There are a lot of great educational games for kids out on the web right now if you find yourself suddenly needing and wanting to keep the kids learning during homeschool, or if you’re just at home with the kids. So we’ve decided to make a list of our favorite online educational games, sites, and apps that are geared towards advancing learning in some way. Basically, I don’t have to feel “bad” if the kids get on, watch, or do any of these activities for an allotted amount of time.
So here they are! And if you have one you love and would like to share, please do it in the comments because I’d love to add it here for others!
EDUCATIONAL GAMES + ONLINE ACTIVITIES
Honestly, we don’t let the kids on devices that much, they spend more time watching shows and movies than they do on phones or tablets. But when we do, these are the ones they tinker on.
Teach Your Monster To Read
My oldest absolutely LOVES this educational game. Children discover reading and language by creating a silly-looking monster that goes on space adventures. There are three different levels depending on your child’s reading level: just learning sounds and letters, moving onto reading words, those comfortable or ready for sentence reading. It’s really cute and I do have to say he has learned a lot from it phonetically. Play with an app or online.
Aniscience
WE LOVE THIS ONE. It is such a beautifully and artistically designed app that takes kids on an educational experience exploring nature with the cutest little mouse. It does require a bit of reading so know that you’ll likely have to support them as they explore. Lots of scientific facts on nature, animals, insects, birds, and more. I’m so glad we stumbled upon this one.
Sesame Street Alphabet Kitchen
This is a very simple, educational, and fun little game for them to play. Kids get to choose Elmo or Cookie Monster to stamp out alphabet cookies, which make a word, then they have to decorate it.
Mystery Doug
This one’s pretty cool. Kids submit questions related to life (what makes a rainbow? why are flamingos pink? why do we get goosebumps? etc.), and then they are answered through a series of interactive videos that have an activity related to the question you can do if you choose at the end.
ABC Mouse
We haven’t really ventured into this one yet because the boys aren’t quite ready and were more intrigued by the monster game above. But I have heard wonderful things from other parents. You do have to pay for this service to take advantage of all its benefits.
PBSKids.org
Most of us probably already use this one, but aside from their educational shows which the boys are all about, they also have their game side that has a bit of educational value. VJ has enjoyed exploring and going through all the Wild Kratts creature power adventures.
**update** I decided to uninstall this one today. Normally VJ (4) is very good about putting the device away when time is up, but with PBSKids games not so much … it’s more like crack. He gets upset, frustrated, goes into a crying mad fit when it’s time to put it down. He acted the same way with YouTube Kids before we took that away two years ago. There’s something with the changing of the game “task” that does it, and your child may not act this way, but it’s not a positive reinforcement so just notice if their attitude changes with this one.
ACTIVITIES + BOOKS + CURRICULUMS
There are so many wonderful parents with such amazing curricula, books, activities, and unit study plans it sometimes gets really hard to pick one. The homeschool resources (even if you don’t officially “homeschool”) are ones that I have found to be the least overwhelming and most simple to implement as a new homeschooler myself. They follow a little Charlotte Mason, a little Montessori, a little Waldorf, a little nature-centered, and a little of whatever the heck you want to do.
A Year of Playing Skillfully
We have this (image above) in addition to the two above to help with activities for the younger little dude (3), but which also applies to preschoolers. It’s incredibly helpful to have activity ideas at my fingertips versus needing to hunt online where I end up pinning stuff for a half hour. It targets all learning areas; social-emotional, art, math, sensory, science, language, and gross motor. It’s definitely one of the best to start with to take the stress out of homeschooling and just enjoy time with one another while learning. They also have the parent edition for more understanding on how kids learn and how to learn at home, I grabbed this too and refer to it often.
Exploring Nature With Children
By far one of my best and most favorite purchases thus far! This book guides you step-by-step through each season with a list of materials and resources for each week of the year: weekly nature study topic matching the environment, book list, a poem, piece of art, and extension activities if you choose to do them. What’s so great is Lynn of Raising Little Shoots has done all the work for us so we can just enjoy being outside with the kids. There’s a free preview in the link above!
Blossom + Root
I stumbled upon B+R from an article in my feed on how Kristina, the creator, homeschools, and works at the same time. Kristina is a former kindergarten teacher who has created wonderful secular and nature-based curricula from Preschool to Elementary, and what she calls Book Seeds (STEM-centered, nature-based mini-unit studies)—all inspired by literature, nature, and the arts. Her programs are great because they are so adaptable to meet you and your children where you are. We purchased Early Years Vol 1 + 2 and Kindergarten as a bundle since it’s discounted and absolutely love it! She does provide free preview samples before purchasing which is great.
The Brave Learner
Julie Bogart is the founder of The Brave Writer community as well as what many people call “Poetry Tea Time.” This book is a must-have for parents who desire to teach their kids at home, especially if it’s homeschooling. But it’s also puts learning into a whole new perspective if you want to supplement or learn things together after formal school. And if you head HERE right now, they have put together a bunch of free resources for parents and kids at home during this time; permanent or not. Check it out!
Busy Toddler
A site I can’t live without. Susie is a mom who created a can’t-live-without resource for other parents needing to keep their kids busy, entertained, and learning so they can get stuff done. She’s a former teacher and mom of three who has a ton of activity ideas for kids to do at home. From busy bins, science experiments, math, sorting, and language activities, you’ll definitely find something. We certainly have!
Simply Homeschool
I stumbled upon Jamie Martin, author of Introverted Mom: Your Guide to More Calm, Less Guilt and Quiet Joy, and Secrets of a Successful Homeschool Mom: A Manifesto of Freedom and Joy in Home Learning, doing a search for how to start homeschooling and I’ve been hooked ever since. Many other podcasters and homeschoolers said to start with her and Julie Bogart. Jamie’s books are also available on Audible, etc. and she has some amazing tools and tips for parents seeking out how to start homeschooling. Jamie just started her podcast, Simply Homeschool, which has made me feel less like a failure on more days than one. She’s a beautiful and kind soul with so much to share and a joy to listen to.
Read-a-loud Revival
Booklists and beyond! Do you ever wonder what books you should be reading to the kids? What the most fun, adventurous, and just good books are for different age groups? Well, Sarah has it all! You have to bookmark this one and most definitely download the free booklists she has to help you with reading at home right now. She covers books in every single subject, what books are enticing to girls, boys, books for math, seasons, holidays, etc. I actually head here every month when I’m at a loss on what books to grab for the boys at the library. She’s brought back reading-a-loud as a family and made it fun!
Learning Through Literature
This site offers a lot of ideas and tips on finding books that help kids connect to themselves and the world around them. There are lists for kids of all different ages. I just went through their “How to Build Character Through Books” email series and found it helpful when choosing books for the boys. They have some fun freebies, like Storybook Bingo to encourage reading at home through play.
MY FAV PODCASTS FOR KIDS AND ON HOMESCHOOLING
We use Spotify, but I’m sure these are on all the podcast channels. I thought it easier to just list them here versus linked them that way if you don’t have Spotify, you can find it on your streaming app of choice. If you have one you love not listed here, please do share!
And if you’re wondering when I listen to podcast episodes it’s in the car, when I’m inside grocery shopping alone (stop when walking to the car), in the morning when I’m making breakfast + kids are busy, in the shower, at night after kids are asleep, and when I’m alone. Because I can’t remember anything if I’m distracted.
The boys listen to stories sometimes at breakfast, while they’re free playing, in the car (when we can go somewhere), and play the games listed above when mama needs to get some #$&% done like go to the bathroom, wash the dishes, get food ready, or finish a blog post 🙂 Here are our faves…
Brave Writer
Julie Bogart of the Brave Learner. There is so much good information she shares! She is so candid, real and informative.
Simply Homeschool
Jamie Martin of the site above shares her years of homeschool advice as well as stories from other parents in their homeschooling journey. A great pick me up when you need it!
Homeschool Sisters
One of the top-rated homeschooling podcasts out there, two friend sisters who come together to talk about all things life, motherhood, and homeschool. They do run a little long chatting most times, but they do have a lot of wonderful experiences and information to share.
Read-a-loud Revival
Sarah offers suggestions, ideas, tips, for what to read, when to read, and even how to read as a family. She gives a ton of ways to make meaningful and lasting connections with your kids through books. Always a great listen!
Honey! I’m Homeschooling The Kids
She’s fun and interviews a lot of different people in the kid’s psychology and homeschool realm. A mom who decided to homeschool the kids for a year and now lives it to the fullest but in a VERY down-to-earth way. A good one to add to your list for sure.
Sage Family Podcast
I love Rachel’s podcast, her advice, her wisdom and the knowledge she shares to help empower parents in life, marriage, and unschooling or homeschooling your kids is always a breath of fresh air. She has put many things into a whole new perspective for me!
Big Life Kids
This is a great podcast for kids that promote a growth mindset in every one of their episodes. If you have a child who tends to be on the perfectionistic side (we have one), this is a great podcast for them to listen to. They also have a great printable that we just hung up on our fridge to help us remember how to continue cultivating a growth mindset.
Brains On Science Podcast for Kids
We’ve been listening to this one lately even though some of it is a bit hard for VJ to follow because they move so fast through info. But he does enjoy all the science facts he does catch for his age. I’m certainly learning a lot though!
Science Adventure Stories for Kids
MY KIDS LOVE SIMON. Love him. As soon as AB our youngest started recognizing pictures and could put a sound to it, this was it. A mindful and fact-finding Aussie frog who takes the kids on amazing adventures around the world. Free kids jokes included, and we ALWAYS learn something new!
Cool Facts About Animals
I really love this one. It started out as a mom and her kids talking about the facts they knew about animals because they couldn’t find a good podcast that did, and now it’s blossomed into something really cool! She now tells stories and has interviews and they are good ones to listen and follow along to.
Grimm, Grimmer, Grimmest
It is a popular one amongst kids, and we’ve listened to a few but VJ tends to get a little scared right now on the bits he does remember. So we’re holding this one off until he’s a little older, but it’s definitely a good take on the true Grimms fairytales for older kids and adults to enjoy.
The Homeschool Sanity Show
This is a homeschool encouragement podcast that has some really good bits in it and is definitely wrapped in more faith-based Christian practices. She has a lot of good advice for feeling stuck with homeschooling and life.
SHARE YOUR FAVS WITH US!
I really hope these resources help you now and whenever you feel in need of an educational game or something to help you through “a moment.” There are many more resources out there of course, but I wanted to choose the ones that have been the most impactful for us so as to not overwhelm you any more than you already are.
Whether you’re homeschooling all the time or only plan to for a little while until kids are able to return to school, know that you don’t need to be a teacher (unless you are) to help your child learn. It requires resources, some planning, and A LOT of patience. A lot.
I actually got this bracelet from the yoga studio I teach at, as a reminder to help me live in the moment—whether it’s washing the dishes, listening to my husband, playing with the kids, or teaching them how to sound out the letter a. But that works for me, find what works for you! You will get frustrated, or your kid/s may get frustrated, and when that happens you step away, do something else (grab a snack, go outside, tickle fight, etc.) then come back to it later.
Take it one day at a time. And if you accomplish even one or three things you had planned with them for the day … that’s a win. No joke. It counts. And then you just try again the next day. I try again every. single. day. I use this easy and simple way to plan our days which helps me organize what I’d like us to focus on week by week, and NOT everything gets done. It’s more of a very simple rhythm to guide our days and helps me not feel scattered.
And if you have found a resource that you love and want to share from the rooftop, please do so and we’ll check it out.
Blessings mama and papas!
