LITE Home

Tools for Authentic Exploration with Letters and Words: Connecting Reading and Writing
Publisher: Edmark (http://www.edmark.com)  See screen shots and descriptions of all programs here.  Click on Products and locate each title.

Bailey's Book House  (authentic reading and writing for real purposes)

Travel the World With Timmy Deluxe  (multi-lingual, multi-cultural)

Stanley's Sticker Stories  (explore story writing)

 
Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
Publisher:  Humongous Entertainment (http://www.humongous.com)  In your classroom, you can encourage students to respond to these "virtual" experiences with discussion, prediction, writing; they are also great programs to build background knowledge and foster language development.

Multimedia Reference: Junior Field Trip Collection: Let's Explore the Jungle, Let's Explore the Airport, and Let's Explore the Farm

Exploring Virtual Worlds: Putt-Putt, Freddy Fish, and Pajama Sam

Open Ended Tools:
Design activities or templates for students to use that relates directly to what you are doing in your curriculum; the computer provides another mode for learning, but not a substitute; see examples of work that Kindergartners and their teachers have created

Kid Pix Studio  (reading readiness ideas)

Kidspiration (Inspiration)

Kid Works Deluxe

Power Point for Emergent Literacy Texts

Netscape Composer for summarizing responses/experiences and sharing with others (see some Kindergarten projects)

Online Interactions
Network with a partner school; share a topic of study, exchange ideas via email, publish final projects (integrate during circle time, shared/interactive writing activities, content area studies)

See a great example:

We Know Why Alexander Wanted to Move to Australia! by kindergartners in Norwich, CT
 

Phonics Instruction
These programs work best when connected to activities and concepts already introduced in the classroom.   Students must realize the connection between the computer activities and the real reading they do in books.

• Earobics: This program provides instruction and practice in phonemic awareness, language enrichment, letters and sounds, decoding and early spelling, beginning reading and beginning writing for students in grades K-3. There are three programs: Step 1, Step 2 and Step 1 for Older Readers
• Read Parent's Choice Award review).
• Learn more by reading here or clicking on Software Products from this page
• Sound It Out Land Phonics Adventure uses 16 original songs in 12 progressive lessons in which kids point and click to match the sounds in the songs with the letters of the alphabet and the letters of the alphabet with objects that appear on screen. Hear one of the songs or read this review by Kid's Domain or this review by SuperKids to learn more.

 

This page was created by Julie Coiro on April 11, 2001