Episode Details

• Date: March 16, 2026
• Duration: ~26 minutes
• Host: Pranusha Manchala
• Guest: Mike Kenny, Owner of Math Fact Lab

Episode Summary

In this episode, Mike Kenny shares the inspiring journey of Math Fact Lab, a platform revolutionizing how students master foundational math skills. As a former fifth-grade math teacher with 19 years of experience, Mike discusses how he transformed his classroom materials into a cloud-hosted application that helps students develop math fact fluency through research-based strategies rather than traditional memorization. He reveals how AWS has supported Math Fact Lab's growth from a bootstrapped startup to serving schools and districts nationwide, emphasizing the importance of conceptual understanding and personalized learning in mathematics education.

Key Discussion Points

• Evolution from classroom teacher to EdTech entrepreneur
• Research-based approach to math fact fluency vs. traditional memorization
• Platform design for personalized learning with customizable settings
• Scaling from individual teachers to school districts with rostering integrations
• Student success metrics showing 40% to 90% improvement in fact mastery
• AWS's role in enabling secure, scalable infrastructure for student data
• Future expansion into integer operations for middle school students

Featured Technologies

• AWS Cloud Infrastructure
• Clever and ClassLink rostering integrations
• Visual learning models (dice, area models, ten frames)
• Adaptive assessment systems

Key Takeaways

• Strategy-based learning outperforms memorization for long-term math fluency
• Personalization (adjustable time limits, learning tracks) accommodates diverse student needs
• AWS startup programs provided critical early-stage support for bootstrapped ventures
• Customer feedback drives continuous product evolution and feature development

Resources Mentioned

• Math Fact Lab: mathfactlab.com
• AWS Startup Programs
• Research on math anxiety and timed tests

Tags

#EdTech #MathEducation #AWS #StudentSuccess #K12Education #DigitalLearning #CloudComputing #StartupJourney #PersonalizedLearning #Education