Chomping at the bit....Racing With The Quarter Mile Math program...

Before I get started here, I want to say there will more reviews to follow of this one as our school year progresses and we use this product on a daily basis.

When I was teaching in the public and private school sectors, for most of those years I was in the fourth grade. I saw first hand the struggles of my students who did not already have a strong foundation in the basics, such as their addition and subtraction facts. While our curriculum's schedule indicated it was time to move on to more advanced skills, their progress was stunted by a shaky base. We spent a whole lot of time in review and remediation. And I still supplemented our core curriculum with plenty of practice in the basics for those who were on track, too. Those years impressed upon me the need for consistent, heaping-sized amounts of practice in the core math concepts for all students. We don't stop giving our kids milk and juice just because they progress to table foods. They need it all. It's the same with math. It goes back to a saying I used to post in my classroom, "In order to do great things, one must do small things well."

Now, as a homeschooling teacher with lower elementary students, one of my primary goals in our math program is to build that solid foundation, to provide and insist upon lots and lots of practice in the basics. We have used a mix of worksheets, flashcards, and computer games and drills. The drawback to those computer games, which I've found on the internet, though, is that unless I sit right beside each one and keep score, I don't have a printable record of their progress. Until now.

The TOS Crew has been asked to review Barnum Software's The Quarter Mile Math program. While there are several versions available, our family is now using the Deluxe, Levels 1, 2, and 3 bundle. Before I go into detail, here's the gist of it. As the teacher, I add students and indicate their grade levels. When it's time for a student to race, while older students can follow directions to click on the appropriate subject and topic, the teacher would need to do so for pre- or beginning reading students. Once they get to the race, though, even my three-year-old can click on the green "start race" button. The races are simply very straightforward drills in a number of math, alphabetic, and keyboarding skills. The faster the student answers correctly, the faster their horse or car will go to finish the race. In the beginning, they race against the fictional Fast Eddy until they accumulate their own scores to compete against. There is also a mode for racing against other students. As they complete races, their five highest scores are saved and averaged.

The Quarter Mile Math was very simple to install on our computer, which has Windows XP. I did catch my breath momentarily when my desktop suddenly changed to a higher resolution when I started the program for the first time. That is harmless, however, just the monitor and the program getting on the same page, so to speak. It works fine, and the user's guide explains an alternate method of installation for those who do have display issues concerning their monitor and the program's resolution. A representative for The Quarter Mile Math informed me that this has only occurred three times to their knowledge, but they still included the information regarding the glitch and the fix in the user's guide just in case. If you've read my pattern review below, you already know I like to be able to get things done as quickly as possible, which means I often jump ahead before reading things like user's guides. I actually did read a paragraph that was circled on the installation notes. In this case, though, the program itself was self-explanatory as far as getting all my students added and ready to race. (By the way, I did go back and spend a big chunk of time with the user's guide.)

Over the past few days, the kids and I have explored several subjects and topics within the program. While the problems differ, the format and procedure is the same. In our case, I added my 3, 5, and 6-year olds, as well as myself, as students. Upon starting the program, a student signs in with a password, which can be changed, they choose a subject and topic, and have the option to choose either a riderless horse or dragster race before they click "start race". There are 323 topics in all, and they are organized by subject and level. The Deluxe Version contains all the topics in the The Quarter Mile Math levels 1, 2, and 3, and over 70,000 problems within these topics. The extensive list of subjects include:

• Numbers and letters
• Whole numbers
• Introduction to fractions
• Fractions
• Decimals
• Percents
• Math Strategies
• Estimation
• Integers
• Equations

Once the student (or teacher) chooses a subject followed by one of the topics within that subject, they are ready to race. Each race is executed in the same manner. One problem at a time will appear at the bottom of the screen. Upon clicking "start race", the first problem will appear. As soon as the student answers this one correctly, their horse or car takes off with screeching tires or thundering hooves (volume is easily adjusted, by the way). For each correct answer, their speed increases. And the kids can actually see this as their horse or car pulls away from or lags behind the others in the race. At the end of the race, their time, speed, and rank is displayed. Like I said above, in the first race within a new topic, they race against Fast Eddy, and most likely the student will come in first. As they accumulate scores, these scores become their competitors in subsequent races. This challenges the student to always strive for a faster time, which they can accomplish by getting more answers correct more quickly. I've noticed that the more advanced topics also have longer racing periods, whereas the lower levels have shorter races, which is appropriate when you consider the ages of the students who will most likely be taking each drill.

There is also an option in the program for racing against the times of other students. The students do not race simultaneously but race against each other's times. That way they get the motivation without the intimidation at this point.

The Quarter Mile Math program does not automatically move students from one level to the next, and that is intentional. At any point, any student can take any drill on the program. At first, I thought of this as more of a disadvantage, but not after consideration of the why's behind this. There are times when an upper level students needs to hone basic skills. Some students might be tempted to and capable of manipulating their racing times just enough to stay in a lower level while improving their averages. Teachers can customize the pace of the program and use multiple avenues of assessment outside of the program to determine what skills a students needs to work on, not just how well they are performing within this program.

Okay, about troubleshooting....this program has the potential for some rare glitches with some operating systems, and they acknowledge this and provide alternate methods in the user's guide. In fact, I was informed by a rep for the program that it's only actually happened 3 times to their knowledge, but they are proactive in providing a solution should it occur again. And they have very prompt customer service as well. Yesterday, as my younger daughter was racing, we needed to escape during a race. According to the guide, that's fine--that particular race just won't be saved. Well, for a little bit after that, the program wouldn't let her sign in, saying she already was on another computer. I bypassed this by setting up another student name for her, which wasn't a big deal since we're still just getting to know the progrm. I used the contact email to ask about this issue, and within just a few hours had received an email from a real person addressing my concern and offering an explanation and solution that made sense and resolved the issue! Both thumbs up here!

Now that we've gone over what The Quarter Mile Math program is and how to use it, what do I think about it? I don't usually use pros/cons lists, but I need to for this one.

Pros

• The program is easy to install.
• The racing format provides for straightforward skills practice uncluttered by complicated directions.
• Has races for students of all ages, even preschool. (I know it is marketed for up to grade 9, but I think even upper level math students would benefit from the skills drills. I know this 34-year-old teacher plans to freshen up and speed up my own skills!)
• Scores can be tracked and printed.
• Students get the motivation and satisfaction of competition without the intimidation that sometimes accompanies it.
• My kids beg to race and argue about taking turns.
• The program covers a wide spectrum of crucial math skills, organized by subject, topic, and level.
• The Quarter Mile Math gives permission to purchasers to install the program on multiple computers, even in other locations, so students can race even if they're away from home.
• The customer service is prompt, human, and helpful.
• Barnum Software acknowledges the potential for glitches on certain operating systems and already has solutions in place.
• It is aligned to many state educational standards. Click here to check for your state.
• Barnum Software offers an unconditional 30-day money-back guarantee.

Cons

• The program has the potential for rare glitches with some operating systems. (see end of pros)
• When one student hits "quit", it shuts down the whole program. Not a huge deal, but the next student has to wait for the program to start again, which only takes a few seconds. And the customer service from The Quarter Mile Math informed me that this can be avoided by simply having the next student sign in without the first one hitting "quit".
• This program truly is just a practice program. It is not designed to be used in a way that can really reflect a grade. The Quarter Mile Math provides an average of the best 5 times, along with what drills were taken, how many times, and how many items were answered. Since it only accepts correct answers, keeping a percentage of correct answers isn't possible.

I can't put the cost issue under either of those headings. What is a bargain to one may be a tight stretch to another. And, at this point in our family's use of The Quarter Mile Math Deluxe Version program, I don't feel qualified to suggest someone go out and commit to a purchase of this amount. In favor of the program, I can offer this testimonial at this point:

My older daughter is the dream student of a traditional classroom teacher, with a love for worksheets and an amazing capacity for memorizing bits of data quickly and logically. She also had an incredibly strong desire to succeed. My younger daughter is every bit as smart and perceptive but she learns in a totally different way. She thinks outside the box, and can sythesize the ideas she latches onto into a bigger, often extremely complex concept. But that little girl is very seldom still and her brain functions best with concepts that involve memorization and repetition when she is involved through multiple senses or emotionally. The Quarter Mile Math meets those specifications. She is emotionally tied through the desire to win, and running each race involves more of her senses than a worksheet or flashcard as she experiences the realistic sounds and vibrant colors and sees the numbers on the keyboard as she answers. In just a few days, I have seen improvement in her addition skills.

I do suggest you go to the website, watch the videos,download the demo version, and take the time to read carefully and really become familiar with what is offered. There are a number of parent and teacher testimonials on the website, also, and I failed to mention until now that the Sylvan Learning Centers have made the Levels 1, 2, and 3 Bundle part of their math curriculum in all 1,100 of their locations.

I also recommend checking out other reviews of this product over at the TOS Crew blog.

Let me offer this rundown of prices before I proceed. You can view prices and make online purchases through their website here. Hey, if you want to order any of the standard versions, click on the standard side of the the page, and you will be taken to a form that lists all the standard versions.

The Quarter Mile Math: Level 1, 2, or 3 bought separately $39.95

The Quarter Mile Math: Levels 1,2 or 2,3 bundles $64.95

The Quarter Mile Math: Levels 1, 2, and 3 bundle (standard version) $89.95

The Deluxe Version of the Levels 1, 2, and 3 bundle is a subscription purchase of $2.95 a month that includes additional features not found in the standard one. To view these features, click here. This is the version I am reviewing.

There you have it....The Quarter Mile Math program from Barnum Software. I need to go--I've got to free up this chair before the next race begins!