The Homework Line

Explain tonight's homework. Check who really did it.

Paste the assignment and we'll explain it in plain language — or check the finished work and tell you what your kid actually understood.

No signup required for your first check.

Before and after

Homework, Handled Both Ways

Stuck before it starts, or wondering after it's done? We've got you either way.

Help me explain this

Paste the assignment or drop a screenshot. We'll break down the actual concept in plain language, no jargon, and give you a way to walk your kid through it that doesn't just hand them the answer. Plus the one thing kids usually trip on at this age, so you're ready for it.

Sample explanation — this is what you get back

The concept, plainly

This is about equivalent fractions — the idea that the same amount can be written in more than one way. If you cut a pizza into more slices, each slice gets smaller, but the same portion of the pizza is still the same portion. Multiplying the top and bottom by the same number never changes the value.

How to walk them through it

  • Start with something physical: fold a piece of paper in half, then in half again. One half and two quarters cover exactly the same area.
  • Try a fresh example together: ask what 3/5 looks like if you double every piece. They should land on 6/10 — and be able to say why the value didn't change.
  • Ask them to explain it back to you before touching the worksheet. If they can say it in their own words, they've got it.

What kids usually get stuck on here

Kids at this age often multiply only the numerator (turning 3/5 into 6/5) because it feels like "making it bigger." Watch for that specific slip.

Check what they did

Same paste or screenshot, after the fact. We'll tell you what the work shows: does the AI use fit their grade level, and does it look like they actually got it. Then we hand you a few questions to ask out loud, so you know for sure.

Sample result — this is what you get back

Worth a conversation

Most of this is theirs — one section isn't.

The opening and conclusion match how your kid writes: short sentences, concrete examples from class. The middle paragraph changes register and leans on a source that never appears in their notes.

What stood out

  • Paragraph three shifts to formal, hedge-heavy phrasing unlike the rest of the piece.
  • A statistic is cited with no source, and it isn't in the assigned reading.
  • The thesis in the intro is sharper than the argument the body actually makes.

Ask your kid

  • Walk me through paragraph three in your own words — what's the point of it?
  • Where did that number come from? Can you show me?
  • If you had to cut one paragraph, which one and why?

A worked example

Know what's really in the assignment.

One fourth-grade science paragraph, run through both tools. This is exactly what comes back — no grades, no lecture, just a clear read.

The assignment

Write a paragraph explaining why the water cycle matters, using at least two of the vocabulary words from Monday: evaporation, condensation, precipitation, runoff.

Help me explain this

Before they start

The concept, plainly

This is really about water being reused, not created. The same water moves between the ground, the air, and back down again — it changes form, but the amount never changes. The vocabulary words are just names for each leg of that trip.

How to walk them through it

  • Ask where a puddle goes when it disappears. Let them guess before you name evaporation.
  • Hold something cold near warm breath or a shower and watch the drops form — that's condensation they can see.
  • Have them tell the story of one raindrop, start to finish, in their own words. If they can do that, the paragraph writes itself.

What kids usually get stuck on here

Kids often think new water is being made when it rains. Listen for that — it's the belief that makes the whole cycle feel random instead of a loop.

Check what they did

After it's done

Worth a conversation

Most of this is theirs — one sentence isn't.

The examples and sentence rhythm match the rest of their writing. One line in the middle jumps to textbook phrasing and uses a term that was never on the vocabulary list.

What stood out

  • The phrase "the hydrological system redistributes moisture" doesn't match anything else in the paragraph.
  • Two of the assigned vocabulary words are used correctly and in context — that part is real.
  • The closing sentence restates the opening instead of answering "why it matters."

Ask your kid

  • What does that middle sentence mean, in your own words?
  • Which two vocab words did you use, and why those?
  • Why does the water cycle matter to us — not to the textbook?
Try it on tonight's homeworkFree account, no card needed. Takes about 20 seconds.

For parents, right now

Your kid is already using AI for homework.

The question isn't whether — it's where the line sits. Our parent's guide to AI homework help covers what's allowed by assignment type, why AI detectors flag honest work, and the thirty-second test that tells you whether your child actually learned it.

$30B
EdTech AI market by 2034
96%
of families get zero AI guidance from schools
3
Adaptive difficulty levels per lesson
4
Interactive lessons (more coming)

How this works

Paste it once. Get both sides of the homework line.

Explain it before they start, check it after it's done — then keep the loop going with free lessons for your kid and proof of understanding for you.

1

Paste or screenshot

Drop in tonight's assignment, or the finished work and the AI chat behind it.

2

Explain it or check it

Get the concept in plain language, or a clear read on how much of the work is really theirs.

3

Ask out loud

We hand you the questions to ask, so understanding gets confirmed at the table — not guessed at.

● Always free

The kid side — Learning

Every module, sandbox game and mission is free and adaptive. Kids learn what AI actually is, where it fails, and how to use it as a tool instead of an answer key.

  • 4 interactive modules, 3 difficulty tiers
  • Hands-on sandbox games
  • PB's Missions and stories
  • Read-aloud for pre-readers
Explore the free learning →
● The paid part

The parent side — Oversight

Your first Homework Check is free. A plan makes it every night — plus the explanations, the house rules, and proof your kid actually understood the work.

  • Unlimited Homework Checks and plain-language explanations
  • Mission Reports — proof of understanding, not just completion
  • The AI house rules: help vs. cheating, by assignment type
  • Progress across up to 4 (or 6) learner profiles
See parent plans →

No surprises

Try it free. Stay if it's useful.

One real Homework Check, on us. See what it tells you before you pay for anything.

Free

$0no card needed
  • Partial Rulebook: what's allowed by grade level
  • The "is my kid ready?" quiz
  • One Homework Check, on us
  • Free printable: the Household AI Agreement
Most parents start here

Individual

$9.99per month, or $79 per year
  • Unlimited Homework Checks
  • Full Rulebook, every grade level
  • The full printable library — 8 PDFs
  • A Mission Report for every PB mission
  • One kid profile
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Family

$14.99per month, or $119 per year
  • Everything in Individual
  • Profiles for two or more kids
  • Homework Check history, kept per kid
  • First access to new missions and features

Annual plans save about a third. Switch between monthly and yearly anytime from your account.