The Geekling is now in 2nd grade (he will be 7 in July) and here are the resources we are using for our relaxed eclectic project based learning adventures:
Khan Academy Math - My son isn't too enthusiastic about this one but it's useful for seeing where he is in skill level and the videos help us learn new concepts. I think it would be better for 4th grade and up.
JumpStart 2nd Grade Advanced and JumpStart online - I bought this at Target for about $19.95. It has 4 disks including a Typing Tutor and does an amazingly good job at teaching the basic math and reading skills for 2nd grade and reinforcing them. My son loves to play and has picked up so much from it! Make sure you read what is included before buying (especially online) as there are many different version and not all include the typing tutor.
BBC's Dance Mat Typing - This is a great free typing tutor from the BBC (British Public TV) that my son really likes. It's taught him quite a bit about touch typing.
iPad 2 - We use the iPad 2 to play math games to reinforce his knowledge of math facts and place value. He also reads books on the iPad with the Kindle, Nook, and iBooks apps. We use the Audible.com app to listen to Audio Books. There are also a ton of great word games and spelling apps that have really made a difference in his ability to read and his enjoyment of it.
SpellingCity.com - Add your own custom word lists or use lists others have created. Play word games with the words from your lists to practice before a spelling test. We are not doing spelling tests over the summer, but we will in September.
Kindle - We use the Kindle to download great free Classic Books and Poetry. The Geekling loves the text to speech option and reads along as it speaks. This has improved his reading skills immensely.
MadLibs - we use MadLibs to learn parts of speech instead of having to diagram sentences all of the time. We use them as story starters too!
Science Fiction - We love watching Sci-Fi and it almost always inspires us to look something up on and learn more about it whether it's black holes, gravity, light speed, the "multiverse," atoms, teleportation, quantum physics, the nature of time, etc. Our current favorites are Doctor Who (available on Netflix, a few episodes are not appropriate for younger children, but I am fine with most of them). Star Trek the Next Generation, Stargate SG-1, Smallville, Star Trek movies, Star Wars (he hasn't seen the newer ones, just the old ones), etc. The interest in science that sci-fi inspires can't be underestimated! It is definitely not a waste of time and I don't think we would have tried homeschooling if the Geekling hadn't learned a love of science and exploration from the shows his father and I watch! There are Doctor Who books and audio books available as well.
Poetry - The Geekling loves poetry! I was as shocked when he started requesting "rhyming books" and delighted to discover that he had an affinity for Robert Frost and Robert Louis Stevenson. We read a few each day, look up new vocabulary words from them (that's why I like older poetry), and discuss their meaning. We might draw a picture about a poem or look for art work on the internet that reminds us of the poem.
Taking Notes - When I told my son that he could write whatever he wanted in whatever manner he chose in his science notebook, he stopped fighting me on writing. I just asked that he write things to remind him what we were doing that day. I showed him how I take notes and he really enjoyed trying it. When we are doing a science unit, he starts with a hypothesis and then writes down words that come up or concepts he wants to read more about.
It's always been a struggle for him and he hated creative writing, but knowing that he wouldn't be graded on punctuation, capitalization, or spelling actually made home try harder in all of those areas. So he writes a rough draft and we do a rewrite later to improve his writing skills. I do not demand a certain length; he tends to write more when I give him the freedom to decide how long a story needs to be.
Progress in Mathematics Grade 2 - this is a formal math curriculum that his old school used. I found the set on ebay.com for a reasonable price and bought it. It came with Text and Work books and the teachers manual. He loves to read the teacher's manual and feels as if he is getting away with something. We don't use it religiously, but I often refer to it to teach new concepts, practice skills, and I let him pick things to do from the book.
Penrose the Mathematical Cat - this book is geared toward older children, but the Geekling loves it! He doesn't understand all of the terms, but it's a great discussion starter. He reads it independently and we read it together when I think a section would better his understanding of a concept we are working on.
State and Regional Field Guides - I bought Amphibian, Mammal, and Bird Field Guides to Virginia and the Carolinas to start understanding all of the information we would want to know about something. While we were on vacation in North Carolina we used our various Field Guides to identify what we saw. It was also fun in the car to just flip through and read about things we might see.
It helps the Geekling to see what information he should look for or consider when exploring things in science. We have discussed species, genus, etc.; habitat, region/range of each animal, diet, etc. This will translate to him intuitively writing more "scientific" reports later. It's also a great precursor to Who, How, What, When, Where, and Why.
Handwriting - I create free handwriting worksheets for my son to trace as we introduce cursive. We also use iPad apps for introducing the individual letters. We started with writing his full name and will slowly move to spelling words as he gets the hang of it.
Story of the World Vol 1 - We use this as a spine for history. The chapters are short and simple, and we supplement with a ton of "living books." Our interest often wanders to other topics like inventors, and I always allow Geekling's interest to lead us. We use the Kindle Edition, many people enjoy the audio version as well.
I use tons of resources from books and all over the internet. I will keep posting as I get time!
