ArithmeQuick

ArithmeQuick App Review

App Info

Price: Free

Overview

ArithmeQuick is a math practice app designed to help students from early elementary levels through pre-algebra and beginning algebra with review and reinforcement of critical math skills. The app has a built-in monitoring system so both students and teachers/parents/mentors can see performance levels at a glance.

Features include:

  • Broad topics are broken into manageable subskills
  • Simple, color-coded system shows performance at a glance
  • Built-in timing mechanism ensures optimum performance
  • 40 colorful animations reward effort and performance
  • Comprehensive help feature provides suggestions and review for each topic

Quality

ArithmeQuick is a good quality app that is designed to be very functional. It can provide almost infinite timed practice of a wide array of skills at a range of levels. The app does keep virtual records for multiple students, and the color-coded system shows users’ levels and progress at a glance. The animations and printing are large and rather plain, but functional. On the whole, the app is likely to be perceived as “school work” by students, though, due to its nature and formatting. This could be quite appropriate and certainly less distracting for many, but some students may find it rather tame and unmotivating by itself.

Education

ArithmeQuick provides comprehensive reviews for broad skill groups, ranging from basic computation to working with exponents and roots, probability, fractions, and more. The activities accessible in the free section (basic math facts and signed math facts) present the problems in number families (such as all of the -8 facts or all of the x6 facts) and responses are timed. Each of the four operations is covered, and there is a section of mixed practice. It takes multiple successful sessions with a given skill to move through the motivational levels (silver, gold, WOW, and WOW+).

There are a few concerns, however. First, the reward sequences are not always on target. For example, I received several “PERFECT” announcements when I had missed a few problems, and I received “keep trying” sequences at times when my performance was actually perfect. The app also seems to set the bar for success in terms of speed at a perpetually higher mark. There reaches a point when students simply cannot go any faster, and I’m not sure how the app handles that in terms of its color-coded progress system.

Each problem “explodes” when the correct answer is provided, but there is no opportunity for students to see the problem with the correct answer because it explodes so quickly and moves to the next problem. This is overlooking a critical piece of learning-using visual memory to reinforce the proper response. It would be better if the problem and correct answer stayed visible long enough for children to see their completed work.

Also, the way the app is set up, children can choose to access material that is far beyond their capabilities. For example, it is possible to assign a kindergartener or first grader playing with basic math facts, but have them access activities with exponents.  It might be better if developers could find a way to allow teachers/parents/mentors more control over what skills are available for students to try.

Entertainment

Developers were obviously trying to inject a bit of fun into this app by including 40 random reward sequences that play at the end of each section. Some of these are entertaining, while others will seem indifferent to young users. The challenge of moving through the silver, gold, WOW, and WOW+ levels may not be very motivating for students, either.  And, while the reward sequences may be a bit reinforcing for young users, the students at the upper elementary and middle school levels are quite likely to be very nonplussed.

If the app is going to continue to be “dressed” with less than exciting rewards, developers may want to consider adding in rewards that can be earned by performance, such as mini-games. Otherwise, the system will likely seem more like work than play to many. It seems like something that would be assigned rather than picked up voluntarily by children of any age.

Value

ArithmeQuick is free to try. The free version of the app is limited to access to basic math facts and signed math facts. To access the other skills and levels, users must go to the website (http://www.arithmequick.com) and subscribe either monthly for $5 per month or annually for $49.  The subscription prices may be a little bit steep, especially considering that they are per user as far as I can see. The website indicates there is a multi-player discount available for families or classrooms, but it is not clear what the rate is in that situation.

Child Friendliness

This app is very child-friendly. There are no in-app purchases, no outside advertisements, and no usable connection to the internet. It does need an active internet connection to load user account information and to update performance records. If using the free version, the options for other activity groups and subskills are visible, but when a user attempts to access them, there is a pop up that says they are not available in the free version. Adults who wish to set up access to the full array of the app’s activities must arrange a subscription on the website.

  • NO external links
  • NO social media
  • NO 3rd party ads
  • YES subscription purchase from website only
ArithmeQuick
ArithmeQuick
ArithmeQuick is a functional system of timed math practice that keeps at-a-glance performance records for students. The free version allows practice with basic computation and signed computation. A subscription allows access to a huge array of skills and subtopics suitable for kindergarten through grade 8.
Quality
Education
Entertainment
Value
Child Friendly
4.1