IXL’s seven steps for back-to-school success

This article was updated on September 3, 2025

In the Classroom

Feeling the back-to-school rush? Don’t sweat it—we’ve got you covered!

For the next several weeks, we’ll be updating this article with fresh tips and recommendations that will help you make this school year your best one yet. 

Follow along below!

Table of contents:

#1: Watch an IXL Mini

IXL Minis are short, useful videos that give you new implementation ideas, instantly! They’re the perfect resource to get up and running on IXL, discover new features, or deepen your expertise.

If you have just a couple of minutes, you have enough time to learn how to create custom quizzes on IXL, or hear tips from IXL’s education experts on parent-teacher conferences! IXL Minis are designed to fit into the schedule of busy teachers like you.

Explore the full collection of IXL Minis, plus learn more here.

#2: Use IXL’s skill plans to support daily instruction

IXL has done your lesson planning for you with skill plans! Our team of curriculum experts has custom-built IXL skills that perfectly match your instructional resources.

Each skill plan is designed to reinforce every textbook chapter, state standard, and test score goal. 

Plus, there’s a simple way for students to access their skill plan: Click the pushpin icon, and it will appear at the top of their Skill Plans page.

Browse all of IXL’s skill plans here, and learn more about skill plans by watching an IXL Mini. 

#3: Try out IXL’s teacher-favorite engagement tools

Keep your class engaged all school year long with IXL’s classroom engagement tools! These tried-and-true teacher favorites will help keep students on task and amp up participation for fun and focused learning.

Get students in the zone

Like a bubble to block out distractions, IXL Focus Zone creates the optimal online environment for concentration. Students will work on the subjects and grades of your choosing, so you can rest assured they’re focused on relevant content at their appropriate level. 

Plus, you’ll get an organized, real-time view of your Focus Zone in Live Classroom, making it easy to track students’ progress!

Learn more about Focus Zone here.

 

Enhance class collaboration

IXL Group Jam opens up new ways to engage your entire class! All students in a Group Jam will see the same question at the same time, giving learners an exciting way to work together on IXL skills. 

And, it’s the perfect tool to easily measure students’ understanding of a topic, so you can make informed decisions on the best next instructional steps to take.

Learn more about Group Jam here.

Looking for even more ideas? Watch an IXL Mini to get classroom engagement strategies from teacher experts.

#4: Boost student motivation with friendly competition

IXL makes it easy to gamify your lessons and liven-up learning in your classroom! Nothing gets students fired up like a friendly competition, so check out two of our favorite learning tools that will get your class going for gold.

Ready, set, review!

Meet IXL Lightning Jam, the action-packed review session for learners to show what they know! All students will see the same question at the same time and earn points for answering quickly and correctly. Who will take the trophy?

The ultimate learning showdown

Challenge students to rise through the ranks of IXL’s Leaderboards! You can create these custom contests based on the number of questions students answer correctly, the number of skills they reach proficiency in, and more. 

It’s a surefire way to keep students motivated and excited about learning on IXL!

For more ways to boost student motivation, check out IXL’s awards and certificates center.

#5: Help students take charge of their learning

Empower your students to learn independently so they build confidence in the classroom and beyond! IXL equips students with everything they need to chart the course of their own learning journeys.

Expert-led guidance

More than 4,500 video tutorials provide on-the-spot support for the exact math, language arts, and Spanish language arts skills students are learning.

Opportunities to self-remediate and advance

Students are supported with in-skill recommendations the entire time they’re working on IXL skills! At the bottom of the page, IXL recommends foundational skills that a student can use to fill knowledge gaps if they’re struggling with their current skill. And, once a student reaches a SmartScore of 90, IXL suggests “Next up” skills that build upon what they just learned—so they can keep growing and challenging themselves.

Personalized study plans

IXL’s StudyWise tool transforms students’ previous exam scores into a custom roadmap to help them reach their goals on the ACT, SAT, and other tests. It’s a cinch for you and your students to create these personalized study plans!

Discover more of IXL’s tools for independent learning here.