Great Online Learning Tools and Activities for Your Kids During COVID 19

Many school districts are working to teach their curriculum virtually during the Coronavirus lockdown, some more quickly and comprehensively than others. While your kids are away from school, it does not mean learning opportunities are not available to them. Thanks to a multitude of online educational resources, parents have more power to adjust the pace of learning while schools are closed than they may realize.

The sheer number of options can be intimidating to parents, especially those who have never had to rely on them for supplemental education before. The costs and quality vary, but we found several great articles that have compiled great suggestions and reviews. 

HuffPost features dozens of suggestions it has received from teachers. These excerpts are short, energetic, and to the point. For example,

“GoNoodle is the best! I use it at home with my 2, 5 and 6-year-olds as well as with my 8th graders. There are all different types of silly songs/games to get kids up and moving. There are community-building type activities. And there are yoga/meditation activities. Everything is fun and silly and perfect durations. And I don’t find it obnoxious!” ― Katy Jo

AndroidCentral offers descriptions of selected comprehensive curriculum sites. Helpfully, they mention subscription costs and free trial periods. The article features several different sites that are mentioned elsewhere like ABC Mouse, Adventure Academy, Curious World, and Rosetta Stone. 

Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) has a great article that lists and reviews sites within the context of learning needs and situations – not all of them online. Interestingly, it highlights the value of connecting with local libraries (in this case Oregon Public Libraries, but the principle is the same). It also mentions a cool resource for those parents who want to lean on the expertise of teachers,

If you want lessons from actual teachers, check out the American Federation of Teachers’ Share My Lesson site, where teachers have plans ranging from Pre-K to high school (the included link lands on its coronavirus-related page, but there’s all kinds of stuff there, if you look around).

For those parents who really want to conduct in-depth research, Open Culture, which advertises itself as “the best free cultural & educational media on the web,” has a comprehensive set of links to various resources, including digital libraries with thousands of free books. These links include video drawing lessons by famous artists. The suggestions here are tailored to the needs of parents who are looking for activities in response to COVID-19.

As you can see by perusing these few articles, supplemental online learning is plentiful. For those who are looking for suggestions, reviews, or new ways to engage their kids while they are away from school, these are great places to start!