Great Educational Magazines for Kids

Husband and wife team Garry Cleveland Myers Ph.D. and Caroline Myers launched Highlights for Children magazine in June of 1946 in Honesdale, PA. Both Cleveland and Myers worked for Children’s Activities magazine and were experts in the teaching of writing and reading. Instead of retiring at the end of their Children’s Activities tenure they decided to launch their own children’s magazine.

The purpose of Highlights magazine is to provide children with positive learning material; one of the magazine’s guiding practices is the motto “Fun with a Purpose,” which appeared on the cover of the first issue and continues to appear on every issue. The Highlights for Children creed also appears on the masthead of each issue, “This book of wholesome fun is dedicated to helping children grow in basic skills and knowledge, in creativeness, in ability to think and reason, in sensitivity to others, in high ideals, and worthy ways of living—for children are the world’s most important people.” Highlights for Children magazine currently has more than 2 million subscribers.

Highlights for Children magazine offers book club reading lists, articles on a variety of subjects like science and the arts and crafts ideas in every issue. Popular features are “Hidden Pictures,” “Goofus and Gallant” and “The Timbertoes.” It also features articles on educational toys, tips on hands-on building toys and science kits. In 2007 Highlights launched Highlights High Five for kids ages 2 to 6 years old.

The National Geographic Society launched National Geographic Kids in 1975 as National Geographic World for kids ages 6 to 14. The kids’ magazine was instantly popular and has won many awards. The magazine publishes 10 issues a year. As of June 2006 the magazine reported a circulation of more than 1.3 million. National Geographic Kids also publishes 12 issues in languages other than English.

In 2001 National Geographic changed the name to National Geographic Kids. Like the adult version, National Geographic Kids’ content focuses on animals, the environment and cultures of the world. Regular features of the magazine include columns like “Amazing Animals,” “Kids Did It” and “Cool Inventions.”

Recent National Geographic Kids features include “Recycle Roundup,” an interview with archaeologist and National Geographic Explorer Fredrik Hierbert and a story on the rescue of an endangered orphan baby gorilla. The magazine also runs contests for children like the International Photography Contest.

The National Geographic Society also launched National Geographic Little Kids recently. National Geographic Little Kids is an award-winning magazine for pre-school age kids from 3 to 6 years old. The magazine includes teaching tools to inspire a lifelong love of learning. Subjects include animals, nature, science, cultures and fun games like puzzles. National Geographic Little Kids also regularly includes crafts, recipes and tips for parents.

Another popular kids’ magazine is Sports Illustrated Kids. Sports Illustrated Kids is a spin-off of the sports magazine Sports Illustrated. Sports Illustrated Kids launched in 1989 and the target audience is 10 to 17 year-olds. One of the main goals of Sports Illustrated Kids is to promote good sportsmanship and a love of reading. It covers news on all the major league sports teams with action photos and easy-to-read stories. There are also stories on star athletes, helpful instructional tips from professional athletes and interactive contests and activities. It also includes games, comics and trivia. The Sports Illustrated Kids website includes scores, schedules and stats.