You survived the first month of school, the kids are acclimating to their new classrooms and all of your routines are becoming a bit more familiar. Go ahead, pat yourself on the back, you should be proud of everything your family has accomplished. But now there are new issues on the horizon: projects, tests, reports, difficult homework assignments and all of those questions asked by your children that you don’t know how to answer. There is no doubt evenings become significantly more stressful when this occurs. As a teacher, I know that sometimes you just have to say “I don’t know,” but then what? The next part of the sentence should be, “let’s see how we can figure that out.” I have collected some wonderful online resources that I use for just those situations and hope you will find them equally helpful. Here’s the breakdown:
Cosmeo – [www.cosmeo.com] This educational website is run by the Discovery Channel. It’s an all-encompassing site for children and depending on what features you use, I’m estimating it’s appropriate for ages eight and up. There are reference materials, homework and test help, thousands of Discovery Channel videos and skill building games. It’s truly an engaging site. What I love: there is a homework help section that can be broken down by grade level, subject and topic—so helpful! Down side: there is a $9.95 monthly fee. However, I would say this tool is worth the price tag.
Homework Hub– [http://www.scholastic.com/kids/homework/index.htm] Powered by Scholastic, this is a fabulous resource for parents to help their kids navigate the many challenges of education. It provides research and report topics, organizational tips for better studying, test preparation ideas, a writing guide and more (ages ten and up). What I like: The flash card maker is fun and easy to use for math and word practice. Downside: The website has lengthy explanations and suggestions. For younger students certain topics may be used more successfully with parent and child reading it together.
The Learning Network– [http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/] New York Times runs this website. It provides excellent content such as: this day in history, reading clubs, vocabulary enrichment, activity sheets, research topics, fun contests and current event articles in language students can understand (ages twelve and up). What I love: The Daily News Quiz keeps students on their toes about current events. Down side: It is a blog so it’s not as versatile and user friendly as a website.
My hope is that these resources will aid your ability to give guidance, help with homework and to answer those burning academic questions from your children that you just don’t know the answer to.
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