How to use Cogito

Every part of the app, explained in plain words, with pictures of what you will actually see on your screen. You do not need to know anything about computers.

Start at the top and work down, or jump straight to the part you need. Each one takes two or three minutes.

1. 1Getting startedWhat Cogito is, and the first five minutes.
2. 2The menu on the leftThe menu down the side that reaches everything else.
3. 3The home pageEvery part of the first screen, before and after signing in.
4. 4Pip, the talking buddyThe buddy in the lessons, and Talk / Chat to Pip: asking for a story, a game or a lesson, out loud or typed.
5. 5Finding a lessonSearching, browsing the courses by subject and grade, and saving a course.
6. 6Finding where to startA short test in math or reading that suggests a course and chapter.
7. 7Grades and levelsWhat the course names mean, showing levels instead of grades, and how grades line up outside the US.
8. 8Chapter toursThe short clip inside a math lesson, and what became of the chapter tours.
9. 9Inside a lessonWhat each part of a math lesson does, and how a science book works.
10. 10Reading lessonsReading lessons as picture books, and what Pip, the reading buddy beside the story, is doing.
11. 11Worksheets and printingPaper practice for every lesson, and the answer keys.
12. 12Competition PrepProblem types for tests and contests in math and science, worked on a chalkboard, classic puzzles, and the word problem sets by grade.
13. 13Scratch paperSomewhere to work out a math problem, inside the lesson.
14. 14Chapter checksThe short test at the end of a chapter.
15. 15Today's fiveA two-minute daily warm-up of chapters already passed.
16. 16This weekOne lesson, then four short homeworks on four different days.
17. 17Math LabEighty-two math problems and a formula sheet: set your own numbers and work each out step by step.
18. 18Science LabFifty-six 3D labs in life science, chemistry, physical science, and Earth and space: guess, explore, then explain what you found.
19. 19Science Fair LabReal experiments at home, from a guess to a display board, with the safety notes for grown-ups.
20. 20Tech explainedHow rockets, phones, chatbots and the power grid work: a film, three levels, and things to try.
21. 21Watch & WonderCartoon films for the youngest, with picture questions to tap while the film plays.
22. 22Brain GymPuzzles for every kind of thinking, Pre-K to Grade 12, with hints and no points.
23. 23Chess Academy and Play ChessLearning chess from the board up, then whole games against the computer.
24. 24Cube AcademySolving a Rubik's Cube a layer at a time, with your own cube typed in by taps.
25. 25Fun & ThinkTwenty-four short things to play, almost none needing reading.
26. 26Signing inMaking an account, step by step.
27. 27Free week and membershipWhat costs nothing, and what a membership opens.
28. 28Asking about a lessonThe helper for grown-ups, hints for children, and the helper on the home page.
29. 29More than one childAdding learners, finding where each should start, and keeping progress apart.
30. 30Your family pageEach child's progress, where to start, and this week's letter.
31. 31Helping your childWhere to start, how long, what to do when they are stuck.
32. 32On a phone or tabletAdding it to the home screen, using it without internet, and finding your way on a small screen.
33. 33When something goes wrongThe handful of things that go wrong, and the fix.

If something here does not match what you see on your screen, or you cannot find the answer, tell us and we will fix it. There is no wrong question.