My son is a rather reluctant writer. I’ve tried lots of things to get him writing, from picking topics he’s interested in, to story-telling dice, with little success. (Actually, he likes the story-telling dice, but only to narrate stories rather than write them down). This book was a great success, and got him telling a…
Tag: paid
GoZen – Anxiety and Social-Emotional Learning
I saw this in a Home Education group, and signed up only half-hopeful that it would be suitable for us. After a while using it, I have to say that I love it! It’s not the cheapest, but there are some groups around who have group purchases set up which can reduce the price substantially….
Human Resource Machine (no, it’s good – really)
So, bear with me. This may not sound exciting. But it is. Tomorrow Corporation, who make this game, also made Little Inferno. If you haven’t come across that, it’s a fun, quirky, apparently-pointless-but-addictive game where you get to burn things in a fireplace. There’s a little more to it than that – a story, for…
Minecraft GamED Academy
GamED Academy: http://gamedacademy.com/ I can’t recommend this one because we haven’t tried it yet, but I’m intrigued. The idea is that the lessons are all in Minecraft. Kids watch, learn, and build as part of their learning process. There are curricula for maths, history, science and other stuff too. I’m not sure how this will work…
Forest Schools
Forest School Association: http://www.forestschoolassociation.org/what-is-forest-school/ Forest Schools are great, but you may sometimes struggle to find one locally. If you get a chance, I’d really recommend going along. It gives kids a chance to play outdoors in a mostly unstructured way, but also to try things that might be seen as ‘risky’, with oversight from a qualified…
LingLing Learn Spanish (Android app)
LingLing Learn Spanish: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hepilabs.lingling.spanish Good for: fun word-learning app for primary age children. We’ve tried several apps for learning Spanish, as well as one website. They all have different strengths and weaknesses, but this one ended up as our favourite. (Well, my son’s favourite. I didn’t really get a say). The characters are fun, and you…
Code Kingdoms
Code Kingdoms deliver courses where your child can write Minecraft mods. They’ll be learning to code, but then they get to actually play the mods. It’s a great idea. You pay a monthly subscription, and you get access to all the courses. Depending on how patient your child is, and how much programming they already…
Field Studies Council (UK)
I came across the Field Studies Council when I was doing an Open University course, and they organised the residential and day field studies trips. When I visited their website, I found out that they do trips for kids and families as well. There are various types: holiday camps where you leave your child for…
DragonBox – Algebra and Elements
DragonBox make a number of maths apps. My son was too old for DragonBox Numbers, which is aimed at younger ones starting to learn about numbers, so we haven’t tried that one. So I’ll talk about DragonBox Algebra and DragonBox Elements, which we’ve tried. Both apps are very much game-based. Your child will hardly realise…
Whizz Pop Bang – magazine (paper)
Whizz Pop Bang is a paper magazine (yeah, I know – old school, right? 🙂 ). It’s great for younger kids, probably 7-11 age range (but that will depend on your child). It has different themes each issue, and includes suggestions for experiments and things to do. My son, who really isn’t keen on reading…
IXL Maths
IXL Maths is a subscription (paid) maths site that has some structure, but also a lot of flexibility. I have been using the UK version, so the description below reflects that, but it also has editions for the US, Australia, Canada, Europe, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore and South Africa. The site is update to…
Home Ed Resources 