Preschool is the best age to start teaching our kids. Young kids’ brains absorb information like a sponge and it is ideal to take advantage of that. Preschoolers learn easily and retain information longer than older children. We may not notice it sometimes, but as we spend more time with them, we will realize that they understand and remember every little thing that we teach them. Because of this and other reasons, many parents decide on homeschooling their little ones.
Homeschooling can be an exceptional learning environment for the kids; it promotes and improves the parent-child relationship and helps in forming a child’s social development especially for an only-child. While some may say that homeschooling may actually stint a child’s ability to interact with others, homeschooling can greatly improve social interaction by removing kids from the negative elements in a public school environment (drugs, bullies, cursing, violence, etc.). It is also is very affordable since you do not have to pay for school fees, expensive books and other school materials.
The Internet is full of free resources for homeschooling, including homeschool software reviews. Many websites offer free downloadable activity sheets, coloring pages, quizzes, teaching outlines and homeschooling software and programs. Of course, there are also great commercial software applications. Besides including a great curriculum, be sure to get homeschool software for record keeping to automate your documentation process.
Five Best Online Retailers
1. Kidzui.com
Kidzui is a free browser made just for kids. This is may be the best homeschool software tool because kids of any age can browse the Internet easily; even a three-year-old can use this with little help. Kids are free to browse the Internet, play online games, and watch videos and photos. It has search engine features that let the kids search for any topics they want. The search results are filtered and it does not allow any rated contents to be viewed. Kids can also customize their profiles with cute backgrounds, tags and avatars called Zui. They can express themselves with a pre-saved online status. They can add their friends and they can share the websites they visit.
This homeschool software requires very minimal adult supervision. Parents do not need to watch over their kids’ shoulder whenever they are online. Parents can customize the websites that kids are allowed to view. Usage reports are emailed to the parents. The report contains the number of hours they used the software, the websites the kids visit, the friends they add or remove, and the requests the kids make if they want to view a filtered webpage. Parents can even set a timer to the software to set time limits on the kids’ online browsing. Kids are limited to send only the pre-saved messages to their contacts. There are no chat functions and they cannot send nor receive custom messages from anybody to prevent Internet cyber attacks like phishing.
2. Starfall.com
Starfall is a great website for kids just starting to read. Children as young as two years will enjoy the interactive alphabets and the songs. Kindergarteners will learn how to put together the letters to form words through the online word games. Online books with fun pictures are available for reading starters. Downloadable and printable coloring pages and activity sheets are also available for free. Starfall.com also teaches sign language to kids.
3. Jumpstart
Jumpstart first came out to the market a decade ago as interactive homeschool software filled with fun educational games. It is divided into different school age levels from toddler to high school. An online interactive game is now available at Jumpstart.com that gives an online adventure experience to kids while they learn from the fun learning games. You can register your kids for free and you can opt to pay for the premium membership for more features.
4. Playhouse Disney
Playhouse Disney is very popular to both kids and adults because of the movies and TV shows. They now offer online interactive games at PlayhouseDisney.com with the same Playhouse Disney characters as those in TV and movies. Kids will enjoy learning from the games of Mickey Mouse, Winnie the Pooh and other Disney characters. There are also read-alongs and sing-alongs. You don’t need to download anything, just go to the website and have fun watching your kids play and learn. It focuses on 8 learning skill areas – reading, math, thinking skills, social skills, daily living skills, imagination & self expression, motor skills and computer skills. Playhouse Disney has a premium membership offer designed for preschoolers that does not have any advertising on the page and is full screen with password to avoid children accessing other Internet sites. Parents also get usage reports and they can download offline learning activities.
5. Time4Learning
Time4Learning developed homeschool computer software for those have made the final decision to homeschool instead of utilizing a traditional school setting. It comes with a minimal monthly fee, but it includes a complete online curriculum based on the child’s development level. Detailed lesson plans are available for parents. There is a parent homeschool track record for tracking the progress and activities of the child. It has daily interactive lessons, animated exercises, assessments and printable worksheets. It has programs for math, reading, writing, and other subjects and it stimulates the multi-sensory development of the child – visual, auditory and motor skills.
State Department of Education Requirements
There is more homeschool software available out there. The need for homeschool software depends on how and what you teach your kids. Be careful and make a research and review the product thoroughly before downloading or making any purchase. Read from user reviews and Google search for blogs to see what parents say about the software or websites you are planning to try out. Also, it is important to check with your state education department to see if there is a mandatory curriculum, homeschooling software, documentation of attendance and grades, etc., that you must follow so that the state will recognize your child’s homeschool educational achievements. One of the wise quotes to always remember is, “Buyer beware!’ If you are paying for software, check online reviews of both the software and the company. If you are downloading free homeschool software, check reviews to make sure it has the functionality you need.