School FAQs
Frequently asked questions about Timbles for educational institutions
Getting Started with Timbles
Before exploring the FAQs below, we recommend reading our comprehensive introduction guide. This guide focuses on the teaching and learning aspects of Timbles — how to use it effectively in your school to build genuine multiplication fluency. It's not about administration or finding ways to disguise the mathematics; it's about making maths practice meaningful and engaging for every student.
Read the Introduction GuidePrivacy & Data Protection
Understanding how Timbles protects student data and meets compliance requirements
GDPR Compliance (European Union)
How does Timbles comply with GDPR?
Timbles offers two authentication methods specifically to ensure GDPR compliance:
- • Code-based login: Completely eliminates personal data collection - no email addresses required
- • Data minimization: Only collects learning progress data necessary for educational purposes
- • Consent-free operation: Code-based schools don't require parental consent as no personal data is processed
- • Right to erasure: Student accounts and data can be completely removed upon request
- • Data portability: Learning progress data can be exported in standard formats
COPPA Compliance (United States)
How does Timbles protect children under 13?
The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) requires special handling of data from children under 13:
- • No personal information collection: Code-based authentication collects no personal data
- • No email addresses: Eliminates the need for parental consent for email collection
- • Anonymous operation: Students can use completely anonymous names like "Student One"
- • Educational purpose only: All data collection is strictly for educational assessment
- • School control: Educational institutions maintain full control over student data
FERPA Compliance (United States)
How does Timbles handle educational records?
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) governs educational records:
- • Educational purpose: All data collected serves legitimate educational interests
- • School control: Educational institutions maintain ownership and control of all student data
- • Limited access: Only authorized school personnel can access student records
- • No unauthorized disclosure: Student progress data is never shared without school authorization
- • Data security: All educational records are encrypted and securely stored
General School Questions
What's the difference between email-based and code-based authentication?
Email-Based
- • Students need email addresses
- • Login with email + password
- • Welcome emails sent automatically
- • Password reset via email
- • Best for older students (13+)
Code-Based
- • No email addresses required
- • Login with school code + name
- • Complete privacy protection
- • Anonymous names supported
- • Perfect for young students
How secure is student data on Timbles?
We implement multiple layers of security to protect student information:
- • All data encrypted in transit and at rest
- • Secure database hosting with enterprise-grade protection
- • Regular security audits and monitoring
- • No third-party data sharing without explicit consent
- • School administrators control all student data access
Do school accounts have social sharing features?
To protect student privacy, school accounts have all social features disabled:
- • No social media sharing: Students cannot share their results to Twitter, Facebook, or any social platforms
- • No public profiles: Student accounts are not visible to anyone outside the school
- • No friend requests: Students cannot connect with users outside their school
- • No public leaderboards: Only school/class-based leaderboards are visible
- • Classroom focus only: All features are designed for educational use within the school environment
This ensures that all student activity remains within the safe, controlled environment of your educational institution.
Can we use anonymous student names?
Yes! Code-based schools can use completely anonymous names for maximum privacy:
- • "Student One", "Student Two", etc.
- • Generic identifiers like "Red Team Member 1"
- • Any naming system that works for your classroom
- • Teachers can still track individual progress
- • Full anonymity while maintaining educational value
What data does Timbles collect?
Educational Data (Collected)
- • Multiplication table practice attempts
- • Response times and accuracy
- • Learning progress and mastery levels
- • Daily challenge participation
- • Streak tracking and achievements
Personal Data (NOT Collected in Code-Based)
- • Email addresses (code-based schools)
- • Home addresses or phone numbers
- • Parent/guardian information
- • Photos or biometric data
- • Social security or ID numbers
How do we set up our school?
School Registration
Contact us to register your school and choose authentication method
Teacher Setup
Add teachers individually or via CSV upload
Student Import
Bulk upload students using our CSV template
Start Learning
Students can immediately begin practicing multiplication tables
What support is available for schools?
We provide comprehensive support for educational institutions:
- • Dedicated school administrator training
- • Teacher onboarding and tutorial resources
- • Technical support for CSV uploads and account management
- • Regular feature updates based on educator feedback
- • Compliance documentation and privacy policies
Teacher Plans — Use Timbles Independently
Answers for teachers who want to use Timbles without a whole-school subscription
Can I use Timbles if my school doesn't have a Timbles subscription?
Yes — absolutely. Timbles Teacher plans are designed exactly for this. You subscribe independently (with your own card), create your class, and add your students. Your school doesn't need to be involved at all. There's no IT setup, no procurement process, and no need for a whole-school decision.
Visit timbles.com/teachers to learn more.
What is included in Timbles Teacher?
The Teacher plan (£29/year, ~$37) includes:
- • 1 class with up to 35 students
- • Teacher dashboard with individual student progress
- • Student progress analytics and performance tracking
- • Oracy 'Say Why' reflections (students explain their mathematical thinking)
- • AI-powered instant feedback on student reflections
- • Daily challenges and all Timbles practice modes for every student
- • Easy student access — no school email required
What is Teacher Plus?
Teacher Plus (£49/year, ~$62) gives you everything in the Teacher plan, but with up to 3 classes and 100 students in total. It is designed for specialist maths teachers who teach multiple year groups, teachers running intervention or pull-out groups, or teachers responsible for more than one form.
Does my school need to approve my subscription?
No. Teacher plans are personal subscriptions — like subscribing to a professional tool with your own card. Your school has no visibility into your subscription, and you don't need approval from a head teacher, IT department, or finance team to get started.
Can my school later move to a School subscription?
Yes — and it's a smooth journey. If your school decides to roll out Timbles across the whole school after seeing it work in your class, we can migrate your classes and student data into a school account. Your students won't lose their progress or history. Contact us at hi@timbles.com when you're ready for that conversation.
Technical Implementation
How our privacy-focused features work behind the scenes
Code-Based Authentication Flow
School Code
Student enters school access code
Verification
System verifies school exists
Username Match
Student enters their username
Access Granted
Student authenticated securely
Reflections & Feedback for Teachers
Understanding how student reflections work and how teachers can use them
What are Student Reflections?
After completing maths practice, students are encouraged to reflect on their mathematical thinking. They can describe their strategies, explain their reasoning, or share what they found challenging. Reflections help students develop metacognitive skills and deepen their understanding of multiplication.
Example reflection: "I used the 5x table to help me work out 6 times 7. I knew 5 times 7 is 35, then I just added one more 7 to get 42."
Can Students Speak Their Reflection Instead of Typing?
Yes! Students can tap the microphone button in the reflection screen and speak their mathematical thinking instead of — or as well as — typing it. Here's how it works:
- The student taps the microphone button and speaks (up to 1 minute)
- The audio is transcribed by AI into text and shown in an editable box
- A prompt encourages them to check the words and add mathematical language
- They edit anything that looks wrong, then press Send my reflection
Accent support: The transcription system (OpenAI Whisper) is trained on a huge variety of accents — UK regional accents (Scottish, Welsh, Northern Irish, Yorkshire, and more), American accents, and many others all work reliably. Encouraging students to speak slowly and clearly improves accuracy further.
🔒 No recordings are stored. Audio is sent securely for transcription and deleted immediately once the text has been produced. Timbles never keeps, replays, or shares any voice recording. Only the written reflection text is saved.
Because the transcription is always shown in an editable box before submitting, students can correct any misheard words themselves. This makes voice input a safe and inclusive option for all students, including those who find typing difficult.
How Does Instant Feedback Work?
When students submit a reflection, they receive instant, personalised feedback that:
- • Acknowledges their mathematical thinking
- • Asks follow-up questions to encourage deeper reasoning
- • Celebrates effective strategies they've used
- • Gently guides them if there are misconceptions
This feedback is designed to feel like a conversation with a supportive teacher, encouraging students to think more deeply about their maths.
Viewing Student Reflections
Teachers can access all student reflections through the Teacher Dashboard. For each reflection, you can see:
- • The student's original reflection
- • The feedback they received
- • What type of practice prompted the reflection
- • Which thinking categories they demonstrated (reasoning, comparing, generalising, etc.)
You can also add your own notes to any reflection, and mark them as reviewed to keep track of what you've seen.
"What We Noticed This Week" Feature
This powerful tool helps you prepare for class discussions based on your students' recent reflections. When you click "What we noticed this week" for any class, you'll receive:
- • Discussion points: Key themes and patterns from the week's reflections
- • Suggested questions: Open-ended questions to spark class discussion
- • Support suggestions: Ideas for resources or activities if patterns suggest students need extra help
- • Specific examples: Links to the actual student reflections that inspired each point
Tip: You can click on any referenced reflection to see exactly what the student wrote and the feedback they received. This lets you share real examples during class (with names hidden if you prefer) to celebrate good thinking or address common challenges.
Intelligent Practice Suggestions
How Timbles uses spaced repetition to guide students towards the most effective practice
Timbles tracks each multiplication fact individually for every student. After each practice session or daily challenge, the system uses a proven spaced repetition algorithm to predict which facts are most likely to be forgotten, and suggests practising those next.
Students see a "Your Next Practice" section on their dashboard recommending which tables to focus on, with simple indicators like "Due now", "Due soon", or "Looking strong". No setup is needed — it works automatically from the moment students start practising.
For more detail on how this works and the research behind it, read our blog article: How Timbles Uses Science to Help Your Child Practise the Right Things at the Right Time.
School Compliance Checklist
Ensure your implementation meets all regulatory requirements
✅ What Timbles Handles
- Data encryption and security
- Privacy-compliant authentication options
- Minimal data collection practices
- Educational data protection
- Regular security updates
📋 School Responsibilities
- Choose appropriate authentication method
- Obtain necessary parental consents (if required)
- Train teachers on privacy best practices
- Maintain current privacy policies
- Monitor student account usage
Factor Hunt Mode
An advanced practice mode that rewards deeper mathematical reasoning
What is Factor Hunt mode?
Factor Hunt reverses the standard multiplication question. Instead of seeing 7 × 8 = ?, students see the product and one factor — for example 7 × ? = 56 — and must identify the missing factor. This trains inverse multiplicative reasoning, which is directly linked to division fluency and algebraic thinking.
Standard Mode
7 × 8 = ? → Student types the product
Factor Hunt Mode
7 × ? = 56 → Student finds the missing factor
How many extra Timbles does it earn?
Factor Hunt earns 1.5× (50% more) Timbles compared to standard practice for the same table. This reflects the greater cognitive challenge involved. The multiplier applies automatically — teachers don't need to configure anything.
How does a student unlock Factor Hunt for a table?
Factor Hunt for a specific table is locked until the student achieves a perfect score (100% — all green) in standard mode for that table. Once they go all green, the Factor Hunt button for that table unlocks automatically.
Does Factor Hunt appear in the daily challenges?
Yes — there is a dedicated Daily Factor Hunt Challenge and an Extreme Factor Hunt Challenge available each day. These follow the same structure as the standard challenges but use the reversed question format. Students earn the same 1.5× Timbles bonus for these challenges.
How can I use Factor Hunt in the classroom?
- • As a progression tool: When a student's standard table turns green, encourage them to try Factor Hunt — it's a natural next step
- • As a reward: The extra Timbles and the challenge itself act as a motivating extension activity for students who master standard recall
- • For division readiness: Factor Hunt directly rehearses the inverse of multiplication, bridging naturally to formal division
- • For advanced students: Students who have mastered all 12 standard tables can work through Factor Hunt versions for a new cognitive challenge
Need More Information?
Privacy Questions
For questions about data protection, compliance, or privacy policies, contact our privacy team.
Technical Support
For help with school setup, CSV uploads, or technical issues, reach out to our education support team.