Best free educational websites I’ve used, so far:
As a homeschooling mom, I want the time my kids spend online to be educational as well as safe, fun, and engaging.
These are sites my son (five) and I use and we both love:
http://www.timeforkids.com/around-the-world (world culture; people/places),
http://artpad.art.com/artpad/painter/ (painting online),
http://www.dickblick.com/lesson-plans/ (art projects),
http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/animals/ (facts, sounds, and videos of animals),
http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/ has podcasts from the aquarium and activities,
http://news.discovery.com/ (current science and history facts)
or for lesson plans: http://www.discoveryeducation.com/search/page/k-5/science/-/-/index.cfm,
http://www.sfskids.org/ (from the San Fransisco Symphony, fun learning about music),
http://virtualology.com/ (awesome online library for science, art, & history),
http://www.starfall.com (reading),
http://www.brainpop.com/ (educational games and videos, all subjects),
and of course http://pbskids.org/ (for educational games).
More on internet safety for kids here.
My son loves http://readingeggs.com/, though it’s not free. It really taught him to read in a very short time! Once it got more difficult he wasn’t playing it so much, so we took a break. But now he’s back at it and wants to play daily. I recommend taking advantage of the free trial! And there are discount codes you can get before purchasing if you want to continue.
There is a free app for your smartphone you can get! Eggy Words App. There are some other new apps as well, such as one for Spelling.
If you’re a homeschooling family in Santa Cruz county, join us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/groups/HomeCruzers/ for park days, hikes, field trips, friends, support, mom’s night out, and more!
Also, these sites were recommended by some of my homeschooling mom friends and I can’t wait to try them out with my kids:
http://www.spellingcity.com/ (spelling)
www.khanacademy.org, (vidoes/ lessons/ practice for all subjects)
http://www.lessonpathways.com/ (supplemental lessons, activities)
http://www.blueworldtv.com/ (fun underwater science adventure videos),
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/Home.html (activities for all subjects)
What are your favorite educational sites?
sometimes we forget how hard this can all be for a small child. Thanks for this insightful post. We have not had to move countries, but my kids do attend an immersion school.
fun Activities for Kids
Wonderful compilation! We also LOVE the Kahn Academy. Free lessons on practically every subject under the sun, and good through the high school years. here's the link:
http://www.khanacademy.org/
Thank you! yes, that has been recommended to me and I can't wait to check it out!