website https://brilliant.org/
Brilliant Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

Community Reviews

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age 11+

Based on 4 parent reviews

Maria_39
Maria_39 Adult
December 3, 2019
age 18+

Subscription

Be aware of the auto renewal subscription, Brilliant didn't made me aware of the auto renewal and charged me for another year without my consent. Very disapointing and very hard to contact with the support team, if I click to contact the support team it will open a new window with the google webapge. I feel like it's a scam.
EricW 7
EricW 7 Adult
December 4, 2017
age 13+

A good effort, worth a try, but has some gaps.

I tried this with my 9 year old son (home schooled). To be fair, www.brilliant.org does not offer sign up as below 13 years old, so was teaching concepts much further beyond my son's level. I found it great as a tool to sit with him and tutor him with, but I could not leave him with it - I seemed to be able to give much clearer explanations, or walk him through solutions much better than they did. Generally speaking, www.brilliant.org is interesting, but I’m not sure how it fits in to . It does not seem to teach reliably, it is more reliable for practice. It does have courses, so supposedly is for teaching, but it’s focused on applied activities, so it is only when you get it wrong or click “view solution” that it teaches you. That general approach is potentially quite good (e.g. if you get the answer right, it does not waste your time teaching you), but unfortunately the explanations it gives you to teach you were not very kid friendly - it uses a lot of big words and assumes a lot of prior knowledge, which it does not give you links to explore further if you don’t have that knowledge, so it can leave you hanging. Having said all that, it still leaves me with the question: is there a resource like www.brilliant.org for students under 13 years old?
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What’s It About?

Brilliant is an online community of learners who share and solve physics and math problems. Aimed toward kids with advanced math skills, it's particularly useful to those competing in Math or Science Olympiad contests. First, kids choose a topic: Algebra, Number Theory, Combinatorics, Electricity & Magnetism, Computer Science, Mechanics, Geometry, or Calculus. They're then given a choice of five problems, one at each of five levels. They'll solve the hardest one they can; this determines placement and the level of challenge from that point forward.

Each level is divided into ratings, and kids who boost their rating by correctly solving problems will get \"leveled up.\" They'll get three tries to solve a problem, but if they still can't figure it out, sample solutions are provided. And if they don't like the sample solution? Kids can request a clarification or dispute the answer.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (4 ):
Kids say: Not yet rated

Brilliant is elegantly laid out and easy to navigate. It lets kids solve problems at their level while getting immediate feedback from other folks who are just as enthusiastic about math and physics. They'll appreciate the choices they get to make -- they get to pick the problems they find interesting. Even better, they can create their own problems to try to stump friends. The site's existing problems are moderately intriguing; they're pretty similar to the types of story problems you find in traditional math and physics textbooks.

A minor quibble: answers submitted don't require the use of units, which could be particularly problematic in physics. Note that this site is aimed toward "exceptional students," so it may not be appropriate for kids who are having difficulty with math or physics. Also, the forum is open to all math lovers over the age of 13, so make sure to talk to your kids about digital citizenship.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about math as a tool. How do you use math as a consumer or at work?

  • Want to talk more about digital citizenship? Check out our Tips for Teens and Parents.

Website Details

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