Brilliant Review: Fun and engaging learning for all ages

Would you like to have fun while learning? Would you like to understand concepts that you didn't before? Well, don't worry.

If you're interested in problem-solving, logical reasoning, critical thinking, and more, maybe Brilliant.org is the place for you.

In this Brilliant Review, we will tell you everything you need to know about this incredible Platform.

What is Brilliant?

Brilliant.org is a platform founded in 2012 by Sue Khim; Brilliant is designed to revolutionize learning.

It is dedicated to bringing knowledge in a fun way by making interactive classes and doing the learning as an experience.

Brilliant's mission is to change people's feelings about STEM subjects, from scary or frustrating, to inspiring and fun.

So, let's start with our Brillant review.

What Kind of courses can you find in Brilliant?

There are more than 60 courses in the theme of STEM, all of them with subcategories and courses from basics to pro, such as:

• Algebra;
• Mathematical Thinking;
• Geometry;
• Statistics and Probability;
• Contest Math;
• Calculus;
• Advanced Mathematics; 
• Scientific Thinking; 
• Classical Physics;
• Quantum Mechanics; 
• Applied Science;
• Foundational Computer Science; 
• Applied Computer Science. 
  

Brilliant's most important features 

As we said above, Brilliant offers over 60 courses, and each course has guided exercises, problems, and quizzes that make you think and solve challenges. Furthermore, the platform has fantastic features that make Brilliant unique.

Let's see some of them:

• Interactive learning: Brilliant uses active learning to help you master the concepts and skills. You don't just watch videos or read texts. You do the exercises and problems yourself. This way, you learn by doing and get immediate feedback.

• Gamified experience: This platform makes learning fun and engaging using game-style graphics, animations, and sounds. You can earn points, badges, and trophies as you complete the courses and challenges. You can also compete with other learners on leaderboards and see how you rank.

• Self-paced learning: It lets you learn at your own pace and schedule. You can access the courses anytime, anywhere, on any device. You can also download the courses for offline use on the mobile app and choose the level of difficulty that suits you, from beginner to advanced.

• Expert content: Brilliant's courses are created by award-winning teachers, researchers, and professionals from top institutions like MIT, Duke, Microsoft, and Google. They use real-world examples and applications to make the topics relevant and interesting. They also update the courses regularly to keep them current and accurate.

• Freemium model: Brilliant operates via a freemium business model. You can access some content for free but must pay for a premium subscription to unlock all the features and courses. The free plan gives you access to daily challenges, the community, and some courses. The premium plan gives unlimited access to all the courses, quizzes, and problems and offline access on the mobile app.

• Daily challenges: It offers daily challenges designed to test your knowledge and skills in various topics. You can choose from five levels of difficulty, from basic to elite. You can also see how other users solved the challenges and compare your solutions with theirs. You can earn points and streaks for completing the challenges and track your progress.

• Community: Brilliant has a community of over 10 million users who are passionate about learning and problem-solving. You can join discussions, ask questions, share insights, and learn from others. You can also follow your favorite topics, authors, and users and get notified when they post new content, create your profile, and showcase your achievements and interests.
  
  

Who is Brilliant for?

Brilliant is designed for everyone! For ages 10 to 110. Anyone wanting to learn or improve their math, science, technology, and engineering skills.

You can find fundamentals for beginners, and advanced courses for professionals, so the target of this platform is wide. 

Here are the profiles of people who may be interested in joining Brilliant. Are you one of them?

• People who are interested in learning STEM.
• Someone that is looking for a fun way to learn.
• Someone who prefers active learning.
• Anyone that wants to develop their problem-solving skills or keep their knowledge updated.
• Someone that loves quizzes and challenges.
• A parent looking for learning alternatives for his children.

If you do, brilliant can help you with the following:

• Keep your mind active by exploring new topics and solving puzzles. Challenge yourself and have fun at the same time.
  
• Master concepts through problem-solving in math, science, and computer science. Build intuition instead of memorizing formulas.
  
• Learn from experts who have created engaging and rigorous content for you. Discover real-world applications and examples of the topics you learn.
  
  

Top 10 Best Brilliant Courses 

Many courses on Brilliant cover different topics and levels of difficulty. Depending on your interests and goals, some courses may be more appealing and useful. 

However, based on the popularity, ratings, and reviews of the courses, here are some of the best 10 Brilliant courses that you can take:

Practice Mathematical Fundamentals 

This course is designed to help you learn the basics of mathematics, such as:

• Arithmetic; 
• Fractions; 
• Decimals; 
• Percentages; 
• Ratios; 
• Proportions. 

You will also learn to use mathematics to solve real-world problems involving money, time, distance, and geometry. You will also practice your mathematical skills by solving interactive puzzles and challenges that test your understanding and application of the concepts. 

This course is suitable for beginners.

Practice Logic

This course is designed to help you learn the basics of logic, which involves using rules and principles to evaluate arguments and claims. 

You will learn how to use logic to:

• Identify valid and invalid arguments; 
• Recognize common fallacies and paradoxes; 
• Construct proofs using deductive reasoning. 

You will also practice your logic skills by solving puzzles and challenges that involve symbols, diagrams, grids, and games. 

The practice Logic course is appropriate for beginners.

Practice Scientific Thinking

This course is designed to help you learn the basics of scientific thinking, which involves:

• Observing; 
• Questioning; 
• Experimenting; 
• Reasoning. 

You will learn how to use scientific thinking to:

• Explore the natural world;
• Test hypotheses; 
• Analyze data; 
• Draw conclusions. 

You will also practice your scientific thinking skills by solving puzzles and challenges that involve physics, chemistry, biology, and astronomy. 

This course is fitting for newbies. 

Practice Computer Science Fundamentals 

This course is designed to help you learn the basics of computer science, such as:

• Binary numbers; 
• Logic gates;
• Data structures;
• Algorithms;  
• Recursion. 

You will also practice your problem-solving skills by solving interactive puzzles and challenges. 

The practice computer science fundamentals course is suitable for beginners. 

Practice Geometry Fundamentals 

This course is designed to help you learn the basics of geometry, which is a branch of mathematics that deals with :

• Shapes;
• Angles; 
• Lines; 
• Planes.

You will learn how to measure lengths, areas, and volumes of various shapes, use congruence and similarity rules to compare shapes, use Pythagoras’ theorem and trigonometry to solve right triangles, and use coordinate geometry to graph equations. 

You will also practice geometry skills by solving puzzles and challenges involving shapes, patterns, and transformations. 

This course is suitable for beginners. 

Practice Physics of the everyday 

This course is designed to help you learn the basics of physics, a branch of science that deals with the nature and behavior of matter and energy. 

You will learn how to use physics to explain everyday phenomena, such as:

• Motion;
• Forces; 
• Energy; 
• Heat; 
• Sound; 
• Light; 
• Electricity. 

You will also learn how to use physics to solve problems involving:

• Speed, 
• Acceleration, 
• Momentum, 
• Work, 
• Power, 
• Pressure, 
• Temperature, 
• Waves, 
• Lenses 
• Circuits. 

You will also practice your physics skills by solving puzzles and challenges that involve real-world scenarios and experiments. 

This course is also suitable for beginners 

Practice Programming with Python 

This course is designed to help you learn programming fundamentals with Python, one of the most widely used and versatile programming languages.

You will learn the following:

• How to write and run Python code; 
• Use variables; 
• Data types; 
• Functions; 
• Loops; 
• Conditionals; 
• Modules; 

You will also practice your coding skills by creating projects such as a calculator, a tic-tac-toe game, and a web scraper. 

The Practice Programming with Python course is appropriate for beginners.

Practice Cryptocurrency

This course is designed to help you learn the basics of cryptocurrency, a form of digital money that uses cryptography to secure transactions and control the creation of new units. 

You will learn how:

• Cryptocurrency works; 
• How to use cryptocurrency; 
• How cryptocurrency affects the economy and society.

You will also practice your cryptocurrency skills by solving puzzles and challenges implicating encryption, hashing, digital signatures, and blockchain. 

This course is suitable for intermediate learners. 

Practice Probability Fundamentals 

This course is designed to help you learn the basics of probability, a branch of mathematics that deals with the likelihood of events and outcomes. You will learn to:

• Calculate probabilities using fractions, decimals, and percentages;
  
• Counting techniques and combinatorics to find the number of possible outcomes;
  
• Venn diagrams and tree diagrams to visualize probabilities;
  
• Conditional probability and Bayes’ theorem to update probabilities based on new information. 

You will also practice your probability skills by unraveling puzzles and challenges that involve dice, cards, coins, and games. 

This course is appropriate for beginners. 

Practice Introduction to Neural Networks

This course is designed to help you learn the basics of neural networks. These powerful models can learn from data and perform complex tasks such as:

• Image recognition, 
• Natural language processing and
• Self-driving cars.

You will also learn the following task:

• How neural networks work, 
• How to build and train them using Python and TensorFlow, 
• How to apply them to real-world problems.

You will practice your neural network skills by creating projects such as a handwritten digit classifier, a face detector, and a style transfer app.

The practice introduction to neural networks course is suitable for intermediate learners. 

How is a class on Brilliant.org?

The platform will give you a questionnaire when you log in, asking what type of student you are and what you are looking for on their website. This will give you the best recommendations for courses.

The format of the classes on Brilliant.org varies a lot. However, they are described as dynamic, natural, and sustainable. 

Trying to make things more engaging, Brilliant believes that storytelling is the best way to engage their students. Hence, the first thing you see starting a lesson is your learning history.

In this way, you have the context of what you're learning and a deeper understanding of the subject and concept; this will allow you to comprehend why it's important and how it's used in the modern day.

You will work with different problems to practice. The problems will start with the basics to later become more complicated.

Many courses can be completed in days if you spend around an hour a day working on them.

You also have Daily Challenges where you can solve problems in a fun way. 

Who are the instructors on Brilliant?

Creators make the courses Brilliant with years of experience in the field.

The entire team on Brilliant.org is composed of educators dedicated to creating math and science courses and bringing education in a fun way.

A difference between this and other platforms is that their courses aren't instructor-led but created by a team.

Billant Pros vs. Cons

Now, with all this information, we will give you the pros and cons of this platform.

Brilliant  Plans and Prices

The platform offers Free and Premium options. 

The free option gives you access to new Problems daily in the today tab, and your progress will be synchronized across the web and mobile apps.

Brilliant for Educators: 

This plan is a free plan designed for teachers who want to share courses, lessons, and daily challenges with students, with features like:

• The teacher will have access to assignments, progress, monitoring, and other classroom management tools.
• Access for one year (Brilliant will require an annual re-verification of teacher status).
• The teacher can create up to 8 classes.
• You can have 50 students in this plan.
• The students can have different courses.

Teachers, instructors, and professors from an accredited college, university, or K-12 school can apply to this plan Free Plan.

But, If you are not a qualified teacher but still work in an educational setting, such as a homeschool, tutoring center, coding boot camp, or a college teaching assistant, you can still access Brilliant for Educators via a discounted paid subscription. 

You just have to contact them through educators@brilliant.org for more details.

Premium Plans:

You can pay via subscription if you're not eligible for free access.

The Premium option will unlock all courses and Daily Challenges. You will also have:

• Synchronized progress across the web and mobile apps;
• Guided courses.

You can pay the Premium option with these 3 options:

• Monthly: $24.99

• Annual: $13.49 per month, billed as one payment of $161.88 per year

• Groups of 3+: $9.00 per month per person, billed as one payment of $323.88 per year for 3 people

Gift Plan: 

You can share your love for math and science with your loved ones by giving them a subscription to Brilliant Premium.

Brilliant’s Gift Plan has three options:

• Month: $24.99
• Year: $161.88
• Lifetime: $749.99

Group Plan: 

This group plan starts at $9.00  per month per person, and the payment will be processed annually. In this plan, you will have access to:

• You can have up to 50 people in your group.
• Every person in the group will own an individual Premium account.
• You can remove a plan member and add someone to occupy that seat. (you cannot add additional members to the group in the middle of the subscription)
• Brilliant also has the option to create larger groups with more people. For more information, please visit their website.

Brilliant’s Group Plan is a great option for students, professionals, and lifelong learners who want to learn better together and enjoy the full Brilliant experience at a lower cost. 

Final Thoughts

So, is Brilliant worth it? We think it does. Brilliant is a platform for people of all ages and backgrounds designed to bring math and science more amicably. The creators understand that we all learn differently and have preferred learning styles, and that's what they do. The use of visuals, interactive animations, and storytelling makes them different.

So if you are a student, a parent, a teacher, a math lover, orsomeone that wants to understand STEM topics, finally, this is the place for you.

We hope this Brilliant review inspires you to try new e-learning methods.

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