Will Elephant Learning Work For My Child?
Our curriculum covers from counting to fractions, decimals, percentages, and Algebra.  We teach math conceptually which means that we are focused on teaching the  language behind the math. Regardless of whether a child is struggling with mathematics or thriving and is way ahead, we are able to determine their level and build upon the foundation of concepts they already understand to accelerate them forward.

Elephant Learning was at the Westwood Chile Festival this year and we had machines setup for children to play with the system while we talked with parents. One girl told us she was doing multiplication and we put her in that curriculum. The software displayed 4 groups of 5 objects. You could see her counting to get the answer. Alvaro then asked her, "What is 4 times 5" and she quickly responded "20."

She had memorized her multiplication tables but she did not know how to use the multiplication to solve a problem. We see this problem very often, it is why children struggle with word problems and have troubles when they get to Algebra. The math is essentially useless for her, and math class is probably a stressful exercise in memorizing random facts. That is the reality for many of our children and it is a cruel situation to be in. It is why almost half of first and second graders report having math anxiety. They tell themselves they are not a "numbers person" and decide not to learn math. Children understand later in life how to use multiplication to solve these problems, and that is the saddest part, they just did not know when it could have made a difference. These concepts are not difficult to grasp nor are they innate, our software presents activities that are known to teach these concepts in a safe environment where there is no judgement or biases and we allow children to develop intuition around the mathematics.

How does learning happen?  Is it memorization?

From time to time, someone wants to understand exactly how these puzzles help children learn.  They are not memorization.  The activities come from early age education experts and they were proven to teach the concepts.  The key is providing the right activity to build upon the knowledge already learned.  Just like when you show your children colored objects to teach them colors, the activities exhibit mathematical concepts through having the child determine how to solve the puzzle and then labels the concept used.  We examine many ideas from different angles because mathematics can be represented in many different ways.  One good example is the number line to represent numbers versus physical objects.  Building these concepts from different angles, only once understanding is established for earlier concepts, allows us to ensure that children are empowered by these concepts.  We like to say, empowerment is understanding the concepts holding us back, and ENJOYMENT in the classroom setting is understanding the teacher.  That is what we provide.

What is the tuition for Elephant Learning Math Academy?

The tuition is $35/month.  Our partners at Math Matters, a non-profit dedicated to mathematics provide scholarships that can lower the tuition to as low as $10/month.  The application for the scholarship is a part of our enrollment form.  To get started go to the home page and click "Apply Now."

Does Elephant Learning Offer A Free Trial?

After signup, the tuition is not due for three days and if in that time you cancel there is no penalty.  After that we simply ask that you finish the month you are on.

Is there a contract?  What is the minimum term?

There is no contract. You may cancel at anytime. We only ask that you finish your current month. Just let me know if that becomes the case. I am happy to help anytime. There is also a cancel button within the Plan and Payments tab of the Manage Account menu.

If you purchased a package through a reseller you have prepaid for a longer term and you must honor the agreement made with them.

How Are Scholarships Awarded?

Scholarships are awarded by our partner Math Matters, and they are using an algorithm to look over the answers to the scholarship application and provide an instant award.

If you feel that the award was somehow unfair, and you let us know about it, we can send the application to Math Matters for manual review.

How Does the Guarantee Work?

On average, children in our system learn 1.5 years of math in about 10 weeks.  Based on the data, we are able to guarantee your child will learn at least 1 year of math in 3 months if they use the system 30 minutes per week.  After 3 months of usage if your child has not learned at least 1 year of math contact us and we will either refund the money or find a way for your child to work within our system.  In fact, we want you to contact us much sooner if you are having issues so that we can ensure that your child is empowered by mathematics.  We are happy to step in and look at the data in order to see where children are getting stopped and we provide advice and tutoring if necessary to help them over the stumbling blocks.  

There is absolutely no risk on your part, only your child's future to gain.

How do I cancel?

To cancel, login via web, click on "Manage Account" and then click on "Plans and Payments."  There is a cancellation button on the bottom of the screen.

How do I change my password?

Click on Manage Account from the menu when you login via a web browser and the screen that results allows you to set a new password.

​How to login as a student?​

Students may login via a url or a QR code, both provided when you click on "Login Tokens" from the menu.  If you scan the QR code on your device or browser, the system will not allow the student access the Login Tokens, Manage Account, or any other student besides their own profile.

​My child is significantly ahead or behind or has special needs.  How do I set them up?  How do I reset a student or give them a new assignment?

After enrollment, an optional configuration screen appears allowing you to change the default initial assignments for children.  Children over 12 entering our system do not receive a default assignment and it is required for a parent to set the assignment appropriately.  

One can also set a new assignment for a student by clicking on "Manage Account" and clicking on "Students" tab and the "Change Assignment" link under each student.  If you missed setting the initial assignment during optional configuration you may use this method as well.

How Does The Assessment Work?

Elephant Learning’s Assessment was not intended to finish within one sitting and by default your child is only allowed to play 20 minutes per day. We wanted the assessment to be seamless for children so that they do not feel like they are being tested. The system will transition from assessing to learning automatically and without any interruption.

Our assessment is actually a “test out” mode. We start behind the child and have them test out of earlier subjects to attempt to see if there are any gaps, and we continue until all subjects are assigned.  For each subject, we ask the most difficult questions and if the student answers incorrectly, or if they choose to skip, the subject is assigned to them. We open up new subjects if all questions are answered correctly. We continue like this until there are no subjects being tested out.

It is important to remind children to not power through the assessment. If they reach a question that is too challenging or something they are guessing at, it is better for them to hit skip and receive a review of the subject.   You can determine when a child is in assessment mode by the star next to the subjects name on the Dashboard. If something should go wrong, such as your student accidentally hitting skip and they are now bored with their questions, you may set any subject back into Assessment mode from the Dashboard by clicking on the subject. If a subject assigned to a child is too challenging, you may also pause that subject here.

If you want to start an assessment over, or choose an earlier or more advanced assessment, you may do so by logging via web, choosing “Manage Account” and clicking the “Students” tab. If you click “Change Assignment”, you may choose from our pre-created assessments.

On this screen, you may also change the daily playtime from its default value of 20 minutes to something that best suites your child. By default, the games will only allow your child to play for that set amount of time. If you want your children to have unlimited daily playtime, turn on the “Unlimited Playtime” switch on this screen.

What is the Elephant Age?

The Elephant Age is the average age a child is doing the same mathematics outside of our system.  We created this to make a simple metric for a parent to determine how their child is doing.  We also provide detailed reports that allow you to understand what your children understand and what they are working on currently along with activities that you can do outside of our system to help accelerate learning even further.

How do I use Elephant Learning?

Have your children use the system 10 minutes a day, 3 days a week.  They can play more or less depending on the child, and we do not recommend going over 60 minutes per week in order to prevent burn out.  The gamification is NOT the same as having a game and for children these problems are hard and require a lot of concentration and focus and so if your child becomes fatigued do not force them to use the system, allow them to rest and try again the next day.

Once your child has completed the assessment, we will assign a starting Elephant Age and the reports become accurate.  The best way to use the tool is to allow the system to evaluate the child without interference and then to provide support outside of the system.

Can I help the child with the problems?

Giving very pointed hints that help the children figure out how to solve the problem have been shown to be extremely useful, and giving the answer has been shown to not be helpful.  When given the answer, children may not understand the concept and will move forward, but the system will move them back when they do not understand the more complex concepts built on top of the missing concept.  

If you wish to help your children, the best way is to use the reports on the dashboard to understand what your children are working on within the app and to use the activities that we provide to help exhibit the mathematics outside of the system.   The best way to use the tool is to allow the system to evaluate the child without interference and then to provide support outside of the system.

​Is your product common core?  Does it support the standards for my state?

Mathematics is very similar regardless if it is Singapore Mathematics, Common Core, or a state standard.  We teach mathematics conceptually meaning that we are aligned with common core and Singapore Mathematics, but we do not have any of the unsatisfactory elements of common core that dissuade parents from engaging.  When you try an activity in parent mode, it is always straightforward, and we are always here to help if you encounter any issues.

I am a teacher, do you have a product I could use within the classroom?

We do have a classroom product coming out soon and if you wish to receive announcements concerning the classroom product use the chat widget on the bottom right of the screen to message us.  We will add you to the list.

​My Children Are Homeschooled, How Does Elephant Learning Support Us?

Homeschool parents understand the need for professional tools to help their children learn.  Any good tool should reduce the time and effort required by the user to accomplish the goal.  Think about driving a nail with a hammer versus a nail gun.  Elephant Learning is like a "Math Gun."  Have your children start each day with 10 minutes of Elephant Learning.  Use the reports to tailor your lecture to fit them exactly where they are working within the system or a little beyond.  This will make math time understandable for your children, and therefore more fun.  While we do not cover the entire curriculum required for a student to go through Algebra, we cover the key concepts where misconceptions occur making it so that the rest of the material is on the surface for the child.