Inklings Math

Support

Questions, problems, or anything that isn't working — please write, and you'll get a reply from a person.

Common questions

How do I see the answers?
Your student sees each right answer after submitting, once they have had a chance to fix the mistake themselves. For the whole key, tap the three-dots button at the top of the worksheet and choose Answer key. If you have set a parent PIN you will be asked for it first, so a student cannot reach the answers on their own; with no PIN set, it opens straight away.

Do I have to use a PIN?
No. The app starts with no PIN, and settings, tests and the answer key open freely. Set one in Settings → Parent if a student uses the device unsupervised, and turn it off again there with Disable PIN, which asks for the current PIN so a student cannot do it.

I've forgotten my PIN.
There is no way back into the answer key, settings, the reset button or Disable PIN without it, and no recovery code — the PIN is stored only as a one-way hash, so it cannot be read back off the device by anyone, including us. The only route is to delete the app and install it again, which clears every student and starts you at setup. Please pick something you will remember, and note that a student who watches you type it will know it too.

How does it decide what to give next?
Each worksheet draws on up to six topics: five your student is working on, plus an occasional refresher from something already mastered. A topic counts as mastered after three worksheets in a row with at least ninety per cent correct, and only then does the next topic open up. Both numbers can be changed in Settings → Completion criteria: 85 to 100 per cent, and two to five worksheets. Getting a refresher wrong puts that topic back into rotation.

How is a grade paced, and when are the tests?
Each grade (or course, such as Algebra I) is worked through in four quarters, and each quarter is finished before the next one opens. When only one or two topics are left in a quarter, the worksheet is topped up to three with topics your student has already completed in it, starting with the ones they found hardest. When the last topic is complete the app offers a test: a Mid-Term after the first quarter, the Semester Final at the halfway point, a second Mid-Term after the third quarter, and the Final at the end of the grade. A Mid-Term covers its quarter, the Semester Final the first half, and the Final the whole grade. You can skip any of them.

My student is getting problems that are too easy.
Go to Progress, open the level they are past, and tick what they already know. Ticking a topic also ticks everything it builds on, plus every topic two or more levels below it, so you can usually mark a whole year in one tap with Grade Completed.

Why does the same topic keep coming back?
Either it is not mastered yet, or it is appearing as a refresher. Refreshers come from topics already mastered and are there to keep them from fading. You can make them rarer or more frequent in Settings → Review problems.

How do I add another student?
Tap the name at the top of any tab, then Manage students, then Add student. You can have up to thirty on one device. Each keeps their own progress, worksheets and history, and the parent PIN is shared across all of them. When you add a student you can mark what they already know, so an older child does not start at counting.

Can I change how long a worksheet is?
Yes, in Settings. Problems that need room to work, such as long division, count for more than one, so a worksheet of those has fewer problems on it and leaves space to write.

An answer was marked wrong, but it was right.
The app accepts the usual ways of writing an answer: 3/4 for three quarters, 2 1/3 for a mixed number, x^2 for x squared, with or without the unit, and lists in any order when the question asks for solutions. The hint under each answer box says what form is expected. A fraction must be simplified when the answer is. If you find an answer it should have accepted, please email us the problem and the answer typed.

How do the XP, streaks and trophies work?
Every right answer earns XP, with bonuses for finishing a worksheet, a perfect score, mastering a topic and passing a test; nothing is ever taken away. A streak counts the days in a row with a submitted worksheet, and every seven days earns a shield that covers one missed day. Trophies are listed on the Trophies screen with what each one asks for. Only Mad Minute is timed; worksheets never reward speed.

Can I get updates by text or email?
Yes. On the Progress screen tap the envelope (or go to Settings → Progress updates), enter your number or email, and choose whether each update covers today, the last seven days or everything since the last update. Text it now and Email it now open Messages or Mail with the update ready (the email carries the progress report PDF). For updates that arrive on their own, tap I'd like updates sent automatically: the app walks you through a daily or weekly automation in Apple's Shortcuts app, which runs Inklings Math's Get Progress Update action and sends the result with this device's Messages or Mail. The app itself never connects to the internet.

Can my student still work on paper?
Yes. A parent can print a worksheet or share it as a PDF from the three-dots menu. It is laid out for US Letter paper.

How do I explain a topic I don't remember myself?
Tap How-to beside any section of the worksheet. It opens a page with the method step by step, the mistakes people usually make, a diagram where one helps, and worked examples at three difficulties. There is one for every topic in the app.

Where is my student's progress stored?
On your device, and nowhere else. Inklings Math makes no network connections at all. If you back up your device, the app's data is part of that backup, the same as any other app.

How do I delete a student, or everything?
To remove one student, open Manage students and swipe their name. To erase everything, use Settings → Reset all progress, which needs the PIN if one is set. Deleting the app removes all of it permanently.