Literacy at Home

**If you come across broken links/expired passwords, please e-mail me at p0074917@pdsb.net with the information so I can make corrections.**

reading

Check out these FREE websites for reading online!

Click on the website names to follow the link to the website.

All Ages:

Capstone Interactive Library - The perfect Capstone Interactive eBook is waiting for you! Choose from different subjects, genres and levels to find just the right book. And every title is supported by audio recorded by professional voice-over artists! Students can access through the Library planet on their PDSB BYOD page.
Audible - thousands of audio books for children.
Epic Books. Students can join through teacher invitations. Teachers can sign-up for their classes for free. Please contact your teacher for an invitation.
The International Children's Digital Library has thousands of books in 59 languages.
Storyline Online is a fun collection of books read by famous actors
TumbleBooks has wonderful texts online. Access it without needing a login through the Brampton Public Library site.
Overdrive is free through the Mississauga library system and your library card number. You can borrow youth and children's chapter e-books.
Hoopla is a movie streaming and e-book website that is accessible with your Mississauga Library Card.
Story Time From Space is exactly what it sounds like! Astronauts reading books aloud to us from space!
Barber Shop Books - E-books to read to yourself and video read alouds. Barber Shop Books mission is to help Black boys ages 4-8 to identify as readers by connecting fun books to a male-centered space (the barber shop) and by involving Black men in boys' early reading experiences.
Bibliovideo is a Youtube channel all about Canadian books for young people. Brought to you by the Canadian Children's Book Centre and with support of the Canada Council for the Arts, Bibliovideo is the place for great Canadian books for kids and teens.

Kindergarten:

Unite for Literacy has books written in English and Spanish but that can be narrated (read aloud) in dozens of languages
AV2 World Languages has non-fiction texts in 10 languages (grades K-3). Access it through the library planet in your child's PDSB BYOD page.
Starfall is a learn-to read website for the early years learners. Most of their early reading activities are free, but there is some members only content
Teach Your Monster To Read is a fun website that early readers will love. You will need to create an account to play, but it is free to play on computers. If you download the app to your tablet, there is a cost.
Squiggle Park is a fantastic website for early readers and English Language Learners (ELLs). It focuses on the early phonetic skills of the English language including consonant blends and word segments. You will need to create an account to play. It is free to play for the trial period (28 days), but becomes a paid service when the trial period ends.
Chirp Magazine Stories Online - listen to Chirp Magazine stories online
Bookaboo - CBC Kids host celebrity read-alouds of a wide variety of books.

Primary (Grades 1-3):

Unite for Literacy has books written in English and Spanish but that can be narrated (read aloud) in dozens of languages
AV2 World Languages has non-fiction texts in 10 languages (grades K-3). Access it through the library planet in your child's PDSB BYOD page.
Starfall is a learn-to read website for the early readers. Most of their early reading activities are free, but there is some members only content
Teach Your Monster To Read is a fun website that early readers will love. You will need to create an account to play, but it is free to play on computers. If you download the app to your tablet, there is a cost.
Squiggle Park is a fantastic website for early readers and English Language Learners (ELLs). It focuses on the early phonetic skills of the English language including consonant blends and word segments. You will need to create an account to play. It is free to play for the trial period (28 days), but becomes a paid service when the trial period ends.
Chickadee Magazine Stories Online - Listen to stories from Chickadee Magazine online.
Bookaboo - CBC Kids host celebrity read-alouds of a wide variety of books.

Junior (Grades 4-6):

Teaching Kids News is a Canadian website where teachers and journalists write current news stories at an appropriate reading and content level for students in grades 2-8
DOGO News is similar to Teaching Kids News, but with a more American perspective but more frequent stories.
CBC Kids News is all Canadian content current events and news written for kids.
Owl Connected - Owl Magazine's online news (Canadian!)

The following websites can be accessed through your child's Peel BYOD account.

PebbleGo has non-fiction texts categorized in four sections; science, animals, biographies and social studies (K-3).
PebbleGo Next is the same as above, but for students in grades 4 and up.
Gale in Context is a kids research resource that has Non-Fiction texts, pictures, magazine articles, biographies, videos and news articles organized into multiple categories (K-6)
AV2 World Languages has non-fiction texts in 10 languages. (grades K-3)

online magazines and Blogs for kids

The following magazine websites are great for reading and activities.

writing

Visit the following websites for writing prompts, activities, and resources.

Owl Buzz - The Buzz is a section in OWL Magazine where we feature your artwork, jokes, doodles, advice, reader profiles, and more. Send us your stuff by filling out one or all of the forms below, and you may see it in the magazine!
New York Times' What's Going on in this Picture? - Daily visual prompts provided with guiding questions to provoke rich discussion.
NaNoWriMo - While November is passed, you can set yourself to the challenge of writing your first novel any month! The next Camp NaNoWriMo starts in April. Sign-up for free!
Storyjumper is a free website for self-publishing. You can sign-up for a free account to publish your own stories online, or you can read stories written by others.
Book Creator - Free access through your @pdsb.net school account (google). Writing a book is a fantastic way to make connections in learning. Students create a finished product, giving them a platform for sharing their learning with peers or others. Combine text, images, audio and video to create their books. You can use the online version on your tablet. You do not need to purchase the app.

keyboarding/typing

Some of the literacy activities will require students to respond in written form. It may be useful for students to sharpen their typing skills in order to lower the frustration level typing may bring.