Here’s another great word game. Our family recently travelled to Ottawa. Early one morning, we broke out a game we’d brought called Scrabble Apple. We really enjoyed it. What I like about it is that it’s portable, all of the pieces go back in the apple when you’re done, and […]
Tag: toys and games
Great reading tool – Boggle Jr.
I e-mailed Hasbro and asked them to send me some word games and I’m really glad I did. (I have no affliation with Hasbro, by the way.) I tried Boggle Jr. with the six-year-old I’m working with, and it was really helpful. Boggle Jr. has a set of large dice […]
Internet word game: Dungeon Scroll
They won’t even realize they’re learning. If you’ve got a child who’s into computer games but you’d rather they read, here’s something that will make you an ultra-cool parent. It’s called Dungeon Scroll, and it’s simple and fun. In each “dungeon” you face an enemy. You defeat the enemies by […]
A fun literacy activity – Acrostics
Do you know about acrostics? An acrostic uses the first letters of words in a sentence and forms a “hidden” word from them like this: “Read everywhere, all day!” spells “read.” Read Everywhere All Day For younger children You can send your child secret messages using acrostics. Teach your child […]
Sequencing game (online)
My friend’s daughter needs some practice with “sequencing.” Sequencing is important for reading, because it helps you understand what comes first, what comes next, and what’s last. That goes for words, sentences and stories. A game you can make One thing you can do to practice sequencing is to take […]
New Tag books
Tag has some new books for learning short and long vowel sounds. You know I love the whole LeapFrog system. My son learned so much from it when he was little. So when I received these book kits, I was excited.What I discovered, however, is that you have to:a) Find […]
Creating comics online
I made this comic myself – and it was fun. Imagine how much your child will enjoy creating their own story lines.And afterwards, they can print them out and put them in a binder, or e-mail them to their friends. Making comics not only ensures that your child will be […]
Brain-training exercise
Brains – especially young brains – benefit from exercise. Here’s an exercise that Bernadette Tynen (the brain researcher) does with her students. She says that if you do it with your child once a week, it will help to make his thinking more flexible and creative. She gives the child […]
Reading extensions work
You may be wondering why I’ve been pushing the Disney movies. It’s because extending reading beyond books — into movies, soundtracks, games and toys — gets kids reading. Of course, it all has to start and end with the book. Which is where parents come in. You make sure the […]
Internet word game
Once again, I’m going to help you be a cool parent. You want your kid to read. Your kid wants to play computer games. Allow me to introduce: Blocks With Letters On and More Blocks with Letters On. The website promises, “64 levels of mind-numbing word action.” Mind-numbing – well, […]