Powerful Ways to Connect with Families and Students at Home
I have been collecting resources and websites for my students and families for as long as I can remember. So I thought it was time to share them. I have even organized them into categories for you! There are tons of freebies that are surfacing online for teachers and parents, as many of these are often free on a trial basis. There are tons of at-home or online ideas to share too! Do yourself a favour and save these ideas for now and next each year. I’ll be doing a little bit of both those things – save for now and later. We can’t do it all in one day, right! Let me know what you loved the most or what you’re looking forward to trying out!
A Little Bit of Everything
Kids Activities Blog is unbelievable – an extensive list put together. I took a quick look and there is a TON of information for kids of all ages. Interested in outdoor or play-based learning. I just learned about Tinkergarten and they have a bunch of DIY and curriculum activities to look through. This is an ongoing list of resources, Amazing Educational Resources, being created by thousands of teachers each day. All of your teacher besties need to see it too! Save the ones you’ve never heard of to use next year. I even saved a few I had never heard of! I went through the list and picked out my faves – which are tossed in throughout this post. It took me a few hours to look through all the ones that jumped out at me. Give yourself time too. As you may or may not know, I am a collector of ideas and resources for my classroom. I can’t wait to come back to some of these with my students. I am most excited that all of these new ideas and websites are all in one place for us teachers to access at our leisure.
Now get cozy for some curriculum ideas.
Science
Mystery Science is a website I’ve used for quite some time in my classroom. It hosts tons of relevant and interesting topics for students to choose between, read about, and watch. It often leaves them more inspired to love science in our everyday world.
The lessons are easy and fun to try with students.
The video clips are one of the best parts.
They are sorted by grade level for easy access.
You can choose a Mini-Lessons or a Full-length lesson based on how deeply you want to cover the content.
Find out about animals & biodiversity & places around the world with one quick click. There are even different grade levels filled with information. The Grade Three topics look great too!! Generation Genius is a science teaching resource. It brings science to life through fun and educational videos. There are lesson plans, activities, quizzes, reading material, discussion questions, and more. I’ll be using this from now on. Search for a topic in mind or click on your grade level for ideas!
Stem
Creosity Space shows how I would spend my summers – exploring & thinking & trying different experiments just using stuff around the house. I want to keep all kids engaged in science and these ideas engage students in the practices of exploration and critical thinking. It gives them a chance to work on their reading, writing, and innovation skills as well. Also available are some coding challenges for students that foster perseverance. A good challenge makes us all feel better when we figure it out. All kinds of topics to investigate at My Pblworks and Challenger Center. Try this challenge in particular on PBS Kids for tons of meaningful activities. With your mind in a creative zone, Kids Think Design offers all kinds of design challenges! Close to 200 000 stem activities, by Sharpen. And of course, we can’t talk about STEM without giving NASA some credit. There are some wicked cool activities to try.
Animal Research
For my kiddos curious about animals, this is one of the places I use to create my resources for them. It’s easy for students to browse and read some nonfiction. You might even learn something too! Kids love fun facts. A great site to explore animals (and the world) is through DK Find Out! Students are welcome to share their findings with others by asking questions. Have you ever watched a live cam of different animals around the world? I was just about to introduce these in my classroom. There are TONS of animals to watch. This is probably my favourite find.
Social Studies
Who can resist a tour? Have you heard of Google Cardboard. It’s virtual reality goggles I learned about in my first year of teaching. I haven’t had the chance to pull them out for my students yet. Download the app and get visiting through the online world of virtual reality. Also, check out and visit these virtual field trips. Try to find these museums on a map or research about the artist of your favourite art piece. I’ve been to two of these museums. Can you guess which two? I love all the different types of art! Have you explored atlases from the library? An Atlas is one of my favourite books to purchase or explore online. My favourite app is the Barefoot Atlas App. I have been using it for years and students beg to play. It’s the perfect time to explore the places, animals, people and buildings around the world. Get downloading!
French
To be honest, am I the only French teacher who hasn’t introduced my students to Lalilo? Tell me you’re interested too! Students work on adaptive exercises in phonics, word recognition, and comprehension which are personalized to their ability in French or English based on an initial placement test. There are many reasons I was looking forward to setting it up in my classroom. Mostly, I was looking forward to seeing student progress and track improvements. Parents can sign up for French OR English with their children at home or follow the student login once their teacher sets up the student logins. I cannot wait to hear how my students like it! I bet your students will be excited too! Another French favourite for my students is Boukili. If you have not checked it out, you should also get that up and running in your classroom right away. That way your students can read stories in French. Students can listen, read or record their voices. There are comprehension questions after each story and leveled books. I’ve been using it for a few years. It can be used for home and classroom use!
English
Get your 20 minutes of reading every.single.day with Scholastic. They really offer a lot of amazing books and resources for kids. I know my students will be excited to try. Learning A-Z also offers free trials right now. Their reading programs are definitely something you want to get your students reading every day. Ask your students who would rather read on the couch or in their room… I’ve used Kids Discover in Grade 5 and in Grade 2. They offer excellent non-fiction reading for students and 3 months free for teachers to set up with their students. Consider adding it to your resource budget in your regular school year. It’s definitely one I love and use with my students regularly. Specifically written and developed for students in grades K-3, PebbleGo is a student favourite in our primary classroom!! You might be able to access it for free right now. Attention student authors! Story Jumpers opens up the literacy world to students so they can make and design their own hardcover books!! They can even record audio to go along with it. I can’t wait to use this one too! I might even make my own! Pinna is a great way for students to be listening to information. A different way to gather ideas or listen to stories. My favourite Youtube channel for listening to stories also has many celebrities reading famous children’s books. My students always want me to use the Storyline Online version when they see them! I bet you’ll find your favourites and even find a few new ones to add to your classroom faves playlist. If you don’t have a list going yet, why don’t you start now!
Math
Bedtime Math is a fun way to practice and think about math in our world. So many examples and hands-on fun! They also offer a great selection of books and apps to look into as well. Dreambox Learning instantly lets students set up a character and get going! This one looks like a pretty comprehensive program for student engagement. If you have moved into remote learning, here is a great math manipulative site for you and your students. Save this or check it out now and pass it on to families and students.
Art
My favourite art teacher on Instagram/the internet (artwithmrs.e) posted this link from another art teacher and she is the absolute best art teacher, teaching us teachers! I figured we should all check out her recommendation and get creative together. You should also check out her quarantine checklist and step by step drawings for plants and dogs. I already have… I am very excited to have found this resource! Doodles Academy because doodles are my favourite!! If you have a little artist at home or would like to educate yourself as a teacher. In September, I introduce doodle journals for my students and their drawings have improved beyond what I expected by this point in the year. Every one of my students is getting so much better at adding details and using great colours! My Grade Two class will be attempting some of these to mix up our art learning when we get back to the classroom. I love that there are videos for students to learn more about the art style or artist.
Gym
DANCE DANCE DANCE! We barely get through a day without a dance session. GoNoodle is always adding fun dances and interactive games or challenges. Moi Minute, My Minute, to practice gratitude and reset our day. Need more fitness for your students? I know my students have tons of energy. Fluency and Fitness – here to help students review reading and math topics with essential movement breaks. I just had to share it with you and try a trial for myself. You can also get in a family workout following The Body Coach – he’s posting tons of great short fitness routines for kids.
