Lessons and Practice Problems, Together — Not on Separate Screens

If you're tired of "watch a video here, then go do the problems over there," Lumi works the way you're picturing: teach a little, try it right away, get an explanation, repeat — all in one lesson, on one screen.

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A lot of online homeschool programs follow the same pattern: a recorded video lesson, then a separate set of practice problems or a quiz. By the time your child reaches the problems, the explanation is a few minutes and a screen away — and if they get stuck, the answer to "how do I do this again?" is to go back and rewatch. Some programs are built strictly around that video-then-quiz path. Lumi isn't.

Watch-then-practice programs

  1. Watch a video lesson (often several minutes)
  2. Move to a separate practice screen or quiz
  3. Get problems marked right or wrong
  4. Stuck? Go back and find the part of the video you need

A Lumi lesson

  1. Lumi explains one small idea out loud, with an example
  2. Your child answers a question about it — right there
  3. Right or wrong, Lumi explains why before moving on
  4. Next idea, next question — until the lesson is done

What that actually sounds like

Lumi: "Elapsed time is how long something takes from start to finish. A movie starts at 2pm and ends at 4:30pm. Two to four is 2 hours, plus 30 more minutes — two hours and thirty minutes."

Lumi: "Your turn! School starts at 8am and ends at 3pm. How many hours is that?" (your child taps an answer)

Lumi: "Seven hours! Count up: 8 to noon is 4 hours, then noon to 3 is 3 more. Four plus three is seven."

From a real 3rd-grade Lumi math lesson.

1

Practice happens while the idea is fresh

Each question comes seconds after the explanation it depends on, instead of after a whole video. Kids aren't trying to remember something from three screens ago.

2

Every answer gets an explanation right away

When your child misses a question, Lumi explains the right answer immediately, out loud and on screen. Research on learning apps finds that kids make fewer mistakes when feedback explains why, not just "try again."

3

They move on only after they've got it

A lesson counts as mastered only after it's passed more than once, and mastered lessons come back later as quick two-question Memory Checks so skills stick instead of fading.

4

Works for kids who aren't strong readers yet

Everything is read aloud and kids answer by tapping, so they can work independently — no waiting for a parent to read the problems.

5

You see exactly what they practiced

Your parent dashboard shows every lesson and score, the questions your child answered and what they chose, plus measured lesson time and attendance — all ready to print for your homeschool records.

See a lesson for yourself

Teaching and practice in one flow, Pre-K through 8th grade. Try it free for 48 hours.

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To be fair to video-based programs: plenty of kids, especially older independent learners, do fine with a watch-then-practice rhythm. But if your child loses the thread between the video and the problems, or you find yourself re-teaching everything the video just covered, the fix usually isn't a better video. It's putting the teaching and the practice back in the same place.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does my child have to watch a video before doing practice problems?

No. Lumi lessons don't use lecture videos. Lumi explains a small idea out loud, then your child answers a question about it right away on the same screen, and that pattern repeats through the lesson.

What happens when my child gets a practice problem wrong?

Lumi explains the right answer immediately, out loud and in writing, before moving on. Topics your child struggles with come back for extra practice, and a lesson is only marked mastered after it's passed more than once.

How long is each lesson?

Lessons are short, usually a few minutes, with a handful of practice questions woven through the teaching rather than saved for the end.

Does my child need to read well to use it?

No. Every lesson is read aloud, and answers are given by tapping, so pre-readers and struggling readers can work independently. Kids never have to speak their answers.

Which subjects work this way?

All of them: math, English language arts, science, and social studies from Pre-K through 8th grade, plus 20 electives. Lumi High and Lumi Lingo are included with every Lumi Academy plan.