Middle School Math Magic

Student features

Everything a student can do after signing in.

The Revealment Ritual (diagnostic)

Self-paced diagnostic for grades 6, 7 and 8, organized by unit with a problem bank for each grade.
After a miss, a remediation loop on that problem with an AI-written worked example (built-in backups if AI is unavailable).
AI grading checks each step of the work, not just the final answer.
Unfinished sessions resume where the student left off; progress saves automatically.
Mixed review practice and harder challenge problems.
Photos of written work can be attached to an answer.
Unit lesson videos are matched to each problem's skill: free Khan Academy, Math is Power and PBS LearningMedia (Open Up Resources) videos for grades 6–8, plus your own YouTube channel videos.
Worked examples explain the “why” behind every step, offer a second way to solve, and reveal each step with a short animation.

Cyphera, the AI coach

Meet Cyphera, the app's friendly AI math coach, ready to help at any step.
Never gives away the answer, but always keeps working with the student toward real understanding through guiding questions.
Snap a photo of your work on any problem: the coach reads the handwriting, says back what it sees, praises what's right, and asks a guiding question about the first step that went wrong, all without giving the answer.
Fully spoken conversations: students talk to the coach, hear its reply read aloud, and the mic reopens automatically so they can keep talking hands-free.
Students can snap a photo of their handwritten work, and the AI reads it, checks each step, and gives feedback.
Available in the diagnostic, exam, practice and the Alchemist’s Cauldron; opens from a side drawer.
Responds in other languages and uses a voice the student chooses. Notices when a student types in another language, replies in it, and offers to switch the mic and voice to match.
Remembers each student: Cyphera keeps a short profile of their math strengths, struggles and what helps them learn, and uses it in later sessions. Only math learning is kept, never personal details.
After a worked example, Cyphera asks a clear “your turn” question before the mic opens, and the mic waits until it’s truly listening so the first words aren’t lost.
Also available in the Oracle’s Workshop, where she knows which modeling tool the student is using.

The Oracle’s Workshop (modeling)

Six tools that introduce mathematical modeling: Modeling Quest, Data Divination, Model Mirror, Chance Chamber, Fermi Fortunes and Flawed Spells.
Modeling Quest walks a real question through seven steps (ask, assume, choose variables, build, compute, check, revise), with Oracle feedback on each step.
Data Divination: drag a line of fit through real data, interpret slope and starting value, predict, then reveal the true best-fit line.
Model Mirror: sliders update a table, graph and equation together for real situations like phone plans and saving up.
Chance Chamber: predict, then run 10 to 10,000 trials and compare the results with theory.
Fermi Fortunes estimation challenges, and Flawed Spells, where students find and fix the hidden flaw in a model.
Students turn in their work to the teacher from any tool.

Wizard’s Eye (scan a problem)

Photograph a printed or handwritten homework problem and it becomes a coached, step-by-step walkthrough instead of just an answer.
The student works each step and gets an instant check before the next step appears.
The AI coach can be opened at any step; scanning is available only to signed-in users.

Alchemist Archives (videos)

Alchemist Archives: the video library for students and teachers, where you can watch lesson videos for every unit. No login needed. It's linked from the home screen between the class-code login and the “Join Spellbound Showdown” box, with every video organized by grade and unit.
Topic help videos appear right where students look for help: in worked examples, the Alchemist’s Cauldron, Wizard’s Eye (scan a problem) and Check my work.
Videos that play right on the page come first (Khan Academy, then Math is Power), then PBS videos (which open in a new tab), then your own videos.
“Play whole unit” plays a unit's videos back to back in the same tab, in that same order.

The Cartographer’s Grimoire (course map and daily practice)

Course map of every Grade 6–8 skill, showing the student's mastery level for each one.
Today card in My Progress with a practice streak, a daily goal, and a “what to do next” suggestion.

The Grand Sorcerer’s Trial (culminating exam)

The Grand Sorcerer’s Trial: an AI-generated culminating mastery exam at the same difficulty as the diagnostic.
Students can leave and come back; exam progress is saved.
Before-and-after report comparing diagnostic and exam results.
Cumulative exam covering several units at once.

The Alchemist’s Cauldron

Custom or randomized problem sets for grades 6, 7 and 8: teachers pick the units to mix, or students explore a random selection, with fresh numbers every time.
AI-generated problems written around each student's interests.
Includes the AI coach during practice sessions.
Step-by-step worked examples, the same as in the diagnostic, are available for each skill in the Alchemist’s Cauldron, Wizard’s Eye (scan a problem) and Check my work.

The Cauldron of Self (other student pages)

Interests setup: students pick interests used to personalize problems.
Math Vault: revisit past mistakes and fix them for credit.
Check my work: photograph a workbook page for instant AI feedback; a “My workbook pages” panel shows past feedback and refreshes on its own. Students can file a page under an assignment their teacher posted, and its score lands in the gradebook.
Turn in a test: pick the assignment by name from the teacher's list (no typing a title), then upload a photo of the paper test; the score appears only after the teacher releases it.
My test scores: look up released scores.
My progress home screen: completed units, personal goals, assignments, and any warm-up the teacher has pushed live.
My calendar: weekly and monthly views on the home screen showing everything due (practice, problem sets, the Alchemist’s Cauldron and graded work), with turned-in items checked off.
Activity history: every visit to the Alchemist’s Cauldron, Enchanted Utensils (math toolbox), Wizard’s Eye (scan a problem), Check my work, the Vault, the bank and other tools is recorded and shown in My progress.
The student ID stays filled in when a student leaves a tool and returns to the home screen, so it doesn't have to be typed again.

Incantation Inspiration (motivation & rewards)

Rank titles: Rising Hawk, Sharp Hawk, Soaring Hawk and Master Hawk.
Badges including Finisher, Fast Start, Comeback Kid, Sharpshooter, Flawless, Challenger, Sky's the Limit and Never Give Up.
Badge shelf, avatars, confetti, sound effects with an on/off switch, and an on-screen progress display.

Enchanted Utensils (tools and accessibility)

On-screen calculator, math input keyboard, scratchpad and drawing pad.
Answer builders beyond a plain text box: tap a point on a number line or plot a point on a coordinate grid.
Visual math tools: algebra tiles, a slope grapher, and problem diagrams.
Enchanted Utensils Practice mode: students pick a tool (area model, number line, fraction bars, equation balance, table of values, slope, graphing, algebra tiles, formulas or glossary), get endless new problems, fill in the blanks and check their work, with hints, worked steps and a streak counter.
Match-a-story-to-a-diagram problems: students compare tape diagrams with a story problem, in the diagnostic and the Alchemist’s Cauldron.
Read-aloud for problem text, with an option to read automatically.
Dyslexia-friendly display mode.
Student settings are saved, and teacher-set accommodations apply automatically.

Teacher features

Tools for running classes, reviewing work and planning instruction.

Classes and roster

Create and delete classes, and renew a class's join code.
Import a roster from Google Classroom, or clear an imported one.
Co-teaching: invite, accept, remove a co-teacher, or leave a shared class.
Manage student profiles and accommodations, and reset student passwords.
For classes with a roster, students must enter their exact student ID (no names) to sign in, check workbook pages or turn in a test, so no duplicate names show up in the gradebook.
A student's page has a Back to class roster button as well as Back to dashboard, and the test review page links back to that student's class.

Google Workspace for Education

Link each class to a Google Classroom course.
Post assignments to Classroom with a link back to the app, and send grades to the Classroom gradebook, with the option to return them to students.
Export any gradebook to a new Google Sheet in one click.
Save a student's graded work and photos to a Google Drive folder.
Subscribe to class due dates in Google Calendar, for teachers and students.
Optionally limit Google sign-in to school accounts only.

Teacher dashboard

Updates live as students work, with in-progress tags and exam scores.
All student records, with a filter to focus on one student.
Completed diagnostic reports.
Class calendar: weekly and monthly views of every due date and practice start date across all your classes, filterable by class, with each item linking to the page where you manage it.
Who's online now: the Today section lists your students who are signed in right now and the page each one is on. The owner account also sees visitors and anyone who isn't on a class list.
Tool activity: see which tools each student has used and when, alongside their diagnostic and exam records.

Class Insights

AI analysis of the kinds of errors students are making.
AI-generated bell-ringer warm-ups and mini-lessons with a teacher script; unwanted lessons can be deleted.
Present mode: full-screen projector view with hidden answers, a timer and keyboard controls.
Push to students: sends a warm-up live to the class (one per class, ends automatically after 12 hours).

Live view

Classkick-style live view: a grid of every signed-in student's Middle School Math Magic screen, updated every few seconds, with the page they're on and how recently it changed.
Click any student to see their screen enlarged.
Mark up a student's screen: pen, highlighter, text and eraser marks appear on top of their page as the teacher draws (they can hide them, and the page still works).
Quick notes and stickers: send one-tap notes like "Check step 2" or a sticker; students tap "Got it" and the teacher sees "Seen".
Voice notes both ways: teachers and students can record up to 60-second voice messages, listen back before sending, and play them in the notes panel; recordings are private and deleted when Live view stops.
One-on-one whiteboard: open a shared board on one student's screen that both can draw and type on, with each other's strokes showing as they draw; students can only erase their own ink.
Real-time updates: pen marks, notes, voice notes, "Seen" receipts and students joining or leaving show up instantly, and Live view falls back to updating every few seconds if the real-time connection drops.
Teacher-controlled and private: off until the teacher starts it for a class, turns off automatically after 3 hours, and stopping it deletes all saved pictures.
Only the Middle School Math Magic tab is shared, never the rest of the device; password fields are hidden and students see a notice while their teacher can view their screen.
Left-the-tab alerts: a banner shows which students have switched tabs or apps and for how long, with a count of how many times each one left.

Live lessons

Upload a PDF lesson (or Google Slides saved as a PDF); each page becomes a slide, saved in a lesson library for reuse.
Teach it live with a join code: students see the current slide and can draw and type on it, and the teacher sees every student's slide with their work as it happens.
Move the whole class together or let students go at their own pace, and lock them to the teacher's slide.
Student notepad beside each slide that saves automatically, and the teacher can read it.
Left-the-tab alerts during lessons, just like Live view.
When the lesson ends, optionally add a gradebook column and pay class coins for participation.

Spellbound Showdown

Kahoot-style class games: project a 6-digit PIN and QR code, and students join at /play on any device with a nickname.
Anyone can join: a “Join Spellbound Showdown” box on the home screen, just below the student login, lets players enter a game PIN with no student ID or teacher password.
Build a game by hand, have AI write questions on a topic or standard, or pull questions from a diagnostic unit.
AI games on any topic: switch the AI question writer from Math to Any topic (history, science, sports, movies, holidays and more) and choose an audience, including All ages.
Game music: upbeat background music on the projected host screen, with a calmer tune in the lobby, a faster one during questions that speeds up in the final seconds, and an on/off switch.
Magic-themed celebrations: sparkles, spell bursts and star showers for correct answers, leaderboard moments and the final podium, on both the host screen and players' devices.
Player cameras: players can choose to turn on their camera, and their video tiles appear around the game on the host screen, like a Zoom call where the game is being presented. Cameras are always optional and off by default.
Multiple choice, true/false and number-answer questions (equivalent answers like 0.75 and 3/4 both count).
Points for correct answers plus a speed bonus, a live answer chart and top-5 leaderboard after each question, and a podium at the end.
Team mode: in the lobby, choose 2, 3 or 4 teams (Bison, Hawks, Coyotes, Prairie Dogs). Players are split evenly, late joiners go to the smallest team, and the teacher can shuffle teams or move individual players.
Team plans: build teams by hand from a class roster before class (for example, mixed-ability or strategic groupings), save them, and reuse them. In the lobby the teacher chooses whether to use a plan for that game only; students are placed by student ID or name as they join, and lobby changes never alter the saved plan. Plans can be edited or deleted at any time.
Team score is the average of its members' points, so smaller teams aren't penalized. Team standings appear after every question, the podium shows the winning teams, and each student's device shows their team and its place.
End-of-game question report highlights questions under 60% correct for reteaching.
Scores go to the gradebook only when the teacher chooses Send scores to gradebook and matches players to students.

Gradebook

One grid per class: every student down the side, every assignment across the top, with each student's average.
Add an upcoming test, quiz, assignment or project with a due date and point value; it shows up right away in the students' Test submission list.
Submitted tests file automatically under the chosen assignment, and multi-page tests combine into one score.
Click any score to type points, override an AI grade, excuse a student, or clear it.
Close an assignment to take it off the students' list; mastery-check scores and older typed-name tests appear as their own columns.
Paper tests the teacher uploads can be filed under a gradebook assignment too.
Export the gradebook to CSV.

Assignments

Create and delete assignments for a class.
Schedule assignments with start and due dates, and assign them to a student group.
Each student's status is tracked as not started, in progress, done, late or missing.
Create Cauldron assignments and turn them on or off.

Lesson planning

AI-written Grade 6–8 lesson plans, exit tickets in 3 versions, rubrics, quizzes, and word problems at 3 reading levels.
Plans are saved and can be printed with an answer key.
Send word problems, exit tickets, and quizzes to one, several, or all classes digitally, with an optional due date.
For leveled word problems and exit tickets, choose one reading level or version for the whole class, then change it for individual students.
Students answer on their device under “Problems from your teacher” and can edit until you review; you see each student’s answers, level, and submission status.

Reviewing student work

Today panel at the top of the teacher dashboard: work waiting for review, students who are struggling, and active assignments, with everything else grouped under More tools.
Edit any generated lesson plan, leveled problem, or answer key before printing or sending it to students.
Workbook review, with an option to hold feedback until you release it, and Undo review to move a confirmed grade back to Needs review.
Students see whether each grade is AI-graded or Teacher-checked.
Per-class switches to turn the Economy, Cauldron, and Games on or off (Tools page).
Test review: release scores one at a time or all at once, with a count of tests awaiting review.
Cauldron dashboard showing student activity.
Vault overview of how many past mistakes each student has fixed.
Oracle’s Workshop progress: who is working now, recent activity, and turned-in modeling work, with options to add a gradebook column and pay class coins.
See what Cyphera remembers about each student on their student page, and reset it any time.
Tool activity counts, including how many problems each student has scanned with the Wizard’s Eye.

Communication and reports

AI-written parent update messages.
Usage dashboard showing time students spend in the app.
Data export for research.

Sorcerer’s Office Hours

Live video tutoring sessions held inside the app, with no Zoom or Google Meet needed.

For students and families

Browse upcoming tutoring sessions at /tutoring, with dates and times shown in your own time zone.
Book a free session, or pay for a paid session securely through Stripe; booking requires signing in.
Join from the session room: the video call runs right inside the site, so nobody has to leave the app.
A shared whiteboard sits next to the video, and the tutor and students can draw and write on it together in real time.
Only the tutor and students who booked can enter a session room.

For the tutor

Schedule sessions at /teacher/tutoring (behind the teacher passcode) with a title, date and time, length and a limit on how many students can join.
Make each session free or set a price; paid bookings are collected up front, before the session starts.
Turn recording on or off for each session, then watch past recordings from the tutoring manager.
See who has booked each session.

Class economy: Spellcoins

A built-in classroom economy where students earn Spellcoins for real learning, hold class jobs, and practice saving, budgeting, taxes and borrowing.

Earning by learning

Students earn Spellcoins automatically for solid skills, closed gaps, finished diagnostics, mastered exam items, mastery bonuses and the Alchemist’s Cauldron practice.
Teachers set every pay rate and a daily earning cap per class.
Each reward is paid once, so replaying the same work can't farm money.
An automatic late fine (10 Spellcoins by default, adjustable or off) for practice and the Alchemist’s Cauldron assignments left unfinished after the due date.

Class jobs with regular paychecks

Teachers create class jobs with a title, description, salary and number of openings.
Students apply for jobs; teachers approve, decline or hire students directly.
Automatic paydays deposit salaries on a schedule the teacher sets, with a "Run payday now" button.
Optional income tax on paychecks flows into a shared class fund the teacher can spend.

Student bank

Separate checking and savings accounts, shown in Spellcoins and cents, with a full transaction history.
Savings earn a realistic yearly rate (4% APY by default, teacher-adjustable) credited daily, so students watch a few cents of interest arrive each day.
Optional loans with interest, borrowing limits and repayment.

Class store

Teachers stock a store with rewards, privileges and items, each with its own price and stock.
Students buy with Spellcoins; teachers approve or refund purchases.

Money lessons and teacher controls

Short built-in lessons on savings growth, gross vs. net pay, the true cost of a loan, saving for a goal and reading a bank statement.
Teacher economy dashboard with every student's balances, bonuses and fines, and class-wide adjustments.
Savings, taxes and loans can each be turned on or off per class.

Signing in and accounts

How students and teachers get into the app.

Access

Student sign-in with a class join code or passcode, Google sign-in, or a student ID confirmed against the class roster.
A student's sign-in can be linked to their roster profile, and unlinked later.
Official roster names everywhere: when a student's ID is on a class roster (built-in or imported from Google Classroom), their roster name is saved and shown on every dashboard, gradebook, test, workbook, economy and game screen, no matter what name they typed. Older records are corrected automatically.
Teacher accounts sign in with a passcode or their own account; passwords can be changed or reset.

Privacy and legal

Controls that keep student data safe and compliant.

Data controls

Teacher privacy center to set how long data is kept; expired data is deleted automatically.
Delete all data for a single student on request.
Audit log of actions taken on student data.
Privacy policy, terms of service, and a data processing agreement template for districts.
One-page Student Data & Privacy summary at /student-data: what's collected, where it's stored, who can see it, that it's never sold, and how to request deletion.
Online-status and tool-visit records only show to that student's own teachers (and the owner), and live-game cameras use private video rooms that close when the game ends.

AI coach safety

Cyphera, the AI coach, only talks about math and how to use the app. Off-topic requests (games, gossip, other subjects, jokes, roleplay) get a kind one-sentence refusal and a nudge back to the problem, and it stays firm even if a student keeps asking, rephrases, or says the teacher allowed it.
Cyphera never gives the final answer to the current problem; every reply is checked before it reaches the screen and is rewritten if it would reveal the answer.
Rude or inappropriate messages are not repeated or engaged with; the coach calmly returns to the math.
Concerning messages are flagged for the teacher: possible self-harm, not feeling safe at home, threats of violence, bullying, and inappropriate language. Flags show in a Coach safety alerts panel at the top of the teacher dashboard with the student, class, time and what they wrote; the most serious ones are marked urgent and listed first.
When a student writes something suggesting they may be hurting or unsafe, the coach sets the math aside, responds with care, encourages them to talk to their teacher, counselor or another trusted adult, and shares the 988 call or text line.
Flags only show to that student's own teachers (and the owner). Teachers mark each one as handled; alerts older than 30 days drop off the dashboard, and flags are removed with the rest of a student's data on deletion requests and by the data-retention setting.
Flagging is an automatic keyword check, not a guarantee: it can miss things or occasionally flag a harmless message, and it does not replace a teacher's judgment or the school's reporting procedures.

Under the hood

The services and infrastructure the app runs on.

Platform

Data stored in a Neon database; uploaded photos stored in Vercel Blob.
AI runs through Vercel AI Gateway, with backup content when it fails.
Sorcerer’s Office Hours video and live-game cameras run on Daily, and shared whiteboards use Ably for real-time drawing.
The AI coach's voice starts while the reply is still being written, using a faster voice model for the first sentence.
Every AI request is checked against the caller's plan and logged, so the owner can see estimated AI cost per plan and per feature.
Real-user speed tracking with Vercel Speed Insights, plus baseline security headers on every page.
Installable on a device (service worker), with the running version shown.
Print buttons on reports.

Enter your class passcode

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