Kindergarten Computer Games Article

Grades K-3

As more families get computers at home, parents are looking for new ways to bring fun and learning together for their kids. They're bound to ask you for ideas about what software to buy - and here, just in time for the holidays, are 14 teacher-tested suggestions you can pass along. You might even want to try a few of these out in your home!

ClarisWorks for Kids

Mac CD-ROM, $49; Claris Corp., (800) 544-8554; .com

Exploration Station

Mac or Windows CD-ROM, $; Creative Wonders, (800) 543-9778; .com

Students tackle seven fun-filled games covering a range of science topics - including sound, electricity, light, genetics, and the human body - to help Interplanet Janet rebuild her broken rocket ship. The program includes 40 experiments which can be printed and done offline using household objects.

Orly's Draw-A-Story

Mac/Win CD-ROM, $; Broderbund, (800) 548-1798; .com

A talkative young Jamaican girl named Orly and her pet frog, Lancelot, ease budding illustrators into playful animated storybook fun with four humorous tales. As Orly narrates each story, children illustrate it using kid-friendly paint tools. Youngsters can also create their own animated stories.

Zoo Zillions

Mac/Win CD-ROM, $; Edmark, (800) 691-2985; .com

Zany critters like Armadillo Annie and Ryan Lion take kids on a math adventure they're sure to enjoy, with plenty of practice (at multiple levels) with number line concepts, geometric shapes, and counting, as well as addition, substraction, multiplication and division.

Amazing Animals Activity Pack

Mac/Win CD-ROM, $; Dorling Kindersley, (800) 356-6575; .com

Henry, the "smartest lizard in town," introduces young children to myriad citizens of the animal world. Budding naturalists can print animal masks to color and wear; design animal postcards, labels, writing paper, and more; and try matching games, picture puzzles, and memory challenges.

Word Hound

Mac/Win CD-ROM, $79; Mindplay, (800) 221-7911; .com

Children develop reading, matching, and grouping skills, as well as deft hand-eye coordination, with this playful arcade adventure. The program contains 16 vocabulary sets - including words for animals, parts of the body, clothes, people, food, transportation, and music - and a Spanish language option.

Crayola Print Factory

Mac/Win CD-ROM, $; IBM, (800) 426-2255; ..com/multimedia/

This multimedia toolkit includes electronic crayons, markers, and clip art, plus dozens of templates for print projects including stationery, decorations, greeting cards, stickers, certificates, and humongous-sized banners. One note of caution: Young children may need grown-up help because names for project templates and tips are not read aloud.

Grades 4-6

Major League Math, Second Edition

Mac/Win CD-ROM, $; Sanctuary Woods, (800) 943-3664; .com

This innovative package uses baseball facts and stats, fast-action arcade games, and 3,000 questions to teach a variety of math concepts, including averages, decimals, fractions, measurements, percentages, and place values. Kids may play alone or with a friend; a special Coach's corner enables players to pause a game without penalty to review a concept or get help with a question.

World Discovery Deluxe

Mac/Win CD-ROM, $; Great Wave Software, (800) 423-1144; .com

Kids explore more than 75 detailed political, topographic, satellite, and relief maps through five challenging games. You create your own question files, and maps may be printed.

American Girls Premiere

Mac/Win CD-ROM, $ (standard) or $45 (deluxe); The Learning Company, (800) 852-2255; .com

Based on the enormously popular American Girls Collection, this package invites kids to write, direct, and present original plays. Productions star one of five American Girl characters, each associated with a particular historical period, along with authentic props, costumes, scenes, and settings.

KidsCulture

Mac/Win CD-ROM, $45; Pierian Spring, (800) 472-8578; .com

With a point and a click, children can travel to eight destinations including Ancient Greece, Singapore, Mali, Medieval Europe, Polynesia, and Ancient China. They learn about the people there through music, text descriptions, and craft projects such as 3-D village dioramas and color masks.

Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia, 1998 Edition

Windows CD-ROM, $45; The Learning Company, (800) 852-2255; .com

This valuable resource for young researchers contains 38,000 articles, more than 8,000 photographs, and more than 100 video clips, plus an interactive timeline, a dictionary, a thesaurus, and some 4,000 Internet links. The Compton's Interactive Atlas (1997 Edition) rides along on a separate CD-ROM, free of charge.

.. The Inside Story, 1997 Edition

Mac or Windows CD-ROM, $; .. Software, (00) 755-ADAM; .com

Kids unlock the mysteries of human anatomy with this interactive guide to the human body. Animated tours and anatomical puzzles add an element of fun; any text or diagram may be printed for reference.

Microsoft Encarta '97 World Atlas

Windows 95 or Windows NT CD-ROM $; Microsoft, (*00) 426-9400; .com

Combining detailed interactive topographical maps with colorful movies, music, articles, high-resolution satellite photographs, and street-level maps for the world's largest cities, Microsoft Encarta '97 World Atlas may be the most comprehensive and visually rich electronic atlas you'll ever find.

Carol S. Holzberg, PhD (.edu) is technology coordinator at Shutesbury Elementary (Shutesbury), Swift River School (New Salem), and Yeshiva Academy (Springfield), all in Massachusetts.