Educational Apps

Forty IPad apps for homeschoolers is found on the website TeachThought.  http://www.teachthought.com/apps-2/40-ipad-apps-for-homeschooled-students/ 

Science – Electricity

Understanding Electricity for Kids

noeK12  http://www.neok12.com/Electricity.htm  This site has video’s, quizzes, games and puzzles, as well as vocabulary related to learning about electricity.

Physics for Kids http://www.physics4kids.com/files/elec_intro.html.  This site has a more indepth discussion on electricity as well as other physics topics.  In addition, there are games and quizzes on the site.  The first question on the quiz section is:  What type of electricity is making your desk top computer run?  This is a fun question for children to think about in the technological world.  Children are asked what powers their brain.  Such stimulation!

Kids Connect http://www.kidskonnect.com/subject-index/15-science/72-electricity.html.  This site has the facts related to electricity clearly laid out in numbered sentences 1 – 10.  There is even mention of Thomas Edison.  The Links section is a great resource.

You Tube Videos on Electricity for Kids http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TE5iadS9cqc.  This link will bring up one video (1 – there are 6 in this particular series) and then you are able to click on other videos such as Introduction to Electricity.  How to Create a Lemon Battery http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AY9qcDCFeVI&feature=channel is a video which the children may enjoy watching and then creating for themselves.  Be sure to have the right equipment.  There are potato and vinegar batteries, too.  So much to see and to learn!

Learning to Type

Learning Games for Kids: http://www.learninggamesforkids.com/keyboarding_games/typing-course.html This site allows students to learn keyboarding through various games and it includes a self-paced course to learn the keyboard.  There are different categories which students can choose as they learn there spelling and keyboarding.  For example, the sports selection includes spelling of swimming, golf, basketball, football and others.  Once a student reaches the 10 spelling within the time limit the challenge continues until time runs out.  This is a great way to learning spelling and keyboarding.

Reading Online

Nook App                            

The Nook App is available for an iPad, iPhone, PC, Mac and more http://www.barnesandnoble.com/u/free-nook-apps/379002321/  There is a 14 day free trial offered. (as of March 2012)

Text Books onLine

Text Books Online

I have recently discovered that there are new and used text books available as e-text books which may be helpful to those of you homeschooling abroad.  The Barnes and Noble site offers these e-text books.  There is a 7 day free trial before you rent or buy the text books.  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/u/etextbooks-digital-textbooks/379002516

Learning with Music

Learning with Songs

Writing:  A Song about Writing may be viewed at the following website. http://www.clubobie.com/clubobie/expositorywritingfree.html .  This site has a few more free songs but not many.

Phonemes:

Do you like pie?  This is a CD to help students learn phonemes.  The CD costs $26.  You may view the lyrics and note the target learning of each song.

Songs for Teaching: Using Music to promote learning.  This is a fabulous site that links you to first hear an excerpt of the song, see the lyrics and then order it.  There seem to be either one or two options:  CD and/or download to MP3 player or other device.  The costs vary.  http://www.songsforteaching.com/index.html

For example:  Onomatopoeia: A song for learning onomatopoeia using the alphabet.  This site has a sample and the lyrics.  http://www.songsforteaching.com/readinglanguagearts/writingstrategies/onomatopoeiaalphabet.htm

Spelling:  Musical Spelling Rules http://www.gardenofpraise.com/spell1.htm

Nook Reads in English and Spanish

Nook Kids Read to Me  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/?fmt=k2&store=ebook&cat=833709

Some of these books are for free.

Spanish Books on Nook –http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/?cat=833709&dref=4679&fmt=k2&store=EBOOK

Books on Nooks

Text Books Online

I have recently discovered that there are new and used text books available as e-text books which may be helpful to those of you homeschooling abroad.  The Barnes and Noble site offers these e-text books.   The Nook Study offers a 7 day trail before you rent or buy books.   http://www.barnesandnoble.com/u/etextbooks-digital-textbooks/379002516

Nook App

The Nook App is available for an iPad, iPhone, PC, Mac and more http://www.barnesandnoble.com/u/free-nook-apps/379002321/  There is a 14 day free trial offered.

Nooks, Kindles, iPads for Reading and Learning

There are various Nooks, Kindles, and iPads which allow students to read books that have been downloaded onto their reading device via the internet.  There is a range of Nooks and Kindles from basic to the more advanced tablets.  The more advanced tablets allow a student to download free apps such as WordswithFriends (scabble with friends online).  There are other learning apps such as Hangman, Word Twist and Word Lib (like Mad Libs) which help students develop their spelling and parts of speech.  Most of the apps are free, however some may be $0.99 or a couple of dollars.  The Hangman app encourages a student to think in terms of groups of letters to form syllables.  For example an i followed by two more spaces at the end of a word may be ing, ist, or ith.  The Nook and the Kindle allow a student to adjust the lighting, font size and background color.  Students with learning differences may benefit from these options.  Students are able to look up new vocabulary words immediately.  There is also the option to highlight words, phrases, and sections as a student reads.  Enjoy your digital reading and learning!