Tutoring in Arkansas
Kolu is software. Nobody from Kolu will drive to your house in Arkansas, and we have no office there. If you want a person, this page says how we would look for one. If the question is which skill is missing, we can help with that part.
ATLAS is the Arkansas state test, and it has one window, from early May to early June. It covers English language arts in grades 3 to 10 and math and science in grades 3 to 8. After eighth grade, math and science move to end-of-course exams in Algebra I, Geometry and Biology, taken in whatever year the student takes the course. A student who finishes one of those courses in the fall semester can sit the exam in December. The state also schedules two ATLAS interim tests before winter break. In eleventh grade every public school student is offered the ACT at their own school in February or March, and the score can be used for admission and scholarships.
What Arkansas tests, and when
| Grade | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading and writing | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | Not tested | Not tested |
| Math | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested |
| Science | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | ATLAS | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested |
- ATLAS (Arkansas Teaching, Learning and Assessment System): reading and writing, grades 3 through 10
- ATLAS: math, science, grades 3 through 8
- Main testing window
- early May to early June
- Standards
- Arkansas Academic Standards
- Paid for by the state
- ACT, grade 11, on a school day
- Exams tied to a course
- Algebra I, Geometry and Biology (ATLAS end-of-course exams)
Third-grade promotion under the LEARNS Act took effect at the end of 2025-26. A third grader needs Level 2 or higher on the ATLAS English language arts test to move to fourth grade unless a good cause exemption applies, and there is a retake in June for promotion purposes only.
Is there a graduation test in Arkansas?
No ATLAS score is required for a diploma, but every student must pass the Arkansas Civics Exam.
Kolu finds the missing skill and goes back to it
It starts with a skill check, a short test that gets harder or easier depending on the last answer. The result is a map of the subject broken into skills with their prerequisites drawn in, each one marked as solid, still being learned, or a gap.
After that, each session is a handful of activities picked for that student, usually something due for review, a gap to repair and one new skill. When an answer is wrong, Kolu looks at which earlier skill the mistake points to and goes back to it. Here is what that looks like for a sixth grader who can't divide fractions.
The problem on the page
3/4 ÷ 2/5
Dividing fractions
Grade 6
Multiplying fractions
Grade 5 · rests on the one below
Equivalent fractions
Grade 4 · usually where it started
Multiplication facts
Grade 3
Kolu does not call a skill mastered after one right answer. That takes correct work on different kinds of problems on different days, and a skill that fades gets brought back.
Kolu is not test prep for ATLAS. It has no bank of released questions. It teaches the skills the test draws on, and it will not do tonight's homework.
When to hire a person instead
Some students need a person, and software is the wrong purchase for them. That includes a child who shuts down when the work gets hard, a student with a learning disability who needs someone trained in it, and anyone with an exam in ten days.
Ask the school first. Teachers know who tutors, and a counselor can tell you what the district already offers at no cost. A nearby college is the next place to look, since students there took these courses recently and usually charge less than an agency.
Whoever you hire, ask one question before the first session: how will you find out what my child doesn't know? If the answer is that they will go over the homework, keep looking.
Free for one subject, $15 a month for 5
Kolu is free for one subject at a time, with one full skill check every 30 days and up to 4 sessions a day. Plus is $15 a month, or $120 for a year, and covers 5 subjects at once with unlimited skill checks. A learner under 13 needs a parent or guardian to set up the account.