How and when should I get started with Freckle for the first time?

A lot of teachers ask us when they should start using Freckle with their students, and there's one simple answer: whenever you feel that your students could benefit from more targeted independent practice. Freckle is a program that accurately isolates skills and gaps with every student—then it fills the gaps and builds on the strengths, allowing students to grow into extraordinary mathematicians and readers.

Signing up for a teacher account

1. Go to classroom.freckle.com
   
   In order to sign up for a teacher account on the computer, go to classroom.freckle.com. Fill out the information required or sign in using Google. We suggest using your school email address when signing up for a teacher account.
   
   
2. Personalize Freckle
   
   Once you have created an account, you will be asked to input what grade you teach. If you're not a teacher, select I'm not a teacher on the lower-left. side. This will skip you ahead to step 5.
   
   
3. Explore the Student Experience
   
   Once you've input your grade level, you'll see a few screens explaining that you're going to first explore the student experience. Students love Freckle and we want you to see why.
   
   After the informational screens, you'll be taken to the student experience and automatically signed in as a student. Feel free to explore the student experience. Take a pre-test, answer some questions, and see how your students will use Freckle.
   
   
4. Go to the Teacher App
   
   Once you're done exploring the student experience, select Go to the Teacher App at the top of the screen. This will sign you back into your teacher account.
   
   
5. Select your school affiliation
   
   Once you have signed back into your teacher account, you will be logged in to your teacher dashboard where you will need to select your school affiliation. Note that if you do not teach at a school or are not located in the USA, select one of those options in the initial drop-down menu.
   
   Once input your school's zip code, you'll see a list of school options—select your school from the available options.
6. Add students to your class roster
   
   Select Roster in the left navigation bar. Then select Add Students on the page that follows:
   
   
   
   You'll be prompted to add all students in that class. You can even set students' default language to English or Spanish. Repeat this process for all other students in your class.
   
   
7. Assign Math or ELA practice to your students
   
   Select Assign Math to try assigning standards-based targeted practice, adaptive practice, or benchmark assessments to your students. (Learn more about math assignments here.)
   
   Select Assign ELA to assign ELA reading and writing comprehension articles to your students.
8. Browse through sample reports under "Math reports" and "ELA reports" on the left navigation bar that you will be able to access once your students start practicing on Freckle. These reports allow you to see different types of student data in various forms. They will help you stay informed about student progress and mastery.

Having Students Use Freckle for the First Time

1. Make sure that all students are added to your class roster
   
   In order to add students to your roster, log into your teacher account, select Manage Rosters, and then select Add a Student at the bottom of the roster to enter in your class list.
   
   
   1. Enter each student's first name, last name, and grade level.
   2. Select English or Spanish as the default language for each student.
   3. When students log in to work on Freckle, they will use their first name, last name, and the class code (available on the top of your teacher dashboard). Create a student account for yourself (which you can delete later) so that you can demonstrate how to log on and take the diagnostics.
2. Complete a technology check.
   
   Go to http://techcheck.freckle.com/ to see if your system is set up to run Freckle correctly.
3. Explain Freckle to Students
   
   Right before your class uses Freckle for the first time, it is important to explain to them what Freckle is, why the class is using it, and how it works. Students can greatly benefit from a live demonstration and walk through where the teacher uses the program on a projected screen, stopping to point out key features. Below is a sample script you can follow when introducing Freckle for the first time. Note: We recommend that you introduce the math and ELA components on separate days.
   
   

   Sample Script—Introducing Freckle to Students

   Okay class, today we are going to begin using a new program called Freckle. Freckle is a program that is used to practice math and reading, and it might be very different than a lot of the practice you've done before. Instead of having everyone in the class practice the same skills, Freckle is able to understand both what you are good at and where you need extra help. It then will give you questions that help you improve and grow. It is very important that you try your hardest while working on Freckle in order to get the most out of the program.

   While you are working on Freckle, there are times where you might get stuck and have difficulty answering a problem. Don't worry, that is to be expected. The program has lots of different tools that you can use to help you figure out how to solve the problem so you can move on to the next level.

   When you answer a question correctly on Freckle, you earn a certain number of coins. There is a class leaderboard that shows the top five students in the class—and how many coins each of them has. Since everyone is working on questions that are at a level that is just right for them, all students have an equal chance of ending up on the leaderboard. Just work hard, try your best, and you may see your name on top!

   Now, I want to go over some of the features of Freckle so that you understand how to use it best. I expect that everyone pays attention to the board and keeps their hands off the iPads and/or computers. I'll start by logging onto a student account I made.

   Teacher displays the following on the board to demonstrate math practice:

   1. Signing in to your student account—make sure to have the class code displayed on the board
   2. Selecting Math
   3. Selecting the different domains—pick the one that your class will begin with
   4. Taking the diagnostic test (Note: diagnostic not included for grades K/1)—make sure to miss most of the questions and go through quickly so that the diagnostic demonstration doesn't take long
   5. Practicing within that domain—show students how to:
      
      
      • watch a video for support,
      • have the question read aloud,
      • use the virtual manipulatives, and
      • use the scratch paper.
      Answer any questions students may have before beginning use.

   Teacher displays the following on the board to demonstrate ELA practice:

   1. Signing in to your student account—make sure to have the class code displayed on the board
   2. Selecting Reading
   3. Taking the diagnostic test—make sure to miss most of the questions and go through quickly so that the diagnostic demonstration doesn't take long
   4. Completing an assignment—show students how to:
      
      
      • select an assigned article,
      • scroll on both the article side and the questions side,
      • check and uncheck answers,
      • submit their answers, and
      • review their answers.
      Answer any questions students may have before beginning use.

4. Have students get started by going to student.freckle.com (web version) or loading the app on tablets.
   
   On this page, students will use their first name, last name, and the class code to log in and begin practice on Freckle.
   
   
   
   The class code can be found on your Manage Roster page. We recommend that you leave the class code visible on the whiteboard or a poster for the remainder of the year so that students won't have to ask you for the code each time you use the program.
5. Engage with math and ELA practice on the student dashboard
   
   Students can select various options from the bottom navigation menu to interact with different features of Freckle:
   
   
   • Math: students can access self-guided practice in Math (fact practice as well as standards-aligned adaptive math practice)
   • ELA: self-guided word study as well as ELA reading/writing articles
   • Assignments: all math assignments and ELA assignments generated from the teacher dashboard.