Elite 100

Strategies for success:

I use IXL to check students' understanding of the concept after whole-class instruction (10-15 minutes). I also use it for daily homework (30-45 minutes). In 2015-2016 school year, my students group made an average 95% growth in 6th grade math tests on PARCC (top growth among entire Aurora School District schools). In the 2016-2017 school year, my students group made 78.8% of meet/exceed expectations, 75.5% growth (1st place out of 6th grade achievement among 55 Denver Public Schools).

Favorite teacher tools:

I appreciate the ability to differentiate to fill in a wide range of gaps among students in the same grade. I assign homework from 3rd grade up to even the Geometry level.

Strategies for success:

I use IXL in a variety of ways. My students use it every morning for whole class grammar instruction, and several times a week for math reinforcement and homework. We have 1-1 devices, so I use IXL to help me make sure that they understand the concepts that I teach in class. I have seen many "ah-ha" moments with IXL. Students will be struggling with a concept that I have taught and retaught again. Then something about the IXL will click, and you can just see it on their faces. "Ohhh, that's how you do it!"

Favorite teacher tools:

I love the Diagnostic. It helps me figure out what gaps need to be filled and where to send students that need the extra challenge. I can customize my students' learning easily, all in one place.

Making it fun:

Last year, I motivated my students with a pizza party. Students who completed a certain amount of IXL skills were invited. They loved it! At the end of the year, they were so motivated to beat the high score, they would do extra IXL skills during their free time.

Strategies for success:

I use IXL in my Honors Algebra class as a replacement for most in-class worksheets and homework, as our school has a 1-1 iPad initiative. After teaching a new concept and working through some sample problems together as a class, I assign related lessons on IXL for my students to complete in class. Anything that's not finished in class becomes homework. During class, I encourage students to ask me or a peer for help if they are unsure about a certain lesson, but the built-in explanations allow them to get help even when they're home finishing up an assignment. Parents love it, too, as they can see in the explanation what to do as a quick refresher, and are better able to help their children. Since I started using IXL, I have not had a single student fail to pass the Pennsylvania Keystone Exam at the end of the year, and most receive scores in the advanced range! I think IXL is great for remediation and enrichment as it really fosters an environment of customization in how quickly they progress through the lessons.

Favorite teacher tools:

I love that IXL has replaced the need for most paper worksheets. Also, I love that students get instant feedback on how they are doing and explanations of what they did incorrectly before they move on. When I used worksheets as homework, students would sometimes complete an entire assignment incorrectly—now they can't do that, as IXL doesn't allow their SmartScore to increase unless they are getting problems correct. For grading purposes, I use the Score Grid. For monitoring progress in class, I love the Real-Time Center. It allows me to see who's struggling and not asking for assistance. By the end of the first month of school, my students know to ask for help because they know I can see how they're doing, and that I'll be visiting them if they don't come to me first. I also use a variety of the reports at parent-teacher conferences, depending on what I need to discuss with each individual parent.

Making it fun:

I use competition in my class a lot, and we openly share how much the students have done on IXL on a weekly basis. In the honors setting, the competitive spirit is high and some kids really like trying to be the one with the most topics mastered or the highest SmartScore gained in a week. Even those who don't thrive on competition, the open sharing of how much everyone has done allows them to see how they're keeping pace with their peers. The leaderboard changes so much that I generally have a different top and bottom [student] every time I post an update.

Strategies for success:

I work with a whole group before school each day. When it is possible, I teach a lesson in math or language arts, and use IXL as practice work. I have seen an improvement in my students after using IXL. My ISTEP scores have been the highest in the building in math. I'm starting to use the other subjects more often and I think my scores will improve there as well.

Favorite teacher tools:

I use the Score Chart report quite frequently. I print it out and review it with students who haven't scored well. I also share this with other teachers that also work with my students.

Making it fun:

The Real-Time Center is the best. I put the students score on the screen with my projector. If a student has trouble and their box turns [red], we call out, "Who ya gonna call?" They quickly reply, "Math busters!" Then they go and help out. We sing the Ghost Busters song to get peer help. The students love this! I also love that I can tell if anyone is not working.

Strategies for success:

I use IXL to differentiate instruction for my students. Last year, I had a class with students that were at a 4th grade level in math all the way to 10th grade. IXL allows me to challenge all students and make sure all of my students are progressing. I have seen huge improvements in a majority of my students.

Favorite teacher tools:

Trouble Spots and the new IXL Diagnostic are really helpful when deciding which direction I need to point individual students in.

Making it fun:

I enjoy putting the Real-Time Center up on the projector so everyone can see that I can see what they are working on and it makes it easy to see which students might be in need of help.

Strategies for success:

I use IXL in a variety of ways. IXL is aligned to our math curriculum so I can use it for whole class instruction. It is also used during small group work time, where students are learning math content at their specific level. Parents like IXL because it is something they can do at home and learn along with their child. This program is also used in our rotational models during our reading and language arts block of time. IXL helps all students, but more specifically those who are either above or below grade level. Students can work on the skill being taught, but at their level.

Favorite teacher tools:

I love the new Diagnostic tool! It helps me see specific strands of weaknesses and strengths among the students in my classroom. The students are already grouped with skills to work on, which makes enrichment and intervention easy. Materials are right there at your fingertips. Prep is easy, which allows more time for implementation.

Making it fun:

I like to keep a binder of achievements. Any time we earn an IXL certificate, we print it off and add it to the binder. The students like to share their class achievements with parents and other classrooms using IXL.

Strategies for success:

I use IXL for a whole class instruction and also [use it for] support in the many math skills, language skills, reading skills, and writing skills that would be close to impossible to teach. With students that complete the assigned work, I have seen great improvements in their writing and reading skills. In math, I have noticed a quicker understanding of more complex topics when I have pre-assigned skills associated for a more complex concept.

Favorite teacher tools:

I really appreciate the Common Core alignments. I love how it has the skills broken down into strands. This helps me target specific skills to teach.

Strategies for success:

Independent practice is where our class uses IXL the most. I create progressions at multiple grade levels so students are able to practice their math skills at their own challenge level. It gives me the opportunity to scoot around to students needing help, individually or in small groups. Their math homework is IXL practice. Those who do not have computer access after school spend an hour longer at school to finish homework. At times, I will use it for whole class instruction, projecting the questions and having them show the answer on their whiteboard. If needed, I will intentionally enter a wrong answer to go over IXL's method of explaining what to do. All of my students have shown improvement, both academically and in their attitude towards math.

Favorite teacher tools:

I love the Real-Time Center! Students love the kudos I give them when they reach [a SmartScore of] 100. Also, I will text parents "Great IXL homework!" during the evenings or weekends. The students' usage increases exponentially. The Real-Time Center helps me find students that are having trouble or need a time-management nudge.

Making it fun:

Since students are at many levels, I create math marathons. They have 15 minutes to work through a progression in a particular math topic. The progressions can consist of the same skill progression from 3rd to 8th grade. All students feel successful. They all can use the review and it's often filled with howls of laughter and many "a-ha" moments. It's great for a warm-up to scaffold an upcoming whole-group lesson.

Favorite teacher tools:

I use IXL as a way to informally assess my students' understanding of the concepts already taught in class. I use the Real-Time Center, Trouble Spots, and the Questions Log reports quite often with my students. These Analytics reports help me intervene with my students when they need help.

Strategies for success:

We use IXL as a supplement to our curriculum for independent practice. At times, we do whole class instruction, but for the most part it is individual work. We also use it for MTSS tier intervention with small groups on occasion. Our IXL is used as a portion of their grade for reading and math.

Favorite teacher tools:

We utilize the Real-Time Center, the Score Grid, and the Questions Log to analyze student progress and do reciprocal teaching. We use the Score Grid to monitor weekly progress, the Real-Time Center to monitor students during our dedicated daily IXL time, and the Questions Log to review strategies.

Favorite teacher tools:

The best feature of IXL is the instant feedback. If I give students a sheet of work to do, they do not receive feedback until they've finished it, and I grade it. IXL lets them know if they are on the right track after each question and if not, explains where they went wrong. I also use the Common Core tab to ensure alignment of each skill to the standards. The Score Grid and Students Quickview reports show me which skills students are practicing on and what they have mastered.

Making it fun:

The kids really like the little picture awards on IXL, but I also print out the certificates to show how many skills they have mastered as a class. We set goals for the end of each quarter, and the children work hard to meet them.

Strategies for success:

I use IXL as my main supplement for Math and English in class and for homework. Students do better when they see problems in a different context other than just their textbooks. The extra practice helps to reinforce their learning.

Favorite teacher tools:

I appreciate that IXL is aligned with the Common Core standards, so it is easy to match with the textbook lessons.

Making it fun:

I give candy for those students who meet their goals first or for those that have the most points at given times during the quarter. If they win the Elite 100, the class gets a pizza party the following year.

Strategies for success:

I use IXL for lesson reinforcements. It is assigned as homework. We have contests for scholars to earn points for their "houses", so they work on IXL both independently and with peer tutors. In the past, I have created scatter plots to see if there is a correlation between time spent in IXL and test grades, and there is definitely a positive correlation. The more they practice, the better they do.

Favorite teacher tools:

As a teacher, I use the Analytics page often. The Score Grid works the best for me, but when I have the entire class on, I like to use the Real-Time Center to see when scholars get stuck! When I run contests for the day, I use the Progress and Improvement report to make sure they are moving new skills up that day. I also appreciate that the scholars have immediate feedback and explanations as soon as they answer a question. The overall ease of creating classes and using the system is a definite plus!

Making it fun:

I always give our scholars choices. For example, if there are 8 skills under a topic, I ask them to choose 6 of them and work up to a SmartScore of 85. They are more than willing to do the work, because they have a choice. We also have our school split into "houses" and I run contests to see who can do the most of their assigned homework in a day and offer points for their "houses."

Strategies for success:

I use IXL for whole-class instruction, homework, small-group work, and as classwork. After I've taught a mini lesson on a concept, we work through a few IXL questions displayed on the projector as a class. We find important "clues" to help us solve the ELA questions. I also use IXL for small groups to remediate students who are struggling with specific topics. Thanks to the IXL Analytics, I can form those groups effortlessly! I have seen marked improvements in all of my students' ELA skills. One student, coming into fifth grade, was projected to be barely basic on the standardized assessments. This student embraced the "self-study" technique with IXL and proceeded to finish every topic available on IXL ELA. This student worked relentlessly to teach himself the skills he was struggling in. By the end of the year, he was one of my most advanced students. IXL gave him the confidence and support to achieve success.

Favorite teacher tools:

I appreciate so many of the features, but I would have to say that the Real-Time Center is very helpful when they are all working independently. It allows me to pull struggling students aside and work one-on-one with them. I also appreciate the explanations feature when a student gets a question wrong. I've taught the students to take a screenshot of the explanation and use it as a review guide as they are working.

Making it fun:

We work together to achieve our goals and often have IXL reward time. It is free time (typically extra recess) for students who have achieved success in their focus areas. Students who don't finish have extra time to work on their skills, and most achieve their goal and get to join us for recess during that same reward time!

Favorite teacher tools:

I appreciate the Students Quickview to see what skills they have worked on and which ones they are still working toward or may need help doing. This helps keep students accountable for the lessons taught. IXL makes sure that my students are exposed to all the skills that are covered in particular grade levels. My students have gained confidence in math as a whole.

Strategies for success:

IXL is one of my favorite resources for reinforcing lesson content, practicing difficult concepts, building foundational knowledge, and filling in gaps. In addition to assigning skills as homework, I let the kids interact in groups of two or three during supervised classwork. I like to keep track of how much time my students spend trying to master a skill. I can then use that information to assess if not enough or too much time was devoted to work on a certain skill, and identify the students that might be in need of extra help.

Favorite teacher tools:

I really appreciate the Analytics feature! It is really important for students to know that I have access to all their activity on IXL. This accountability keeps them engaged with the program in a responsible way.

Strategies for success:

I use IXL in many ways. I use it for whole-class instruction for both language arts and mathematics, especially when my students are learning a new skill. During whole-class instruction, students work on the same problem and discuss the strategies they used to solve each problem. I also use IXL to differentiate in both subjects so that students can work independently. Since my students range in different levels, each student is given specific skills that they need to complete throughout the week. When students are working independently on their individualized skills, they are given support one on one if needed.

Favorite teacher tools:

Analytics is my favorite IXL feature! I especially appreciate the Students Quickview report because I can easily grade students' weekly skills by selecting a specific week. I also use the Real-Time Center often to identify students who are struggling. When students are working independently on a skill, I use the Real-Time Center to know which students are actively practicing their skills as well as to determine if a student might need help. When I notice students' names appear in red, I work with these students in small groups to provide additional support. I also use Progress and Improvement to find reports on each student to identify which skills the student spent the most time on and each student's mastery level.

Strategies for success:

I use IXL with my entire class, but I differentiate how I implement it. I use some skills for whole class and others for small group, direct support, peer support, or individual work. All IXL completion is tracked to mastery—SmartScore of 100. As a class, we set goals and celebrate all completion. I find that students who are reluctant to practice are better motivated to grow their understanding when all students are required to reach mastery. There are enough practice questions within each skill that students truly get to experience each element they will encounter on formal assessments. Holding them accountable to reaching a SmartScore of 100 increases their assessment performance ten-fold.

Favorite teacher tools:

I like the vast variety of questions. I also like that when a child makes an error, a visual explanation is given. Students have to be trained to slow down and read the explanation, but once that happens the impact is profound.

Making it fun:

IXL is the way we do business in sixth grade. My students' success on both IXL and assessments is their motivation. I post certificates in their portfolios when they reach performance and completion milestones.

Strategies for success:

I used IXL for whole group sometimes, every night for 15 minutes in each subject for homework except on Fridays. It was also included in my small group and rotational centers. Every student that utilized IXL saw a gain in reading and math test scores.

Favorite teacher tools:

I absolutely love all of IXL Analytics. It became an obsession—I found myself wanting to check them all the time. I check different Analytic reports on different days. The reports were very helpful in preparing my students for the Georgia Milestones test.

Making it fun:

We would have friendly competitions all the time where I would time the students and I would use their time in the program to determine winners. Everyone got a prize for finishing the skill with 100% completion. It didn't matter if they finished the same day or the next week. They always won.

Strategies for success:

Last year, I used IXL in the classroom as a tool. I would take the learning objectives that were being taught in our everyday curriculum, match them up with the same skills on IXL, and assign them to my class. The class could do these IXL skills when they finished up their assigned work, or they could do them from home. I would let the parents know which skills we were working on for the week through my weekly newsletters. Towards the end of the year, it became a goal for students to try and complete 5th grade IXL. All of the students in my class completed ALL of the grammar and language arts skills. I saw many improvements in my students' work [after using IXL]. The students improved in their daily work since they received extra practice on the topics, and they improved on their test scores as well. We take the STAR Assessment test for both reading and math in our district, and I saw jumps in their scores as the year went on. I also saw improvements in their math computations on a weekly basis. The extra practice really seemed to help.

Favorite teacher tools:

One of my favorite parts of IXL is how user-friendly the program is. The program is visually appealing and is laid out in a user-friendly format. I love how it has the [topic] categories. It makes it so easy for the teacher and the students to view. I was easily able to identify which topic we were working on in our curriculum and pair it with IXL’s categories. Another feature I liked was the different grade levels. This way I can differentiate students work. This is an amazing program. I have not found another program that I like as much as IXL.

Making it fun:

The students were very motivated to get the “sticker” awards IXL would give them for accomplishing tasks I assigned to them. The students and I also set up different rewards. For example, if the students completed each assignment I gave them for the week, they might earn extra recess time or free time in the classroom. At the end of the year, we celebrated their huge success with a class pizza party and movie.

Strategies for success:

I use IXL for homework, and with the new Diagnostic, I can assign small group work during MTSS. I feel IXL better prepares students to take standardized tests. Because IXL is aligned to our state standards, it makes it easy for me to help prepare my students. I also like the fact that students can't guess their way through an assignment. If they are struggling, they have to read the explanation or ask for help.

Strategies for success:

I assign my kids portions of IXL that work with what we're doing in class. They use IXL almost daily when they get their classroom assignments done. They also work on it at home since I find that they don't get enough practice with the skills just doing the textbook. Also when kids are home ill, I tell the parents to fire up the computer and get the kids going. That way if the parents can't get to school for homework, the kids can still keep up on their skills.

Favorite teacher tools:

I like that I can pick from any grade so that it matches what we're [actually] doing. The students each come to me with different areas of difficulty, so I can address their concerns individually.

Strategies for success:

We use IXL for whole class instruction and homework. Our tutor also uses IXL for one-on-one instruction with students. We are a year-round school, and our students are also assigned skills during their 3-week break since we are in school 9 weeks at a time and off for 3 at a time.

Favorite teacher tools:

I use the Score Grid, Trouble Spots, and Real-Time Center the most. The Score Grid allows me to look at a glance to see how my students are doing. The Real-Time Center helps me monitor students during whole class instruction time, and the Trouble Spots lets me see which students need extra help in specific subjects.

Making it fun:

After we have discussed a certain objective in class, sometimes we race and see who can get to a SmartScore of 100 on that specific skill first. They love that!

Strategies for success:

I use IXL for summative assessment, remedial work, homework, and differentiation. Most of my students have improved. The outstanding one for this past academic year was of a girl who came to my class with no lexile reading level/grade, but managed to improve to a 3rd grade level by the end of 4th grade. Thank you IXL for making learning and teaching fun.

Favorite teacher tools:

I use all of the Analytics reports, but I love and appreciate the Trouble Spots mostly to inform my instructions, identify gaps, give remedial lessons, and differentiate.

Strategies for success:

I like being able to use IXL to personalize my students' learning and tailor their math and language arts experiences to their individualized level. I've noticed that my students understand that we are all advanced at some skills. It's been rewarding to see my students work on certain IXL skills at the third, fourth and even fifth grade levels.

Favorite teacher tools:

We use the Dashboard in Analytics to motivate us as a class to work toward the next goal for number of problems solved.

Making it fun:

My students sign a class poster every time they master 10 more skills.

Strategies for success:

My students have access to 1-1 devices within my numeracy block, which allows me to use the program as part of my rotations. Students are able to work independently, in pairs, or in small guided groups with my guidance. My students also use it as part of their nightly homework. I encourage my students to continually challenge themselves to accomplish small goals on a regular basis, often within small sections of the curriculum. As a teacher, I love that all students are able to get a daily sense of achievement regardless of their prior knowledge and understandings. Within my class cohort, I have students working between years 3-9 depending on their confidence—meaning that differentiation is made so much easier for me, and the results are in the data on a yearly basis. When I first introduced IXL to my students 3 years ago, they had no confidence in their own abilities, with numeracy [being] their least favourite curriculum area. Now students are begging to do numeracy! I attribute a huge portion of this success to the regular use of IXL.

Making it fun:

A long term goal for my class this year has been to make IXL's Elite 100 classrooms. With many of my students achieving that goal last year, they have been leaders in the initiative. We also have weekly challenges based on both effort and achievement on an individual and whole class level. Prizes such as extra physical activity have been a huge bonus for students to continually go above and beyond what is expected of them. I now never have trouble with students completing their homework with almost all students choosing to do extra each night just for fun! Parents now regularly comment that homework used to be a challenge, but now they don't even mention it because it's already been completed. The challenge for them now is actually getting them to stop! It's great when learning becomes more of a game than a chore and that's what it has become for many of my students. Students now choose IXL as their preferred method of learning numeracy, which is great that they are now able to articulate where they need to focus their efforts and how they want to learn it.

Strategies for success:

Teaching three grade levels requires not only attention to differentiation, but also a myriad of standards to navigate. With IXL, I can scaffold a lesson where I start with whole-group instruction on a skill that spans all three grade levels, give the opportunity for partner-work as a second look at the concept, and then have them "show what they know" on IXL. Also, being able to search a skill in the search box makes it very efficient for me to pinpoint where each grade level will find their specific location for practice. Once they are in the final phase of the lesson ("show what you know"), the students know that if they get a question wrong, they should carefully read the explanation and see if they can independently discover their own mistake. If they get another one wrong, they are required to have a "mini workshop" with myself or another student that has already completed that skill. This is usually an upper level student being a guide on the side for a lower level student. The philosophy is that if the older student can teach it, they are reinforcing their understanding of the concept.

Favorite teacher tools:

The students and I both appreciate the Real-Time Center in the Analytics tab. All green in the Real-Time Center shows me that the lesson was effective. When students have two red blocks, it instantly allows me to intercept their lack of understanding and give them extra instruction until they are back on track.

Making it fun:

The students absolutely LOVE working on IXL. I think that they connect their learning routine to a sense of accomplishment, and it's gratifying. They know that if they pay attention during the group lesson that they are accountable for the information on IXL. Throughout the year when we give STAR tests, the students can see that their grade equivalency increases if they are focused. IXL is one of the main vehicles of growth and they get excited as they strive for more knowledge!

Strategies for success:

I use IXL for homework and usually assign the specific skill that was covered in class that day. I also like to differentiate and assign certain skills to students that need a little extra practice. Using IXL, I have seen students dramatically improve their math ability in a span of only a few months. The detailed explanations for incorrectly answered problems are a great help to students.

Favorite teacher tools:

I look at all of the reports, but I focus on the Skills Practiced report most often. This report allows me to see at a glance which students are struggling and which students have mastered the skill.

Making it fun:

I like to do weekly prizes for top performing students on IXL, and have now started to incorporate monthly prizes, "milestone" prizes, and certificates.

Favorite teacher tools:

I like the Common Core standards alignment the most. Each of my students has a copy of the Common Core standards and IXL skills for each standard. They know exactly which standards will be on the test. I encourage them to move ahead [in IXL] if they have finished their daily work. They teach each other new skills they have learned on their own. Little by little, my students have learned not only new skills on their own, but also the [idea of] independent study and a love for math.

Making it fun:

Each month, we award the 5 top-performing students in each grade level using the Honor Roll report in the admin account. The students look forward to this opportunity to shine.

Strategies for success:

IXL is a fantastic tool for reinforcing classroom learning. After teaching a lesson, I assign objectives that match the concept and students complete them for homework to reinforce the concept taught in class. The goal is for them to reach a SmartScore between 50 and 60 by the following class day. This gives them hands-on experience with the concept and a foundation that I can build on the following day. Every new concept is reinforced this way.

Favorite teacher tools:

The feature I most appreciate is the immediate feedback! I've noticed that students are reading this text carefully and truly working to understand the concept. Not only have their math skills and math confidence improved, but I have also noticed that students are becoming better math readers. In Analytics, I use the Scores report to check for daily completion of their homework. I also quickly hover on top of SmartScores across the assigned objective. This gives me a quick read of how many problems each student attempted and how much time was spent on an objective. I can quickly tell whether the class or individuals struggled with a concept. The ability to go back and see missed problems in the Questions Log report is an essential tool I use when working one-on-one with a struggling student. In class, I use the Real-Time report to monitor students. The class rule is if you turn red, you must bring me your work before you hit submit on the next problem. I often project this page [on the board] as I work around the room with individuals and groups. It becomes a fun competition and students work to [avoid] the “danger zone” by asking each other and me for help.

Making it fun:

To further their learning and develop long-term understanding, students are assigned what we call “IXL 90's.” Within a week after a concept is introduced, they must reach a SmartScore of 90. They have a week to go back to the previous concepts taught and chew through the levels to attain an adequate level of mastery. Grades are assigned out of 90 so there is room for high achievers to get bonus points by going above 90. Special recognition is given to all students who meet all weekly goals, and those that regularly reach 100 are given elite status.

Strategies for success:

I use IXL for whole-class and for homework. I love it because it provides good practice for students, shows them what they did wrong when they miss a problem, is motivational for students, and provides excellent information for me as a teacher. I have definitely seen an improvement in all of my students. Reluctant readers must read the language arts problems, which improves their reading skills. My test scores have consistently improved with IXL.

Making it fun:

I want my students to understand why education is so important. So, I've designed degrees (high school diploma, associates, bachelors, etc.) that students can earn. I've incorporated IXL into these degrees in order to help me differentiate instruction. Along with this, I've posted some careers that are available on a bulletin board and the education required to get these jobs. Students research different professions and interview for these jobs once they become qualified. They earn fake money and pay expenses, including taxes. IXL has made all of this possible.

Strategies for success:

I use IXL as a reinforcement for the day's lesson, usually about 15 minutes. I have also used it as a quiz, where students can choose their grade! I have seen students improve greatly! There are few other ways that I can provide practice with instant feedback!

Favorite teacher tools:

I appreciate that the students can have instant feedback and support. I also use the Trouble Spots and Student Details reports. I use them to track where they need help and how efficiently they are working.

Making it fun:

I often provide rewards for completion of topics. We always make a SmartScore of 90 our goal, but many times students work until 100 on their own!

Strategies for success:

I use IXL in my classroom for homework as well as whole-class instruction. I also use IXL to review previous lessons taught and prepare for the MCA tests. What I like about IXL is that the students seem to grasp the concepts better because they are practicing the skills over and over again. When we are discussing skills in class, it is neat when the students say, "I remember going over that on IXL."

Favorite teacher tools:

I like to use most of Analytics. Trouble Spots is an excellent way to see the areas that I, as a teacher, need to cover better in my lessons. In addition, the Skills Practiced, Score Grid, and Progress and Improvement reports can be used as a quick check to see that everyone is understanding the information. I can also share these reports with the parents to show how their children are progressing with the skills. Of course, the Real-Time Center is wonderful so that I can catch those students who are struggling and need more reinforcement. The Diagnostic reports are a great way to see what level the students are at in each skill.

Making it fun:

For motivation, we try to do a monthly challenge to see who can complete the skills with the most ribbons. In addition, the certificates that IXL sends gets the students excited to keep trying to reach higher goals.