Khan Academy Scavenger Hunt for Teachers

Table of contents
Scavenger Hunt / Real Life Scenarios
Student Experience (2 scenarios)
3-7
Teacher Experience (5 scenarios)
8-24
Planning your Khan Academy Classroom
Common Core & Khan Academy
26
Missions
27-30
When Missions Aren’t Ideal…
31-34
Finding Purpose
35-38
Reference
Getting Ready with Technology
40-41
Sample Permission Slip
42
Start of Year – Logistics
43
Start of Year – Classroom Culture
44-45
Using Data
46
Planning Class Time
47-48
Beyond the First Day
49
1

SCAVENGER HUNT /
REAL LIFE SCENARIOS
2

STUDENT SCENARIO #1: Get started on your math skills
3
q Create an account by going to www.khanacademy.org.
q Follow the prompts and take the tour of the learning dashboard.
q If prompted, take the pretest.
q Practice the first 3 skills
that have been
recommended for you.
The skills that automatically show up on your dashboard are personalized
to you! Our algorithm senses what you are ready for next based on your
unique math history on the site.
For each skill, your goal is to answer five
questions in a row correctly.
Every account is both a coach
account and a student account.
q Click KHAN ACADEMY at the top of the page to get to your learning dashboard.

STUDENT SCENARIO #1 (continued)
q Complete 2 Mastery Challenges by clicking the blue bar near the top of the screen.
Did you notice the difference between skills and Mastery Challenges?
Skills cover ONE math concept, while Mastery Challenges cover MANY math concepts. As you
answer problems correctly in Mastery Challenges, your progress levels will rise. To achieve
mastery, you’ll need to answer multiple problems correctly over several days. This system
ensures that you practice skills in a context-switching mode and retain them over time.
4

We’ve got a lot of content on Khan Academy, and it grows every day. We’ve created
missions to help students focus on content that is most meaningful to them.
Our math missions provide a way to guide your students through grade-level content,
including prerequisites, or “mission foundations.” Your students will be united in one
compelling goal: to reach completion of their grade-level mission, even as they start at
different places and work at different paces.
As students complete skills in their grade level mission, we’ll recommend new skills
based on what they are ready to learn next. We use the student’s math history on
our site, as well as what we learn from all of the students on our site, to figure out
what will make the best recommendations.
5
WHAT IS A MISSION?
q Click CURRENT MISSION at the top of your learning dashboard and select the
grade you’d like to explore.

STUDENT SCENARIO #2: Check your progress
You’re a 5th grade student who wants to understand how you’re doing in your class
so you can brag to your friends.
6
q Click PROGRESS on the left of your screen.
q Set the MISSION to 5TH GRADE to show only skills from this mission.
q Set the ACTIVITY range to ALL TIME to show your cumulative progress.
q Choose a topic. What is the name of one skill you’ve only “Practiced”?
___________________________________________
If you don’t see any PRACTICED skills, try another topic. All topics other than Mission Foundations contain grade-level skills.

STUDENT SCENARIO #2 (continued)
7
q Click your name in the top left corner to access your profile.
How many energy points have you earned?
________
q Click BADGES.
What’s one badge you’ve earned?
_________________________
What’s one badge you could earn in the future?
_________________________
Hint: Pick a grayed-out badge under “Possible Badges.”

TEACHER SCENARIO #1: Set up student accounts
You’re a teacher who wants to sign up your students during the first week of school.
8
CREATE A CLASS
q To switch to a teacher’s view, click COACH at the top left of
your screen.
The term “coach” refers to any person who guides and supports a learner.
q Click CREATE YOUR FIRST CLASS.
q Name your class and click CREATE CLASS.
If you don’t see this button,
click NEW CLASS on the left.
q Choose a mission for your
When you pick a class
mission, students will be
notified. Your reports will also
default to showing you
progress in that mission.
q Click MANAGE STUDENTS to access your class lists.
Each class can have its own
mission.
class.

If your students
have…
Then…
Things you might want to know
Email
Type (or copy and paste) your
students’ email addresses in
the box to invite them to your
class
Students who already have a Khan
Academy account will be invited to
join your class. Students who don’t
will be invited to create one.
An existing KA
account
Type (or copy and paste) your
students’ email addresses or
usernames* in the box to
invite them to your class
Once students have accepted your
invitation, you’ll be able to see their
data.
Neither
Click CREATE ACCOUNTS
For each student, you’ll need a
birthdate. For students under age
13, you’ll need a parent email
address too.
WAYS TO ADD STUDENTS
There are three ways to add students to your class:
*Students can find their username by opening the menu at the top right of the screen.
This student’s username is IsaacAtKA.
9

TEACHER SCENARIO #1 (continued)
10
For the next scenario, you’ll need to add a student right now.
q Ask a peer to add you as a coach by following the instructions below.
q Open the LEARN menu and click
DASHBOARD to return to “student view.”
q Click COACHES in the left sidebar to see the classes you
belong to.
q Enter the code.
q Find the code for the class you just created.
WHAT YOUR PEER SHOULD DO

TEACHER SCENARIO #2: Find relevant content
You want to find content on Khan Academy that’s aligned with your upcoming unit.
11
FOUR WAYS TO FIND CONTENT
#1: LEARN MENU
q Open the LEARN menu.
q Choose MATH.
q Click a subject that
interests you.
q Find one video and one skill that you can use in your class in the next month.
Video name:
____________________________________________________
Skill name:
____________________________________________________
The exercises and videos you see here are the same ones students would see in the 5th grade or geometry mission.
#2: SEARCH BAR (always available at the top of your screen)

12
#3: COMMON CORE MAP
q Go to khanacademy.org/commoncore/map.
q Select a grade level you teach.
q Find one skill that you can use in your class in the next month.
____________________________________________________
#4: SKILL PROGRESS REPORT
q Click COACH at the top left.
q Click SKILL PROGRESS.
You’ll see the class you created and
the mission you chose for it. The
topics are the same ones you saw
in the LEARN menu.
q Click a topic that interests you.
q Click any skill to see an
example problem.
Khan Academy aims to complete a full suite of
Common Core-aligned math missions stretching
from kindergarten to 12th-grade calculus by fall
2014. To learn more, visit
khanacademy.org/commoncore.
Remember: “Mission Foundations” are
prerequisites. They appear in this report
but not in the LEARN menu.

TEACHER SCENARIO #3: Recommend content
Coach recommendations are a powerful teaching tool. Here’s how to recommend a
skill to multiple students simultaneously.
13
You’re preparing to teach a unit, and you’d
like your students to preview the material.
q Click a topic to see a list of skills.
q Click a skill to see an example problem.
Isaac “needs practice” because
he hasn’t attempted this skill yet.
q Click RECOMMEND TO STUDENTS THAT NEED PRACTICE.
q Choose students to receive your recommendation.
When you have multiple students in
your class, the screen will look like
this. You can use checkboxes to pick
who should practice this skill. You can
also set a due date or adjust the
number of problems students must
answer correctly in a row.
q Click RECOMMEND to confirm.
Your student will directly receive your
coach recommendation.

Now you want one particular student to work on “Expressions with parentheses.”
Here’s how to recommend a skill to an individual student.
q Click STUDENT PROGRESS.
14
q Scroll down and click a student’s name.
q Click MAKE A RECOMMENDATION.

15
q To select the skill,
check the box.
q Start typing the name of the skill.
q Click RECOMMEND
TO YOUR STUDENT
to confirm.
Your student will directly receive the recommendation the same way they did when you used the Skill Progress report.

TEACHER SCENARIO #4: Track student progress
16
FIRST, SWITCH TO THE COACH DEMO TO SEE SAMPLE DATA
q If you have more than one window or tab open, close out of all but one.
q Go to khanacademy.org/coach/demo.
OR
q Click the blue or green ACCESS button.
IMPORTANT:
To move forward,
you must follow the
instructions on this
page to access our
coach demo.
q If you don’t see this purple bar at the top of your screen, ask for help.

17
You want to see if your 5th grade students are ready for your upcoming unit on
measurement and data.
q Click SKILL PROGRESS.
q Set CLASS to SAMPLE CLASS B and MISSION to 5TH GRADE.
q Click MEASUREMENT AND DATA to see the skills in this topic.
q Click the first skill to see who’s studied it and how they’re doing.
q Do the same for the other skills in this topic.
Which students have already mastered all six skills?
__________________________
How can you challenge and engage them?
There is no one right answer! What would you do in your class?
__________________________________________________________

Now you want to see whether your 7th grade students are on track to complete their
mission.
q Click STUDENT PROGRESS to access that report.
q Set CLASS to SAMPLE CLASS A and MISSION to 7TH GRADE to see a histogram
Always shows
cumulative data
Use the
ACTIVITY filter
to show data for
only a specific
timeframe
18
summarizing your students’ mission progress.
The chart above shows that 3 students have mastered 20–30% of mission-level skills.
• Mission-level skills are grade-level skills. To complete a mission, a student must master all mission-level skills.
• Mission foundations are prerequisites for mission-level skills. Mission foundations do not count toward mission completion.

19
q Look at the overall shape to get a quick snapshot of how the class is doing.
Has anyone finished more than half of the 7th grade mission? If so, who?
__________________________________________________________
Hint: Click any column to see a list of the students at that level of mission progress.
Hint: You can use the arrow keys on your keyboard to move between students.
Who needs the most attention from you?
__________________________________________________
Hint: Are there any students in the 0–10% column?
What advice would you give this student?
__________________________________________________
Hint: There is no one right answer. Remember: the goal is to master 100% of mission-level skills.
REMEMBER:
• Mission foundations = prerequisites
• Mission-level skills = grade-level skills
• Mission completion = mastering 100% of mission-level skills

Finally, you want to reward the students who have accomplished the most on Khan
Academy since they started using the program.
20
q Staying in the STUDENT PROGRESS report, adjust your settings as follows:
• Class: SAMPLE CLASS A
• Mission: 7TH GRADE
• Activity from: ALL TIME
When looking at data for your own class, you might choose a shorter activity range (such as LAST 30 DAYS) to see only
recent progress.

21
q Click the clock icon to sort users by minutes online.
Who has spent the most time on Khan Academy?
_______________________________________________________
The time measurement includes all time
students have spent actively engaged in the
material. After two minutes of inactivity, a
student is no longer counted as engaged.
The skill measurements include only skills from
the mission chosen at the top of the report.
Currently, the numbers include both mission-level
skills and mission foundations.
q Click the dark blue square to sort by number of skills mastered.
Who has mastered the most skills in this mission?
_______________________________________________________

TEACHER SCENARIO #5: Focus on struggling students
You want to find out who is having trouble and how to help them.
The red squares (circled below) indicate struggling skills.
22
q Staying in the STUDENT PROGRESS report, click the red square to sort by
number of struggling skills.
q Click ISAAC AT KA, a student with one struggling skill.
q Find the struggling skill and click the number to the right of it.
This student has attempted seven questions on this skill.

Now you want to diagnose this student’s misunderstandings.
The question mark means the
student used at least one hint.
23
A bar graph will appear showing Isaac’s work on this skill.
How many problems did he attempt?
____
Hint: Count the bars.
How many did he get right?
____
Hint: Count the blue bars.
The camera icon means the
student watched a video.
q Click the red bars to see Isaac’s answers. What is he doing wrong?
___________________________________________________
Hint: Click PREVIOUS and
NEXT to see Isaac’s steps.

Find someone who can peer tutor your struggling student.
q Click COACH and then SKILL PROGRESS to return to your report.
q Click FIND and search for CONVERTING FRACTIONS TO DECIMALS.
Who might be a good peer tutor for Isaac? ___________
Hint: Who has mastered this skill?
q Click this skill.
q Click DONE.
q Click the bar to see how students
are doing on this skill.
24

PLAN YOUR
KHAN ACADEMY
CLASSROOM
25

MISSION FAQs
How long does it take!
to complete a mission?!
Just like putting a man on the moon,
missions are meant to represent major
commitments, and completing one should
be considered a big accomplishment.
With that said, the amount of time and
effort it takes to complete a mission will
depend on who the student is, where they
start, and how fast they go. If you expect
a student to take about nine months to
learn an entire year’s worth of material,
it’s reasonable to expect that it would take
about nine months to complete a mission.
What is the difference between
mission-level skills and mission
foundations?!
Mission-level skills cover specific grade-level
standards, while mission foundations
are skills that we’ve identified as
prerequisites for mission-level skills.
What does it take to!
“complete” a mission?!
A mission is complete once you’ve
mastered all grade-level skills in that
mission—we call these mission-level skills.
Completing mission foundations, or
prerequisite skills, does NOT count
towards mission completion.
In order to master skills, students will need
to take Mastery Challenges on a regular
basis. Mastery Challenges mix together
different types of problems and spaces
them across days to helps students retain
their math skills over time.
I have students who are below
grade-level. Which mission
should they be working on?!
Since each grade level mission contains
prerequisites, your students can work
through prerequisites (or mission
foundations) while working towards the
same grade level mission completion as the
rest of the class.
What happens when my!
student completes a mission?!
We’d hate to spoil the surprise, but let’s
just say that your student will have a party
on her learning dashboard. The student
will also get a coveted mission badge, plus
the feeling of great accomplishment.
Once a mission is complete, your student
can move on to the next one!
How is content curated within
each grade level mission?!
We have a group of math educators who
create and curate the skills within each
grade level mission. If you’re an educator
in the U.S., you should know that we’ve
used the Common Core math standards to
drive the creation of all of our math skills.
We believe these standards are well-written
and offer a great progression through
math concepts. For each of our grade
level missions, the prerequisite skills from
previous missions are also included.
Will more missions be added?!
Yes! We hope to have all of K-12 math
(including calculus) covered by Fall 2014.
27

PERSONALIZING YOUR CLASSROOM WITH MISSIONS
5 SIMPLE STEPS!
Step 1: Select a mission for your class!
Click ‘Manage Students’ and choose the appropriate mission for each class. Your students will
get a message that notifies them of this mission request.
When you choose a
mission for a specific
class, your reports
will default to looking
at student progress
within that mission!
Step 2: Create a culture around missions!
Make sure your students understand the gravity of accepting a mission, the hard work it
will entail, and the sense of accomplishment they’ll feel when it’s completed.
CONSIDER: Have a conversation with your students about how
President JFK challenged the US to put a human on the moon in 1961.
In 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon.
Ask your students…
• Was it easy for NASA to complete this mission?
• How long did it take?
• Why was it important?
• How do you think the NASA team felt afterwards?
Relate this conversation back to your classroom and the missions they’ll
be working on throughout the school year in Khan Academy.

Step 3: Set a big goal!
Students are motivated by feeling like they’re part of a
community working towards a big goal. Take this
opportunity to set classroom goals that are measureable,
ambitious, and realistic.
Ex. All students will complete their 6th grade mission by the end
of the school year
Set up rewards and incentives to keep students motivated along the way.
CONSIDER:
• Keep a poster in your room that celebrates students who have completed 10
mission-level skills, 20 mission-level skills, etc.
• Throw a pizza party when everyone has reached 50% completion
• Create a healthy competition between classes by seeing which class has made
the most mission progress as a group
• Give out certificates to students at an EOY celebration that recognizes
students who completed their missions
Step 4: GET GOING!!
There are 2 main ways you can implement missions.
1) Use missions alongside your curriculum
Use coach recommendations to assign students
specific mission-level skills that align to lessons you’re
teaching in class. Students can use Khan Academy
to get more practice during class and as homework.
You can always switch between
these 2 ways of using missions
or use them together
depending on which skills align
nicely with your lessons.
2) Use missions to supplement your class
Have your students work on their missions outside of
your class, dedicating time on a regular basis to
making progress at home or at a computer lab. Make
sure you check in with them and monitor their
progress regularly.
When will students have access
and time to work on missions?
29

Step 5: Monitor student progress!
We encourage you to regularly look at student progress so that you can continue to motivate your
classes while tailoring your instruction to the needs of your students.
Teacher view:!
All reports can be filtered by missions. To see a summary of class progress as well as detailed info
for each student, use your Student Progress report.
Mission foundations are
prerequisite skills, and
mission-level skills cover
grade-level standards. Only
mission-level skills count
towards mission completion.
30
Student view:!
Students can always see
what they need to
accomplish in their
missions by looking at
their tile board called
‘Mission Progress.’
Students can also see a more detailed view of their
own accomplishments by clicking “Progress” on the
left side of their learning dashboard.

WHEN MISSIONS AREN’T IDEAL…
We recognize that not everyone will be able to use missions—you might have a different set of
standards, or your students might have extremely limited access to technology. We’ve found
that the strategies below can be helpful, and they can even be used alongside missions as well.
Foundational Playlist
Make a list of the 10 skills that you think all of your students should already know
but often don’t when they enter your class. Have all of your students work on these
10 skills first—this will allow you to fill in gaps quickly while also making sure that
students can feel successful in other parts of the list.
Unit-aligned Playlist
Find skills that are aligned to the next unit you are teaching, and start planning on
how to incorporate KA as part of in-class practice, homework, or test review.
Any 5-10 Skills and any 2 videos
If you are introducing students to KA for the first time, a good way to get them
invested is to allow them to pick any skills they want to become practiced in. Set a
goal to complete 10 skills by the end of the week—student’s choice. You can also
set a goal to have students watch any 2 videos of their choosing.
SKILLS
What skills should students learn?
SKILLS PRACTICE
List the specific KA practice that aligns
Ex. Evaluating expressions • Evaluating expressions in one variable
• Evaluating expressions in 2 variables
31

PLAYLIST EXAMPLE #1
School, grade, teacher: KIPP Heartwood, 6th grade, Anna Gunderson
Timeframe: Students worked at their own pace through this playlist during their Fractions unit
Other
details:
32
Anna
used
data
from
her
coach
reports
to
focus
on
struggling
students
and
encouraged
peer
tutoring

PLAYLIST EXAMPLE #2
School, grade, teacher: Summit High School, 9th grade, Zack Miller
Timeframe: Students work at their own pace within a week and are expected to hit target
deadlines for their work on Khan Academy, projects, and activities. They can also work ahead.
Other
details:
Mr.
Miller
uses
data
to
host
seminars
for
specific
groups
of
students
each
week.
He
intenGonally
integrates
hands-‐on
projects
and
group
work
alongside
Khan
Academy.
33

PLAYLIST EXAMPLE #3
School, grade, teacher: Oakland Unity High School, 9th grade, Peter McIntosh & Kallie Berg
Timeframe: Students move at their own pace within a given week and can also work ahead.
Other
details:
OU
used
this
list
during
their
summer
school.
Students
completed
work
at
school
and
at
home,
and
teachers
used
data
to
give
mini-‐lessons
during
the
school
day.
If
students
completed
all
skills
by
Thursday,
they
didn’t
have
to
come
to
school
on
Friday.
34

COMMON PURPOSES & EXAMPLES OF STRATEGIES
1. DIFFERENTIATION
Give your low-performing students time to brush up on fundamental skills, give
your high-performing students time to explore advanced concepts
Ex. Tal (12th gr teacher in Philly) lets students use Khan Academy when they
have completed classwork quickly and correctly. With missions, students can
stay on grade-level content and move at their own pace.
2. FOUNDATION-BUILDING
Start your year / unit by making sure students have all prerequisite knowledge.
Investing time up front will save you time later on.
Ex. Bryan (8th gr teacher in San Diego) has students work on a specific list of
mission-foundations (prerequisites) during the first few weeks of school. This
allows him to fill in critical gaps early.
3. PRACTICE (IN-CLASS and/or HOMEWORK)
Assign skills / lessons that align with the concepts taught in class
Ex. Peter (high school teacher in Oakland) uses coach recommendations to
assign skills aligned to the lessons he’s teaching. When students complete the
recommendation, they get 1 point. When they master that skill within a 2
week timeframe, they get 3 points.
4. ABSENT STUDENTS
Get your absent students up to speed with the appropriate lessons/practice
Ex. Shelby (7th gr teacher in Idaho) made coach recommendations to a student
who was suspended for 3 days. She could see from her data that the student
was keeping up with the work and even watched videos to learn new
concepts. When he came back to class, he didn’t have to spend time re-learning
what everyone else had already done.
5. TEST REVIEW AND TEST MAKE-UP
Align skills / lessons to a test and use them as review. If students answer problems
incorrectly on the test, have them go back and get more practice on Khan Academy
in those specific areas
Ex. KIPP Bayview teachers in California used Khan Academy alongside their
internal benchmarks last year. When students missed specific questions, they
worked on the KA content aligned to those skills. Before taking their end of
year standardized exams, students were given dedicated time to fill in their
unique gaps.
35

CASE STUDY #1: Happy Hills High School
Mrs. Harlow teaches 9th grade Algebra at Happy Hills. The middle schools
that feed into Happy Hills range in quality, however, and Mrs. Harlow often
ends up teaching arithmetic while her advanced students get bored and
disengage.
Last year, Mrs. Harlow teamed up with the computer lab teacher, Mr. Hyde,
to use Khan Academy with all incoming 9th grade students. First, students
who were identified as struggling in math had to attend a 6-week summer
school in which all students brushed up on basic math. After reviewing all
of the missions and looking at the test scores of her summer school
students, she decided to use the 6th grade mission as her summer school
curriculum. She knew that students would be able to feel successful in this
mission—but that there would be many gaps that she’d find as well.
On the first day of summer school, Mrs. Harlow and Mr. Hyde explained to
students that their goal would be to complete their 6th grade mission. Each
week they would focus small group instruction on a different topic within
the mission, although students could move faster if they wanted to.
Students were expected to get “practiced” in 10 skills on KA every week. If
students completed their 10 skills by Thursday, they didn’t have to come to
school on Friday. During summer school, Mrs. Harlow would give mini-lessons
to small groups based on who was struggling, while Mr. Hyde
helped to manage the rest of the large class.

Mrs. Harlow teaches a traditional math class during the school year, and she
uses the Algebra mission alongside her curriculum. She finds the skills that
align with her lesson by using KA’s common core map, and she makes
coach recommendations every week. Her students go to a computer lab 4
days a week and work on these recommendations, although students who
want to work ahead or need extra time to remediate can do so.
Mrs. Harlow uses a point system to grade her students. When students
complete her recommendation, they get 1 point. If they master those
same skills in a 2 week timeframe, they’ll get an additional 2 points for each
skill. This motivates students to continue reviewing and retaining skills with
Mastery Challenges.

When students go to Mr. Hyde’s computer lab to practice their skills as
“homework” for their traditional math class, Mr. Hyde pulls small groups
and does targeted intervention with students because he shares all data
with Mrs. Harlow. Mrs. Harlow and Mr. Hyde meet weekly to talk about
which students needed more attention while in the computer lab, and
which students needed to be challenged even further. By working together
and sharing data, Mrs. Harlow and Mr. Hyde became a strong team.
What is the purpose of using
Khan Academy for Mrs. Harlow
and Mr. Hyde?
What are the main strategies
they use to fulfill these
purposes?
36

CASE STUDY #2: Magnetic Meadows Middle School
Mr. Mason teaches 8th grade math and science. His students are learning a
mix of 8th grade content and Algebra because they’re on an accelerated
track, but at the end of the year they will take the regular 8th grade
standardized test.
Mr. Mason shares a class set of iPads with another math teacher, and he uses
KA as part of his math curriculum. He divides his students into 2 groups
and every week, his class takes turns spending 2 days on KA and 2 days
doing collaborative problem solving in a large group. The last day of each
week is intentionally unscheduled so that Mr. Mason can have students work
on whatever it is that they need most--for some that means more time on
KA, for others it means being in a lesson with Mr. Mason.

When Mr. Mason’s students are working on KA, they are all working quietly
and independently--this is important because the other half of the class is
working collaboratively in the same room and need to hear each other.
Depending on the data, Mr. Mason will sometimes do a mini-lesson with
students who are on KA while the other half of his class is working in a
group. Students who are working on KA can sit close to other students who
are working on similar skills, this way they can peer tutor each other easily
and quietly. All students start by working through the 8th grade mission. This
not only solidifies the foundations needed for algebra but also helps students
prepare for the end-of-year standardized test. Students must complete 50%
of the 8th grade mission by winter break and 100% before state testing.
When they finish, they move on to the algebra mission. Students keep
notebooks, which they use for scratch work and notes.

Every day Mr. Mason looks at his data to make sure students are progressing.
At the end of each week, Mr. Mason looks at his Activity report, which tells
him the total amount of time each student has spent on KA. He requires
students to spend at least 2 hours on KA a week--this plays a big role in
grades. Since Mr. Mason allows his students to go at their own pace, he
encounters students who fly through the material while others seem to
crawl. Mr. Mason keeps his advanced learners engaged by having them do
computer programming challenges on KA. Struggling students who need
extra time often stay after school, and Mr. Mason also encourages them to
use KA at home.

Throughout the school year, Mr. Mason does big projects that can take 1-2
weeks at a time. These projects often weave together science and math,
such as building a rocket and graphing its projectile arc. At the start of each
project, Mr. Mason gives a quick diagnostic that consists of all prerequisite
skills needed in order to understand how to do the project. Students that
have gaps in the diagnostic are then required to do aligned skills in KA
before starting the project--this sets them up for success and enables them
to work confidently in groups.
What is the purpose of using
Khan Academy for Mr. Mason?
What are the main strategies
they use to fulfill these
purposes?
37

CASE STUDY #3: Eastern Elderberry Elementary School
Ms. Eloise teaches 4th grade to a classroom of 28 students. In her classroom she has
8 computers, and she typically uses them in station rotations so that all of her
students get a chance to use them.

The 4 stations that Ms. Eloise sets up are...

Station 1 - Independent practice using a worksheet
Students sit at desks and complete a worksheet that is aligned to the
Common Core standards being focused on that week.
Station 2 - Collaborative problem solving
Students get in groups of 2-3 and solve multi-step word problems that are
often focused on math in real life situations.
Station 3 - Khan Academy
Ms. Eloise has students work through the 4th grade mission. Each week, she
recommends one set of skills to her lower students, another to her average
students, and a third to her advanced students. Each set is at a different level,
so students can work on skills that may be more remedial or advanced
depending on what the student is ready for. Students keep a notebook to
keep track of the work they’re doing in KA.
Station 4 - Creating a lesson
Students work in pairs to create their own lesson and questions for a skill
that they’ve mastered in the past. Not only does this help students solidify
their understanding of a concept--it also helps Ms. Eloise with extra practice
questions and excellent peer tutors!

Students spend about a half hour in each station, and typically they go to 2 stations
each day. This means that students spend about an hour on Khan Academy each
week. While students are in stations, Ms. Eloise sits at a special table and calls
students up to provide 1-1 coaching. She looks at the data to target students who
are struggling. She also uses this time to routinely check in with students about their
overall progress and motivation levels. She often has students look at their own data
to analyze what they spent the most time doing over the past week. This gives them
a chance to reflect and become self-aware with their own data. Notes from these
check-ins also go into the student’s KA notebook.

After seeing how her students react to KA, Ms. Eloise realized that she really would
like to have more computers to give her students more time and access to KA. She
carefully documents her students’ growing enthusiasm and progress in math and
gives a presentation to her principal with a request for more computers. Next year,
Ms. Eloise hopes to have a full set of computers so that students can spend at least 2
hours on KA each week.
What is the purpose of
using Khan Academy for
Ms. Eloise?
What are the main
strategies she uses to
fulfill these purposes?
38

This checklist is handy for you and the IT folks at your school.
BANDWIDTH AND CONNECTIVITY
Check that your school’s bandwidth can handle all students on Khan
Academy at a given time.
We recommend ~1.5 Mbps per machine viewing standard definition video. It’s
unlikely all students will watch streaming videos at the same time (skills practice is
significantly less bandwidth), but ~1.5Mbps per student is a very safe bet.
Confirm that wifi access points are close enough.
Ensure that all students can use wifi simultaneously. To be safe, have one router in
each room that will be using Khan Academy.
PRIVACY FILTERS
Check if your school uses filters that block YouTube.
If it does, an easy solution is to sign up for YouTube for Schools. Find out more info
about this by going to www.youtube.com/schools
DEVICES BROWSERS
Try using Khan Academy on the devices to ensure that filters and
browsers are set-up properly.
Install the latest versions of browsers. Older versions do not support the
latest technologies and encounter more bugs. We recommend faster browsers like
Chrome, Firefox, Safari and IE10.
IT SUPPORT
Provide basic troubleshooting strategies and procedures on taking care
of technology (ex. rebooting computers) and give IT contact info to
teachers.
ACCOUNTS
Figure out any email issues that may relate to creating student
accounts. If emails are not used, create student accounts ahead of time
and record usernames and passwords.
40
Tech: Is everything set up to work?

TROUBLESHOOTING TECHNOLOGY
Tech difficulties are inevitable. The following will help you avoid the most common tech problems.
What will you do and who will you contact if…
1. Some of your students don’t have school e-mail accounts already set up?
2. Some of your students don’t have usernames or passwords that work?
3. The internet is very slow or not working for some/all of your students?
4. There are computers that will not turn on or work?
5. Your devices are always running out of battery?
6. Your students need earbuds / headphones to listen to videos?
41

Dear
parent
or
guardian,
This
year,
we’ll
be
using
Khan
Academy
in
class
to
personalize
learning
for
all
students!
Khan
Academy
is
a
free
online
resource
that
allows
students
to
learn
anyGme,
anywhere,
with
material
that
is
uniquely
appropriate
for
them.
Students
can
explore
new
topics
and
pracGce
their
math
skills
by
using
interacGve
exercises,
videos,
and
tutorials.
As
students
learn,
their
acGvity
feeds
into
reports
that
show
important
informaGon
such
as
strengths
and
weaknesses
in
a
parGcular
concept.
By
using
Khan
Academy,
I’ll
be
able
to
provide
a
more
personalized
learning
experience
for
your
child.
If
you
approve
of
your
child
parGcipaGng
in
this
program,
please
provide
the
informaGon
below.
Student
name:
_____________________________________________
Does
your
student
already
have
a
Khan
Academy
account?
!
YES
!
NO
Student
username:
__________________________________________
(Le$ers
only,
no
spaces,
ex.
JSmith;
if
your
child
already
has
a
Khan
Academy
account,
please
provide
the
child’s
exis@ng
username
above)
Student
password:
___________________________________________
(Minimum
5
characters,
different
from
username;
if
your
child
already
has
a
Khan
Academy
account,
then
you
do
NOT
have
to
write
down
the
password
as
long
as
your
child
knows
it.)
Student
birthdate:
___________________________________________
Parent/guardian
email:
________________________________________
(An
email
will
be
sent
asking
you
to
verify
your
child’s
account,
but
you
will
not
receive
any
other
emails
without
your
permission.)
If
you
want
to
see
how
your
child
is
learning
on
Khan
Academy,
I
encourage
you
to
create
your
own
Khan
Academy
account
as
well.
You’ll
be
able
to
see
what
your
child
is
working
on,
and
there’s
plenty
of
material
on
the
site
for
you
to
learn
anything
you
want,
too.
Simply
go
to
www.khanacademy.org
and
click
Sign
Up
to
get
your
own
account.
Check
out
the
links
below
to
learn
more:
Khan
Academy:
www.khanacademy.org
Terms
of
Service:
www.khanacademy.org/about/tos
Privacy
Policy:
www.khanacademy.org/about/privacy-‐policy
Please
sign
below
to
give
your
child
permission
to
use
Khan
Academy
in
my
class.
Parent
Signature:
________________________________
Date:
___________
Sincerely,
[Teacher
Name]
42
SAMPLE PERMISSION SLIP

START OF YEAR – LOGISTICS
As you prepare to implement Khan Academy, you’ll want to think about when and were
students will use the program.
43
SCHEDULE
Decide when and where will your students will use Khan Academy (e.g., two times per
week for 45 min in the computer lab)
CLASSROOM LAYOUT
Imagine the class where students will be using Khan Academy. What does it look like?
• Where are the outlets? Can students easily charge their devices?
• If you are using a mobile cart full of devices, where will it go?
• Where will the students sit? Will they be allowed to sit in unconventional places (such
as on the floor, in a beanbag, etc.)?
• Can you easily get to each student?
• Will you section off part of the room for teacher seminars, peer tutoring, non-KA
work, etc.?

START OF YEAR – CLASSROOM CULTURE
We’ve seen the best practices below in the most successful KA classrooms. Consider how you
might be able to include similar lessons in your own class.
44
RULES FOR USING TECHNOLOGY
Each school has different rules and procedures concerning technology. We encourage
teachers to start off the year explaining these rules and procedures and getting any
appropriate forms signed. Some teachers have also used this time as an opportunity to
discuss the responsibilities associated with having email accounts and the difference
between a work or school email account and a personal email account.
INTRODUCING KHAN ACADEMY
While it might be tempting to plan how students learn about the site, we encourage you
to consider letting students explore Khan Academy individually when they first get on
the site. This enables them to see different parts of the site with the element of
discovery. Then, debrief as a class to discuss what everyone found. (You may also want
to have a backup plan in case technology fails on the first day.)
Keep in mind that your attitude towards Khan Academy will be projected onto your
students. If you view it as helpful, they will likely frame it as a helpful tool. If it's seen as a
fun activity, likely that enthusiasm will rub off too.
You can set the stage for your classroom in setting a tone of respect when using Khan
Academy and technology. It is important for students to understand that everyone
learns differently and has different “Swiss cheese holes.” There is no need to feel
embarrassed about filling in these gaps. Instead, the emphasis should be placed on
meeting goals, regardless of what those specific goals may be.
DISCUSSING KHAN ACADEMY
Some teachers encourage students to share their thoughts on how learning with Khan
Academy will be different from their previous math classes. We’ve seen some teachers
begin this conversation with a formal presentation, while others have been informal.
During this conversation, teachers can correct any misconceptions, identify potential
opportunities and challenges, and prompt students to think creatively. Consider covering
the following questions:
• Think about your previous math classes. How might your experience with Khan
Academy be similar to or different from another student in those math classes?
• What are some advantages to using Khan Academy?
• What are some challenges we might face in using Khan Academy?
• How can we meet those challenges?
This brainstorm could segue into a discussion of class contracts.

START OF YEAR – CLASSROOM CULTURE (continued)
45
CONTRACTS
Starting the year with an explicit class contract helps establish norms and set
expectations. To cultivate values like individual improvement, hard work, and camaraderie,
consider including the following in your contract:
• We all learn concepts at different paces
• We take responsibility for our own learning, and we try our best
• We help each other out. When someone is struggling with a concept we already
know, we’ll help him or her understand it
USING A JOURNAL / NOTEBOOK
Some teachers might find it useful to have a consistent source of documentation for
each student, whether it’s a journal, notebook, binder, etc. This journal can be used to
keep track of which videos students have watched and which exercises have been
worked on. It can also be a space for scratch work, for keeping track of goals and
progress, and for students to reflect on their learning: what questions they have, what
new vocabulary terms they’ve learned, etc.
HOW TO BE AN EXCELLENT PEER TUTOR
Social interaction is a key component of using Khan Academy, and we expect and hope
that students will learn from each other. For many classrooms, you’ll need to explicitly
teach students how to be good tutors to their peers. One way to start is to help
students brainstorm the characteristics they would like in an excellent tutor (e.g. they
don’t just tell me the answer, they ask me questions that guide me to the answer, they
are encouraging and positive, etc.).
HOW TO WATCH A KA VIDEO
In order to take full advantage of Khan Academy videos, it might be necessary to
explicitly teach students how to watch a video. This includes taking notes and stopping
and replaying parts that are not clear. Teachers can model active listening by watching a
video on a higher concept so that students can observe the learning and note-taking
process.
HOW TO SET YOUR OWN GOALS
Although the specifics will vary for each class, individual goal-setting is a hallmark of using
Khan Academy. For this reason, we suggest teaching students how to read their own
Progress Reports and set reasonable goals. The goal is to encourage students to be self-motivated
and to empower them to discuss their own goals and progress with you.

USING DATA – NEW EXPERIENCED
46
NEW KA COACHES
What is the one piece of information to
focus on?
Which coach report shows that metric?
EXPERIENCED KA COACHES
How do missions, mastery challenges, and
coach recommendations impact the way you
read data?
Based on your class data, how will you teach
your next lesson / unit?
Suggestions:
# of minutes – to get students
comfortable with using KA on a
routine basis
# of mastered skills – to ensure
that students are getting
practice on specific concepts
Struggling students – to focus
on students who are having a
difficult time with specific skills
Suggestions:
Incentivize levels of mastery on
a longer time frame
Get students used to taking
Mastery Challenges on a
routine basis (every day if
possible)
Use recommendations as a way
to review for tests

PLANNING CLASS TIME – FOR NEW FOLKS
How will you structure your first day of class? Draft your agenda with the tips below.
BE SURE TO COVER
q Introducing Khan Academy by discussing how it will benefit students in math
q Go over tech rules or contracts
q Establish systems and procedures around tech
q Make log-in instructions as clear as possible (e.g., write instructions on the board, haves
students write down their usernames and passwords)
q Ask for volunteers to help manage the class on the first day
YOUR FIRST DAY AGENDA
SAMPLE FIRST DAY AGENDA (90 minute class)
Time
AcGvity
9:00-9:15 Class starts, discuss with students how technology will be integrated into math class this year
9:15-9:30 Pass out Khan Academy notebooks, go over tech rules as a class, discuss procedures for
getting a laptop from the mobile cart
9:30-9:40 Pass out laptops, pass out instructions for students with usernames, passwords, and coach ids
9:40-10:00 Have all students log into Khan Academy and add the appropriate coaches (get 2 parent
volunteers), when done, make sure they have stored their username and password
somewhere safe
10-10:15 Allow students to explore the site on their own
10:15-10:20 Quick debrief: what have we learned about Khan Academy so far?
10:20-10:30 Go over procedures for putting away laptops and charging them, put away laptops, pack up
and get ready for next class
47

PLANNING CLASS TIME – FOR EXPERIENCED FOLKS
What will a day look like next semester? Draft your agenda with the tips below.
SUGGESTIONS
q Intentionally build in time to respond to data with mini-lessons
q Include time for students to receive on-demand help from you by creating a tutor bar
q Start / end each day with independent time working through Mastery Challenges
q Energize the class with a Rocket Run, where half the class competes against the other using
the Real Time report projected onto a screen
A DAY IN NEXT SEMESTER
SAMPLE AGENDA (60 minute class)
Time
AcGvity
9:00-9:15
Mastery Challenges
Students settle down with their computers and work independently on Mastery Challenges
9:15-9:30
Mini-lesson
Based on the data, pull a small group of students that need practice or are struggling with a
specific skill. The rest of the class can focus on working through a playlist / recommendations.
9:30-9:40
Tutor Bar
During this time, sit at a designated table and allow students to come to you with specific
questions they might have.
9:40-9:55
Check-ins for 2 students
Each week you focus on 10 different students. During this time, you review their KA progress
with them, congratulate them on their successes, and discuss upcoming goals.
9:55-10:00
Rocket Runs!
Each half of the class gets 90 seconds to get as many energy points as they can.
48

BEYOND THE FIRST DAY
Every implementation evolves. As you use Khan Academy with your students, you’ll become
more comfortable with our tools and discover more effective ways to use them. Here a few
goals you might set for yourself as the school year continues:
49
q Continue to progress through Khan Academy as a student
q Aim to have 100% of students logged in, started on particular skills, etc., by a certain
date (e.g., end of the first day/week )
q Set classroom norms and monitor student behavior
q Check your coach reports at the end of each day - note which students are focused
solely on videos or are not making as much progress and check in on them
q Have students set up and use journals
q Use Khan Academy reports to decide what topics to teach
q After the initial push, evolve the implementation model and explore ideas like peer
tutoring, small groups or 1:1s, and projects
q Prioritize individual improvement over performance on grade-level material
• Some students may race ahead, while others spend time filling gaps in their
knowledge rather than working on grade-level standards. In the short term,
these students may not perform as well on grade-level assessments, but they
may ultimately become better math students thanks to their strong
foundation.
q To reinforce a positive classroom culture, recognize students who put in extra work
or meet their goals
• Encourage spontaneous applause from the whole class when a student
completes a goal that's been particularly challenging for them
• Have students share accomplishments or challenges from the day or week at
the end of class
• Praise students for tutoring their peers
q Keep your mind open to new ideas and to the concept of continuous improvement

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