Frequently Asked Questions

If you need technical help or help with subscriptions, please click here: support@numberjacksmissiontolearn.co.uk

If you wish to leave feedback or other comments, please click here: feedback@numberjacksmissiontolearn.co.uk

• General
  • What is Numberjacks: Mission to Learn?
  • How will Numberjacks: Mission to Learn help my child?
  • What mathematics does Numberjacks: Mission to Learn cover?
  • What mathematics are young children expected to know?
  • What is the best address to write to about the program?
  • Where can I buy Numberjacks DVDs, books, toys and other merchandise?
• Subscriptions
  • I'd like to add another child to my subscription.
  • What do I do if I've forgotten my password?
  • How do I cancel or amend my membership?
• Technical
  • What browsers are recommended to use?
  • What resolution (size of display) do I need?
  • I can't see everything on my screen.
  • The pictures are fuzzy or jagged.
  • Games or videos don't work, run slowly or freeze.
  • Screens take a long time to load.
  • Some of the site doesn't work.
  • The sound doesn't play.

What is Numberjacks: Mission to Learn?
Numberjacks: Mission to Learn is a web-based subscription service that helps young children to learn mathematics, and is suitable for children from about three to about 6 or older. Children sign up as Agents to help the Numberjacks, and are engaged and motivated by a rich mix of games, interactivity, video, audio and images.

How will Numberjacks: Mission to Learn help my child?
Numberjacks: Mission to Learn aims to help children to learn in a creative and open-ended way, to develop their confidence, understanding and skills in the key areas of mathematics and problem-solving. There is a mixture of exploration and 'playing' with mathematical ideas, as well as focussed 'questions and answers' to challenge them. Most games have different levels so that they can encourage younger and less able children whilst challenging and stretching older and more able children. Above all we hope that Numberjacks: Mission to Learn will help to give children confidence and to develop a positive attitude to numbers and mathematics.

What mathematics does Numberjacks: Mission to Learn cover?
Numberjacks: Mission to Learn encourages the development of the following skills, understanding and attitudes:

• Be curious and interested
• Look, listen, notice, find, recognise
• Explore numbers, amounts, relationships, size, shapes, patterns
• Experiment and find out
• Compare, categorise, match, connect, link, group, sort
• Understand same, different, equal, more, less, few, many, bigger, smaller, greater, heavier, lighter, longer, taller, shorter
• Generalise and abstract: what happens if, what is the same about this one and that one, what happens if I do this...
• Solve problems, think, reason, wonder, speculate, question, predict, test, check, use experience
• Communicate and record: talk, describe, explain, draw, make marks

Numberjacks: Mission to Learn includes the following areas of maths:

• Recognise numerals, know the number names, know that numbers can describe quantity, describe size (shoes) or just label (house number, bus number)
• Know the association between numbers of items, the number names and numerals
• Count in order, forwards and backwards; count on and back; know that the last number gives the count, understand conservation of number
• Count objects, sounds, things that move, with and without touching or marking
• Calculate: one more, one less, add, join two groups
• Count up and down (from one number to another to find difference)
• Take away, understand lots of, groups of, share, split (how many groups/lots, how many in each group/lot)
• Estimate: are there enough to do something; how many of those do you think will fit in there?
• Measure: compare two things side by side, have sense of something being a big or small example of its class
• Count how many of one thing 'make' another (height, length, area, weight,...)
• Find and name 2-d shapes: square, circle, rectangle, oblong, triangle, star, diamond 3-d shapes: cube, box, sphere, pyramid, cone, cylinder
• Understand straight, curved, side, corner, face, point, edge, same both sides, symmetry
• Order, sequence: order by number, size, time
• Understand first, second, third… last, before, after, in between, next
• Understand movement and position: right, left, up, down, forward, backwards, turn, start, stop, fast, slow, in, out, inside, outside, next to, above, below, between, on, under, over, through, close to, near, far away, distant
• Find patterns: copy, create, and extend patterns

What mathematics are young children expected to know?
The core skills and concepts are much the same in most countries, but specific guidance will vary from country to country, state to state, and from time to time. The links below are good starting points to find out more:

• UK: http://nationalstrategies.standards.dcsf.gov.uk/earlyyears/ eyfsareasoflearninganddevelopment/
• US: http://www.corestandards.org/the-standards/mathematics

What is the best address to write to about the program?
The quickest response will be to an email to support@numberjacksmissiontolearn.co.uk for payment and technical enquires, or feedback@numberjacksmissiontolearn.co.uk for anything else. You can write to our registered address is:
Open Mind Productions,
27 York Road,
Teddington,
Middlesex,
TW11 8SL

Where can I buy Numberjacks DVDs, books, toys and other merchandise?
There are books, DVDs, toys, puzzles and more, to enjoy and to support your child's learning, at www.numberjacks.co.uk/shop

I'd like to add another child to my subscription.
To add another child to your subscription go here.

What do I do if I've forgotten my password?
To get a reminder of your password go here.

How do I cancel or amend my membership?
To cancel or amend your subscription go here.

What browsers are recommended to use?
Try using Internet Explorer or Firefox as Numberjacks: Mission to Learn is designed to work in these browsers.
The latest version of Internet Explorer is available here.
The latest version of Firefox is available here.

What resolution (size of display) do I need?
Numberjacks: Mission to Learn needs a minimum resolution of 1024 x 768.

I can't see everything on my screen.
Check your zoom setting is set at Normal or 100%. In Internet Explorer and Firefox pressing F11 will set the browser to fill the screen - clicking F11 again will restore the screen to normal.

The pictures are fuzzy or jagged.
Check your zoom setting is Normal or 100%.

Games or videos don't work, run slowly or freeze.
We very much hope you won't have any difficulties running the software. If you do, please try any if the following:

• Try a different browser: What browsers are recommended?
• Clear your cache.
  • In Internet Explorer: Click on the 'Safety' menu at the top of the page. Check the box next to: 'Temporary Internet Files and History'. Click the "Delete" button. Once this is done, close the 'Safety' menu.
  • In Firefox go to http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/ How+to+clear+the+cache
• The problem my be your broadband connection speed, which you can check at www.speedtest.net

Screens take a long time to load.
Many screens will take a while to load first time, but after that (until you clear your cache) they should load quickly. It may be your internet connection is slow. You can test your connection at www.speedtest.net

Some of the site doesn't work.
You may not have Flash installed on your computer. If not go to http:// get.adobe.com/flashplayer/

The sound doesn't play.
Check your speakers are on and volume turned up, and that the sound on your computer is not muted. Press the loudspeaker icon on screen.