• Use an on-line dictionary to find new words and their meaning  www.alphadictionary.com/index.shtml
• Find a phone number and map for a friend’s house in an On-line phone directory  www.whitepages.com.au
• Investigate mystery phone numbers or avoid unwanted calls & texts with service, Caller Smart          https://www.callersmart.com/guides/57/white-pages.
• Find the URL (Internet address) of a lifestyle program & print out a fact sheet to read
• Read an Australian or worldwide newspaper for an activity/lesson. newsdirectory.com/news/press   or http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/
• Find the latest radio or television information from the ABC at www.abc.net.au
• Look up the school you went to, to see who you know  www.schoolfriends.com.au
• www.wiseoldsayings.com/ultimate-word-games-guide.php The Ultimate Word Games Guide offers quality, free to use word-games.
• https://www.wordswithfriendscheat.io/board-editor Easy-to-use online word generator.Anagram solving, a full board-solver for scrabble games, with support for importing screenshots.
• https://word.tips/    Another online word-generator that creates an array of words using the letters that you input.  Quickly unscrambles letters you input to make interesting words.
• www.mathslessons.co.uk/ – fun maths practice aimed at all grade levels
• teacher.scholastic.com/  (note: resources are aimed at children and teachers)
• Complaints and results – www.complaintline.com.au/  An online directory to help you find someone to assist with a complaint you haven’t been able to resolve with the service provider yourself
•  www.nzliteracyportal.org.nz/ – New Zealand site.  Great tutor resources area.
•  http://beach.prace.vic.edu.au/ – Preston Reservoir Adult & Community Education. Exercises about the Australian beach – safety, dangerous animals etc.  Also useful for ESL students.
•  http://www.excellencegateway.org.uk/sflcurriculum – Department for Education & skills, England, Excellence Gateway to Skills for Life (LLN) curricula.  Create your own logon.
• Create a story. Doklab ( A Netherlands organisation) works with libraries and other cultural institutions on a variety of projects to develop storytelling tools, share vision and give advice on innovation in the cultural and information sectors. storytelling tool, multitouch reading platform, heritage browser.

Australian Broadcasting Commission (Free, aimed at children but great resources for adults, parents, teachers ,tutors)

• ABC Education http://education.abc.net.au/home#!/home Educational videos, games programs for primary & secondary students.
• ABC Television Education http://www.abc.net.au/schoolstv/ -Educational TV & extension resources.
• Behind the news www.abc.net.au/btn/   Two stories weekly are supported with  teacher resources, discussion questions and full transcript. Aimed at kids, great fun

Games, puzzles and activities 

• http://www.puzzles.ca/wordsearch.html  Free printable word search puzzles.
• http://www.allpuzzles.net/  This site has many puzzle variations.
• http://www.luminosity.com/brain-games – Games to keep the brain active, many levels, free option.
• http://www.funbrain.com/ – Lots of interactive games (many aimed at children)
• https://wordfinder.yourdictionary.com/blog/popular-free-word-games-to-download/  WordFinder:  Fun word games to improve language, spelling, and vocabulary skills.
• http://www.englishtenseswithcartoons.com/ – Useful for ESL students who have trouble choosing the correct tense.  Short, simple cartoon illustrates verb meanings.
• www.allmixedup.com Word games for children (some useful for adults)
•  http://www.englishclub.com/ – An excellent free website for teachers of English and Learners. Printable worksheets, games, videos, quizzes.
• www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/tutors/bbcresources.html   BBC site fact sheet, interactive games, quizzes and printable exercises.
• https://ivypanda.com/tongue-twisters. A huge compilation of tongue-twisters from around the world, with 3705 entries in 118 languages. Includes tongue-twisters’ history and tips on how to learn them.  And https://ivypanda.com/blog/funny-tongue-twisters/  An infographic with the funniest tongue-twisters from around the world:
• British Council Teachings English teachingenglish@britishcouncil.org  Articles, teaching suggestions, games
• Reading/literacy-resources article,  with links to useful sites:  https://www.titlemax.com/articles/ultimate-guide-to-free-reading-and-literacy-resources/  Sites have fun activities aimed at young readers & writers but are also useful for adult learners.
• Plays.org has Free educational, fun online games which can quickly be played from the browser, with new games being added regularly. https://plays.org/games/
• English Flash cards – English flash cards for kids offers three hundred flash cards covering 12 everyday topics from animals and food to sport and vehicles, with some sounds included.   You can also make your own.
• The Edge (State Library of Qld) MAKEIT workshop plans offer intro- level 45 minute workshops on film editing, mechanics and soft circuits, Ideal for small groups aged 14 & over, the workshop plans are avail to download, use, edit, re-work, deliver & share with the community.
• Links to ESL resources like pronunciation & grammar exercises/games, confusable-word explanations, English language lessons. Online-education provider.  https://findyourcontext.education/online-learning-esl-resources/
• Maths Chase is a free resource (games) to quickly test times-tables skills, providing a fun way to learn times tables. http://www.mathschase.com/
• Astronomy guide – aimed at kids but useful for any age learners.  https://giftedgeek.co.uk/astronomy-for-kids/
• The Surfing Scientist http://www.abc.net.au/science/surfingscientist/lessonplans/ Detailed lesson plans, conundrums, tricks and videos.
• Crossword Solver – a word puzzle site with must-know word lists, word game dictionaries, definitions & more.  https://www.crosswordsolver.com/
• Dyslexia learning: curated resources with games, puzzles, quizzes for those with dyslexia. https://word.tips/learning-resources-kids-dyslexia
• Next gen coding tools. https://www.ireviews.com/next-gen-learning/ Wide range of tools (science, maths, coding, English) designed to support curriculum/help teachers & students achieve their goals. Aimed at school students but handy for any age learner.

Grammar exercises

• http://aliscot.com/bigdog/index.htm – Big Dog’s Grammar. Clear & concise explanations with self-tests & feedback.
•  http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/interactive/literacy.index.htm – Great for grammar exercises.
• http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl – Grammar & mechanics tag has useful exercises.
• http://www.manythings.org/ – Designed for ESL students but useful with all students.
• http://members.inet.net.au/~adelegc/index.html – Adele’s ESL Corner.  English grammar & spelling exercises with Australian context.
• www.englishpage.com/ – Worksheets, tutorials and many other useful activities.
• Eats, shoots and leaves by Lynne Truss – amusing audio & video presentation to show how the use of commas makes a huge difference to meaning
• https://www.how2become.com/testing/kent-test-practice-papers/ In-depth guide for the Kent Test (UK exam) Practice papers and answers, Useful info and FAQs about the Kent Test, what it is, where to take it, what the rules are, plus practice questions/papers.
• https://www.futurelearn.com/subjects/language-courses  FutureLearn’s online language courses suit anyone from a complete beginner or those wanting to improve their vocabulary and skills for a specific use or context.
• https://grammica.com/   Identify grammar/spelling/punctuation/syntax errors in your writing in real time. An advanced writing assistant tool runs your text through a sophisticated algorithm that recognises grammar errors based on the context of your writing. It displays the type of error it detects along with a quick summary.  Grammica includes Plagiarism Checker, Grammar Check, Proofreading, Anagram Solver, Paraphrasing Tool to reword piece of written work, Spinbot (to rewrite your sentences without changing the original piece) and more.Reading strategies

• sheenacameron.co.nz/.  Practical ideas from a highly regarded reading-author
• http://www.educationworld.com/  Prepared downloadable scripts within the professional development area – Readers’ Theatre.
• www.criticalreading.com/ – explains critical reading & thinking. It helps to show a reader to what look for and how to think about what they find
• www.risingstars-uk.com/Series/Rising-Stars-Reading-Planet/phonics-guide/ Useful phonics resource, with a short intro and history of phonics then plenty of handy resources like phonemes and graphemes that educators and parents can use in developing learner’s  phonetic awareness.
• https://smartparentadvice.com/improve-reading-skills/  Insightful article on how parents can improve a child’s reading skills, with practical, actionable ideas. Targeted at parents of young children, but also offers great insights into how tutors can help students of any age too.

 Apps 

http://www.teachthought.com/apps-2/50-popular-ipad-apps-for-struggling-readers-writers/  50 popular apps for struggling readers and writers.

http://www.scoop.it/t/adult-literacy-apps Free or inexpensive  apps for adults who need to improve their reading and/or writing skills.

Shadow Puppet is a free mobile app for creating digital stories and videos which allows users to upload video, search the web for animated images, add music from iTunes, and draw on the screen.

Search engine for Apps – Quixey is a functional search engine –  which helps you find apps through a description of what you want to do, so you’d don’t need to know the name of the app you’re looking for. Quixey gathers millions of pieces of data from the web, including blogs, reviews, articles and tweets, to learn exactly what each app can do.

Sailers Apps directory:  The content and graphics of these apps are great fun but are very childlike so be sure to let your learner know this.  The directory gives extensive links to reading, writing, maths, music, art and photo apps, as well as organisation and communication Apps.  iPhone, iPad and iPod touch Apps for (Special) Education.  Some of the apps learners may find fun and useful are:

• See, read, say. The complete Dolch sight word list of 220 words (prepared by E.W. Dolch) which make up 50 to 75 percent of the reading material encountered by learners.  See a short Youtube link for an outline
• ABC Spelling Magic. Adult voice. Excellent word building exercises with ’tiles’ and pictures. Plenty of options to choose to tailor to your learner’s preferences (difficulty level, male/female voice, fonts, modes) See a detailed Youtube link. on Spelling Magic 1 (short vowels).
• Rocket Speller. Players select a level and based on the level the spelling becomes more difficult as you go. Childlike rewards though (building a rocket as you go) Short Youtube demo 
• Word Bingo. Players make their own profile and play word bingo with cute bingo creatures See a short Youtube demo.
• Word Magic. See Youtube demo  This one is quite child-like with an American accent and over-use of  “Awesome”, but the reward format may suit some.
• School Writing. Upper and lower case writing with sounds and pictures attached.  Youtube demo. Students can record and play back the recording of themselves making the sound.
• Sentence Maker. As you type, interactive tiles open up.  Short Youtube demo   Options include hiding tiles or revealing words one by one. Activities: “What are the missing word, what is this well-known sentence” or asking you learner to re-arrange words.

iOS apps for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch iOS apps on Sailers site include ArtikPix for speech articulation, PhonoPix for phonological processes. Eric Sailers apps

Media activities for learners

The Electronic New Stand – enews.com/

ABC Online – www.abc.net.au/ onlinenewspapers.com

http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/ –  News articles as the basis of a suggested lesson (activities and exercises)

Newspapers on Trove – Trove give free online access to over 350 Australian newspapers. Users can enhance the data through subject tagging, text correction and annotations.   http://trove.nla.gov.au/

www.abc.net.au/btn/   Behind the news. Two stories weekly are supported with  teacher resources, discussion questions and full transcript. Aimed at kids, great fun

Storytellling tools – Doklab ( A Netherlands organisation) works with libraries/cultural institutions on a variety of projects to develop storytelling tools, share vision & give advice on innovation in the cultural and information sectors. storytelling tool, multitouch reading platform, heritage browser

Electronic Dictionary www.m-w.com/netdict.htm

Online newspapers onlinenewspapers.com

White pages www.whitepages.com.au

Yellow pages www.yellowpages.com.au

Macquarie Dictionary – www.macquariedictionary.com.au

Australian Map Search –www.whereis.com.au/

Easy Unit Converter for Online Calculator/Metric Conversions. https://www.easyunitconverter.com

Literacy organisations and resources  

Australian Council of Adult Literacy www.acal.edu.au

Queensland Council of Adult Literacy  cwpp.slq.qld.gov.au/qcal new site mid 2014

Adult Learning Australia (ALA)  http://www.ala.asn.au

Education Network Australia www.edutech.com.au/edna

Reading Writing Hotline http: https://www.readingwritinghotline.edu.au/tutor-resources/

Literacy Exchange – world resources World literacy exchange 

Read Write Now – improving adult literacy in Western Australia Read Write Now 

United Nations Literacy Decade http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/education-building-blocks/literacy/

British Council Teachings English teachingenglish@britishcouncil.org  Articles, teaching suggestions, games.  Most games are appropriate for adults, some specifically for ESL.  Their newsletter includes links to the best blogs

Victorian Adult Literacy and basic education council http://valbec.org.au/

NSW Adult Migrant English Service http://ames.edu.au/

ESL Café – USA www.eslcafe.com/search/Literacy/

Teachers Of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)  http://www.tesol.org/

Free UK Family learning program which helps parents’ skills in literacy, numeracy and speaking and listening by providing fun learning activities with and for their children.Family Learning 

Dave’s ESL Café (for ESL teachers and students) www.pacificnet/%7Esperling/eslcafe.html

A Canadian handbook and resources demystlifying Adult Literacy for tutors  http://en.copian.ca/library/learning/demyst/demyst.htm

www.nzliteracyportal.org.nz/ – New Zealand Literacy portal – great tutor resources

Great writers’ insights into writing: www.brainpickings.org/2013/05/03/advice-on-writing/

Capstone Editing, an Australian based academic editing company, has a Video Resource Hub that holds educational videos to assist academics and students with editing and proofreading their material. https://www.capstoneediting.com.au/video-hub

Literacy Programs with info on websites

Carlton Adult Reading & Writing Program https://www.cnlc.org.au/courses/adult-literacy

NSW Far North Coast Adult Literacy Network  www.nor.com.au/community/literacy/links.htm

Duke Street Community House http://www.dsch.org.au/programs/courses  (blog has exercises)

Flemington Reading & Writing Program  http://www.connectingup.org/learn

Southern Western Port’s Learning Networks Program – www.chisholm.vic.edu.au/SWPLearnet/index.htm

South Australian Council for Adult Literacy – www.acal.edu.au/sacal/

Digital literacy and computer skills tutorials

No Excuses List  – a huge range of free online courses.  http://www.noexcuselist.com/

http://flexiblelearning.net.au/toolbox/series4/424.htm – basic skills in the cypercentre

http://flexiblelearning.net.au/flx/go/home/projects/2006/communitypartnerships – E-learning for community partnerships

http://www.forwardit.sa.gov.au/home/basics/accredited resources – Digital literacy – accredited resources

http://digitalunite.com/ – Unleash your digital literacy

http://www.digitalplacemaking.com/digital-literacy-how-technology-can-improve-your-community/

literacy http://www.curriculumsupport.education.nsw.gov.au/literacy/assets/pdf/packages/tech_lit_learn.pdf – emotional literacy and how it relates to technology

https://online.maryville.edu/blog/digital-literacy-a-comprehensive-guide-to-modern-education-technology/ – a free 2019 digital & media literacy guide for students/parents/educators

Computer skills tutorials  

http://www.pbclibrary.org/mousing/   – Using a mouse – excellent (American) tutorial

http://www.goodtyping.com/  – Teaches typing skills – create your own log on

http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/ – BBC webwise provides info and  programs about using computers and the internet, including social media

http://www.abcpc.no/english/index.html  – Good site for beginner computer users

http://inpics.net/ – Great pictorial site which teaches how to use Word, Publisher, Excel & Powerpoint. Created for those with learning challenges so very user-friendly

 Lifestyle literacy

https://www.moneysmart.gov.au/?openDocument – Australian Securities Commission

http://www.healthliteracymonth.org/ – Health literacy

https://etonx.com/resource/university-interview-guide/ UNE Interview guide that helps students prepping for UNE admission interviews – how to address common questions, how to present yourself, strong body language, what to wear, and more.

 Useful sites for non-english speaking students

The sounds of English –   https://www.soundsofenglish.org/th  Very handy site for non-english speaking students, gives specific help with tongue and mouth movements with sounds like th, ph

  http://beach.prace.vic.edu.au/ – Preston Reservoir Adult & Community Education. Exercises about the Australian beach – safety, dangerous animals etc.  Also useful for ESL students.

http://www.manythings.org/ – Designed for ESL students but is useful with all LLN students.

http://www.englishtenseswithcartoons.com/ – Useful for ESL students who have trouble choosing the correct tense to use.  A short, simple cartoon clearly illustrates the meaning of the verb.

Numeracy teaching practice  (Material from a 2015  ACAL webinar)

Some numeracy (and literacy) resources and materials – a list compiled by presenter, Dave Tout.

Numeracy by Measure (a zip file so will download) – a link mentioned by a guest, Tina Berghella.

Building Strength with Numeracy – VALBEC numeracy resources by Beth Marr – many of them free.

Sample budget planner from MoneySmart – by guest Poonam Bhamgara .

An ACAL video of Beth Marr demonstrating some strategies and techniques using Building Strength with Numeracy.

Wished you were there?  You can see a video recording of the August 5 webinar here.

The MyTutor Guide to UCAS: Your One-Stop Guide  (United Kingdom Maths)
https://www.mytutor.co.uk/blog/the-mytutor-guide-to-ucas-your-one-stop-guide/  A complete up-to-date Maths GCSE guide to exams, exam-boards, marking-schemes (including infographics) key exam dates, topics students struggle with & an expert Maths tutor’s tips to passing the exam. Plus, study notes, revision guides, past papers and relevant textbooks.

Online Calculators & Conversions   https://www.calculators.org/    – free maths & science resource with hundreds of online calculators & conversion tools for teachers to use in maths and science classes.

Maths and Finance guide. https://pigly.com/calculators/for-kids/ Free help with maths/finance, includes a guide about the history of calculators with examples of how they are used in everyday life. The site is free of advertising.

Find a tutor in your area

Reading Writing Hotline  https://www.readingwritinghotline.edu.au/. Reading Writing hotline, Australia-wide. If you need help  with reading, writing or basic maths, call 1300 655 506 for info about: Classes that are close to you.

Most Australian public libraries have free adult-literacy resources & volunteer tutor programs. If you’d like more info about a tutor in your area, call the Hotline on 1300 6555 06.The Reading Writing Hotline also has a range of useful tutor resources available for download.

 http://www.tutoo.com/  A UK-based tutor search-service so students can find all the tutors within their local area.

https://ivypanda.com/ Educational services company IvyPanda provides academic self-study services & online tools for students across the world.

Which books to read or read next

• Goodreads is often recommended as a top site for readers and book recommendations
• What Should I Read Next? A simple tool to select from
• Whichbook and Your Next Read are fun sites
• Thorough recommendations – Rebecca Tischler’s blog post
• Comprehensive list of Australian and new Zealand resources for tips

In-depth Grammar:

There are hundreds of sites and grammar books that you can go to for detailed grammar help, but some good examples of sources that can explain detailed concepts are:

Grammar Tip of the Day – By Thoughtco.

Online Writery at Purdue University.

ChompChomp.com

Teaching and learning resources for Australian teachers – many are useful for English tutors or students worldwide

English for the Australian Curriculum http://e4ac.edu.au/. A wide range of English literacy resources for anyone teaching any level of English.Detailed units of ACARA-based study for early, primary & secondary. Unit plans provide teaching activities, worksheets & links to wide ranging online resources.

Education Services Australia–‘Teaching English in P-10’ http://www.teachingacenglish.edu.au/. Ed Services Australia online resources to support teachers & school leaders implementing the English Curriculum. Collection of video snapshots include strategies for teaching reading, spelling, punctuation & grammar.Good insight into Latin &S Greek roots for words and why, in a classroom lesson.

The Bridging Differences Playbook maps out core skills & strategies for positive dialogue, relationships, and understanding between groups or individuals across political, racial, religious, or other divides. Produced for the US but based on wisdom and best practices from decades of scientific studies/interviews/ with dozens of leaders & ground-breaking programs tackling these issues. This can help tutors and learners gain confidence & tools to take steps toward overcoming divisions & divides – whether within families/between groups, or across nations.

The Surfing Scientist http://www.abc.net.au/science/surfingscientist/lessonplans/ Detailed lesson plans, conundrums, tricks and videos.

Behind the News (BTN) http://www.abc.net.au/btn/ -Investigates current world & national news, putting it into a child friendly context so that complex issues are more easily understood.

 Literacy Teaching Toolkit Practical advice & high-impact teaching practices to improve outcomes in reading, writing, speaking & listening – for primary-level learners. (the explanations of vocabulary, & early language development provide great insight to tutors)

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/teachingresources/discipline/english/literacy/Pages/default.aspx

The Australian Human Rights Commission https:/www.humanrights.gov.au/education/human-rights-school-classroom – interactive free resources to help students understand human rights.

 Literacy and numeracy resources for families https://www.education.sa.gov.au/teaching/curriculum-and-teaching/literacy-and-numeracy/literacy-and-numeracy-resources-families 

Dept of Education, SA. Wide range of useful teaching/learning info & links for parents

Global Education http://globaleducation.edu.au/ Resources for teaching Humanities and global education.

State Library of Queensland http://www.slq.qld.gov.au/services/membership/how-to-join Join to borrow resources and e-resources http://www.slq.qld.gov.au/search/eresources Online journals, newspapers, magazines & websites as well as excellent books available as

eBooks

Scootlehttps:// www.scootle.edu.au/ec/p/home

National repository for educators, with 20,000 digital resources aligned to Aust Curriculum. Rego free for HEU registered families & is supported by the Australian Gov Dep of Ed. Contact the Home Ed Unit for further info about free Scootle registration.

 Resources for schools

https://www.australia.gov.au/information-and-services/education-and-training/resources-for-schools – Educational links from a wide range of institutions including the National Museum and Gallery of Australia, the National Library, the Australian War Memorial and other government organisations across the country.

Library Link  (Kim’s site):   Library systems,library resources, internet resources  librarylink.webs.com/