DreamBox Tricks Kids Into Learning Math

I have to hand it to this little web start-up company: it’s a gutsy strategy to deceive schoolchildren with a game called “DreamBox Learning K-2 Math.” I’d have thought Math Blaster was subtler edutainment.

DreamBox Learning launches its new site today, featuring an Amazon.com-ish interface for teachers to navigate its math programs games. A monthly subscription to the site comes at US$49 a pop, compared to the US$20 a month Indian Math Online charges for its interactive lessons.

The difference here is the fun factor, supposedly. Lou Grey, DreamBox Learning’s chief executive officer, tells the New York Times that his company has perfected the balance between learning and gaming so kids won’t get bored.

“The hallmark of the product is it’s real math, but children think it’s a game,” he said.

Good luck fooling the little guys and gals, I say. You might want to work at hiding the equations, though. All the fairies and elves in the world don’t distract from the visual horror that is an improper fraction.

Start-Up Uses Online Games to Teach Math