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Homeschool tools/resources/games that we love that are not specific curriculums (toddler to 12)
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items We do a lot of hands on learning and these are items I use regularly with my kids for homeschooling. They are effective and helpful and make learning more enjoyable.
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Resources/tools
Games/Puzzles
Books
Resources/tools
Items we use in our homeschool that make learning as hands on as possible and as enjoyable as possible.
My kids love this and I do feel it helps with writing letters the correct way when the kids follow the arrows. Plus, it’s a fun way to practice. My 2 year-old loves playing with this also because he likes bringing the little balls up with the pen or ...
GAMENOTE Double Sided Magnetic Letter Board
These keys are a fun way to practice math skills! We also have the subtraction and division ones. There is an addition, and there is even a US geography one. I love finding little learning tools like this that are hands-on and make learning more fun.
Learning Wrap-Ups Multiplication Keys Tool
My boys like learning and practicing their multiplication and division facts with these fun fidget spinners!
Math Fidget Spinners Multiplication Game Toy
My kids use this weekly! It’s very helpful when they are doing their math and need a quick reminder on a multiplication fact etc. It’s also good practice where the kids state what they think the answer is and then check to see if they are correct.
2 in 1 Multiplication & Addition Math Toy
These are super helpful for teaching early learners math with numbers 1-100 and then further from 101-200. These have helped my kids understand the pattern of numbers and helps them learn to count by 10s, 5s, 2s etc.
Double Side 1 100 200 Pop It Chart Counter
I love Montessori toys/resources. This one has been used a lot by my kids. I think it’s helpful when they have to search for the numbers and place them correctly—especially if you have a child who struggles with numbers or math. On the back of the ti...
Elite Montessori Hundred Board Learning Material
My kids love these more than I thought they would. They enjoy tossing the dice down and seeing what pictures the dice land on. Then they place the pictures in the order they would like, before telling the story they created. These are also great for ...
Asmodee Rory's Story Cubes Voyages - Storytelling Game
My kids love to create their own designs on these. We use them at home or take them to church or other places I need them to be quiet. It’s fun seeing their creativity.
2Pack Wooden Geoboard Montessori STEM Toy
This has been great to help encourage my kids to write—something they aren’t typically super motivated to do. They like this though and have been working on finishing up a story they wrote so we can send it in to be made into a book.
Lulu Jr. Illustory Book Making Kit, Multicolor
I highly recommend this! We did this and it was so neat to watch the entire transformation process! It was also special to release the butterflies into the wild and then see them come back near our yard a few times. Great hands-on science learning to...
Insect Lore Butterfly Garden Kit with Voucher
These are so fun for your preschoolers to learn their upper and lower case letters. My favorite way to use them is to hook the locks to things in my kitchen and then your child has to find the correct key to open them all up!
You can also use them t...
Alphabet Lock & Key Toddler Toy Ages 2-4
These keys are a fun way to practice math skills! We also have the multiplication and division ones. There is an addition, and there is even a US geography one. I love finding little learning tools like this that are hands-on and make learning more f...
Learning Wrap-Ups Subtraction Keys Math Tool
These keys are a fun way to practice math skills! We also have the subtraction and division ones. There is an addition, and there is even a US geography one. I love finding little learning tools like this that are hands-on and make learning more fun.
Learning Wrap-Ups Division Keys Math Tool
This kit has been SO helpful in teaching math and helping my kids solidify math concepts in a visual, hands-on way.
Torlam 131 PCS Base Ten Blocks Math Manipulatives
I have loved using these with my kids when they are just starting out reading. They are super helpful and it’s nice the kids can get some success right away. I also like that they are small and compact; you can easily take them on the go.
Phonetic Reading Blocks for Beginning Readers
I grew up loving positive quotes and having them taped around my bedroom walls and bathroom. Words are powerful and for that reason, in our homeschool, we choose one affirmation card a week and display it in the kitchen where everyone can see it. We ...
Big Life Journal Dream Affirmation Cards for Kids
I love this clock for teaching my kids how to tell time. My favorite part is that it has distinct minute marks and it’s big so your child can see and manipulate it easily. I also love how as you turn the hands, the time changes like a real clock.
Carson Dellosa 13x12 Judy Clock, Color Coded Hands
Games/Puzzles
We love to learn through games/puzzles and these have been our favorites. These are actual items my kids use and enjoy!
All three of my boys (ages 7, 8 & 10) love doing this brain puzzle. The best part is that it has so many levels that it can be geared to young kids but also adults. I also love that it’s compact, so we take it when we travel!
Kanoodle Genius 3-D Puzzle Brain Teaser Game
This is the best for developing reasoning/planning & problem solving and it’s fun for the kids! My kids enjoy doing this one! I love getting my kids toys/games where they are having so much fun, they don’t realize they are learning! 😉
ThinkFun Rush Hour Traffic Jam Logic Game
When I can find screen-free items to entertain my children when we travel, it’s a win! Double win when it’s also educational—this one improves problem solving skills! My kids all love this and so do the adults! Hours of screen-free fun!
GiiKER Super Slide,Original 500+ Challenges Brain Teaser Puzzle for 5+,Travel and Birthday Gift for Boys and Girls - Walmart.com
I love finding toys that my kids love to play with and do not realize they are learning while playing it. This is a fun problem solving type puzzle where you have to make the ball drop out a certain way. It’s kind of like a gravity maze, and my kids ...
ThinkFun Gravity Maze - STEM Marble Game
This has been a fun way to work on reading with my kids. I love when my kids feel like they are playing without realizing they are learning.
Think Fun Zingo! Sight Words,
This has been a fun resource to use for learning how to read but also for sentence structure for things like starting a sentence with a capitol letter and ending a sentence with a period.
DK Games: Silly Sentences
We have slowly been going through the US and all 50 states the past couple years, and this game is a fun way to help the kids remember where each state is and also learn some fun simple facts.
Great States Junior
This is a fun way to work on reading and sight words because it involves movement and swatting the cards. Anything that combines learning with movement is a win for me!
Learning Resources Sight Word Swat Game
This is a great brain teaser puzzle that has so many different levels. Sometimes we play this in place of a math lesson. It’s a small box so we’ve taken this to a coffee shop before and played while we sipped a hot chocolate together.
MindWare Logic Links Puzzle Games - 166 Puzzles
My boys love this game and it’s great for learning how to deal with and count large amounts of money. Math lesson for the win! 😉
Grandpa Beck's Cover Your Assets Card Game
This is a simple game to play and it’s one of my kid’s favorite games. It teaches simple math skills with addition up to 50. It says for ages 8 and above, but my 6 year-old was able to play and loved it. You can always help with the adding as the gam...
Sleeping Queens Card Game for Kids 8+
This one is a great one for teaching problem solving skills as well as spatial awareness. My kids all enjoy playing this one.
Mattel Games Blokus Game - 1
This is similar to Monopoly but it’s geared towards elementary school-aged kids. You earn money for “washing the car,” etc. This is an amazing game for learning real life math skills and it’s fun. My kids reach for this game on their own and play it...
The Allowance Game®
This one’s a hit because it comes with a real mini laser and mirrors. It’s problem-solving in disguise—and the kids are having way too much fun to notice.
Think Fun Laser Maze Brain Game STEM Toy
This game has great reviews on Amazon, and it boosts mental agility through pattern recognition. It’s nice because you can play solo or with 2 or more people.
SET Enterprises Family Card Game - 81 Cards
My mom use to play Boggle with me often while I was a kid. I feel like it helped me learn how to spell, but it was also a really fun game to find the words! Now that some of my kids are getting older, they are starting to like this game. It’s recomme...
Winning Moves Big Boggle 5x5 Grid Word Game
I love finding toys that my kids love to play with and do not realize they are learning while playing it. This is a fun problem solving type puzzle where you have to make the ball drop out a certain way. It’s kind of like a gravity maze, and my kids ...
ThinkFun Gravity Maze - STEM Marble Game
When I can find screen-free items to entertain my children when we travel, it’s a win! Double win when it’s also educational—this one improves problem solving skills! My kids all love this and so do the adults! Hours of screen-free fun!
GiiKER Super Slide,Original 500+ Challenges Brain Teaser Puzzle for 5+,Travel and Birthday Gift for Boys and Girls - Walmart.com
This is the best for developing reasoning/planning & problem solving and it’s fun for the kids! My kids enjoy doing this one! I love getting my kids toys/games where they are having so much fun, they don’t realize they are learning! 😉
ThinkFun Rush Hour Traffic Jam Logic Game
I taught my kids how to play chess using this kit. It’s great for someone like me who doesn’t have strong chess skills to begin with 😆. They enjoyed it and it makes learning the game so easy!
No Stress Chess by Winning Moves Games USA
This game has been great to use with my kids who are not yet adequate readers or spellers. I love that you can cover the word, try to spell the word on your own, and then uncover to see if you are correct or not. I love hands-on learning as well!
Winning Moves Boggle Jr Alphabet Learning Game
This has been a fun game to play with my kids to help solidify their functional math skills.
Trend Enterprises Money Bingo Game, 3-36 Players
This has been great hands-on way to help my kids learn the US states and their capitols, but also for learning the countries around the world with their flags! For the US states each flag has a little picture on the back that highlights the state som...
Imagimake Mapology USA & World Map Puzzle
Books
Our favorite books we use that are not curriculum specific. I find when we do not use specific curriculums, it allows the child more freedom for interest-led learning.
This is a really fun book to reference when teaching children about different countries or regions of the world. It’s an illustrated atlas featuring geographical features, cultural landmarks, native wildlife and local people.
Maps
We absolutely love this book! It’s so fun to learn a short lesson about an artist and then try to produce our own master piece! Super doable with young kids.
The Usborne Art Treasury
My kids LOVE these comic books. Each child has their own and they get so creative making up their own comics. They don’t realize they are practicing their writing skills because they are too busy having fun doing it.
Blank Comic Book: Create Your Own Adventures
My kids LOVE mazes. They love to draw their own and do ones that are already made for them. Mazes can boost cognitive skills like problem-solving, focus, and memory while developing fine motor skills for writing, improving hand-eye coordination, and ...
Incredible Mazes for Kids Ages 8-12 Puzzle Book
My kids LOVE mazes. They love to draw their own and do ones that are already made for them. Mazes can boost cognitive skills like problem-solving, focus, and memory while developing fine motor skills for writing, improving hand-eye coordination, and ...
Incredible Mazes For Kids Ages 6-8 Activity Book
My kids LOVE mazes. They love to draw their own and do ones that are already made for them. Mazes can boost cognitive skills like problem-solving, focus, and memory while developing fine motor skills for writing, improving hand-eye coordination, and ...
Mazes for Kids 4-8: 102 Mazes & Coloring
This book has beautiful illustrations and it teaches the concept and power of doubling through a cultural story using grains of rice. It’s a fun read that keeps my kid’s attention.
One Grain of Rice: A Mathematical Folktale
This has been a fun way to help build my children’s language and grammar skills. This is how my children have learned and practiced using verbs, adjectives and nouns. They LOVE to hear the full silly story afterwards! It’s a great way for them to pra...
Goofy Mad Libs: World's Greatest Word Game
This has been so fun to slowly go through with my kids. The pictures are beautiful and I love reading about the history of each state, what makes each state unique, and the real stories that involve the different states.
Our 50 States Hardback Book
We love these graphic novels as well as the children’s books by this same company. My kids regularly read both. My non-readers even like to look at the pictures, because they are familiar with many of the cartoons so they know many of the story line...
Tuttle Twins S1 Hardcover Graphic Novel Set
We love these graphic novels as well as the children’s books by this same company. My kids regularly read both. My non-readers even like to look at the pictures, because they are familiar with many of the cartoons so they know many of the story line...
Tuttle Twins Season 2 Hardcover Graphic Novel
We love these graphic novels as well as the children’s books by this same company. My kids regularly read both. My non-readers even like to look at the pictures, because they are familiar with many of the cartoons so they know many of the story line...
Tuttle Twins Season 3 Graphic Novel Box Set
We love these children’s books as well as the graphic novels by this same company. My kids regularly read both. These are great for teaching kids economics, business, teamwork, introduction to the constitution, freedom, laws, liberty, and financial...
Tuttle Twins 12 Book Combo Pack by Boyack
My kids love reading graphic novels and they like these stories. I love Magic Tree House books because they teach kids about true history through a fun story. I even enjoy reading or listening to these books with my kids, because I’m often learning s...
Magic Tree House Graphic Novel Starter Set
This has some fun writing prompts which I appreciate because it helps make writing more fun for my kids. Things like, “invent something and draw a picture of it,” then “what does your invention do? How does it work?, etc.
Monkey Business (Road to Writing)
Journaling is part of our weekly homeschool routine. I have this journal for my 10 year old, and I plan to buy one for my 9 year old also. I love the positive thinking and character building mindset of this journal. My son especially loves the inspir...
Big Life Journal 2nd Ed: Growth Mindset for Kids
Journaling weekly is part of our homeschooling program. This journal is good for ages 5-11. I bought it for my 6 year old who is now 7, and we are still going through it together. I feel like this journal helps kids process their emotions and also te...
Big Life Journal - Daily Growth Mindset Kids
This is such an awesome book. My son loved it. It’s written in a way that children can understand and it has little drawings along the way. My son has tried replicating many of Archimedes inventions via legos, etc., since reading this book. I would s...
Archimedes and the Door of Science