Tutoring in North Dakota
Kolu is software. Nobody from Kolu will drive to your house in North Dakota, 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.
North Dakota replaced its old state test in spring 2025 with ND A+, and the new system runs through the whole school year. Students in grades 3 through 8 and grade 10 take interim tests in fall and winter and then the ND A+ Summative in spring, in English language arts and math. Science is tested once in elementary school, in grade 4, and again in grades 8 and 10. The state stopped paying for a junior-year ACT or WorkKeys in 2021-22, so there is no statewide college test day, and a district that wants one arranges it with ACT directly. Every graduate must also pass a civics exam based on the U.S. naturalization test.
What North Dakota tests, and when
| Grade | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading and writing | ND A+ Summative | ND A+ Summative | ND A+ Summative | ND A+ Summative | ND A+ Summative | ND A+ Summative | Not tested | ND A+ Summative | Not tested | Not tested |
| Math | ND A+ Summative | ND A+ Summative | ND A+ Summative | ND A+ Summative | ND A+ Summative | ND A+ Summative | Not tested | ND A+ Summative | Not tested | Not tested |
| Science | Not tested | ND A+ Summative Science | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested | ND A+ Summative Science | Not tested | ND A+ Summative Science | Not tested | Not tested |
- ND A+ Summative: reading and writing, math, grades 3 through 8 and 10
- ND A+ Summative Science: science, grades 4, 8 and 10
- Main testing window
- mid-March to early May
- Standards
- North Dakota Content Standards
Graduates must pass the state civics exam with at least 70 percent correct, and retakes are allowed. Separately, the North Dakota Scholarship's postsecondary pathway asks for an ACT of 24 or higher, on a test the state no longer pays for.
Is there a graduation test in North Dakota?
No ND A+ score is required, but every graduate must pass the North Dakota civics exam with at least 70 percent correct.
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 ND A+ Summative. 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.