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Koantum (online science) Review by Wendi Kitsteiner

Koantum is an interactive online learning platform designed for early learners. More specifically, it teaches science to kids in grades K-5. Any device with an Internet connection can provide everything you need to use this program.

This program can be utilized in two different ways:

1. At School: Teachers can use this program with their students. It can enhance existing curriculum while maintaining the teacher’s preferred approach of learning. While the students use the program, the teacher gets reports and insights which allows the teacher to focus on what they do best: classroom instruction.
2. At Home: Koantum’s interactive science lessons are specifically designed to be self-guided. Set up in a point-and-click style, the entire program is entirely interactive, and the lesson plans are easy to follow and fun for the students. In this way, families can use this for homeschooling or simply to bring the love of science back to a school-attending child.

I wish this review allowed me to show you how awesome this program was. The animations and videos are delightful and incredibly well done. The lessons are a perfect length, and all four of my kids (ages 4-10) absolutely loved the opportunity to participate.

So, let’s use my nine-year-old son, Elijah, as an example student for the sake of this review. Elijah did the third grade version of the program. He logged into the program and had the opportunity to choose from the following topics: Electricity, Animal Habitats, Forces, Three States of Matter, Classifying Plants, Vertebrates, Cells, Ecosystems, Life Cycles, Weather, Heat, Sound, Forms of Energy, Energy Conversion, Adaptation, Ecosystem, Climate, Simple Machines, Heredity, and the Solar System.

In total there are 71 lessons in the program – some are available for all grades and some are dedicated to certain grades. For example, there are lessons just for Kindergarteners including: Five Senses, Living and Nonliving Things, Taking Care of Body, and Animals.

On this particular day, I had Sidge work through “Classifying Plants.” Here were the five sections he worked through:

• Classifying Plants:
  • Page 1: The student uses a drag and drop method to determine which plants are flowering and which are non-flowering.
  • Page 2: The student uses a drag and drop method to determine which plants are seed or spore-producing.
  • Page 3: The student uses a drag and drop method to put things in order to determine the steps of fruit formation.
  • Page 4: The student drags and drops to show they understand the part of a seed and its function.
  • Page 5: The student answers questions on plants.

In addition to the interactive online program for the student, the teacher is provided with a Lesson Plan and worksheet/s to go with each subject matter. This means that you can spend an entire “unit” studying a certain topic and follow-up with worksheets and additional reinforcement.

This program runs $7.95 per child per month. (You can also pay by the year and get two months free.) However, here’s some really cool news! You can sign up for a “free plan” that gives you three lessons for free! I greatly encourage everyone to try this. I think you will be completely won over by this delightful program. The animations and colors are just so exciting and well-done. We have absolutely loved the opportunity to use this program and recommend it whole-heartedly.

-Product review by Wendi Kitsteiner, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, June, 2018