QuickMath v0.4 with all strategies unlocked
Working as a substitute teacher I saw an unmet need for mental math skills. There is a lot of good work being done on number fluency which is a foundational math skill, but mental math and automaticity have received a bad name due to how tedious memorizing the multiplication tables can be. I'm trying to make a tool (not a game) for developing those skills incorporating elements of game design and based on rigorous academic research into learning and mathematics. It's not flashy by design so as to foster an appreciation of math on an intrinsic level.
QuickMath is a tool for anyone who wants to practice their mental math. The "meat" of the program is a progression of different skills and strategies designed to build from foundations to more advanced arithmetic. There is also a challenge mode where users can test their skills against arithemtic problems of increasing difficulty.
Although the UI is simple by design, users can also change the colors of the layout via different preset themes.
The layout is mobile-first because smartphones are the primary technological tool of the modern world.
The two big additions over the past week are an SVG number line that I've snuck into a few problem types and the option to change the number pad configuration.
As of now, the SVG number line works well for simpler problem types. I don't really need it to work with more complicated problems because I just want it to be a tool for the earlier problems before users transition into exclusively mental math. I spent a few days getting the animations to work properly and then another day or so making it all work for more than one problem type. It looks good on my phone so that makes me happy.
I have the option to change number pad layouts and I'm building a snazzy screen for changing them. In all, there will by 128 unique number pad layouts to choose from. Part of the UI is a toggle switch that I'm very happy with. I still have to make a better system for displaying the current layout.
- track down the bug that prevents the numbers from showing sometimes in the
doubles()problems - add more problem types
- fill out division beyond Fundamentals
- expand on the introduction to fractions
- add more challenges
- fix balance on challenge problem functions
- answer a fixed number of problems (digits?) as fast as possible (Fast 50?)
- add functions for multiplication and division to the challenges
- mode/challenge where user goes through number facts (eg, multiplication table)
- save user data between sessions
- import/export data
- reset data
- add multi-language support
- add more themes
- find a better place to unlock Multiplication and Division
- should fractions be its own section or built into the basic operations? Likewise, what about decimals?
- what would keyboard support look like?
- what would a working memory exercise look like?
- achievements?
- basic achievements for the challenges (3 each based on performance?) and strategies, plus secret achievements based on math trivia?
- what is the optimal order for unlocking strategies/skills?
- find a way to simplify the changing and reordering of notifications
- find a way to simplify the changing and reordering of problems in data-strategies.js
I set out to make this program sparse. I had gone with the game aesthetic in the Mathemagicus game and I wanted this to be more utilitarian. But there is research that indicates that color is almost universally preferred to black and white. I still want to maintain the "clean" aesthetic of the program as it stands now, but I think it could benefit from limited color. One question is where and how to use it. Another is which colors to use. Pett & Wilson (1996, it's on JSTOR) mention that it can be used to draw attention to something, which I think would work really well in an otherwise color-sparse environment. They also mention that humans in general are really good at using colors for identifying things (like resistors). Maybe I could use color to subtly indicate which skill is being shown?
I think it's important to acknowledge that, according to Castell et al (2018), there doesn't seem to be an inherent connection between a specific color and either cognitive performance or emotional state. I had pondered using a pulse of green for correct answers and a pulse of red for a wrong one, but it might be better to let the user pick their preferred color for correct input and its color complement for incorrect input.
Clearly defined objectives
What is my core loop?
I'm reading through some 19th century articles right now and it's striking how passionate the writers are in their advocacy for mental math. I feel like these advocates are the source for the timed multiplication table tests I had to take in the 4th grade. Although none of the authors I've read so far have called for timed testing, their means for improving mental calculation are left unsaid.
Apparently the timed tests to which I (and many others) was subjected were not a direct result of the 19th century educational fad of mental math. Many schools switched to a program of oral math. There was a backlash to this that lasted until the middle of the 20th century when there was a revival in interest. And here we are again. "Everything old is new again."
The exception is Haskins, (1887) who gives examples that would be familiar to teachers today, such as counting by 2s up and down the number line.
Doug Rohrer, interleaving - drohrer@usf.edu
Zachary Hawes, spatial development