When you’re home educating, having a good variety of resources at your fingertips can make life so much easier. Some children thrive on structured lessons, others prefer more project-based approaches, and many benefit from a balance of both. Here are some of the resources I’ve found useful, along with others widely used across the UK, and how they can fit into a home education routine.
CENTURY Tech
CENTURY is an AI-driven platform that adapts to each learner’s needs. It breaks subjects like maths, English and science into small, manageable chunks and suggests what to work on next.
The diagnostic element is particularly helpful for spotting gaps, which you can then go back and reinforce in other ways. I’ve found it works well as a core tool, but it’s best paired with more creative or discussion-based work so children don’t only experience algorithm-led learning.
BBC Bitesize and BBC Teach
BBC Bitesize covers most subjects from primary through to GCSE, with explanations, short videos and practice activities. It’s excellent for reinforcing concepts or for revision.
BBC Teach offers lesson clips and video content designed to bring topics alive, and these can be a great way to introduce or enrich a subject. Both are free, reliable, and pitched to match the UK curriculum.
Oak National Academy
Oak National Academy originally provided full online lessons during the pandemic, but its focus has now shifted. It exists as a resource bank for teachers, who can use the lesson materials to plan and deliver classes.
While it’s no longer aimed directly at home-educating families, you can still dip into the structured lesson content for inspiration or as a way to guide your own planning.
Twinkl
Twinkl is well known among teachers, but it also has a home education hub. It’s packed with worksheets, planning guides, topic packs, and even live or recorded lessons. Their curriculum checklists can be especially helpful if you want to see how your child’s learning lines up with what’s taught in schools. The downside is that a lot of it is worksheet-based, so I find it best used alongside hands-on projects.
Oxford Owl
This resource is particularly good for younger learners. It provides reading material, phonics support and early maths activities. Everything is presented in a parent-friendly way, so it’s easy to pick up and use without preparation.
Good for short, focused sessions with younger children, often as a springboard into wider activities like drawing or storytelling.
Code for Life
Code for Life teaches coding through browser-based games. It starts with simple block coding and moves up to Python, making it a good pathway through computing.
Because it’s game-like, children often don’t realise how much logical thinking and problem-solving they’re practising. It’s mapped to the UK computing curriculum but works perfectly well at home as a standalone introduction to coding.
MyMaths
MyMaths is widely used in schools, but it’s also accessible to home educators. It offers structured maths lessons, practice questions, and interactive activities. It’s especially useful for consolidation and steady progress in maths skills.
It helps to look at where mistakes are made and use those as opportunities for more personalised explanations or practical maths tasks.
Other Useful Resources
- Topmarks provides interactive maths and literacy games, which are excellent for primary-aged children.
- Phonics Play is well known for phonics and early literacy support.
- Hamilton Trust offers free and paid lesson plans and resources, often used by primary teachers but also useful at home.
- Literacy Shed gives video clips and writing prompts to spark creativity.
- Workbooks from publishers like CGP or Letts are straightforward and often come with online extras.
Making the Most of Resources
The key with home education is not just what you use, but how you use it. A structured platform like CENTURY or MyMaths can provide a backbone, while free tools such as BBC Bitesize and Oxford Owl add variety.
Balance online activities with hands-on projects, outdoor learning, and creative work. Many families also find it useful to keep a simple record of what has been covered, using checklists or journals, to make sure there’s a broad spread of subjects.
Every child learns differently, so think of these resources as ingredients. You can mix and match to create the recipe that works best for your family.
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