Educational Websites You'll Grow to Love

In my former life, I was an elementary teacher. Today, I am a fulltime mom of two homeschoolers. Between these two lives, I went acquired a master’s degree in technology integration. It is because of this that I am often approached by other homeschooling moms asking for website recommendations. They want to know what sites will best enhance their child’s education. There are so many great websites for children, both educational and fun. This list is just a few. Though most websites can be used with a variety of grade/age levels, I have tried to indicate what level would benefit most from a particular website.

Internet4classrooms (www.internet4classrooms.com) – I’ve actually met the team who put this website together. It is a compilation of internet resources that help students practice skills that are required on various assessments. Sites are broken down by grade level (preK through high school) and subject. For high schoolers, sites are also broken down by type of test. There are ACT and SAT sites listed of course, but there are also sites listed that will help with end-of-course exams.

Teachers.net (www.teachers.net) – Looking for a lesson on a particular subject? This website probably has it. On this site, you can take advantage of their databank of lessons. Users are able to submit and request lessons. So, if you are in need of a lesson to teach about plants, just do a search and hundreds of lessons will pop up.

Brainpop (www.brainpop.com) – Brainpop is a site full of cool animated health, science and social studies videos. It has been a while since I visited Brainpop, but it was one of my favorite sites when I was teaching sixth grade. It was free back then. It will now cost a whopping $99 per year for a family subscription. However, they have recently added Brainpop Jr. (www.brainpopjr.com) for grades K through 3. The junior site covers science, health, writing, reading, social studies, and math. It is still in the developmental stages, so it free. There will be a charge in the future, but in the meantime, I would encourage you to check them out.