Kristen McLane

Posted by Kristen McLane on March 18th, 2008 in Books and Resources for Children, Growing Readers, Kids

Tuesday’s guest blogger Maria Meachum introduced TumbleBooks, an online collection of animated talking picture books. TumbleBooks is available through elementary schools and libraries. Here are three more websites that promote reading. All of these websites are free and can be accessed from a home computer.

Starfall

Starfall is the place, “where children have fun learning to read!” Their target audience is first grade but preschoolers to second graders will also enjoy the website. My kids (ages 4 & 6) love Starfall and they have no idea they are on an educational website.

Starfall uses a phonics based learning system. Children are introduced to a letter and sound followed by a short story using words with that sound. The website is simple but attractive with lots of bright colors and cute animation. Children can read silently or click on the words to hear them read with an emphasis on the sound. Starfall also has down-loadable freebies for parents: reading and writing journals, “take-home” books, reading awards and printable activities.

PBS Kids

There are currently four PBS Kids programs that are part of the Ready To Learn initiative to help children ages 2-8 prepare themselves for reading. The television programs are Between the Lions, Sesame Street, Super Why! and Word World. Two more shows launching in fall 2008 are Martha Speaks and an updated version of The Electric Company. The PBS Kids website has interactive stories, games and video clips that help promote reading.

LookyBook

LookyBook is an online collection of picture books that you can browse from cover to cover. LookyBook is fairly new but their collection of over 200 titles is growing quickly. LookyBook doesn’t try to take the place of a real book but it is a great resource for becoming familiar with new books before purchasing them. LookyBook is a great concept that is still a work in progress. Occasionally my children and I will gather around the computer and read a story from LookyBook out loud.