Buddy for homework help
Send me a photo of the problem and tell me who’s stuck. I’ll explain it step by step, so you can walk your kid through it.
A dad in Pocatello, Idaho, with a fifth grader’s fractions worksheet and spaghetti on the stove.
Buddy made the photo of the worksheet in this conversation to stand in for the one a parent would send.
Send me the problem and say how you want it explained. I’ll walk you through it, and give hints instead of answers if you ask.
- Turn this word problem into a voice message he can listen to twice.
- Check her worksheet and tell me which ones to look at again. Don’t give the answers.
- Draw a diagram that shows why 2/3 is the same as 8/12.
- Today 5:52 PM
- You sent a picture: A photo of a fractions worksheet with six problems, 3/7 written for number 4 and circled in red
- You: explain #4 like i’m the parent who forgot how. 2/3 + 1/4. she says it’s 3/7
- Buddy: 3/7 is the classic trap: adding the tops and the bottoms. The pieces have to be the same size first.
- Buddy: Thirds and fourths both fit into twelfths. 2/3 is 8/12 and 1/4 is 3/12. Now add the tops: 11/12.
- You: ok how do i explain that to a 10 year old
- Buddy: Try two pizzas. Cut one into thirds and one into fourths, and ask if a slice from each is the same size. Then cut both into twelfths.
- You: she got it. she’s mad it was that easy Buddy laughed at this.
- Buddy: That’s fractions. When she finishes 5 and 6, send a photo and I’ll tell you which ones to look at again, without the answers.
- You: deal. after dinner
Send me a photo of the problem and tell me who’s stuck. I’ll explain it step by step, so you can walk your kid through it.
From a stuck problem to a kid who gets it
Send me the problem
A photo of the worksheet or a screenshot of the assignment. Tell me the grade and where they got stuck.
I explain it to you first
Step by step, in plain words. Ask for it simpler, shorter, or a different way, like with pizza or money.
You explain it to them
Ask for hints instead of answers, a practice problem like the real one, or a quick check of the rest of the page.
More you can ask for
- Explain this math problem like I’m the parent who forgot how.
- Here’s the teacher’s example from the textbook. Explain #7 the way she does it.
- Make five practice problems like this one, with the answers on a separate page.
- What’s the way they teach long division now? It’s not how I learned it.
- Give me three questions to ask him about the chapter so he writes the summary himself.
- From now on, give me hints before answers when I send homework.
What you get back
An explanation for you
Plain steps you can follow and then say out loud at the table. Ask for another way if the first one doesn’t land.
Asking BuddyPractice to print
Extra problems like the one they missed, as a PDF or Word document, with the answers on their own page.
Work with filesA picture of the idea
A diagram as an image, for the kids who get it once they see it.
Images and videoHints, if that’s how you want it
Tell me once that you want hints before answers, and I’ll keep that as how you like help.
What Buddy remembers
Problem 4
2/3 + 1/4 = 3/7
The classic trap: adding the tops and the bottoms. The pieces have to be the same size first.Thirds and fourths both fit into twelfths. 2/3 = 8/12 and 1/4 = 3/12, so 8/12 + 3/12 = 11/12.
Same size pieces, then add the tops. Try two pizzas, one cut in thirds and one in fourths.
Questions people ask
Can my kid text Buddy directly?
No. Buddy is currently for adults 18 and older in the United States, so you do the texting and bring his explanation to the table.
Will he just give the answers?
Only if you ask for them. Tell Buddy you want hints, a similar practice problem, or a check of which ones are wrong without the fix.
Is he always right?
Not always. Check the steps, especially when a photo is blurry or cut off. If something looks wrong, tell Buddy which part and ask him to work it again.
Does he know how her school teaches it?
Not unless you show him. Send the worksheet, a page from the textbook, or the teacher’s example, and ask Buddy to explain it that way.