After discussing the accelerated reading program not available to homeschoolers yesterday, I decided to look for alternatives. Here are some websites I found that you can use the make sure your kids are getting the most out of their reading time.
Funtrivia.com supplies thousands of cool ways for children to test themselves. The literature section (found under quiz categories) alone has 5,341 quizzes. There are 1206 “books for kids” quizzes. (There is however, a disproportionate number of Harry Potter quizzes.) Using the search function, I was able to find Little Women, Little House on the Prairie, Curious George, Dr. Seuss, Peter Pan, and more.
To try out the website, I tested my knowledge on the time line of Romeo and Juliet. There are currently 12 tests on this book alone! Considering the test was on the time line, and I had not read it in decades, I was not too insulted by my 60% score. After your child takes the test, a parent can print the test results to save for the child’s portfolio. These tests are available without membership and payment. Should you decide to become a member, however, you can earn points for ranking, review old quizzes, and “compete in free daily hourly tournaments”.
The downside to this website is there are many pop culture and television quizzes as well, so it may lure your child away from reading.
For a more in-depth study of select children’s books visit the Mountain City Elementary Corner’s reading units page. This website supplies chapter-by-chapter quizzes and exams on numerous children’s books. There is a special emphasis on the Magic Tree House Series of books, which also teach children about science and historical events.
Score (Schools of California Online Resources for Education) provides literature cyber guides that will walk parent through getting the most of your children’s books. These involve heavy parental involvement, as it is more akin to lesson plans than online tests.
Other sites that supply study guides for children’s literature include Harper Children’s teaching guides, Spark Notes Study Guides, and Book Adventure reading program.
This program appears similar to Accelerated Reading program I investigated yesterday. Stay tuned for a full review on this program after my children and I have had time to review it in depth.