His middle name is Danger (really!) and he grew up on a llama farm. Meet Gavin Brown, a software engineer for IXL’s mobile apps!

The Basics

Name and title: Gavin Brown, Software Engineer, Mobile

Has been at IXL for: 10 months

Hometown and current city: Grew up in Bend, Ore. Currently lives in San Mateo, Calif.

Life at IXL

What did you do prior to coming to IXL?

I taught English in Japan for two years, at three different elementary schools in the middle of nowhere [see photo, right]. Before that, I was in Honduras teaching English, but I got tired of the living conditions—for example, we had water every other day for four hours, and we weren’t sure what hours! The water came from the river so it was brown, and you’d pour bleach in there and use it for everything.

What do you do at IXL?

Most of my day is spent writing code for features for IXL’s mobile apps, and working on bug fixes. One of the projects I did was the scratchpad for the Android app, and right now I’m working on developing push notifications.

What do you like about working at IXL?

I like the work and the people I work with, which is always important. I also like the flexible work hours and laid-back environment.

Life beyond IXL

Is it true you grew up on a llama farm?

It was more of a “ranchette.” We had llamas because my dad really likes hiking. It’s difficult to take young children hiking for a long period of time—we would go for 1, 2, or 3 weeks, and that’s a lot of food and equipment to carry on your back, so we got llamas as pack animals and they would carry our gear for us.

What do you like to do in your free time?

I like rafting—I hope to go rafting at least five times this year, and I’m in the lottery to do the Colorado River. I’m into hiking [see photo, right] and Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and I read an inordinate amount of trashy fantasy and science fiction. I like the good stuff too though; my favorite book is “The Count of Monte Cristo” by Alexandre Dumas.

Do you have a nickname?

Well, my middle name is Danger…my parents are special people!

Just for Fun

Let’s play “this or that”! Answer as quickly as you can:

• Dogs or cats? Dogs.
• Beach or snow? Beach.
• Early bird or night owl? Night owl, but I want to be an early bird!
• Roller coaster or Ferris wheel? Roller coaster
• Pizza or burrito? Burrito.

What would we find in your refrigerator right now?

Carrots, tomatoes, spinach, cilantro, soy milk, tofu, BBQ sauce and all sorts of condiments, and sausage.

If you were an animated/cartoon character, who would you be and why?

I’d be Genie from Aladdin, because he’s funny, he has awesome powers, and I love Robin Williams!

    

Earlier this month, IXLers rolled up their sleeves (literally!) to help the American Red Cross maintain a healthy and reliable blood supply. On May 8, the Red Cross set up a mobile donation center in our office building. IXLers recruited donors, helped with registration, served refreshments, and donated blood themselves!

IXL donors were joined by spouses, people from other companies in the building, and individuals from the community.  One donor said, “Once I learned that I have a rare blood type, I’ve made a point of donating regularly. I live nearby.”

In addition to several experienced IXL donors, multiple first-time donors participated.

“I was nervous donating blood for the first time,” said software engineer Kevin Dong. “It ended up being much easier than I expected, and it was fulfilling to know I was helping those in need.”

After undergoing a rigorous screening process, donors gave either a unit of whole blood or two units of red cells. Afterwards, donors were treated to a snack by IXL volunteers and then returned to work feeling good about their contribution. By the end of the day, we surpassed our donation target, collecting 22 units of blood.

“I have several relatives that have gone through lengthy operations requiring several units of blood to keep them alive,” said engineering project lead Mark Ritterhoff, when asked why he donated.  He also noted, “I’m O-positive, the universal donor, and have ‘veins a rookie paramedic could find in the dark,’ according to one nurse!”

The American Red Cross supplies about 40 percent of the nation’s blood supply, collected through its donation centers and blood drives like the one IXL hosted. One donation can help save the lives of up to three people! To find out how you can donate blood, host a blood drive, and more, visit www.redcross.org/blood.

By Christine Kiekhaefer, product analyst, math

    

Summer vacation is coming soon, but IXL fun doesn’t have to stop when school’s out! In fact, it’ll be double the sun and double the fun: to keep kids motivated to practice during the summer months, we’re running two different contests for two chances to win amazing prizes!

Study in the Sun—Summer Usage Contest

June 1 to August 31, 2015 

Who can answer the most questions on IXL over the summer? We’ll find out with our Study in the Sun contest! The three students in each category—preK-4^th grade, 5^th-8^th grade, and 9^th-12^th grade—that complete the most questions between June 1 and August 31 will win a Samsung Galaxy tablet! As an added challenge, students must achieve at least 70 percent accuracy on all questions answered during the contest.

We will post updates on the top students in each category here and on our Facebook page on June 30, July 31, and August 14 so kids can see if they’re in the running! Winners will be announced on September 4.

Read the full contest rules and register here by August 30.

Summer Snapshot Contest

June 1 to August 31, 2015 

Why not try practicing IXL somewhere new over the summer? We’re inviting students to send us photos of themselves practicing IXL—whether it’s on a road trip, at a friend’s house, or in the backyard! (Psst…a great way to take IXL on the go is with one of our fabulous mobile apps).

All of the photos we receive will be featured on our Facebook page over the summer, and the three students with the best photos will each receive a $100 Visa gift card!
Here’s how to enter:

• Take a photo of your child practicing IXL. Make sure the IXL website or mobile app is visible in the photo.
• Submit the photo*, along with your student’s first name and a caption, to snapshot@ixl.com. Or, post the photo directly to our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/IXL!
• The caption can include: Where your child practiced IXL, what he or she likes about IXL, what your student is doing this summer in addition to mastering skills on IXL—and anything else you can think of!

We’ll judge the photos based on creativity, originality, and photo quality, and will announce the winners on September 4. Check out the below photos (of IXL employees) for inspiration!

Staying sharp over the summer by practicing math on IXL!	Showing <3 for IXL on a trip to San Francisco!	Studying in the sun with friends!

*Photos of children under 13 must be submitted by the child’s parent or guardian. By submitting a photo you are giving us permission to publish the image and your child’s first name to the IXL Facebook page.

    

Did you know that students lose an average one to two months of math and reading skills over the summer? Help your students and children combat this “summer brain drain” with IXL! We’ve created a variety of free printable resources to motivate kids to practice while school’s out. Check them out in the IXL Community!

IXL’s summer resources include:

Parent handout

Send this home with students to let their parents know that their kids have access to IXL over the summer. It’s also a handy way to suggest goals for your students to reach!

Bingo board

Our bingo board has tons of fun challenges to inspire kids to practice. Can they practice five days in a row? Practice a skill at next year’s grade level?

Summer contests

There’s nothing like a little competition to motivate students to keep their skills fresh. We’re doubling down on contests this summer, with an individual usage contest and a summer photo contest! Prizes include a Samsung Galaxy tablet and a $100 Visa gift card. Find out how to enter and win by reading our blog post here.

For more resources, like a practice calendar and a skill suggestion handout, visit IXL’s summer resources page!

    

Looking for ways to keep the kids entertained over the summer? Download some child-friendly apps that are both fun and educational! From stargazing to coding, here are some of our recommendations:

Unleash creativity with storytelling apps

Encourage your kids to practice their creative writing skills through storytelling apps! Toontastic (free, iPad) lets them animate characters and record their voices to create a cartoon, and teaches them key elements of storytelling, from setup to climax to resolution. Or, try Write About This (free, iPad), which offers up fun images and writing prompts to inspire students to express their thoughts and ideas.

Explore the world with science apps

Help your children explore their interests by downloading relevant apps that will feed their curiosity. For example, budding astronomers might like Star Walk ($2.99, iPad/iPhone), which teaches kids about the solar system, and even allows them to hold up their device to the sky and identify constellations that are above them. If your kids love toy cars, have them play with Go Car Go ($0.99, iPad/iPhone), an app that challenges them to apply the laws of physics to design cars that can successfully navigate an obstacle course. National Geographic’s GeoDash ($1.99, iPad/iPhone, Nook) is great for kids who are interested in the animal kingdom—they’ll get absorbed in wildlife-themed games and learn facts about animals and their habitats along the way.

Prevent summer brain drain

Help your kids retain what they’ve learned during the school year with regular practice during the summer. IXL is a great way to do so—through fun interactive questions, students can review concepts they’ve already learned, or explore skills in the grade level they’re entering in the fall to get a head start. Plus, kids can win prizes for practicing on IXL in the summer (get the details here)!

Learn programming basics with coding apps

If your children like playing games, why not encourage them to make some of their own? Apps like Lightbot ($2.99, iPad/iPhone, Android) and Hopscotch (free, iPad) teach kids basic programming concepts by challenging them to solve puzzles and code games.

    

Have you entered our summer usage contest yet? The students who answer the most questions on IXL this summer will win a Samsung Galaxy tablet! Get the details on how to enter here. Have questions about the contest? Read our FAQ and the full contest rules below!

 FULL CONTEST RULES

Eligibility: All participating students must register online by August 30 by clicking here. Eligible registrations should include an accurate IXL username–IXL is not responsible for incorrect or incomplete registrations. Students must be part of an active IXL site, classroom, or family membership. Trial members will not be eligible.

Determination of winners: IXL will select the top 3 students from each grade band (PK-4, 5-8, 9-12) that have completed the most questions on IXL between June 1, 2015, at 12:01 am (PST) and August 31, 2015, at 11:59 pm (PST). Winners will be announced on September 4, 2015. To be eligible for a prize, a student must achieve a minimum accuracy of 70% on all eligible questions answered during the contest period. Questions in both math and language arts will be counted. Skills that are repeated after they have been mastered once during the contest period will not be counted. This contest is intended to encourage students to practice their skills and gain confidence in their skills. Any practice that does not conform to the spirit of the contest will be eliminated at IXL’s discretion.

Prizes: Winners will be posted on IXL’s blog on September 4, 2015. Each winning student will receive a Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 (7.0″, 8GB, Wi-Fi).

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How do I check the number of questions I have attempted?

Sign in to your IXL account and visit the “Usage Log” report, which can be found by clicking on the “Reports” tab, and then listed under “Usage.” You can also find it by visiting https://www.ixl.com/reports/usage/student.

Once you reach this report, set the time range to between June 1 and present, select the subject/s you practiced, and set the grade level to “All.” Then, click “Update report.” You will see a column titled “Problems attempted” and the total problems attempted at the bottom of the report.

Are problems for both math and language arts counted?

Yes, practice in both subjects will be counted!

Is practice counted starting June 1, or starting when I registered?

Practice will be counted starting June 1, no matter when you registered—just make sure you register here by the deadline of August 30!

Will you be posting rankings so we can see where we stand in the competition?

Yes, we will be posting leaderboards of the top students on June 30, July 31, and August 14. The leaderboards will be posted on the IXL blog (http://blog.ixl.com/) and on our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/IXL). Winners will be announced September 4.

Will IXL count questions for previously mastered skills?

If the skills were mastered prior to the start of the contest, students can go back and practice them again, and those questions will count toward this contest. However, after they master the skill during the contest period, any further practice will not count.

Will IXL count incorrectly answered questions? Will questions practiced outside of the students’ grade level be counted?

Yes and yes! We encourage students to practice above or below grade level, and we want them to know that it’s okay to make mistakes and then learn from them. However, practice that is not consistent with the spirit of the contest – such as deliberately answering questions incorrectly – is not permitted.

What does it mean that we have to achieve 70% accuracy on all eligible problems?

This means that of all of the problems you attempted, 70 percent of those problems must have been answered correctly. For example, if you practiced 100 problems during the contest period, at least 70 of those problems must have been answered correctly.

To check on your percentage accuracy, visit the Performance by Skill report (https://www.ixl.com/reports/performance/studentbyskill), select the subject/s and grade level/s you practiced, and click “Update report.” Look at the section on the right side of the report that says Problems. Take the total number in the “Problems – Correct” column and divide it by the total number in the “Problems – Total column” to calculate your accuracy percentage.

How do I sign up multiple students for the contest?

To register the first student, log into that student’s IXL account and fill out the registration form. To register the second student (and all subsequent students), you must log into each new student’s account and fill out a separate registration form for each student.

    

In June, a group of IXL employees learned about organic farming and contributed to community food production during a volunteer day at Full Circle Farm in Sunnyvale, Calif., a nonprofit dedicated to the renewal of local, sustainable food systems. Check out our recap of the day, written by IXLer Jihan Mansour!

Our day started off at 9 a.m. sharp on a Saturday. We first received an introduction to the farm’s creation and mission, then grabbed wheelbarrows, shovels, and gloves before heading to the pile of compost. There, we sifted through the “bad stuff”— anything that cannot be used by the plant for nourishment, such as plastics, aluminum cans, wood chips, and other pieces of non-compostable garbage—to collect the “good stuff.”

Once the wheelbarrows were full, we rolled them down to the rows of tomatoes for proper placement. We learned that Full Circle Farm yields about 600 tomatoes in July (the height of tomato season) across 20 varieties, including Roma, On-The-Vine, Beefsteak, Cherry, Boxcar, Brandywine, Big Willie, and Heirloom.

Once we reached the rows of seeds, we scooped the sifted compost with empty buckets and headed down each aisle to spread the nutrient-dense dirt around the tiny tomato plants, and patted the dirt down with our glove-covered hands to cover every nook and cranny.

After a day of hard work with the compost, we were pooped—pardon the pun! Nonetheless, the experience was a great one that taught us a number of important lessons: organic farming is the way to grow (see what I did there?), and team work makes the dream work!

To learn about volunteer opportunities at Full Circle Farm, visit http://fullcirclesunnyvale.org/get-involved/.

By Jihan Mansour, training specialist 

    

School’s out and the sun’s out – and so are our newest math skills! We’ve added 33 brand-new ways for students to make a splash in math this summer. Check out some of our favorites below!

3^rd grade: Understand multiplication

We’ve added a whole new category in third grade to help students understand multiplication on a conceptual level. These skills incorporate visual models, such as counting equal groups (E.1) and using number lines to write multiplication sentences (E.7).

Kindergarten (A.2, B.2, C.4) and pre-K (C.4, D.4): Count using stickers

Young students will love this skill, where they’ll learn how to count by placing the correct number of stickers onto fun and colorful pictures! Kindergarteners will also like our new drag-and-drop Venn diagram skill (N.6).

Precalculus: Identify an outlier (Z.4)

This interactive skill helps high school students learn to identify outliers—which can be a tricky concept to teach since an outliers aren’t rigidly defined. We’ve also added two new categories for precalculus students: nonlinear inequalities and real numbers. Explore them here!

In addition to adding new skills, we’ve also given several existing ones a facelift! For example, check out the new look and feel of this 6^th grade problem, Which is the better coupon? (G.1).

Want more new skills? Here’s a full list!

Pre-K:

Fewer

Compare numbers (smaller and smallest)

Count using stickers (up to 3)

Count using stickers (up to 5)

Count using stickers (up to 10)

Kindergarten:

Compare three numbers – up to 10

2^nd grade:

Sort shapes into a Venn diagram

Count equal groups

Identify multiplication sentences for equal groups

Write multiplication sentences for equal groups

Relate addition and multiplication for equal groups

Write multiplication sentences for arrays

Write multiplication sentences for number lines

3^rd grade:

Sort shapes into a Venn diagram

Count equal groups

Identify multiplication sentences for equal groups

Write multiplication sentences for equal groups

Relate addition and multiplication for equal groups

Write multiplication sentences for arrays

Make arrays to model multiplication

Write multiplication sentences for number lines

Algebra 1:

Factor quadratics using algebra tiles

Algebra 2:

Factor quadratics using algebra tiles

Geometry:

Exterior Angle Inequality

Precalculus:

Graph solutions to higher-degree inequalities

Solve higher-degree inequalities

Classify rational and irrational numbers

Sort rational and irrational numbers

Properties of operations on rational and irrational numbers

Find z-values

Find values of normal variables

Identify an outlier

Identify an outlier and describe the effect of removing it

    

We hope you’ve been practicing hard for our Study in the Sun summer usage contest! Here are our top students so far – did you make the list?

If you haven’t registered for the contest yet, visit www.ixl.com/summer-contest to join in on the fun! The top three students in each grade band who answer the most questions on IXL by August 31 will win a Samsung Galaxy tablet! For contest rules and FAQs, check out this blog post.

Want another way to win prizes from IXL this summer? Enter our Summer Snapshot contest!

And now…here are the top 20 students in each category!*

Pre-K to 4^th grade

1. Chu Man Duc, Hanoi, Vietnam, 23,590
2. Alexus P., Apopka, FL, 19,182
3. Nguyen Quoc Dat, Hanoi, Vietnam, 17,253
4. Esra A., Naperville, IL, 15,888
5. Josh W., Franklin, TN, 13,764
6. Hibba M., Pikeville, KY, 12,518
7. Euphony Z., Chula Vista, CA, 12,076
8. Shrika A., Placentia, CA, 11,223
9. Suvir G., Frisco, TX, 11,034
10. James S., Caldwell, ID, 9,969
11. Agasthya K., O’Fallon, MO, 9,584
12. Akshay B., Miramar, FL, 9,010
13. Roshan B., West Des Moines, IA, 9,006
14. Shane J., Euless, TX, 8,576
15. Viggu G., Slatersville, RI, 8,331
16. Jujaar B., Brampton, ON, Can, 8,158
17. Rehaan K., Duluth, GA, 7,738
18. JB M., Fairhope, AL, 7,738
19. Michael M., McKees Hill, NSW, Aus, 7,725
20. Sukhmeet B., Brampton, ON, Can, 8,158

5^th to 8^th grade

1. Eliee C., Reseda, CA, 21,396
2. Navdeep N., Westchester, IL, 18,722
3. Aman N., Westchester, IL, 16,282
4. Seth P., Nacogodoches, TX, 14,935
5. Ashley A., Houston, TX, 14,831
6. Jeeven S., South Barrington, IL, 12,695
7. Jayni T., Fremont, CA, 12,256
8. Emma S., Lancaster, PA, 10,626
9. Newton K., Austin, TX, 10,323
10. Omar A., Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 10,219
11. Shrivardhan T., Cheswick, PA, 10,087
12. Ivo C., San Pedro de Macrois, Dominican Republic, 9,939
13. Tayler S., Gautier, MS, 9,866
14. Deven A., West Lafayette, IN, 9,855
15. Samridhi S., Thornton, CO, 9,826
16. John M., Herndon, VA, 9,625
17. Torin S., Pensacola, FL, 9,235
18. Riley O., Glen Rock, NJ, 8,969
19. Daniel L., Newark, NJ, 8,891
20. Ishan P., Tampa, FL, 8,730

9^th to 12^th grade

1. Elizabeth M., Cayce, SC, 11,756
2. Kai D., East Wenatchee, WA, 11,512
3. Ritvik K., Newport News, VA, 9,330
4. Justin C., St. Louis, MO, 9,147
5. Aleema Q., Plano, TX, 7,383
6. Joshua Y., Alpharetta, GA, 7,366
7. Ahmad M., Houston, TX, 6,575
8. Kanak G., Mercer Island, WA, 6,143
9. Ali B., Marietta, GA, 5,789
10. Michael M., Powder Springs, GA 5,286
11. Mackenzie C., Tyler, TX, 5,272
12. Laura H., Cumming, GA, 5,203
13. Jacob R., Lebanon, TN, 5,064
14. Johan L., Glendale, CA, 5,036
15. Hannah T., Lilburn, GA, 5,021
16. Srividhya P., Bentonville, AR, 4,912
17. Emily R., Gold Canyon, AZ, 4,806
18. Yuki H., Minnetonka, MN, 4,800
19. Kim C., Framingham, MA, 4,580
20. Andrew L., Johnston, IA, 4,565

*Results as of June 29, 4:00 p.m. Pacific Time. Due to large number of entries, we are unable to share rankings for students outside of the top 20.

    

IXL is looking to hire a rockstar content QA analyst! What exactly does a content QA analyst do? Read our Q&A with IXLer Jeremy Mejia below to find out what he loves about the job, his favorite summertime activities, and more!

The Basics

Name and title: Jeremy Mejia, Quality Assurance Analyst—Content

Has been at IXL for: 4.5 years

Hometown and current city: Grew up in Orange County, Calif. Currently lives in Oakland, Calif.

Life at IXL

Why did you join IXL?

I always had a passion for education—I’d been tutoring since high school and I come from a family of teachers. I got a degree in cognitive science, and every time we had to do any math, a lot of the other students would freak out. I thought about how important it is to get kids comfortable with math at an early age, but I did not think I was cut out to be an elementary school teacher, so I wasn’t really sure what I could do to help. The exciting thing about IXL was that I could lend my skills to a product that would help kids hopefully avoid math anxiety.

What do you do at IXL? Give us a taste of what a typical day at work is like for you.

In my role as a content quality assurance (QA) analyst, my focus is on the skills themselves and the questions that are generated. The product analysts decide how the problems should be generated and how to control the difficulty, and then we QA analysts make sure that everything is being displayed correctly across multiple browsers and platforms. We also keep an eye out to make sure that the questions and explanations are accurate, as well as look for edge cases. Content QA analysts work across all subjects, including math, language arts, and the upcoming science and social studies products.

What do you like about working at IXL?

I really like the people I work with. In our recruiting process, we go out of our way to find people that are easy to get along with. A lot of people at IXL hang out with each other outside of work – I have people I go rock climbing with or get a drink with [see photo, right].

What qualities does it take to do your job?

I have a perfectionist mindset so picking something apart and finding flaws has always been fun for me—though maybe not so fun for all of my friends! I used to do a lot of proofreading for friends, and have always liked puzzles and finding flaws in the system. So it’s fun to take that annoying, nitpicky behavior and use it to make things better, which is really satisfying. To be a content QA analyst, you also need to be familiar with the content and be able to identify content flaws, such as whether something is explained poorly or inaccurately. You don’t have to be an expert, but you have to be comfortable with the subjects we offer!

Life beyond IXL

What do you like to do in your free time

I’ve been really into rock climbing lately, and I wish I was doing more of it. Music is a huge thing for me—I play music, I go to shows, I collect music, I go to karaoke a lot. I was in a few bands in high school, including a Weezer cover band called Freezer [see photo, right]. I’m quite into movies and have a weak spot for really bad horror movies, like “The Children” (1980). I’ve also been traveling more, both internationally and domestically. My last couple of trips, I went to Wyoming and the Dakotas to see the Badlands, Teddy Roosevelt National Park, Black Hills, Mount Rushmore, and Devil’s Tower.

What’s your favorite thing about summer?

I really enjoy the really long days at the higher latitudes. I went to school in England, and in late June there was enough sunlight to see until 10:30 p.m. So people could hang out, have a barbeque, sit in the backyard—it was nice to have the light and be able to have it for that long. I also really love county fairs. I went to the Humboldt County Fair every year as a kid—it was small and rural but endearing. These days for a local one, I go to the Alameda County Fair.

Just for Fun

What’s your favorite smell?

I spent a lot of time outdoors as a kid, about 2 months out of the year I was camping in the redwoods, so the smell of the woods and the outdoors is really comforting to me [see photo, right]. Also, really old books have a great musty scent. The weirdest thing is I like the smell of band-aids! 

You invented a time machine! Where and when do you travel to first?

I’m a huge fan of any movie with time travel, and I’ve learned that traveling to the future will let you see all the new technology, but you’d just be the idiot walking around. The point of time travel is to create paradoxes, so the first thing I would do is go back in time and either mess with myself or give myself a high five!

Interested in joining IXL as a content quality assurance analyst? Read our job description and apply today! To learn more about our culture and see what employees have to say about working at IXL, check out the video below!

    

Planning a family trip this summer or later this year? We’ve rounded up the essential—and free!—apps you need to make it a fun, stress-free journey! Check them out below:

PLAN

Need to get organized before your trip? There are apps for that!

• Create an itinerary: Leave the paper reservation printouts at home with TripIt (free, iOS and Android). The app automatically organizes all of your travel plans—including flights, car rentals, hotels, and restaurant reservations—into one handy itinerary [see image, right].
• Pack like a pro: Making sure the entire family is packed up for your trip can sometimes be a struggle, but TripList (free, iOS) makes it easier. Create packing lists by choosing from a built-in catalog of common items and pre-trip tasks (such as “check-in online” or “charge batteries,” or by adding your own items.

SURVIVE

Ensure smooth sailing (or flying, driving, train riding…) with these apps that’ll help you manage the small but important things on your trip.

• When you’re on the road: Avoid bumps on your next road trip with RoadAhead (free, iOS) and GasBuddy (free, iOS and Android). RoadAhead [see image, right] maps your location and helps you find restaurants, cafes, pharmacies, ATMs, grocery stores, and more at nearby highway exits—perfect for when the kids get hungry or you need to make a pit stop! Meanwhile, GasBuddy helps you fuel up by highlighting the cheapest gas stations near your location.
• When the kids get bored: When the kids get restless during downtime or waiting time, make sure you have some apps on your phone or tablet to keep them occupied, and even better if the apps are educational. Try MeeGenius (free, iOS and Android), which has read-along audiobooks for ages 3-8, or IXL (free, iOS and Android), which has math and English language arts practice for grades K-12! Kids can even win prizes for practicing with IXL during the summer!
• When nature calls: “Mooommmm, I really have to go!” Be prepared to handle a full bladder with SitOrSquat (free, iOS and Android), an app that helps you find bathrooms near you!

SHARE

The fun doesn’t have to stop once you return home! Make it a family project to gather and share memories from the trip with these apps.

• Make a digital scrapbook: Scrap It (free, iOS), allows you to add backgrounds, stickers, and texts to your photos to create scrapbook pages that can be shared with friends and family [see image, right].
• Write a story: Work with your kids to write stories about your trip using StoryKit (free, iOS)—type text for the story, draw illustrations or import photos, and even record sound clips!

    

We’re excited to let you know that we’ve been working with Google to test the Google Classroom share button. We’ve now launched and integrated the button throughout the IXL site, which allows teachers to easily and seamlessly assign IXL skills to their students via Classroom! Check out the video below to learn more about how it works.

Let us know how you like using the Google Classroom button by leaving a comment below!

    

Meet David Keyes, the fearless leader of our flagship product, IXL Math, in this employee Q&A!

The Basics

Name and title: David Keyes, Program Manager—IXL Math

Has been at IXL for: 3.5 years

Hometown and current city: Grew up in Palo Alto, Calif. Currently lives in Millbrae, Calif.

Life at IXL

What did you do prior to coming to IXL?

I was in graduate school at University of Colorado, Boulder, where I got my Ph.D in math. I’d always been interested in teaching—I worked at the on-campus tutoring center in college and went to graduate school to be a professor, but decided I didn’t like the math research component of it. A friend sent me a link to apply for a position at IXL and I actually got the job before I defended my thesis, so it was really nice to have the job lined up!

What do you do at IXL? Give us a taste of what a typical day at work is like for you.

I started as a product analyst for math, writing the questions and explanations. Two of my favorite problems that I designed were graphing parabolas and graphing circles. Now, I still work on math content, but I’m reviewing my team’s work and making decisions on what topics we should update or add next. I work with the engineering team pretty closely as well. I also work with the sales and marketing teams, and once a year I get to go to a sales conference.

What skills/qualities does it take to do your job?

Very strong writing skills and a really strong math background are important so that you know how to explain difficult concepts in a short, simple, and easy-to-understand way. You also have to know your audience and be able to write in an age-appropriate way, because we work on pre-K through precalculus content.

What do you like about working at IXL?

I like the people—everyone is really smart, very friendly, and interested in helping others with education. I feel like my job is a good mix between an academic job and a private industry job in that we hold ourselves to a high level and want to get things right, and are willing to invest time in that. It’s really awesome that there’s a job that exists where I can think about math all day and think of ways to make it accessible and fun for people!

Life beyond IXL

What do you like to do in your free time?

Sports and family take up my time. I like chase my 2-year-old daughter around—she’s talking but it’s only understandable by me and my wife! I watch Giants baseball (I try and go to about 5-10 Giants games a year), Cal basketball games, Cal football games. I play basketball sometimes, and I manage our company’s softball team.

How would your best friend describe you?

He would probably say something mean about me first! [laughs] But he would describe me as loyal and sincere, probably to a fault.

What was your favorite summer vacation growing up? What’s your ideal summer vacation now?

All of my extended family is in Los Angeles, so my favorite summer vacations were going down there, going to the beach, and hanging out where it was really warm. Now, I’d love 3 days with just me and my wife at home doing nothing! Or, I’d want to travel to visit friends that we have around the country.

Just for Fun

What was your favorite childhood toy?

A basketball—we had a hoop in the backyard and I’d shoot about 1 to 2 hours a day. I’ve been playing when I was around 5 years old.

What would I find in your refrigerator right now?

Leftovers, fruit salad, a lot of condiments like BBQ sauce and different kinds of mustard, and It’s-It ice cream.

Would you rather have a third eye or a third arm?

A third arm, because I feel like you could be more efficient with a third arm than a third eye, and you could multitask.

Want to join David’s team? IXL is hiring Math Curriculum Designers in San Mateo, Calif. and Raleigh, N.C.! Apply here!

    

Teachers: As you start developing your lesson plan for the new school year and thinking about fresh new ways to engage students with math and English, don’t forget to use the IXL Community for inspiration! We’ve gathered tips, stories, and webinars from real teachers showcasing how they’ve used IXL to motivate their students and help them master skills.

Keep reading to learn more about these resources and where to find them!

True-life stories

Curious how your fellow teachers are integrating IXL into their core curriculum, or using the program to prepare students for success on Common Core standards? Or maybe you’d like to work IXL into your RTI model. Check out the IXL Community’s True-life Stories to see what’s worked for our users! You’ll read about how third-grade teacher Ashley Cook uses progress charts to encourage her students to take ownership of their own performance, how Kelly Petersen incorporates IXL into group practice for her fifth graders, and more.

Elite 100

Last fall, we honored the IXL Elite 100 – our top teachers from around the world based on student usage. The remarkable, creative ways they’ve leveraged IXL to motivate students and drive achievement have inspired us, and we hope they’ll do the same for you! Take a look at the Elite 100 page and click around to explore how these teachers make learning fun through IXL, and the tools that have helped them the most. Perhaps some of their strategies – like “IXL Sprints,” the “100% Club” and the “IXL Hall of Fame” – will spark ideas for your classroom!

Archived webinars

Want to get some in-depth advice from teachers about using IXL to drive success in areas like math, Common Core, 1:1 initiatives, and more? Then watch our Archived webinars, presented by teachers who have proven success using IXL in the classroom!

Looking for more IXL strategies for the upcoming school year? Our team is hard at work developing new live webinars for August and September. Check our Webinar schedule in the next few weeks for more details, or follow us on Twitter (@IXLLearning) to be notified of upcoming professional development opportunities!

    

We’re excited to announce the release of IXL Language Arts for 11th and 12th grades! With the addition of hundreds of new skills, IXL now offers a full high school language arts curriculum – and just in time for the 2015-16 school year! Find out how our new content helps students develop real-world writing skills through our interactive and dynamic program.

Here are some of the key features of IXL’s new English language arts skills:

• Rigorous skills prepare students for college and career: Our new high school content challenges students’ higher-order thinking and writing skills, challenging them to analyze information, connect ideas, develop arguments, and provide supporting evidence.

• New skills refine students’ writing: With new categories for 11^th and 12^th grade, including Writing Arguments and Planning and Organizing Writing, students will learn to communicate clearly through their writing by executing appropriate organization, style, voice, and language.

• Coverage of new standards: We’ve put an increased focus on supporting the Common Core standards that many teachers are preparing their students for. Our new skills cover many of the writing concepts that students will see on the PARCC and Smarter Balanced assessments.

• Fun, interactive practice: Students will love learning grammar with new interactive questions types and skills that incorporate fun visuals.

Check out some of our favorite new skills, and then try them out for yourself!

Our new planning and organizing writing skills make use of engaging question types to help students adopt appropriate organization in their writing.

Ordering topics from broadest to narrowest:

 Organizing information by main idea:

With our new writing arguments skills, students learn to use writing as a way to offer and support their opinions. One example:

Choose evidence to support a claim:

Our skills on audience, purpose, and tone teach students to adapt their writing style to shape their readers’ perspectives:

Compare passages for subjective and objective tone:

We also added lots of new skills for elementary grade levels with images that help students explore the whimsical side of language!

Form compound words with pictures:

Multiple meaning words with images:

    

We’re two months into our Study in the Sun summer usage contest, and we hope you’ve been practicing hard! Check out the leaderboard below to see if you’re one of the top 20 in your grade band.

If you haven’t registered for the contest yet, it’s not too late! Just visit www.ixl.com/summer-contest to join in on the fun. The top three students in each grade band who answer the most questions on IXL by August 31 will win a Samsung Galaxy tablet! For contest rules and FAQs, head over to this blog post.

Want another way to win prizes from IXL this summer? Enter our Summer Snapshot contest!

Here are our leaders in the usage contest so far: *

Pre-K to 4^th grade

1. Chu Man Duc, Hanoi, Vietnam, 42,430

2. Suvir G., Frisco, TX, 26,498

3. Viggu G., Slatersville, RI, 25,498

4. Michael M., McKees Hill, NSW, Aus, 25,038

5. Nguyen Quoc Dat, Hanoi, Vietnam, 23,927

6. Akshay B., Miramar, FL, 23,912

7. Euphony Z., Chula Vista, CA, 23,371

8. Alexus P., Apopka, FL, 22,556

9. Esra A., Naperville, IL, 19,927

10. Hibba M., Pikeville, KY, 18,974

11. Rohan B., Plainview, NY, 18,829

12. Josh W., Franklin, TN, 18,517

13. Migara F., Canoga Park, CA, 16,473

14. Shrika A., Placentia, CA, 16,097

15. Kartikeya G., Secaucus, NJ, 15,661

16. Floressa M., Pleasanton, CA, 15,619

17. James S., Caldwell, ID, 15,429

18. FreAnna T., Spokane, WA, 15,027

19. Siri V., Alpharetta, GA, 13,905

20. Vic Q., Austin, TX, 14,332

5^th to 8^th grade

1. Hope A., Phoenixville, PA, 44,831

2. Hyuk Lee C., Cumming, GA, 42,891

3. James W., Salt Lake City, UT, 42,211

4. Eliee C., Reseda, CA, 38,371

5. Aliyah S., Marina, CA, 37,914

6. Shivani A., Westborough, MA, 34,963

7. Seth P., Nacogodoches, TX, 33,747

8. Jeeven S., South Barrington, IL, 33,302

9. Grace K., Sarasota, FL, 32,130

10. Shann T., Middleton Grange, NSW, Aus, 31,323

11. Shrivardhan T., Cheswick, PA, 30,909

12. Shamiksha K., Irvine, CA, 28,877

13. Charlene C., Haverhill, FL, 27,348

14. Ashman R., Ballwin, MO, 23,800

15. Navdeep N., Westchester, IL, 23,758

16. Riley O., Glen Rock, NJ, 23,159

17. Ashley A., Houston, TX, 22,136

18. Priya M., Scarsdale, NY, 21,224

19. Richard L., Spring, TX, 20,215

20. Aamna C., Tampa, FL, 20,186

9^th to 12^th grade

1. Alexis L., Lakewood, CA, 44,963

2. Justin C., St. Louis, MO, 23,673

3. Kai D., East Wenatchee, WA, 20,795

4. Aman N., Westchester, IL, 20,293

5. Seerat K., Woodridge, IL, 19,890

6. Kanak G., Mercer Island, WA, 19,813

7. Elizabeth M., Cayce, SC, 17,907

8. Sobhia N., Thompson, MB, Can, 16,794

9. Yuki H., Minnetonka, MN, 15,273

10. Ritvik K., Newport News, VA, 14,627

11. Ali B., Marietta, GA, 14,530

12. Joshua Y., Alpharetta, GA, 12,598

13. Hannah T., Lilburn, GA, 12,330

14. Caleb F., Newport News, VA 11,927

15. Christopher J., West Des Moines, IA, 11,456

16. Kevin S., Louisville, TN, 10,689

17. Selina Y., Columbus, OH, 10,655

18. Pan San R., Portland, OR, 10,515

19. Dahkil J., Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 10,405

20. Laura H., Cumming, GA, 9,768

*Results as of 7/30/2015, 3:00P.M. PST. Due to large number of entries, we are unable to share rankings for students outside of the top 20.

    

It was a beautiful Saturday morning in the month of July as a crowd started to gather around Stairwell 17 of San Francisco’s Ocean Beach. Among this crowd was a group of eleven IXLers who had just weeks prior signed up to volunteer with the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy to help clean the coastline of debris and refuse.

Passersby looked around with curiosity as we each grabbed a bucket, put on a pair of gloves, picked out the best pick-up sticks, and made our way onto the sandy beach. With our equipment in tow, we walked around in small groups for two hours collecting litter ranging from cigarette butts to large glass bottles. Some of us remained up near the parking lot and paved trail, while others ventured farther out towards the shore. By noon, we all returned to Stairwell 17 and emptied our buckets full of trash into designated bags.

Our project leaders also set aside some time to tell us a little bit about the wildlife in the area to which we were tending. An example of some of the wildlife is the Western Snowy Plover. Western Snowy Plovers are small shorebirds, measuring about 6 inches in size, whose population is currently threatened. The total breeding population of these birds is estimated to be around 2,100 birds. Knowing this, we have to remember that we share this habitat, not only with each other, but with wildlife that calls it home.

We walked away that day thankful for our beautiful coastline and proud to have had the chance to do our part in keeping it clean and safe for all of us to enjoy.

If you would like to learn more about the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy and how you can lend a helping hand, please visit http://www.parksconservancy.org/.

By Gayane Lachinyan

    

On August 2, a group of IXLers returned to the site of IXL’s very first volunteer event held in May 2014: the SF-Marin Food Bank. The Food Bank’s mission is to end hunger in San Francisco and Marin, and the organization distributes 47 million pounds of food each year to 30,000 families in need.

We had two IXLers in our group who had attended the first food bank event, and they were able to share their expertise with us. Sorting oranges was the main task back then, and it was again this time. We broke off into three teams to sort oranges, assemble boxes, and sort canned foods. We separated the good oranges from the rotten ones, and re-labeled the canned goods and put them in boxes.

One of the cool things we saw was the number of kids volunteering at the event. Because our company focuses on helping kids in the classroom, it was wonderful to see children lend us a helping hand and to work with them to give back to the community together. We even met one kid who pointed excitedly to our shirts and told his mom that he used IXL in first grade and loved it!

Our team, along with the help of the many other volunteers, was able to pack roughly 18,500 pounds of food to feed the less fortunate. The event only lasted two hours, but those two hours helped thousands of people get the food they need!

If you would like to learn more about the SF-Marin Food Bank and lend a helping hand, visit their website at http://www.sfmfoodbank.org/.

By Timothy Lee, Billing Specialist

    

We’ll be posting our third and final leaderboard update for the Study in the Sun usage contest on Tuesday, August 18. Until then, keep practicing – the  contest ends August 31!

    

Teachers: Looking for ideas, tips, and resources for the first few months of the school year? Check out IXL’s Back to School board on Pinterest – we’ve curated great content from around the Web to make this your best year yet!

Our pins include creative ideas for classroom decorations, fun icebreakers to help you and your students get to know each other, behavior management tips and tricks, and ways to communicate effectively with parents.

Check out the board and let us know what you think! Want more back-to-school resources? Check out this blog post about how to use the IXL Community for lesson planning inspiration!