Research & Results
Data from our pilot program and the research behind project-based math learning.
Methodology
March 2026 Pilot
In late March 2026, we ran our first formal pilot with 11 learners at Acton Academy Falls Church — a learner-driven microschool in Northern Virginia. Participants ranged in age from 8 to 14 years old.
Learners were given a single challenge: pick a math concept you care about and build a game around it. No starter templates. No rubric. No teacher-directed prompts to begin. The only constraint was time.
We observed learner behavior throughout the session, tracking engagement patterns, self-organization, collaboration, and iteration behavior. We collected video recordings of four learners explaining their game ideas in their own words.
The pilot was designed to answer one question: will learners engage meaningfully with math when given genuine ownership over the task? The answer was unambiguous.
Three Signals That Mattered
Choice created energy
Learners gravitated toward topics they already cared about: sports, aliens, saving a world, and space journeys.
Ownership happened fast
One group pulled out Monopoly on their own to look for where math already lives inside a game.
Iteration was learnable
One learner discovered she could tell the AI to fix the game, iterated about six times, and got it working before running out of time.
Engagement Data
Raw signals from the March 26, 2026 pilot session.
11/11
Participation
All learners took on the challenge
0
Prompts to Start
Learners self-organized into groups without being asked
4
Learner Voices
Learners recorded themselves explaining their game ideas
6×
Iteration Signal
AI iterations completed by one learner on a single game
11/11
Retention
All learners wanted to keep building after spring break
Ongoing Research
We’re partnering with learning design specialists to measure and publish outcomes across a larger cohort. Formal findings will be published here as they become available. Stay tuned.