Disclosure: I received this complimentary product through the Homeschool Review Crew.
We have had the opportunity to look at the Premium Subscription for Brilliant math, and I had my fourteen-year-old daughter look over it to see how she liked the geometry course and try out the logic program.
What is Brilliant Math?
Brilliant Math is an online program designed to use problem-solving and hands-on applications rather than lectures to teach math concepts. The program is designed for students of all ages.
There are a wide variety of courses, including:
- Everyday Math
- Pre-Algebra
- Geometry Fundamentals
- Scientific Thinking
- Computer Science Fundamentals
- Logic
How Did We Use Brilliant Math?
I had my fourteen-year-old try out geometry and logic. She was already taking geometry, and we wanted to see how this approach worked for her. She tried several lessons but struggled with the lack of formal instruction.
She also started on the logic course and liked that one much better. The problems were much like riddles or mind puzzles, encouraging her to think about things in innovative ways. We felt it was a great way to stretch her mind and help her improve her problem-solving skills.
The logic lessons are relatively short, taking only about ten to fifteen minutes to complete an assignment. They are set up as word problems that need to be solved, and it takes you through the process step by step. Anytime you get the answer incorrect, you can see an explanation of the correct answer.
For example, in one problem, lying robots had switched up coins into different safes, so they were mislabeled. You had to go through the steps to see how few safes you could open to figure out which coins should be in which safe. It started with just four safes and then increased the number of safes with each step.
What Did We Think About Brilliant Math?
“I like the logic course, it gets me thinking, and I enjoy figuring out the problems and how to work them out. It only takes me about 5-10 minutes per lesson. It gives me a short amount of *instructional lessons* but not much. It also has an explanation section.
The geometry course is challenging for me to understand. It is laid out well, but hard to understand the short instructions they give me.
*The instructions are typed up as you go through answering questions*” Elizabeth, age 14
While I think some students would do well in the other math courses with the problem-solving strategies and hands-on approach, I did see how it was not the right fit for my daughter. However, we really enjoyed the logic portion of the subscription. I loved how it made her think and challenged her to look at things differently. The lessons were short and easy to add to her day. We will continue to use that portion of the subscription.
I believe that this might be a good fit for students who are not doing well with a traditional lecture approach to math. It would also be an excellent program for helping students apply math concepts they have already learned to more real-world applications.
Be sure to click on the graphic below to see what courses other Review Crew families tried and how Brilliant worked for their families.
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