Parents' Guide to

IXL

By Erin Brereton, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 5+

Hundreds of learning activities build skills and confidence.

Website https://www.ixl.com/
IXL Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

  • IXL Screen Capture #1
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Community Reviews

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age 12+

Based on 1350 parent reviews

28klotlucas2
28klotlucas2 Adult
January 20, 2022
age 15+

Dissapointing

Imagine going to school, talking and laughing with your friends, and the days going well. a few hours/periods go by and then you sit down in math where you have to do a site that punishes you for making a mistake, and it doesn't teach you how to do it correctly it just makes you feel mad and depressed. Believe it or not, there is a site out there that does do that, and that site is called IXL. If you read the kid and parent reviews for the site on Common Sense Media you will find that few like the site and even fewer find it helpful, heck the site has made some kids suicidal! The site also has a yearly fee of $79.00 PER STUDENT! Schools that use the site are losing thousands to a greedy company that doesn't help anyone, that money could be used for, New books, Teacher training, New sports equipment, ETC!

This title has:

Too much consumerism
43 people found this helpful.
HanyD77777
HanyD77777 Adult
January 14, 2022
age 7+

IXL Bad

It just stinks don't bother with it
33 people found this helpful.
See all 1350 parent reviews

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What’s It About?

IXL offers more than 7,000 practice modules on Common Core pre-K through high school math and language skills. It also features language arts, science, and social studies for second- through eighth-graders. Kids repetitively practice one lesson at a time, earning certificates and virtual awards that reflect their favorite animals, foods, places, and hobbies for completing work, and they get step-by-step explanations for incorrect answers. After registering, parents can access progress reports to evaluate kids' strengths and weaknesses. Kids can write their responses, which is especially good for younger kids. There are also audio supports and on-demand Spanish translation.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (1350 ):
Kids say (4502 ):

This academic skill-building site/app provides independent practice and focus on areas where they need to improve, but be aware that some kids don't love it. In terms of practice, for example, at the sixth-grade level IXL presents 320 math skills practice activities. Parents can view kids' scores for various skill exercises, the questions they answered, and other specific information to differentiate instruction for their child. The "Trouble Spot" report can be very useful in quickly identifying where kids are having a hard time and where they need extra help.

IXL's practice-and-drill approach may not thrill some kids, and some could feel they need to focus on getting the answer right every time, instead of viewing each exercise as a learning experience. But the questions -- which range from basics such as counting to geometry's perpendicular bisector theorem, as well as a range of grammar and vocabulary items -- offer consistent progression. They increase in difficulty once kids reach the challenge mode. Kids also get detailed feedback if they answer incorrectly, along with the chance to continue with the same skill to try to apply what they've learned. This can greatly improve their comprehension of difficult concepts. Adding tools like a virtual sketchpad would be great, and the subscription cost, which kids will need for full access, may be a deterrent for some parents. But overall, IXL is a comprehensive learning resource.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how practicing skills with IXL leads to confidence and accuracy. What's a skill you struggled to learn that you possibly could have studied with the help of a site like IXL? How did you feel when you improved? What other skills would you like to improve?

  • How can you use the math skills you're practicing in the real world? When do we use addition in everyday life? How about algebra?

  • Kids can see an explanation if they enter an incorrect answer. Does your child feel stressed out if that happens? Talk about why it's OK to not get things right sometimes when you're learning something new.

Website Details

  • Subjects: Language & Reading : reading, vocabulary, writing clearly, Math : addition, algebra, arithmetic, counting, division, equations, fractions, functions, geometry, graphing, grouping, measurement, money, multiplication, numbers, patterns, probability, ratio, sequences, shapes, statistics, subtraction, Science : astronomy, biology, chemistry, ecosystems and the environment, energy, plants, weather, Social Studies : geography, government, historical figures, the economy, timelines
  • Skills: Self-Direction : work to achieve goals
  • Genre: Educational
  • Topics: STEM , Numbers and Letters
  • Pricing structure: Free to try (Kids can access 10 free questions in each overall subject area per day. A core subjects subscription is $19.95/month or $159/year; a pre-K to 12th-grade math and language arts subscription is $15.95/month or $129/year; an individual math, language arts, or Spanish subscription is $9.95/month or $79/year; and Spanish exercises can be added to any other package for $5/month.)
  • Last updated: December 2, 2020
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