Like many, my world has been flipped upside down in recent days. My children’s school closed, effective March 13 until March 30. My husband and I both work outside the home. While we are blessed to work in situations that allow us to work from home, we must actually work when we are home during these days. We are also blessed with a fantastic school with caring and amazing teachers who have provided work for our children to do so that they can continue learning, but obviously that work sometimes requires parental assistance (see note above about what the parents are trying to do), and it definitely doesn’t take all day.
Since the closings and cancellations started last week, I’ve been bookmarking additional resources to occupy my kiddos time to either buy me additional time to get through what I need to do, or to supplement their activities. Below is a list that I plan to take advantage of within the coming days. That said – these are just the things that have come across my social media feeds. What are you finding to do online with your family? What amazing freebie has given you 5 or 10 minutes of peace? Help a mama out and add it in the comments!
Catholic Resources
- My Catholic Kids has made their video library free for the immediate future. This includes a quick gospel reflection as well as several short videos explaining parts of the mass. If you have some wee people, this looks like something you could watch during the week leading up to watching mass virtually on Sundays, and maaaaybe get a little focus. Maybe? Sigh.
- Catholic Paper Goods is offering free downloads of coloring sheets. While there is only one currently, I am excited to see additional sheets added. For my artistic little person, this is a perfect.
School Resources
- If you can’t leave the house, virtual field trips are the way to go. A little something for everyone – zoos, Mars, and the Great Wall of China – your littles are sure to be entertained (and educated – shhh!).
- Storyline Online has actors and actresses reading books for grades K-5. Each video includes an activity guide. This sounds amazing – yes, Betty White – read to my daughter, please!
- Mystery Science has lists for every grade of age-appropriate questions and lessons. This includes both full lessons taking 30 minutes or more, and mini lessons as short as five minutes long.
- Scholastic is also offering daily lessons and projects to keep little minds moving. Options range from Pre-K to 6th and up.
- If those aren’t enough links, com has a comprehensive list of various educational programs that are offering free access right now. This list is mind boggling.
Cultural Resources
- The Metropolitan Opera will be streaming one opera each evening from their HD collections. What a unique way to expose our families to something that they might not otherwise have a chance to enjoy.
- Travel + Leisure published a list of 12 museums offering virtual tours. This is going to be a win for our entire family.
- A friend shared with me this list of podcasts, including podcasts that explain germs and Coronavirus, podcasts that are educational in nature, and podcasts that are just for fun. My kids adore the “Brains On” podcast when we are on road trips or have some extended time in the car, so I’m excited to give these a shot. I considered filing this under school resources, but let’s let the kids THINK this is just for fun.
