Khan Academy

Khan Academy provides free, mastery-based courses in math, science, humanities, and test prep. Families create accounts for each learner, assign or let students choose courses, and then schedule regular “Khan time” where kids watch short video lessons and complete practice problems, while parents track progress through a dashboard and align work with their homeschool plan.

Parent involvement ranges from light to moderate. Adults set expectations, help choose focus areas, and sit nearby to support younger or easily frustrated learners. Older students may work independently with weekly check-ins to review progress and adjust goals.

Basic reading skills and comfort using a computer or tablet are helpful for most courses. Younger children may start with Khan Academy Kids, which emphasizes audio directions and visuals instead of text-heavy interfaces.

Khan Academy’s video lessons plus practice problems are very flexible: ADHD, gifted, and autistic learners can pause, replay, or jump ahead as needed. For dyslexic or math‑anxious kids, the mastery system can be helpful if used gently, but families may want to turn off timers, allow scratch work, and avoid over‑focusing on streaks.

Khan Academy can work well for some students with dyscalculia because of its mastery structure, unlimited practice, and on-demand hints and videos. At the same time, it is mostly symbolic and screen-based, so many dyscalculic learners will still need off-screen manipulatives, graph paper, and lots of guided, untimed discussion with an adult. I like it as a free practice and review tool alongside a concrete, multi-sensory core math program, not as the sole intervention.

Very 2e‑friendly for many kids: mastery‑based, self‑paced, and free. Strong analytical thinkers can accelerate far beyond “grade level,” while built‑in hints and step‑by‑step videos support learners with gaps or slower processing. For anxious kids, ignore streaks and scores and focus on growth over time.

Khan Academy can work well for some students with dyscalculia because of its mastery structure, unlimited practice, and on-demand hints and videos. At the same time, it is mostly symbolic and screen-based, so many dyscalculic learners will still need off-screen manipulatives, graph paper, and lots of guided, untimed discussion with an adult. I like it as a free practice and review tool alongside a concrete, multi-sensory core math program, not as the sole intervention.

Khan Academy lets students watch short video lessons and type or select answers on-screen rather than filling pages of worksheets, which can make it much easier for learners with dysgraphia who struggle with handwriting. Because progress is tracked digitally and practice is highly customizable, many families use it to let kids show what they know without their written output holding them back.

There is no cost to use Khan Academy, so no refund policy is needed. If it doesn’t fit your learner, you can simply stop using it or switch to another resource.

It’s less suitable as a sole resource for very young learners (outside of Khan Academy Kids), kids who require heavy parental scaffolding for focus, or families who want offline, project-based learning without screens.

Khan Academy continuously refines its mastery system, adds new courses (such as additional high school and early college topics), and improves tools for learners and coaches.

Use Khan Academy intentionally rather than aimlessly: assign specific skills each week, have your learner keep a notebook of example problems and key ideas, and combine screen time with hands‑on practice or real‑world applications to deepen understanding.