Starfall - http://www.starfall.com/
This has been a fantastic educational site for my 5 year and 6 year old! When my 2 year old gets older he'll be playing on this site too. For now he just enjoys watching his brother and sister play, which is also introducing him to letters and sounds. Starfall.com opened in September of 2002 as a free public service to motivate children to read with phonics. The systematic phonics approach, in conjunction with phonemic awareness practice is perfect for preschool, kindergarten, first grade, second grade, special education, home school, and English language development (ELD, ELL, ESL). Starfall is an educational alternative to other entertainment choices for children. In May of 2009, they released Starfall Kindergarten Reading and Language Arts Curriculum. The lesson plans motivate kindergarten children by creating an atmosphere of fun and enthusiasm, providing opportunities for child-directed instruction, and facilitating the needs of English language learners and struggling readers learning alongside their peers.
PBS Kids - http://pbskids.org/
Children between 4 and up may not need much help getting around this site. It's pretty straight forward with plenty of pictures your children can navigate with.
Nick Jr. - http://www.nickjr.com/games/index.jhtml
Here your children will have fun playing and learning with some of the characters they may be watching on TV. Navigation is also very easy on this site so not much assistance is needed.
Sesame Street - http://www.sesamestreet.org/home
You really can't go wrong when it comes to Sesame Street and learning.
Learning Games For Kids - http://www.learninggamesforkids.com/
Learning Games are a great way to build the foundation skills that today's elementary school curriculum requires. These learning games and songs are fun, teach important skills for preschool and elementary school kids and they're free. Children will themselves work to develop their focus and skills with these learning games. Want educational games that help build skills? This is the right place!"
Fun School Kaboose - http://funschool.kaboose.com/index.html
This is a good site and very easy to navigate. It also has a lot of games from preschool to 5th - 6th grade.
Jumpstart - http://www.jumpstart.com/Default.aspx
"JumpStart is an award-winning adventure-based 3D virtual world that is super-personalized, wildly imaginative and really fun, but don't let that fool you - it also teaches math, reading, and critical thinking skills so kids get a real jump start in life."
I know that - http://www.iknowthat.com/com
"iknowthat.com’s mission is to ignite a love of lifelong learning in every child by harnessing internet multimedia and social communication to produce an environment for engaging, interactive and dynamic learning."
Learning Planet http://www.learningplanet.com/stu/index.asp
This is a fun site that is pretty easy to navigate. It has a lot of games and activities from preschool to 7th grade and up.
Scholastic http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/home.jsp
You may need to help your child navigate a little through this site but it has fantastic activities as well as games and educational videos.
Moshimonsters - http://www.moshimonsters.com/home
"Moshi Monsters is a free online game for kids, where they may adopt a monster and look after it. Kids whose parents give us their approval can become 'users' on our site, and can adopt a Moshi Monster. Kids care for their monster by solving puzzle games, which earn their monster virtual rewards called Rox. Kids can spend Rox on virtual items like food, furniture and other treats and toys for their monster. Over time their monster will increase in level, be able to visit new locations in Monstro City, and earn all kinds of in-game rewards for playing. Monster owners will also be able to make friends with other owners and leave messages on their pages."
Tutor Hunt http://www.tutorhunt.com
Tutor Hunt provides a completely free service for both tutors and students to locate each other.
ABC Teach www.abcteach.com
This is one of the best educational sites on the internet. Flashcards, coloring pages, book report forms, and other fun tools to keep your kids interested in learning.
School Express www.schoolexpress.com
Fun activity worksheets you can download and print for free. Plus online jigsaw puzzles, flash cards, awards, and math help.
Dosity.com www.dosity.com
A collection of downloadable worksheets and fun educational games that you can play directly on the site. Our favorite is the Antonyms Memory Game where you have to match words with opposite meanings to reveal a fun picture under the cards.
Ed By Design www.edbydesign.com
Fun educational games. Learn to write your own story (and publish it online!), play problem solving puzzles, try the Harry Potter trivia, or play number puzzles. (Also known as math problems, but don't tell your kids that!)
Learning Planet www.learningplanet.com
Play trivia, wordseach, or other educational games or search their activity database by grade level or subject.
Primary Games www.primarygames.com
Great for unit studies. Pick a topic (like holidays, seasons, or planets) and you'll find tons of games and activities to keep your kids entertained while they learn!
Word Central:
Sponsored by Merriam Webster, this site is a great place to learn new words and play word games. Check out their Build Your Own Dictionary page where kids can make up new words and share them with the world.
Listen to real recordings of classic children's story records from the 40's and 50's. From Robin Hood to Peter and the Wolf, these timeless classics will entertain kids of all ages.
Search the internet for any type of sounds, from recorded animal sounds to Christmas sleigh bells. So the next time your kid asks, "What does a train really sound like," you can go find out!
Book Adventure:
Book Adventure is a FREE reading motivation program for children in grades K-8. Children create their own book lists from over 7,000 recommended titles, take multiple choice quizzes on the books they've read, and earn points and prizes for their literary successes.
You can read, search, and even add your own annotations, to any of a number of classic books. A selection of author biographies and portraits are also made available.
Serengeti National Park:
Official website for the Serengeti National Park. Check out amazing photos and information about the animals in the park, view their web cam, or play their fun animal sounds game. See, you really can learn about the animals of the Serengeti on the internet!
The SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Animal Sounds Library:
Check out this site to listen to real recorded animal sounds from the zoo library.
At Switcheroo Zoo you can make new animals, play games, solve jigsaw puzzles, learn about animals, join a zoo quest, watch movies, and more!
Cool Math for Kids:
Fun math problems from critical thinking and word problems to fractions and division. Designed to keep kids engaged and geared to kids of all ages.
Money Games:
A government sponsored website designed to teach kids about currency. Learn how money is made, how they decide on new designs, and play money quizzes.
A+ Math:
Fun online math games, like Matho (a combination of math and Bingo), Hidden Picture, and Concentration, and Planet Blaster. Fun games with a math twist!
Chess Kids:
Learn to play chess. Interactive chess lessons, quizzes, games, and puzzles, or just play chess against the computer.
National Geographic Kids:
Videos, stories, and activities about wildlife and wild places. Fun games too!
Greenland Iceberg Paradise:
Learn about Greenland! On these pages you will find spectacular images of icebergs, dog sledding, and the wonderful scenery of Greenland.
Windows to the Universe:
From our planet, to our solar system, to our universe, learn about geology, space, and physics. Articles, games, puzzles, a blog, and more!
PBS: The Savage Earth:
Learn about earth's destructive powers through earthquakes, volcanos, and tsunamis. Watch great educational animations, too.
Earthquakes for Kids:
Brought to you by the U.S. Geological Survey, this site teaches young kids about earthquakes in a way that's fun and accessible. Learn about the science behind earthquakes, play puzzles and games, watch animations, and even find great ideas for science fair projects.
The Virtual Fossil Museum:
Learn about fossils, geological time, and evolution. Read the latest news on fossil finds or browse their large collection of fossil pictures.
Prehistoric Planet:
Very fun interactive site about fossils, evolution, and dinosaurs. Visit their volcano simulator or watch videos about paleontology.
NOVA: Where to Dig:
Learn about different types of rocks and which are most likely to contain dinosaur fossils. Then grab your tools and look for dinosaurs in your own back yard!
Wild Weather:
Learn about the weather and storms through stories, games, and quizzes.
KidStorm:
Learn about tornadoes, lightning, hurricanes, and storm chasing. Probably their most useful section is on
Lightning Safety:
Teach your kids how to stay safe in a storm!
Global Warming Facts & Our Future:
Learn what's happening to the earth by investigating the facts. Decide if you think people are the cause and what can be done about it.
Air Info Now:
Play games designed to teach kids about air quality and air pollution, learn about easy experiments you can do at home, and find out what you can do to keep the air clean.
The Why Files:
This is a very interesting site which takes headlines from the daily news (from politics to weather) and explains the facts and science behind the stories.
TIME for Kids:
A current events site for kids sponsored by TIME magazine. Kids can read about what's going on in the world or even play games or take trivia quizzes.
Scholastic News:
Learn about what's going on in the world from this kid-friendly site. They even have kid polls and kid reviews, so your kids can share their views, too!
Make-Stuff:
Step-by-step guides on how to make all sorts of kid's crafts, from origami to silly putty. Includes video tutorials!
Inside Art:
A fun interactive adventure story where your child is sucked into classic paintings and taken on a tour of the style and theme of the artist.
Cartoonster:
A free online tutorial that takes you step-by-step through the process of creating your own animated cartoon.
Better Photo:
Free online photography lessons for kids! Follow their Photo Assignments or read their tips on how to take photos of people, animals, or landscapes. Turn good photos into great ones.
Songs for Teaching:
A great site where you can look up lyrics to popular kids songs, buy the CD, or even download the song to your computer. Songs are categorized by subject, from math to reading and everything in between.
DSO Kids:
Fun animated site where you can learn all you need to know about the orchestra. The best part is the Instrument Encyclopedia where you can hear samples of over thirty different orchestra instruments.
Nancy Music:
A fun and comprehensive music site. Our favorites are the Music Activities page and the Homemade Instruments page.
GameVance:
Simple, fun, free games for kids of all ages.
Barney & Friends:
Play fun interactive games with Barney and friends! Great, simple site for small children just learning how to use a computer.
Games Kids Play:
A huge list of traditional children's games (like four corners, kick the can, and marco polo) and rules on how to play them.
Colour Game
This is always the first game that I introduce preschoolers to. The child needs to select a colour by clicking the mouse and then clicking the area of the picture that they want to colour.
It is a great introductory game as it really focuses on mouse control from a technical aspect and from a primary learning aspect you can name reinforce their colour identification.
Animal Bingo
This game requires the preschooler to listen to the animal sound and then click on the animal which makes that noise. Great activity for them to practice their listening skills and increase their animal knowledge.
This game requires the preschooler to listen to the animal sound and then click on the animal which makes that noise. Great activity for them to practice their listening skills and increase their animal knowledge.
The Bernstain Bears Pack A Picnic Game
This game requires the preschooler to follow prompts on the screen to find particular items. It focuses primarily on the observational skills of the child.
This game requires the preschooler to follow prompts on the screen to find particular items. It focuses primarily on the observational skills of the child.
Keyboard-o-rama
This is an exploratory style game for the preschooler, where Elmo explains what they keys on the keyboard mean.
This is an exploratory style game for the preschooler, where Elmo explains what they keys on the keyboard mean.
Memory Game
Most preschool game sites will have a version of the memory card game. It is a great way to move from the real world to the virtual world, as the preschooler is generally already aware of the rules of this game.
Most preschool game sites will have a version of the memory card game. It is a great way to move from the real world to the virtual world, as the preschooler is generally already aware of the rules of this game.
The Wiggles Shape MatchThe preschooler can work on their mouse skills as they need to click and drag shapes to their right spot.
Joe’s Maze
Again this takes a familiar concept and adopts in to the computer for the preschooler. They preschooler has to use the arrow keys to move the rabbit to its broccoli. Perfect for discussion of directions for example right, left, up and down.
Again this takes a familiar concept and adopts in to the computer for the preschooler. They preschooler has to use the arrow keys to move the rabbit to its broccoli. Perfect for discussion of directions for example right, left, up and down.
Hickory Dickory Dock Game
Excellent simple game reinforcing the preschoolers recall of numbers and introducing the clock concept. (Edit – the link to this game on the ABC website is currently not working I am awaiting a response to see if they are going to fix it. You could try this more basic telling the time game.)
Excellent simple game reinforcing the preschoolers recall of numbers and introducing the clock concept. (Edit – the link to this game on the ABC website is currently not working I am awaiting a response to see if they are going to fix it. You could try this more basic telling the time game.)
Dress Caillou
This is a recent find for me and I am going to use with my preschooler as an way of teaching about what clothes are appropriate for the weather we are experiencing. (Possum still wants to wear shorts even though when we are walking to school in the morning it is only 7 degrees celsius!)
This is a recent find for me and I am going to use with my preschooler as an way of teaching about what clothes are appropriate for the weather we are experiencing. (Possum still wants to wear shorts even though when we are walking to school in the morning it is only 7 degrees celsius!)
Brick Buster Game
This is game probably requires the most nimble computer skills of all the ones I have listed. It requires the preschooler to match up colour bricks by clicking the right column for them to be dropped into. This a level style game, with the child able to progress to more complex levels
This is game probably requires the most nimble computer skills of all the ones I have listed. It requires the preschooler to match up colour bricks by clicking the right column for them to be dropped into. This a level style game, with the child able to progress to more complex levels
