Educational ipod Ideas

Give your kids an ipod Education!

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Children really enjoy using ipods (and other MP3 players) but this type of technology doesn't have to be limited to music.

Why not turn their ipod into an education?

When my children got ipods for Christmas I began to look around for ways to use this technology for a bit of sneaky homeschooling.

There are some wonderful resources available that I want to share with you. Not all the resources on my list are free, but I have tried to choose ideas where you can at least download a free demo.

Audio Resources

There are some wonderful educational podcasts available for children. See Free Educational Podcasts.

We mostly use the ipods for listening to audiobooks. There is a huge range available. For free (legal) resources I would recommend:
• LivriVox.
• AudiobooksforFree (but it is best to upgrade the sound quality for a small fee).
• Learn Out Loud Lots of free stuff.
• Free Classic Audiobooks.
• Literal Systems - some nice titles available for free.

My children don't really like 'learning songs' very much but I know some children love them. Here are some good places to go to find them.
• Singing Science Records - lots of free songs about science.
• Songs for Teaching - not free but a huge amount of educational music. Many albums have free downloads of two or three songs. Also - if you sign up for their newsletter they send you links to free downloads.
• KidsNowIt - Lots of free educational songs but not all downloadable. Mainly for younger children.

Don't forget to load your existing language Cds into your ipod. If you are looking for new stuff try:
• Open Culture - a really comprehensive list of free foreign language lessons.

Homeschooling Ideas

Providers of educational materials are now beginning to tap into the technology of MP3 players.
• Spark Notes - lots of study guides for literature. Some free downloads available on the site.
• Sesame Street Videos - free videos from Sesame Street for you ipod.
• Encyclopodia Get Wikipedia onto your ipod for free.
• Lesson Plans Some printable lesson plans and curriculum resources from Apple.

I am still looking out for games that are educational without being boring! Here is what I have found so far.
• Raybook provides Brain Quest - a quiz game for the ipod. Not free but they have a free demo.
• Tangram game - (link opens in iTunes). Free version of a Tangram game - you can buy a larger version.