DreamBox Learning Celebrates Mathematics Awareness Month with the Launch of DreamBox Learning K-3 Math

Award-Winning Adaptive Math Product Offers In-Depth Curriculum Based on NCTM Focal Points

BELLEVUE, Wash., April 6, 2010 — DreamBox Learning today announced the launch of DreamBox Learning K-3 Math, adding third grade math curriculum into the next version of its award-winning and effective online math program. Now students in the classroom and at home can learn K-3 math with DreamBox Learning’s adaptive and engaging product. Students think it’s fun because the lessons are wrapped in adventure-style games. Teachers and parents know that the program’s patent-pending “engine” constantly assesses each student’s mathematical understanding, provides the most appropriate hints and encouragement, and offers the next personally-appropriate activities as subsequent choices. DreamBox Learning K-3 Math is available at www.dreambox.com and now delivers more than 500 lessons based on the Focal Points set by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM).

The new third grade math curriculum includes more than 100 individualized lessons which comprehensively cover the number and operations, and algebra Focal Points. It also introduces ten new interactive virtual manipulatives to teach place value and multiplication concepts. Additionally, 20 new lessons on place value have been added to the second grade math curriculum and another five for first grade math students.

“With the release of DreamBox Learning K-3 Math, we have once again set the bar high, and leveraged the DreamBox platform to create another year of effective, adaptive learning for students,” said Lou Gray, co-founder and chief executive officer of DreamBox Learning. “The overwhelmingly positive feedback that we have received in the past 15 months from educators and parents alike validates the ongoing critical need to infuse cutting-edge technology into education in a way that is both effective and engaging. Our products eloquently strike that balance.”

Since the release of its first online math game in January 2009, teachers, parents, education and technology industry experts have heralded DreamBox Learning for the creation of a highly effective, innovative, and engaging eLearning product that helps young students understand and excel in mathematics. To date the company has earned 20 top education, technology and parenting awards for its program.

Key concepts included in the third grade curriculum include:

• Place Value: To introduce the idea that in numerals “place determines value”, students experiment with packing and unpacking groups to develop number sense and strategies for computation.
• Grouping and Regrouping: To develop early multiplication, items are presented in groups and at times arranged in rows and columns, encouraging students to use skip-counting rather than counting by ones, and to regroup more efficiently rather than relying on repeated addition. Higher level strategies are developed by using objects to obscure part of the picture and by examining common multiples and factors.
• Multiplication Facts: To foster automatic recall of the basic facts, students cover rectangles with smaller rectangles exploring distributive, associative and commutative properties, and examine common factors and multiples as meeting points of jumps on number lines.
• Equivalence: To develop a foundation for later algebra, students use the Snap Blocks virtual manipulative to explore equivalent expressions, common factors, and common multiples.

Current DreamBox Learning customers will be automatically upgraded from K-2 Math to K-3 Math with no interruption of service. This will allow students who are ready for third grade work to move seamlessly ahead. New players will have immediate access to all the benefits of the expanded DreamBox Learning K-3 Math game, such as:

• Robust math curriculum based on the NCTM Curriculum Focal Points for kindergarten, 1st, 2nd and 3rd grades
• Patented GuideRight™ technology that analyzes a student’s individual responses and dynamically customizes the content and sequence for each child
• More than 500 math lessons to build both conceptual understanding and computational fluency
• Four adventure game themes (pirates, pixies, dinosaurs, and pets), each including eight adventure stories
• Millions of paths through the online math curriculum
• Online dashboards for parents and teachers that monitor and report on progress

“DreamBox Learning directly addresses the need for developing a strong foundation in number and operation by focusing on both conceptual understanding and fluency in computation, something I strongly support as it provides the foundation for numeracy and algebra,” said Dr. Catherine Fosnot, Professor Emeritus of Childhood Education at the City University of New York and nationally acclaimed scholar. “Both the original product and the expanded DreamBox Learning K-3 Math are interactive, engaging and effective, and adapt in a wide variety of ways to support each student’s learning pathways. DreamBox is leading the way in improving education for our children through technology-based innovation.”

Availability, Pricing and Money Back Guarantee

DreamBox Learning K-3 Math is available for both school and home use. The web-based product requires only a computer with a standard browser and high-speed Internet connection. Teachers can sign up for a free 30- day trial for their classrooms, and parents can sign up for a free 2-week trial for their children. Home subscription pricing is $12.95 per child per month, and volume discounts are available for six-month and family subscriptions. There is a full 30-day money back guarantee. School pricing is based on number of students per school year, with discounts for volume purchases and time of year (call for details). To sign up for a free trial, and to find additional pricing details, go to www.dreambox.com.

About DreamBox Learning (www.dreambox.com)

DreamBox Learning was founded in 2006 in Bellevue, Washington by world-class technologists, educators, and entrepreneurs who share a collective vision that every child should have access to an individually tailored, Web-based learning experience that is engaging, motivating, and effective. The company launched a Web-based platform and its first adventure-themed online learning product called DreamBox Learning K-2 Math in January 2009, followed by the DreamBox Math Classroom in April 2009 and DreamBox Learning K-3 Math in April 2010. The home and classroom-based products target young students in kindergarten through third grade and are designed to reinforce and teach real math through effective, individualized instruction in an engaging and fun manner. DreamBox Learning K-3 Math is based on NCTM Focal Points, reflecting lessons taught in the classroom. More information can be found at www.dreambox.com.

Media Contacts

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