The science that makes learning fun
Giant Steps leverages deep learning science and educational research to create an engaging and inclusive learning experience. From spaced repetition to feedback messages, Giant Steps is designed to foster a growth mindset, motivation, and a positive learning community.
Practice, practice, practice
Research shows that regular practice improves learning and retention. Giant Steps provides engaging classroom activities and Daily Remixes — auto-generated questions tailored to each student’s unique learning experience. Daily Remixes use spaced repetition and interleaving to help students sharpen skills and boost understanding — without creating extra work for teachers.1
Feedback right on time
Timely corrective feedback, when paired with praise for student effort, fosters independence, a love of learning, and improved outcomes. Giant Steps helps educators provide real-time feedback to help students develop a growth mindset that drives motivation and engagement.2
Plays well with others
Group collaboration and communication are vital to boosting academic performance and creating persistence and a sense of belonging. Giant Steps promotes student engagement through Stickers, Reactions, and High-Fives to communicate and show support for their peers.3
Making a game of it
Adding game elements to digital learning platforms boosts student engagement, leading to better performance outcomes. Giant Steps gamifies its platform to allow students to play seasonal campaigns, earn XP (experience points), and snag some swag to customize their avatars.4
Designed in partnership with educators and students
From the beginning, teachers and students in classrooms across the country told us what they wanted to see in a learning tool, tested prototypes, and provided feedback to create a unique and effective learning experience.
100% of teachers surveyed agree* that their students love using Giant Steps.
96.4% of teachers surveyed agree that Giant Steps helps improve student learning and mastery.
92.9% of teachers surveyed agree that Giant Steps helps foster a positive and supportive community in their classroom.
100% of teachers surveyed agree that Giant Steps helps them drive positive engagement with their students.
Giant Steps logic model
Giant Steps shares a common DNA with Pear Deck. Both are easy to use, promote positive learning experiences, and bring best practices for active learning to the classroom. Like Pear Deck, the design of Giant Steps started with a Logic Model — a big-picture view that guides product development and efficacy research.
The Giant Steps Logic Model is a roadmap for product design and research. Whether you’re an administrator or teacher, the Logic Model outlines the connection between key features, activities, and learning outcomes so you can identify ways that Giant Steps can enable and improve collaborative learning and independent practice.
The Giant Steps learning experience was designed in accordance with the Department of Education’s guidelines for evidence-based activities, strategies, and interventions. The Logic Model and early research evidence help Demonstrate a Rationale (Tier IV) for using Giant Steps in the classroom as a way of achieving improved student outcomes.
Resources to level up your game
From tips for beginners to ways to help your students reach the next level, we’ve got everything you need to easily jump into Giant Steps.
YES! Certified Practice Sets are amazing! You can tell that it was created by people who know and understand education.
Expert guidance from USC Rossier Center EDGE and LMU iDEAL Institute informed the creation of Giant Steps.
- Morano, S. (2019). Retrieval Practice for Retention and Transfer. Council for Exceptional Children, 436-444.
- Pashler, H., Bain, P. M., Bottge, B. A., Graesser, A., Koedinger, K., McDaniel, M., & Metcalfe, J. (2007). Organizing Instruction and Study to Improve Student Learning. National Center for Education Research.
- Emeny, W. G., Hartwig, M. K., & Rohrer, D. (2021, February 27). Spaced mathematics practice improves test scores and reduces overconfidence. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 35(4), 1028-1089.
- Kristin E. Harbour, Lauren L. Evanovich, Chris A. Sweigart & Lindsay E. Hughes (2015) A Brief Review of Effective Teaching Practices That Maximize Student Engagement, Preventing School Failure: Alternative Education for Children and Youth, 59:1, 5-13, DOI: 10.1080/1045988X.2014.919136
- Megan L. Truax (2018) The Impact of Teacher Language and Growth Mindset Feedback on Writing Motivation, Literacy Research and Instruction, 57:2, 135-157, DOI: 10.1080/19388071.2017.1340529
- Chiachieh Tang, Yeu-Ting Liu, Effects of indirect coded corrective feedback with and without short effective teacher comments on L2 writing performance, learner uptake, and motivation, Assessing Writing, Volume 35, 2018, Pages 26-40, ISSN 1075-2935, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asw.2017.12.002.
- Yang-Hsueh Chen, Pin-Ju Chen, MOOC study group: Facilitation strategies, influential factors, and student perceived gains, Computers & Education, Volume 86, 2015, Pages 55-70, ISSN 0360-1315, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2015.03.008.
- Laird, N., F., T., Chen, D., & Kuh, G. D. (2008). Classroom Practices at Institutions with Higher-than-Expected Persistence Rates: What Student Engagement Data Tell Us. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 85-89.
- Markus Krause, Marc Mogalle, Henning Pohl, and Joseph Jay Williams. 2015. A Playful Game Changer: Fostering Student Retention in Online Education with Social Gamification. In Proceedings of the Second (2015) ACM Conference on Learning @ Scale (L@S '15). Association for Computing Machinery, New York, NY, USA, 95–102. https://doi.org/10.1145/2724660.2724665
- Zamzami Zainuddin, Muhammad Shujahat, Hussein Haruna, Samuel Kai Wah Chu, The role of gamified e-quizzes on student learning and engagement: An interactive gamification solution for a formative assessment system, Computers & Education, Volume 145, 2020 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2019.103729.
