Website Review
Get the Math

Solve real-life algebra problems with diverse crew, delightful video

Quick Take
Pros: It makes math relevant and fun; kids will really get into the challenges because they're authentic.
Cons: Content is limited to algebra and it would be nice to see a tool for teachers to track student progress.
Bottom Line: Fantastic proof that algebra is used to solve real problems in kid-approved professions -- basketball, music, and fashion.
Learning Scores

Videos show real people using math in ways that kids can relate to; they'll authentically use math in music, fashion, and sports. Super fun! Design is ultramodern and very teen-friendly.


Each challenge is a real problem that requires math, and kids can use multiple approaches to reach a valid answer. As kids watch hip-hop duo DobleFlo jam, they'll get an understanding of how actual math fits into their work.


Hints support kids struggling through a Challenge. Video and text work together for kids who have different learning styles.

Our Review
What's It Like?

Get the Math is a website that shows kids how to use math in the real world (thus proving that math is used in the real world!). Short videos demonstrate how professionals use math in music, fashion, video games, restaurants, special effects, and even basketball. Using real people in their real-world examples, like video game designer Julia Detar or restaurant owner Sue Torres, the site shares stories of how people and businesses use algebra in their daily lives. After watching the videos, kids can "Take the Challenge," tackling an algebra problem based on what they just saw, and when that's completed, there are further challenges on the same topic.


  • Math in Video Games Video – Watch a movie clip where a designer writes functions to create video games.
  • Videogame Challenge – Plot a linear path so that your spaceship won’t crash into the asteroid.
  • Math in Music Challenge - Use algebra to match up the tempos of the drum track with an instrumental sample.
Is It Good For Learning?

It's so good. Get the Math videos don’t just loosely connect math to the real world; everything is specific, clear, and presented in a totally relatable, fun way. Subjects are diverse, featuring many people of color and women in non-traditional industries. Some of the challenges are better than others; for the video game challenge, kids answer math questions in order to play a video game built by math, whereas it would be more authentic if they could create a function that in turn builds a small piece of a video game.

The Math in Music challenge is an excellent example of a problem that's interesting and has multiple possible ways to get to the correct answer; kids use math to mix music along with hip-hop artists DoubleFlo. It provides just the right amount of structure and support while still leaving the kids space to puzzle it out themselves. Our main complaint: It's too bad that the site's limited to algebra content; we want it for all the math subjects!

How Can Teachers Use It?

You might choose to use the setup video to introduce the website, but many middle and high school students may find it a little cheesy. Instead, pick a topic, like Math in Fashion, and show that specific introduction video to the kids -- these videos are great, and kids will respond positively. Then, let the kids work through the challenges in pairs, sharing a computer. You could use the follow-up challenges for each topic as an assessment, and make sure to check out the Teacher page for complete lesson plans aligned to the Common Core Math Standards and worksheets. Sample assessment questions for each unit are also provided. 

This review of Get the Math was written by

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