Extending your child’s learning at home with online games, interactive books and other activities can be a very engaging and worthwhile experience for your child. The websites below are resources gathered by teachers at Ballard that aim to help our students grow in all content areas as well as develop their research skills and skills with technology. We hope you enjoy them at home as well as at school and we’re always open for suggestions, ideas and new websites!
If a website requires a login, your child’s teacher, librarian or Mrs. Kelley can provide you with this information. Some websites may have ads; these websites have been screened and there should not be inappropriate ads. Help your child remember to stay safe online by avoiding ads. Please bring any questionable ads to our attention.
🌟=New Link
Reading/Language Arts Websites
ABCYa – Games & activities
Book Flix – Fiction interactive videos/books
Login Required
epic! - Access to thousands of high-quality books for kids grade 6 and under
Fun Brain – Ebooks, games & activities
PBS Kids Go – Games & activities
Spelling City – Spelling games, activities, vocabulary & more
Scholastic True Flix – Non-fiction ebooks & videos about history and science-related topics
Login Required
Library & Literature
MackinVia – eBooks & audiobooks database
Math Websites
XtraMath - Fact fluency program that helps students develop quick recall and automaticity of their basic math facts.
Prodigy - Math games for 1st - 8th grade students.
ABCYa – Math games & activities
Monster Crossing – Problem-solving (like Frogger)
PBS Kids Go – Games & activities
Create a Graph – Create different kinds of graphs
FunBrain - Games & activates
Toy Theater - Games & activates
Mr. Nussbaum – Math games & activities
Science Websites
Brain Pop – Videos, games & activities
TrueFlix – Non-fiction ebooks & videos about history and science-related topics
NASA – Space pictures, videos, research & more
National Geographic Kids – Great for all kinds of research
San Diego Zoo – Nature pictures, videos, research & more
Smithsonian Kids – Great for all kinds of research
Pebble Go Next - Collection of hundreds of articles designed for 3-5 students about American Indian history, biographies, science, social studies, and U.S. states
ScienceFix - Collection of books, experiments and video clips related to science
Mystery Science (Teachers) – Please ask your child’s teacher or building librarian for the AEA Login and Password for this site
Social Studies Websites
FreedomFlix - Bring history to life with video clips and e-books, with popup features such as maps, timelines, virtual tour clips, primary source videos, and audio clips (Grades 4-9)
Pebble Go Next - Collection of hundreds of articles designed for 3-5 students about American Indian history, biographies, science, social studies, and U.S. states
TrueFlix – Non-fiction ebooks & videos about history and science-related topics
Brain Pop – Videos, games & activities
CultureGrams – Research for states/countries
Kids.gov – Great for all kinds of social studies research
National Geographic Kids – Great for all kinds of research
Smithsonian Kids – Great for all kinds of research
50 States – All about the 50 states
Research Tools
Britannica School Edition – Research & images
KidRex – Safe search engine for kids
NetTrekker – Login Required
Pebble Go Next - Collection of hundreds of articles designed for 3-5 students about American Indian history, biographies, science, social studies, and U.S. states
Resources
Image
Britannica School Edition – Royalty free images
Login Required
EduPic – Royalty free images
iClipArt – Free Clip Art
Login Required
Pics4Learning – Royalty free images
Smithsonian Institution – Historical & artifact images
Video
Khan Academy – Video lessons; learn almost anything for free
Learn360 – Web-based learning, videos, images & much more
NeoK12 – Great videos for research & many content areas
Keyboarding
typing.com – Teaching the foundations of technology
Music & Sound Effects
Soundz Abound – Royalty-free music & sound effects
Purple Planet – Royalty free music
Creativity & Web 2.0 Tools
Prezi – Presentation tool
VisuWords – Concept map vocabulary tool; synonyms & much more
Glogster – Create interactive posters
Animoto for Education – Create a slideshow
Digital Citizenship
Digital Etiquette – Free video, activities, printables & games
Brain Pop – Free video, activities, printables & games
Net Smartz Kids – Videos, games & activities
Visual Arts
A Pintura Art Detective – Begin your investigation
Color Matters – Everything you need to know about color
Drawing with Shapes – A great place to learn how to draw
Haring Kids – Art activities & books
Picasso Head – Create your own Picasso head
The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis – All about glass blowing
Teacher & Parent Resources
Brightly Storytime – Engaging picture book read-alouds to build a love of reading
Teachers - Are you looking for book titles for your classroom? Did you receive a Ballard Foundation Grant for books? If so, be sure to check out the Growing Reader tab in the Brightly Storytime site above.
Crash Course - High quality educational videos available to everyone for free.
Digital Citizenship Lessons by Common Sense Education ~
5th Grade - My Media Balance: Lesson / Presentation / Lesson Quiz
4th Grade - Private and Personal Information: Lesson / Presentation / Lesson Quiz
3rd Grade - Rings of Responsibility: Lesson / Presentation / Lesson Quiz
Google Classrooms for Parents - A short 9 min tutorial video for parents/guardians on how to support their student(s) with using Google Classroom
Iowa Reading Research Center (Families and Educators Web Resources)
🌟 Mathigon Activities - A collection of eleven different math games/activities.
Reading is Fundamental Read-Aloud Videos – More than 200 animated read-alouds (Pre-K to 6th Grade), many lesson plans and activities