It is a common complaint from teachers, tutors and parents alike that children spend too much time glued to a screen playing mind-numbing computer games.

Children are drawn to computer games because they appeal to their natural sense of curiosity as well as their love of bright colours and narrative accounts.

Coupling online activity with constructive pursuit can obviously help to solve the problem. There are now a number of excellent education based resources available on the internet which offer a range of interactive games to appeal to children as a way of getting them interested and involved in learning.

Some of these sites can be used to supplement extra tuition in subjects such as maths, English, history and science and are a creative way to approach parts of the curriculum that individual learners may either struggle with or find ‘boring’.

Because play forms such a large part of the way in which young children learn, games which help them grasp complex concepts in curriculum subjects can be particularly beneficial, giving them an outlet for their creativity and curiosity while at the same time teaching them material that will help their progress in the classroom.

Many sites also feature educational resources, lesson plans, links and ideas for further discussion about a topic, which can help to stimulate your own conversations with the learner.

Finding great educational websites can be time-consuming so, below, Tutors Directory has picked out the ten best ones to help you get the most out of web and interactive games based learning in less time.

 Maths

 Count On is a superb site that aims to get children interested in maths with their array of well-designed games. Children can choose different levels of difficulty on games covering percentages, division, multiplication, addition and fractions. Games include ‘Who wants to be a Mathonaire?’, ‘Maths fighter’ and ‘Cartoon math’. The games are fun as well as being challenging and educational so the site should provide hours of competition for those who need a different perspective on maths.

Sums Online is another math site with a selection of thought provoking games. Children can choose from games which explore fractions, bracket problem solving, division, word problems and many more. The games are simply presented but offer a stimulating test of core skills that will get even reluctant learners involved in a big way.

English and Literacy

 The BBC’s education section is arguably one of the best resources available on the internet for improving and supporting literacy for young learners. Their flash games focus on building a specific skills set such as sentence building, the use of pronouns, ordering words alphabetically, using conjunctions, phonic differentiation and the use of synonyms.   

Science

 The Science Museum website is a tremendous site which offers tutors and teachers a range of material, ideas and resources to help get children excited about science. The site has features on subjects such as climate change, genes, the brain, space and energy and hosts an assortment of science-based learning games. There are games that help children use logic in deciphering codes as well as games that look at how energy is used, where it comes from and why it is important.

School Science is a resource-rich site that caters for all ages from seven up to 19. It hosts quizzes, lesson plans and interactive games as well as in-depth e-sources exploring everything from solids, liquids and gases to sustainable mining and exploration of the atom. The site is run in partnership with Research Councils UK (RCUK), British Energy, E.on, Hays Education, Pfizer and the Royal Society of Chemistry among others and includesarticles and guides written by experts.

 Yucky is the self-styled ‘yukiest site on the internet’ and features the more... well, interesting areas of science that probably aren’t taught in the classroom. The site explores the science behind favourite nasties like as pimples, farts, funny bones and burps and while being amusing and squirm-inducing does teach children a lot about the world around them answering some of their most pertinent questions. The site also has an interactive area with games, quizzes and puzzles so that even the most relentless curiosity will be satisfied.  

History

The Natural History Museum website is a veritable treasure trove of information and activities that will grab the attention of young learners. The site’s ‘Webquests’ offer children the chance to delve into the collections of nine national museums giving them a real opportunity to explore the past in a way that is fun as well as educational. The Webquests cover Key Stages 1-4 looking at topics such as the role of children in WW1, the original Greek Olympics, slavery and the Royal Family.  

The History Channel’s website brings the past to life with a dynamic mixture of interactive games, wide ranging videos and articles covering major periods in history. The site is visually stunning and provides a space for children to find out more about the issues and concepts from the past that most interest them. Games include ‘Expedition Africa’ which looks at Stanley and Livingstone’s exploration of the continent and ‘Battles BC’ which provides children with an idea of what caused some of the most important wars in our history.

Geography

National Geographic brings all of its expertise to its smaller site aimed at children called National Geographic Kids. There are interesting videos to watch, an immensely popular activity section, interactive games, puzzles, collections of superb nature photography and educational resources, which introduce children to different countries around the world.  The site is vibrant and colourful and will keep children almost endlessly entertained while teaching them a great deal too.

Music

One of the best music sites for children on the web, Children’s Music Workshop is the definitive guide to everything a child needs to learn to enjoy music. There is sheet music for the flute, piano, trumpet, clarinet and violin as well as information on cleaning individual instruments, how and where to buy them, maintenance tips and guides to various musical supplies.  The site also has a video section featuring children playing a variety of instruments and instructional videos for playing different ones.