Early Learning Resources

I found the following web sites helpful and interesting in tutoring young children in basic reading and math skills. My field is learning theory so it came as a pleasant surprise to find that all those theoretical principles I had been teaching over the years really work. However, a parent or tutor needs more than a knowledge of learning principles. It is important to have sources of instructional content and a knowledge of how to sequence content in the form of daily lesson plans.

Autobiography of John Stuart Mill

Mill's autobiography is a classic in the field of early childhood education. Mill's father James Mill, himself an eminent psychologist, philosopher and historian, began John's education with the study of ancient Greek at the age of three and continued an intensive program of instruction steeped in the classics until he was 14. By modern eyes elements of John's education seem extreme and indeed John was essentially cut off from the outside world during his boyhood. Nonetheless John Stuart Mill became one of the intellectual giants of the 19th Century, giving one pause to wonder whether James Mill's program of education had aspects to be recommended to contemporary educators.

The World of Beverly Cleary

Beverly Cleary is an author of children's books that are superb for children who have gotten past the initial simple readers. Her books involve children in reading; they are page-turners for early learners. Most adults lose the sense of seeing the world from the point of view of a child, but Beverly Cleary somehow managed to retain this and shares it with her readers.

Designing Effective Mathematics Instruction: A Direct Instruction Math Approach

This outstanding book is aimed at teaching math teachers how to design math instruction. As such, aside from some example exercises it is not intended as a ready-made set of lessons for parents to use with children. It is nonetheless helpful in many respects, including the precise grade-by-grade outline of skills, coverage of general and task-specific teaching principles, etc. The authors have essentially developed an applied science of math teaching, and this is the book of principles.

Dr. Aardsma's Drills

Dr. Aardsma's online program drills students in basic math facts. These drills are adaptive, presenting problems dependent on the correct and incorrect answers the student is making. Students become fluent in math because students are required to respond to the problems increasingly quickly over time. This no-frills approach math instruction establishes a good foundation of math skills through daily practice.

Seussville

Dr. Seuss's books have of course been appreciated by millions of parents and children. What is less well known is that Theodor Geisel, Dr. Seuss in real life, worked with Random House publisher Bennett Cerf to produce books with a minimal vocabulary that would render them ideal as reading primers. An example is the best- selling Green Eggs and Ham. The story behind Dr. Seuss's work is detailed in Neil and Judith Morgan's biography entitled Dr. Seuss and Mr. Geisel: A Biography.

Headsprout

Headsprout is an educational software company that currently offers an superb set of reading lessons for 4- to 6-year old children. The use of clever animated graphics and games, combined with sound instruction, captures the attention of young learners, keeps them on task and turns lessons into play.

Handwriting for kids

Here are many worksheets that can be used to teach printing and cursive writing. There are tracing sheets for beginners and Spanish words as well.

Highlights for Children

This is a wonderful children's magazine with good stories and all kinds of creative activities. They have a fine international edition as well.

Kid Klok

Kid Klok is helpful in teaching the basics of how to tell time by relating easy-to-read digital time to hard-to-read clock-hands time. Kids like controlling the clock using the digital interface

Math for Your First- and Second-Grader

The subtitle of this book is "All you need to know to be your child's best teacher". This book is really helpful because it provides a ready-made sequenced set of lessons, saving parents from the task of preparing a daily lesson plans themselves. The lessons include lots of practice exercises. The author provides sound advice regarding the use of flash cards to teach the addition tables. Although the book is very good, some more attention to detail would have been helpful. At one point a subtraction word problem requiring borrowing is introduced before borrowing has been introduced.

MathWork: Math worksheets you can create in your browser

Homeschooler Scott Bryce has lots of math worksheets and new ones can be generated on demand using his program; also features a large supply of time-telling worksheets keyed to the student's time-telling skills.

Diane Ravitch Website

For parents and others interested in what is going on at the level of national educational policy, Diane Ravitch's books are a good resource.

Rick's Math Web

Rick provides a wonderful set of math worksheets ranging from basic counting skills to multiplication and division.

Roald Dahl Website

Roald Dahl was an author of fiction for children. His books are imaginative, entertaining, unpredictable, and full of delights for children and adults.

Singapore Math

A 2003 study found that students in Singapore were the best in the world in both fourth- and eighth-grade math. These materials can provide a students with excellent fundamental math instruction.

Super Kids Math Worksheet Creator

A math worksheet generator allows you to specify problems suitable for the child's level of skill.

Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons

I found this book to be the single most important resource in early learning. Using the principles of direct instruction, it provides the child's tutor with clear instructions for teaching reading in a step-by-step fashion. I found it fascinating to use the book and watch the whole process of learning to read unfold before my eyes. Helpful remedial steps are suggested if the child does not master a skill on the first presentation.