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Math-Whizz FAQs

If the FAQs below cannot answer your question then please contact us by email

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. What is Math-Whizz Online Tutor?
  2. How much will it cost to subscribe?
  3. What is the Money Back Guarantee?
  4. How often can my child use Math-Whizz?
  5. When can my child access Math-Whizz?
  6. How secure is the information about my child?
  7. When can a parent access the Parent Account?
  8. Whom can I contact for help/technical assistance?
  9. Can Math-Whizz help with tests and exams?
  10. How is Math-Whizz different from other products on the market?
  11. What is an Assessment?
  12. Why is an Assessment necessary?
  13. Can I let my other children use Math-Whizz?
  14. What are the minimum system requirements?
  15. What do I need to access Math-Whizz?
  16. What is 'Math Age'?

Existing Subscribers

  1. What if I have forgotten the student password?
  2. What if my password/username doesn't work?
  3. My child keeps getting the same exercise repeated. How do I stop this happening?
  4. Do pop-up blockers affect the Math-Whizz service?
  5. I can't access the Math-Whizz service / Nothing happens when I click the 'Go to Bedroom' button.
  6. Will my security / antivirus / firewall software interfere with the service?
  7. What is Revision?
  8. Where do I find Revision?
  9. What do I do if I want to cancel Math-Whizz?

1. What is Math-Whizz Online Tutor?

Math-Whizz Online Tutor is an online private tutoring service for 4 - 13 year olds. Following an initial online assessment/test the service delivers a personalized program of lessons to your child through your home computer. As your child uses the service, the lesson program dynamically adjusts depending on their progress. Math-Whizz Online Tutor uses the teaching and creative animations found in our successful Math-Whizz Teachers' Resource CD Roms which over 3,000 schools in the UK and numerous school districts in the US now incorporate in their teaching of this key subject.
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2. How much will it cost to subscribe?

Monthly subscription

  • $19.99 per month. With each payment you make, you purchase a further month of tuition for your child.

 

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3. What is the Money Back Guarantee?

In summary, if your subscription begins or has begun after 1st June, 2007, you will be entitled to receive your money back after 1 year if, in that period, your student has recorded time spent on Math-Whizz exercises totalling at least 78 hours (equivalent to 90 minutes per week) and yet his or her math age has not improved by 1 year or more from the initial assessment. The guarantee is based on our experience of the results which are typically achieved by regular and sustained use of Math-Whizz Online Tutor. Please refer to the detailed provisions concerning the Money Back Guarantee in our Subscription Agreement to Math-Whizz Online Tutor which will solely determine whether you will be entitled to claim  and to receive your money back.
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4. How often can my child use Math-Whizz?

Your child can access lessons from their virtual bedroom as often as they like. The lessons take the form of colourful interactive animations, which means children enjoy the experience whilst learning. To avoid burn out, we recommend parents should restrict lessons to no more than 45 minutes per day. This is important as best results are achieved using Math-Whizz regularly over a sustained period of time, e.g. 20 - 45 minute sessions 2-3 times a week.
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5. When can my child access Math-Whizz?

As Math-Whizz is an online service it is available whenever you have access to the Internet. The beauty of Math-Whizz is that you can build your child's studies into your routine. Access your child's personalized tutoring program from home, friends' or relatives' and even from Internet cafes or hotels.
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6. How secure is information about my child?

When you add a student to your parent account we only collect the minimum information to deliver an excellent service (name, age, sex, username and password). For more information on how your child's information is stored please read our Privacy Policy (which can be accessed from the link at the foot of every page on www.whizz.com/us).
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7. When can a parent access the Parent Account?

Whenever and wherever you have access to the Internet. You can view an up-to-date report on your child's progress at any time.
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8. Who can I contact for help/technical assistance?

Please email support@whizz.com
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9. Can Math-Whizz help with tests and exams?

Yes! After successfully completing an animated exercise, the student is usually presented with five test style questions. This is to ensure that the understanding the student has gained through the animated exercises is transferable to traditional paper-based questions. This way Math-Whizz not only helps to develop understanding and confidence, but also improves test results.
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10. How is Math-Whizz different from other products on the market?

Books/CDS can help a child to learn but the Math-Whizz service teaches by identifying your child's ability level in each topic of the math curriculum, delivering specific lessons that address your child's needs and dynamically adapting the lesson program as your child progresses. In addition, most of our animations contain help functions to show how the correct answers can be found.
You can keep track of your child's progress at all times through the Report Card, accessed through the parent account. The report breaks the curriculum down into topics, and shows how well your child is performing in each topic, as well as showing their overall performance.

Some Private Tutors offer excellent teaching services to children. Math-Whizz is not seeking to replace private tutors, but to offer a more convenient and affordable service with the common goal of developing your child's math ability. With private tutoring costing between $20 and $50 per hour, we believe Math-Whizz offers excellent value.

Other tutoring companies typically offer prescriptive, centre-based learning that you need to fit your routine around. The teaching methods used are not right for everyone. Math-Whizz not only offers you the flexibility of using the service whenever and wherever you want, but also allows your child to enjoy their lessons through the colourful interactive animations and the rewards they can earn.
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11. What is an Assessment?

The Assessment is a 'test' to assess your child's ability across the key topics in math. We have presented the Assessment in an exam style so we can understand your child's basic math ability topic by topic. The output gives you a guide to your child's actual math ability and determines the initial lesson plan for the Math-Whizz service.

Please do not help or let others help your child with the Assessment. A false result will generate an unrealistic lesson plan, and disqualify you from our Money Back Guarantee.
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12. Why is an Assessment necessary?

The Assessment allows the Math-Whizz Virtual Tutor to create a unique lesson plan which will cater to the needs of the individual student, a plan that will build confidence in their weaker topics and fortify their stronger ones.
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13. Can I let my other children use Math-Whizz?

If you want more than one child in a household to use Math-Whizz they will all need to be separately registered, assessed and paid for. Allowing more than one child to use a single Student Account totally disrupts the continual assessment process and is prohibited by our terms and conditions. However you only require one Parent Account, from which you will be able to access all of your children's details.
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14. What are the minimum system requirements?

PC Requirements:

  • Pentium II 400 MHz or AMD K6-2 or 100% equivalent processor
  • Windows 98, 2000, ME or XP
  • 64Mb RAM
  • 16 bit colour (though 32 bit is ideal)
  • Sound card and speakers (essential for Key Stage1, optional for Key Stage 2 and above)
  • Recommended minimum screen resolution 1024 x 768 pixels

MAC Requirements:

  • G3, G4 Mac 300MHz
  • Mac OS X version 10.1 with 128Mb RAM or Mac OS 8.6 or 9 with 64Mb RAM
  • Recommended browser: Mozilla Firefox

We recommend that you should have a broadband internet connection to use Math-Whizz.
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15. What do I need to access Math-Whizz?

See above for minimum system requirements.
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16. What is 'Math Age'?

Math age is a term we use to define math ability relative to what a child should know at that age (eg a math age of 8 in fractions means that your child performs to the level of what an 8 year old should know in fractions), similar to the way that 'Reading Age' helps to define reading ability. 
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Existing Subscribers

17. What if I have forgotten my child's password?

In your Parent Account page, go to your child's student details. Select the a link labelled 'Edit details' to change the password to something memorable.
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18. What if my password/username doesn't work?

Passwords are case sensitive. Check that Caps Lock is switched off and try again.
If you still can't access your account, select 'Forgot your password?' from the navigation bar to the left of the screen. Enter your e-mail address and we will send you a new password. Change this to something more memorable by using the 'Change Your Password' option on the Parent Account page.
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19. My child keeps getting the same exercise repeated. How do I stop this happening?

This can be caused by your computer's 'cache'.

Web browsers save pages you look at to make surfing the internet faster. The next time you visit a page you've been to before it uses a copy of that page. These pages are stored in the 'cache', or 'Temporary Internet files'.

To solve the problem you can delete these files, or 'clear the cache'. Follow the steps below for your browser:

AOL Browser

  • From the 'My AOL' menu, on the AOL toolbar, Click 'Preferences'.
  • Then Click 'WWW', look for the 'Temporary Internet Files'.
  • Click 'Delete Files' and then click 'OK', this will clear your cache.

Internet Explorer

  • Click 'Tools' in the main menus (File, Edit, Tools etc.), then 'Internet Options'.
  • This brings up a dialog with 6 tabs across the top (General, Security, Content, ...).
  • Click 'General', then look for 'Temporary Internet Files'.
  • Click 'Delete Files', then (if it appears, check off 'Delete all offline content'), then click 'OK'.
  • Click 'OK' again and this will have cleared your cache.

Netscape

  • Click 'Edit' in the main menus (File, Edit, etc.), then 'Preferences'.
  • Find 'Advanced'. Click the + sign in front of the word, 'advanced'.
  • You'll see 'Cache, Proxies, etc...'
  • Click 'Cache'.
  • On the right you'll see, buttons labeled 'Clear Memory Cache' and 'Clear Disk Cache'.
  • First, click 'Clear Memory Cache' when the "?" dialog appears click 'OK'.
  • Then click 'Clear Disk Cache', when the "?" dialog appears, click 'OK'.
  • Click 'OK' again to close the Cache Dialog box.
  • This will have cleared your cache.

Firefox

  • Click 'Tools' in the main menus (File, Edit, Tools etc.), then 'Options'.
  • In the following dialog click 'Privacy' in the left-hand list.
  • Click the 'Clear' button to the right of 'Cache'.
  • Click 'OK' and this will have cleared your cache.

If you have repeated problems please email Customer Service at support@whizz.com

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20. Do pop-up blockers affect the Math-Whizz service?

Yes, Math-Whizz operates using the full screen and so pop-up blockers can affect the service. If you encounter problems please ensure that you have any pop-up blocker turned off.
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21. I can't access the Math-Whizz service / Nothing happens when I click the 'Go to Bedroom' button.

This is typically caused by Pop-Up Blocker software installed on your computer. Pop-up Blockers are sometimes unable to recognise that this is user requested, so they prevent the page from opening.

Pop-up blockers are included in software from AOL, MSN, Internet Explorer, Netscape, Norton Utilities, Alexa and many more. If you experience this problem accessing our service, try disabling your pop-up blocker. Please also see the FAQ relating to security software.
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22. Will my security / antivirus / firewall software interfere with the service?

Possibly. Norton Internet Security (NIS) and Norton Anti-Virus/Firewall may prevent the service from working. To navigate this problem you must temporarily disable the "Security" option in these products in order to access Math-Whizz. To do this, select the NIS Security Center option within your Norton software and turn the first option under "Security" to "Off". Then refresh your browser before trying once again to access the service.

If you have a different firewall installed (software that protects your computer from viruses, etc.) this may be responsible for the problem. Try temporarily disabling it to test whether this assists Math-Whizz.

If you're still unable to get access, please email a complete description of the problem to support@whizz.com. This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it . For us to best assist you, you'll need to include your computer platform, operating system, browser type and number.
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23. What is Revision?

Revision allows Students to return to animated Math-Whizz exercises they have already completed. Students will find in Revision any exercise up to 12 months back from their current Math age. Screenshots are laid out topic by topic in chronological order. This makes it quick and easy to revise a math topic for a test. As an added benefit, your Students will always be able to run over again the exercises they have particularly enjoyed!
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24. Where do I find Revision?

Revision is accessed from the Student Bedroom by clicking on the Whizz Logo and selecting Revision. Revision is only available to subscribers of Math-Whizz.
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25. What do I do if I want to cancel Math-Whizz?

If you wish to cancel your subscription to Math-Whizz, please email support@whizz.com. Ensure your email arrives at least the day before any new payment is due.
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