Reflex is an adaptive online system that helps students in grades 2-8 achieve fluency with their math facts. By “fluency” we mean that a student is able to retrieve the correct answers to facts like 15 – 6 and 8 x 7 from memory almost instantly. A student who needs to stop and think about the answer to a math fact isn’t fluent with that fact, even if she eventually arrives at the correct answer.

The following are key features in Reflex that help build fluency

Fact Family Approach

Reflex uses a fact family approach when teaching new facts. A fact family (or number family) is a group of related facts that use the same numbers, such as 8 + 3 = 11, 3 + 8 = 11, 11 – 8 = 3, and 11 – 3 = 8. Learning related facts at the same time is ultimately easier and more efficient than other approaches. And it helps students understand the nature of inverse operations.

Individualized Instruction

Reflex adapts itself to each individual student. It learns which facts and families the student is not yet fluent with and then continually monitors progress towards fluency. It uses this information when making instructional decisions for that student. This means every student is learning and practicing the right facts at the right time.

Game-Based Design

In Reflex, practice occurs in fluency development games. These games provide a lot of fun alongside serious amounts of practice with answering facts. Unlike typical math fact games, they require students to engage in increasingly complex and fast-paced decision-making. Students are also motivated to practice because the games consistently challenge and reward them for both their effort and progress.
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