Is Here to Rescue You from Your Child’s Math Homework

don’t know!” I said. My head was pounding as I loaded the dishwasher. “Did you text one of your friends? Ask them.” My oldest, exhausted from a 2-hour practice, silently rolled his eyes, saying, “No, everyone is already in bed. I had practice, so I haven’t done my math homework yet.” August always brings mixed feelings to our house. Happy for a return to routine, but the thought of math homework sends a sense of anxiety through the house. We are creatives in this house. “Can’t you write the answer? Do you have to show your work? I can give you the answer.” I responded. “No, mom, I have to show my work. I can’t just write the answer down. They have to know how I came to get that answer.” The dog is barking in the background. The cats are knocking things off the counter. My youngest storms in from baseball practice, throwing his stuff up against the wall with a loud thunk as the bat hits the hall, screaming, “I am hungry.” Welcome to the average school weeknight in the Swenk household - exhaustion, chores, hunger, practices, and math HOMEWORK. Even if math were my stronger subject, I wouldn’t be able to teach it properly. “I don’t know what I am going to do about homework,” I lamented to a friend. “It is different from my childhood, and I am sick of getting my kids to school early for help, and they can’t stay late.” “Have you tried Photomath?” My friend stated with the casualness of

“I someone who didn’t spend one-hour last night on a math problem with their middle schooler. “Photomath, never heard of it,” I said. “What is it?” My friend went on, “It is the app that my middle schooler and high schooler use to help with their math homework. You take a picture of the problem, and the app gives you the order of operations - not the answer, but the order of the steps you need to take to get to the correct answer. It also does something with graphs.”

A wave of excitement came over me as I tried to pull up Photomath on my phone as we walked around the track. Screw my heart rate; I was going to end my math drama.

According to their website, “Photomath reads and solves mathematical problems instantly by using the camera of your mobile device. Check your work for any printed or handwritten problems. Learn how to approach math problems through clear steps and detailed instructions. You can even choose between multiple explanation methods for some problems.”

An app like this was right up my alley as I forwarded the information to my son. I know you are thinking, what does it cost? The core functionality is free. More advanced functions are available under their Photomath Plus subscription plans which costs between $2.99 and $19 per month, or a yearly plan at $59.99. Sounds like a plan to me! You can find more information at https://photomath.com/en/

Kimberly Watkins-Swenk is a social media professional and also OTM’s Digital Content Director & Editor. Kimberly and her family split their time between Smyrna and Durango, Colorado. She is married to Jason and has two sons, Luke and Chase, and two cats she loves more than anything.