Free For Summer Learning

• TinkerLab: A Hands-on Guide for Little Inventors by Rachelle Doorley is a collection of original hands-on, open-ended art and science projects for children ages 2-5. Doorley’s dynamic website is also full of fantastic ideas and not to be missed.
• Discovering Great Artists: Hands-On Art for Children in the Styles of the Great Masters by Mary Ann F. Kohl and Kim Solga features 110 art appreciation activities for kids. The styles and techniques of the great masters, ranging from the Renaissance to the Present, are presented along with a brief biography of each artist. Unique project ideas accompany each unit using such mediums as painting, drawing, sculpture, photography and architecture.
• Art Lab for Kids: 52 Creative Adventures in Drawing, Painting, Printmaking, Paper, and Mixed Media-For Budding Artists of All Ages is part of a series of books by Susan and Rainer Schwak and is full of fun ideas to help introduce art to children.
• Art Lab for Little Kids: 52 Playful Projects for Preschoolers by Susan and Rainer Schwak is written for children ages 4-6 year olds.
• The For Kids series introduces children to people, events, and ideas that have made an impact on the world. The lives of scientists, writers, artists, humanitarians, and politicians are examined. Hands-on project ideas accompany each book. Art titles from this series are:
  • Monet and the Impressionists for Kids: Their Lives and Ideas, 21 Activities by Carol Sabbeth
  • Van Gogh and the Post-Impressionists for Kids: Their Lives and Ideas, 21 Activities by Carol Sabbeth
  • Leonardo da Vinci for Kids: His Life and Ideas, 21 Activities by Janis Herbert

• 50 Free Printable Activities for Kids
• Art for Kids Hub
• Artistic Pursuits for Kids
• Homeschool Art Projects for Teens and Tweens
• How to Teach Homeschool Art
• Artist Trading Cards are miniature works of art done on card stock that are traded between artists. Guidelines for this fun activity can be found on their site.
• Artsonia is an online art gallery where kids can post artwork for others to see.
• KinderArt is the largest collection of free art lessons on the Internet.
• YouTube for drawing tutorials from the experts. Simply enter a search term such as “how to draw dragons” and see what comes up.

• Money Making Ideas for Kids and Teens: Starting Your Own Business-A Guide for Teen Entrepreneurs  by Debbie Madson
• The Kids’ Money Book: Earning * Saving * Spending * Investing * Donating by Jamie Kyle McGillian
• The Everything Kids’ Money Book: Earn it, save it, and watch it grow! by Brette McWhorter Sember
• Starting Your Own Business by Ron Piscatelli
• Smart Money Smart Kids: Raising the Next Generation to Win with Money by Dave Ramsey and Rachel Cruze

• Monopoly is a classic and a family favorite for good reason. Have fun with your family and develop your child’s understanding of investments and development.
• Stock Market – The Wall Street Trading Game is a board game that introduces players to important financial concepts.

• Teaching Your Children Financial Literacy – tips for homeschool lessons on finances
• Entrepreneurial Ideas for Homeschoolers teaches entrepreneurial thinking to students of all ages.

• Code Wizards HQ – perfect for kids
• Nexbooks – teaching coding for kids
• Coding Encourages Critical Thinking
• Spotlight On Computer Science – Coding
• Coding for Summer Learning

• Baking with Kids: Make Breads, Muffins, Cookies, Pies, Pizza Dough, and More!
  by Leah Brooks
• The Joy of Cooking by Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker
• Teens Cook: How to Cook What You Want to Eat by Megan Carle and Jill Carle
• Snacktivities!:50 Edible Activities for Parents and Young Children by
  MaryAnn F.Koh
• The International Cookbook for Kids by Matthew Locricchio
• Kids Cooking Without A Stove by Aileen Paul

• Living with Your Exchange Student by Ina Cherington
• The Exchange Student Survival Kit by Bettina Hansel
• Host Family Survival Kit: A Guide for American Host Families by Nancy King and Ken Huff

• Linguacious – The company develops innovative vocabulary flashcard games and books in over 30 different languages, ranging from major ones such as Spanish, French, German, Arabic, Portuguese, and Chinese to less-commonly-taught ones
• Rosetta Stone
• Mango Languages helps users practice conversations in over 60 foreign languages
• Duolingo is a free language learning site with a unique approach. Like a fast-paced video game, users earn points for correct answers, race against the clock, and level up. Lessons are short and easy to fit into even the busiest teen’s summer schedule.
• Maximize Summer Learning with Foreign Language Studies

• Learn about genealogy at Genealogy.com
• From the comfort of your living room, visit the British Museum. Enjoy a virtual tour and see 4,634 artifacts housed in the museum.
• With fascinating stories and compelling photography and illustrations, Cobblestone Magazine brings American history to life for readers ages 9-14.

• Summer Reading Challenge – grab our free printable fun summer reading challenge kit and start today!
• Pizza Hut sponsors several fun reading challenges for kids through their Book It program
• Mensa for Kids Excellence in Reading Program is not just for Mensa members. Participants in this year-round program earn a certificate and a t-shirt for reading all of the books in this book challenge.
• Create your own neighborhood Reading Challenge! Help your readers establish the number of books they will read over the summer. If they need help coming up with titles, show them the Book Adventure website. It has an amazing book finder resource.
• Celebrate Summer with 6 Writing Prompts
• Fun Summer Writing Activities to Keep Those Skills Sharp!
• Prevent Summer Reading Slide with These Fun Ideas!
• 6 Super Summer Writing Tips

• In her books Writer to Writer: From Think to Ink and Writing Magic, bestselling children’s author, Gail Carson Levine shares her secrets of great writing in this companion to the popular Writing Magic.   
• What Do Authors and Illustrators Do? by Eileen Christelow will inspire young writers and artists as they read about the process of creating a book. Creative writing and drawing exercises are also included.

• Time4MathFacts – perfect for brushing up on those facts during the summer!
• Sumdog – have fun with math learning this summer!
• Quirky mathematician Vi Hart’s YouTube channel is a must-see. I guarantee, there’s nothing out there quite like it!

• Wildflowers, Blooms & Blossoms (Take Along Guides) by Diane Burns
• Trees, Leaves & Bark (Take Along Guides) by Diane Burns
• Caterpillars, Bugs, and Butterflies: Take-Along Guide by Mel Boring
• Handbook of Nature Study, by Anna Botsford Comstock
• Bird Watching for Kids: Bite-sized Learning & Backyard Projects by George H. Harrison
• Composting: Nature’s Recyclers by Robin Koontz
• Exploring Nature with Children by Lynn Seddon is a year-long curriculum for nature studies. This E-book can be purchased at Raising Little Shoots.
• What If There Were No Bees?: A Book About the Grassland Ecosystem,
  by Suzanne Slade
• Backyard Adventure: How to Create Outdoor Play Spaces for Kids
  by Paula Brooks

• 8 Ways Online Learning Can Change Your Summer!
• MIT OpenCourseWare
• Johns Hopkin OpenCourseWare
• Yale OpenCourseWare
• My Own Business, Inc.
• OpenLearn
• Dream.In.Code Tutorials
• W3Schools
• VideoLectures.NET
• Purdue Online Writing Lab
• Learning Styles Quiz
• Using Geocaching for Summer Field Trips
• 8 Summer Montessori Inspired Activities
• 7 Reasons to Keep Learning this Summer
• Getting the Most Out of Your Summer Learning
• 102 Things to Do This Summer!

• The Horrible Science series by Nick Arnold includes titles like Blood, Bones and Body Bits, Chemical Chaos, Disgusting Digestion, Nasty Nature, Electricity Sounds Dreadful and The Terrible Truth About Time. Filled with pictures, trivia, fun facts, and science, these are books even reluctant readers will enjoy.
• Monster Science series by Mark Weakland is written in graphic novel format and is such great fun. Using vampires, zombies, werewolves, and ghosts, Weakland demonstrates basic principles of science. Titles include Aliens and Energy, Bigfoot and Adaptation, Ghosts and Atoms, Zombies, and Forces and Motion to name just a few.
• MUSE is a science and arts magazine written for kids ages 9-14. Filled with facts, jokes, and thought-provoking articles, kids with a love of science will love this magazine too.

• Nexbooks – perfect to pick up a course that teaches something the kids are interested in!

• Astronomer Carl Sagan’s Cosmos was compelling accessible programming when it aired in 1980  and it holds up all these years later. Find episodes on YouTube and learn about the cosmological theories of the universe.
• Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey hosted by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson pays homage to Sagan’s popular program. This stunning series explores the mysteries of the cosmos in a way young people will find compelling and entertaining.

• A Picture Book of Martin Luther King, Jr. by David A. Adler and Robert Casilla
• A Picture Book of Rosa Parks, by David A. Adler
• One Plastic Bag: Isatou Ceesay and the Recycling Women of the Gambia,
  by Miranda Pau
• Grandfather Gandhi, by Arun Gandhi and Bethany Hegedus
• Tree Lady: The True Story of How One Tree-Loving Woman Changed a City Forever, by H. Joseph Hopkins
• Seeds of Change: Wangari’s Gift to the World, by Jen Cullerton Johnson
• The Harvey Milk Story, by Kari Krakow
• Rachel Carson and Her Book That Changed the World, by Laurie Lawlor
• Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers’ Strike of 1909, by Michelle Markel
• Me…Jane by Patrick McDonnell
• What Does Peace Feel Like? by Vladimir Radunsky
• Luna & Me: The True Story of a Girl Who Lived in a Tree to Save a Forest,
  by Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw
• Emmanuel’s Dream: The True Story of Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah,
  by Laurie Ann Thompson
• Separate Is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez and Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation, by Duncan Tonatiu

• Empowering Youth: How to Encourage Young Leaders to Do Great Things
  by Kelly Curtis MS
• Gaia Warriors by Nicola Davies and James Lovelock
• The Kid’s Guide to Service Projects: Over 500 Service Ideas for Young People Who Want to Make a Difference by Barbara A. Lewis
• The New 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth by EarthWorks Group and Sophie Javna
• The Teen Guide to Global Action: How to Connect with Others (Near & Far) to Create Social Change by Barbara A. Lewis

• Book For Bedtime
• EnviroLink Network
• Roots and Shoots
• Reading Resources for Summer Learning

• Life Skills Activities for Special Children 2nd Edition, by Darlene Mannix
• Social Skills Activities for Special Children 2nd Edition, by Darlene Mannix
• Life Skills Activities for Secondary Students with Special Needs, 2nd Edition 2ndEdition by Darlene Mannix
• Social Skills Activities for Secondary Students with Special Needs 2nd Edition, by Darlene Mannix
• Connected Kids: Help Kids with Special Needs (and Autism) SHINE with mindful, heartfelt activities, by Lorraine E Murray
• Making Art Special: A Curriculum for Special Education Art, by Helen Goren Shafton

• Special Needs Homeschooling
• Summer Homeschooling: Children with Special Needs
• Learning to Persevere in the Face of Special Needs Challenges

• Lights Out!: Kids Talk About Summer Camp, by Eric Arnold and Jeff Loeb
• Summer Fun: The Parents’ Complete Guide to Day Camps, Overnight Camps, Specialty Camps, and Teen Tours by Marian Edelman Borden
• The Summer Camp Handbook: Everything You Need to Find, Choose and Get Ready for Overnight Camp-and Skip the Homesickness by Christopher A. Thurber PhD

• The Berenstain Bears Go to Camp, by Stan and Jan Berenstain
• Tacky Goes to Camp, by Helen Lester
• Froggy Goes to Camp by Jonathan London
• Postcards from Camp by Simms Taback

• Tips for Summer Homeschooling
• Summer Field Trip Ideas
• Online Summer School

• 100 Places That Can Change Your Child’s Life: From Your Backyard to the Ends of the Earth by Keith Bellows and Natalie Morales
• Travel with Children: The Essential Guide for Traveling Families (Lonely Planet Travel With Children) by Lonely Planet
• Family on the Loose: The Art of Traveling with Kids by Bill Richards and
  E. Ashley Steel

• Six Suitcase Travel helps large families find hotel accommodations.
• Top 10 Field Trips This Summer

• Virtual Field Trips to Try This Summer
• Field Trip Guide for Homeschoolers
• Discovery Education Virtual Field Trips
• Bored Homeschooler? 40 Virtual Field Trips to Try!

For more summer learning inspiration dive into our Summer Learning Podcasts!

Have you seen the rest of our Summer Resources?