ICT

busythings.co.uk is an online subscription service for 3 to 6 year olds and SEN children. Parents, teachers and children can quickly and easily access an ever-growing number of fun yet educational activities and games.Young children will love our colourful, quirky and fun world and be intrigued and entertained whatever their aptitudes and abilities. The activities are grouped into art and music, mathematics, understanding the world and literacy themes, but children will be having so much fun they won’t even realise they are learning!Children can play at a level that is right for them. They provide default setups for nursery, reception and advanced levels and it is simple to create your own. You can choose which activities to show and hide, how they are presented and the skill level needed to play them. Kids will not be confused and adults will not be intimidated by the configuration options. Accessibility is not an issue either as touch and switch control is built in.Besides the 120+ activities busythings.co.uk has extra resources and exciting features. These include clip art, worksheet makers and printable activities. busythings.co.uk is used in over 3000 schools and nurseries across the UK, is available through libraries in Australia and is now available directly to home users.

The Number Gym v3.0 provides a stimulating set of 63 age-neutral teaching tools, games and challenges across Key Stages 1 and 2. The teaching tools are ideal for interactive whiteboards, enabling teachers to demonstrate visually problematic concepts such as fractions and decimals. Most activities can be personalised across a wide ability range simply by using the tick-boxes and drop-down windows. The Number Gym also encourages creative investigations in maths with its open-ended activities, especially with its logo turtle graphics module.The one-off site licence price includes 6 months online access via our website so staff and pupils can access our software at any time and engage their parents in the games and challenges too.Our earlier version won the Pirelli Internet Award for the Communication of Mathematics "for its ability to provide children, by means of interactive tools and games, with an informal and fun approach to the complex world of mathematics."

Clicker 5 is firmly based on the tried and tested Clicker interface that you are familiar with, but many aspects are even easier to use.New features include an almost human speech engine, new pop-up grids enabling even easier creation of talking books and a new picture library.Alongside these features, Clicker 5 uses just one file to store a whole set of Clicker grids and also provides direct access to free resources at www.LearningGrids.com.Clicker is ideal for early readers and writers, for supporting struggling writers and extending older writers. Its talking word processor lets you write with pictures and words and Clicker grids give students instant access to words, pictures and sounds.Text from the grid is entered into Clicker Writer (included) with a simple mouse click. They can hear a word spoken before they write it, too.Turn on the instant pictures feature and immediately your pupil's writing is picture supported.If you wish you can add your own images and if you have Penfriend XP or Penfriend XL installed on your computer, you can have word prediction within your Clicker Grids.Available for PC and MacTake a look at the Essential Clicker Add-ons and the Find Out & Write About series for loads of resources to use with Clicker.Enhance your grids with word prediction. Clicker 5 now integrates with Penfriend XL and Penfriend XP.

Wordshark is a major teaching resource used widely in schools. It combines the excitement of computer games with the serious task of learning to read and spell.Wordshark 4 is the latest version and includes a stand alone course following the Government's principles for synthetic phonics.

Numbershark is a program to help anyone improve their numeracy. It addresses many of the difficulties which lead students to dislike maths. Numbershark 4 is the latest version which has been extended to include fractions, decimals and simple percentages.

Based on an original concept by Ian Sugarman, BondBuilder &TableTrainer comprises a set of carefully graded fun challenges to assist and encourage pupils to acquire their basic number bond and multiplication facts. Each level presents the user with about 18 flash cards which need to be sorted to the answers encircling the card. The timer is ticking and the goal is to sort them in a minute to trigger the star animation and achieve TOTAL RECALL status. However a minute and a half will also be rewarded with an animation and a QUICK THINKING status. Class and individual record sheets are provided to enable pupils and teachers to closely monitor results from Foundation Stage through to Key Stage 2.

"What humans do with the language of mathematics is to describe patterns... To grow mathematically children must be exposed to a rich variety of patterns appropriate to their own lives through which they can see variety, regularity, and interconnections."Lynn Steen, from 'On the Shoulders of Giants: New Approaches to Numeracy'In this, our latest specialist maths software package, we're attempting to fill a gap in our offerings: catering for both pre-school and infant departments. Here we combine Number Gym's existing Key Stage 1 activities with 8 brand new Foundation Stage programs, designed by Ian Sugarman, which explore number and pattern through number rods, stick patterns, counters and pattern blocks. This software has been designed to be used alongside physical sticks, counters and pattern blocks and encourages the use of language to describe and compare number shape and pattern.

What is Numbershark? Numbershark is a computer program to help anyone improve their understanding and use of numbers. The program teaches and reinforces numeracy using 45 carefully designed games. There are over 500 topics to choose from.The topics address each of the number operations + - x ÷ plus fractions, decimals and simple percentages, in very gradual steps. The topics are quick to access and clear examples are given on screen. Numbershark gives a fresh set of ‘sums’ each time a topic is selected. The wide variety of games and options give many ways to practise the same work and to promote both the understanding and the memorising of number facts, whilst maintaining interest. The games are excellent for use on an interactive whiteboard and children enjoy playing the games on the big screen. An on-screen keypad is provided with the program. The program has an A4 size manual with advice on use of the program. There are also on-screen help boxes for every game and pop-up teaching notes. For what ages is it suitable? Numbershark is mostly used by students aged between 6 and 14. Some of the games are more suitable for younger children but many games are appropriate for any age.A few of the games are more suitable for younger children.Older students, with reasonable number skills use Numbershark to improve their mental maths - sometimes before exams. Variable speeds and other options meet all levels of skill.The variety of games, concepts and topics make Numbershark suitable for use in primary school and also secondary school where students have gaps in understanding.How will it help those with poor Number skills? The program addresses many of the difficulties which lead students to dislike maths. These include poor short term memory, limited attention span and poor sequencing skills.To help those with dyslexia and dyscalculia many of the games give a visual idea of what is happening when you add, subtract, multiply or divide. Fractions and decimals are also shown visually. Numbers are shown as abacus, digits, objects, number pad, rods, number line and 100 square to help basic understanding.Most games have no time limit so students have space to work out their number strategy and to build confidence. Variable speeds and other options help to match individual needs.Are records of student activities kept?Records are kept once students have been added to the system. Records can also be printed out.Can specific work be set for students?Once students are added to the system, it is possible to choose the topics and games that they should use. This can also be done for groups of students.What printouts are available with the topics?Worksheets can be printed out for most topics, in different formats and layouts. What is needed to run Numbershark?Operating systemsPCs need Windows XP, Vista or Win7.Apple Macs need OSX 10.3 to 10.6 (For 10.7, please contact us: 020 8748 5927)

Numbershark is a program to help anyone improve their numeracy. It addresses many of the difficulties which lead students to dislike maths. Numbershark 4 is the latest version which has been extended to include fractions, decimals and simple percentages.

Based on an original concept by Ian Sugarman, BondBuilder &TableTrainer comprises a set of carefully graded fun challenges to assist and encourage pupils to acquire their basic number bond and multiplication facts. Each level presents the user with about 18 flash cards which need to be sorted to the answers encircling the card. The timer is ticking and the goal is to sort them in a minute to trigger the star animation and achieve TOTAL RECALL status. However a minute and a half will also be rewarded with an animation and a QUICK THINKING status. Class and individual record sheets are provided to enable pupils and teachers to closely monitor results from Foundation Stage through to Key Stage 2.

"What humans do with the language of mathematics is to describe patterns... To grow mathematically children must be exposed to a rich variety of patterns appropriate to their own lives through which they can see variety, regularity, and interconnections."Lynn Steen, from 'On the Shoulders of Giants: New Approaches to Numeracy'In this, our latest specialist maths software package, we're attempting to fill a gap in our offerings: catering for both pre-school and infant departments. Here we combine Number Gym's existing Key Stage 1 activities with 8 brand new Foundation Stage programs, designed by Ian Sugarman, which explore number and pattern through number rods, stick patterns, counters and pattern blocks. This software has been designed to be used alongside physical sticks, counters and pattern blocks and encourages the use of language to describe and compare number shape and pattern.

Mental Maths Challenge is a natural complement to BondBuilder & TableTrainer. Recalling number facts is only part of the story. Very often, these facts need to be adapted or made to contribute to a strategy involving ideas about number relationships that enable us to work things out in our heads. Mental Maths Challenge provides two distinct kinds of engagement: Practice Mode and Challenge Mode. In Practice mode, all the cards are presented in a pre-defined order of increasing difficulty with no timer recording the time taken. Once the learner feels confident that s/he understands the strategy and can enact it accurately, s/he can click on the Take the Test button. In Challenge mode, a subset of the cards is randomly selected for answering. The challenge is to complete the test in less than a minute. Because the subset is a random selection, teachers may feel it appropriate to expect students to complete the test on more than one occasion to ensure they can answer all possible examples from the set.

A highly motivating, interactive system of learning. Created by dyslexia specialists. Based on 40 years of practical teaching. Nessy enables all abilities to read, write and spell with confidence.

Clicker 5 is firmly based on the tried and tested Clicker interface that you are familiar with, but many aspects are even easier to use.New features include an almost human speech engine, new pop-up grids enabling even easier creation of talking books and a new picture library.Alongside these features, Clicker 5 uses just one file to store a whole set of Clicker grids and also provides direct access to free resources at www.LearningGrids.com.Clicker is ideal for early readers and writers, for supporting struggling writers and extending older writers. Its talking word processor lets you write with pictures and words and Clicker grids give students instant access to words, pictures and sounds.Text from the grid is entered into Clicker Writer (included) with a simple mouse click. They can hear a word spoken before they write it, too.Turn on the instant pictures feature and immediately your pupil's writing is picture supported.If you wish you can add your own images and if you have Penfriend XP or Penfriend XL installed on your computer, you can have word prediction within your Clicker Grids.Available for PC and MacTake a look at the Essential Clicker Add-ons and the Find Out & Write About series for loads of resources to use with Clicker.Enhance your grids with word prediction. Clicker 5 now integrates with Penfriend XL and Penfriend XP.

I saw this xkcd comic recently, and it made me want to be able to see Wikipedia articles side-by-side with their "simple" counterparts. "Simple English Wikipedia is a version of the Wikipedia encyclopedia, written in Simple English and started in 2004. The encyclopedia is supposed to be used by children, who might not understand the complicated articles in the English Wikipedia, and other people who are still learning English." To see articles side-by-side, type an article name in the box (for example, War, or Peace, or Chocolate). Or, paste the article's URL directly from wikipedia (for example, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_Cube). Then click the "Again, but slower" button. This page will try to load the original article and the simplified article side-by-side. If it doesn't find the simple version, try a different article, because not all of Wikipedia's articles have been translated into simple versions. You can also try some examples by choosing one from the pulldown list above. Or, try your luck with a random article by clicking the Random button. If you click the full formatting checkbox, the original formatting of the Wikipedia articles will be displayed (we display the printable stripped-down format by default).

A music program for internet browser or App (from 6th October 2011).

Great website!

Apps that have a box around them are bought apps those without box are free.

Apps for iPad and iPhone combine age-appropriate stories with beautiful and witty illustration, rich animation, and original music to enhance the story and get children excited about reading.

Pocket Story books are a growing range of interactive storybooks for the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch.