Khan Academy

I am currently attempting a "flipped classroom" model.  In a flipped classroom model, my students watch my lecture as homework (the video is posted on our class Edmodo site), then come to class & do what used to be homework in the classroom.  One of the wonderful problems I'm running into is that students are finishing up the in-class homework quickly & are looking for extensions...this is where Khan Academy comes into play.

What is it?
Khan Academy is an on-line tool that has over 2,000 videos teaching a variety of content.  Most of Khan Academy focuses on math.  The creator of Khan Academy is a man named Salman Khan, and he recently did a TED Talks about Khan Academy, which I've embedded below.  Khan Academy utilizes something called a knowledge map.  The knowledge map begins with the most basic math (single digit addition).  The student must answer 10 questions correctly about a concept for the knowledge map to show proficiency, then it lights up with the next steps you could work on.  If you don't know how to solve a problem, there is an option to get hints, and also watch a video teaching the concept.

How could I use it? 
I intend to use Khan Academy as an extension once the children have mastered the content from the classroom.  An added bonus of Khan Academy is that as a teacher, you can sign up as a "coach".  If you're students sign you on as their coach, you can see where exactly they are, and if there are any areas that need to be addressed (these show up in red for your viewing).  There are a lot of other reports that are available to view as well.

There are some potential issues.
If your school blocks youtube, then the students will not be able to view the videos.  Also, the students need a google account to be able to log-on and save their progress.  If your school is a google school (as mine is) then that is not a problem.  Finally, the amount you can utilize Khan Academy is going to be determined by how much access you have to computers.  If you can only get to a computer lab once a week, then you're ability to utilize this program will be quite limited.