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At a family graduation party this past weekend, I was asked for advice on early elementary resources to be used during the summer months to keep young kids engaged. This prompted me to make a blog post, so it’s not only helpful for her, but to others as well.

1. Kumon Workbooks

One of my favorite workbook series for early childhood and early elementary is the Kumon series. They are very well made with thicker pages that are smooth to write on. In addition to the normal handwriting, early reading, and math books that you find in other series, they also have preschool books to help kids practice things such as cutting and pasting. (Clicking the link below will take you to Amazon, where you can look through all of the different workbook options.)

2. I Can Read! Phonics

The I Can Read! Phonics series an excellent tool for beginning readers. My youngest daughter had the Batman ones when she was little, and she loved them. Now my son has the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle ones. The books begin with sentences that are only a few words in length and progress through all twelve books.

3. Hot Dots

Hot Dots are always a fun option for little ones. They get to practice the skills on their own, since it’s self-correcting. They use the pen to choose their answer to the problem or question, and the pen will respond with a noise that indicates they are correct or incorrect. I even find them fun to use!

4. Starfall

I can’t make a post about my favorite early elementary resources without including the Starfall website. Starfall was probably the biggest factor in my oldest daughter learning to read. Since she has always learned things on her own, it was probably one of the best resources I could have found at the time. My son likes to build the snowman. There are lots of fun games and activities, and even the “academic” portion has cute little videos to keep them interested.