Online Resources

One good resource I have come across is http://www.howtonetwork.co.uk. Although this is primarily a pay for site there is plenty of free stuff to be had. From experience, having a number of different resources and styles of teaching can really help.

Second Hand Cisco Kit

There is nothing better than getting your hands on second hand Cisco kit to get to grips with the practical aspect of this course. I can guarantee that the numerous command that you have to learn will sink in a lot faster then you have to use then in anger. After trawling the web one of the best deals I found was with a company called ITelligentsia that appears to sell predominately through Ebay. You can pit up everything you need in one kit for approximately £280. The kit is specifically for CCNA students and contains everything you will need including:


Routers
Cisco 3620 Ethernet Serial Router 64D/16F 12.3 Enterprise Security Plus IOS
Cisco 2611 Dual Ethernet Serial Router 64D/16F 12.4 Advanced Security IOS
Cisco 2610 Frame-Relay (4 x Serial) Ethernet Router 16D/16F 12.4 Advanced Security IOS


Switches
Cisco 2924-XL-EN Enterprise Switch running latest 12.0(17) Cisco IOS
Cisco 2924-XL-EN Enterprise Switch running latest 12.0(17) Cisco IOS


Accessories
2 x serial DB60-DB60 crossover cables
4 x cat 5E straight-through cables
4 x cat 5E crossover cables
2 x RJ45 / DB9 console cables



They also have a fairly good tech support service as well should you ever need it