Learning Fun

Last week the kids had their 3rd quarter exams. And with the load of assignments and quizzes, it was no wonder that they found reviewing such a pain.

Between typing out the client proposals and answering e-mail, I zipped through the Magic Net to give me a wealth of free learning aids. A search with Yahooligans led me to an interactive crossword puzzle on homographs on Quia.com. The kids had a ball differentiating it from homophones. And the lesson stuck--much better than just using the plain reviewer.

On the computer-aided instruction (CAI) end, the kids used their Number Works interactive CD for math games. My eldest daughter loves Math, my youngest finds it a bore. At the Number Works tutorial center in Alabang, kids get both tutor and computer interventions. The tutor explains concepts, asks the kids to practice first with the paper drill, and makes the kids do problem-solving quizzes in the form of engaging games for integration of their learning. My daughters have been taking the Number Works tutorials once a week for the past 4 months. It's not cheap (Php 6,000/ child/ 12 lessons). But seeing their much better grades and overcoming the fear of Math are priceless and wortwhile returns on this investment!

Check out these other sites next time you need to make learning fun: Kids on the Net for a a drag-and-drop game on learning similes; Learning Planet for groovy cartoon-type games for Grades 1-3. The Mr. E's Matching Game helps improve concentration. They have free games as well as paid subscriptions for more variety of materials, similar to Quia's site. The Primary Resources pages offer a rich source of language learning materials.

Do you have a site to share? What are your kids' favourite learning websites? They must be great alternatives to these increasingly violent network gaming portals!