20 Fun Links For You!

We're in full "back-to-school" mode here, which of course means trying to figure out why the printer isn't working and wondering where on earth that teacher's manual has gotten to. Here are a few of the links that we're utilizing in our home this week.

E-Books

I'm not usually a big fan of ebooks. I like to have something printed in my hand. But here are a few neat site for those of you without library access. (Or in need of something to help you sleep!)

Planet eBook- Free downloads of classic literature. Extremely readable print.

Read Print- Online classic literature and author biographies.

Full Books- Lots of harder-to-find online books.

Bibliomania- Online classic texts, study guides, interviews, poetry, short stories...

Diploma Guide's Archives- List of sites for free, unabridged online books. Links at the bottom for audio books!

And if you're having trouble deciding what to read:

100 Best Novels- Two Lists from The Modern Library, one from their board and one by readers.

Some more word fun:

Dr. Grammar's Frequently Asked Questions- Quick answers to those grammar questions that you usually don't think to ask, but your kids always will.

Etymologic- Touted as "the toughest etymology game on the Web." For word-geeks like me, pure bliss.

Chores & Housekeeping

Chore "Time Cards"- This download from Happy to be at Home is different than anything I've seen when it comes to chores.

Cooking & Recipes

World Hearth Recipe Collection- Recipes organized by country. This would be great for unit studies!

Chocolate Cake in 5 minutes in your microwave- I haven't tried this yet, but I'm just one "He's looking at me" fight away.

History & Geography

Outline Maps of Ancient Greece and Egypt- free downloadable pdf

Just Maps- Maps from anywhere in the world. Flags by country.

Art & Music

Musicovery- I can't even begin to describe how neat this site is. Basically, you pick your mood, what genres you'd like to listen to, which decades of music, and how far outside your circle of favorites you'd like to go. What you end up with is kind of a road map of music. Depending on which song you listen to, it will lead to other choices you might like. Unlike other online radio programs, it shows several choices at a time so you end up seeing music you wouldn't have thought to add in. Like Dr. John's Iko Iko. (What on earth is this song about, anyway???)

Sand Dancer- This guy's art is amazing! Think...crop circles in the sand.

This one doesn't have a title, but it's an amazing piece of art. See how many historical figures you can pick out. I was amazed at how many my kids knew! Click to zoom.

Their Circular Life- See and hear a full "day in the life" from a fixed point. Great to teach your kids observation. (Which means, great to sit your preschooler in front of while you're trying to cook and tell them "watch this and let mommy know if something moves.")

Art.com ArtPad- Make yourself a masterpiece. My kiddos love this one!

Amazing Stairs- Exactly what it sounds like. I especially like the bookshelf stairs.

Write Like an Egyptian- Your name in Hieroglyphs. Boy, I'm glad we don't do this today. I'm not much of an artist. People would have been mispronouncing my name all over the place.


Happy Surfing!