STEM @ Home

Pitsco Education is offering five STEM/STEAM activities perfect for K-5 learning at home. Using a few readily available household items and some creativity your students can learn while making 5 projects.

For older students, Pitsco Education has made its SySTEM Alert! publication available which includes STEM fast facts, trends, related topics, and much more.  A quiz and answer key is available for each as well.

For more information and many more resources visit Pitsco Education’s STEM @ Home website.…Read More

Free Digital Enrichment Kits for Librarians and Educators

Wizards of the Coast today announced that the company will distribute 2,000 digital kits to schools and libraries in the U.S. and Canada to provide educators and librarians with resources to engage their communities with Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering virtual play while many are practicing social distancing.

Each kit will include a Legendary Bundle for D&D Beyond that unlocks access to all current rules and adventure content for D&D as well as a 15% discount on future D&D Beyond purchases and 30 Magic: The Gathering Arena digital codes, which can be redeemed for three Ikoria booster packs. The kits will also feature tips to help teachers and librarians engage their audiences in a virtual play environment.

Kits will be available upon request through the Wizards of the Coast customer service request portal to organizers over the age of 18 who are employed by or official volunteers at enrichment organizations, such as a schools, libraries, community centers, and scout troops, and represent the organization’s gaming programming.…Read More

Renaissance is helping to support student learning outside of school

Working to support students during unexpected school closures, Renaissance is offering several free programs including myON, myON News, and Freckle that enable students to access literacy and math activities and to complete assignments remotely. To further assist educators, they’ve curated a list of additional free resources that includes implementation guides, learning activities, family letters, and the 2020 What Kids Are Reading report to make the best use of their Renaissance programs to support student learning outside of school.

How to incorporate video into your online learning curriculum

To provide support during the COVID-19 crisis, Boclips is making its safe, curated video platform freely available to teachers until June 30. The platform includes inspiring videos covering the K-12 curriculum, accompanied by video-focused, standards-aligned lesson guides to save schools time and training resources. Regular webinars, video tutorials, and video strategy guides support educators in effectively implementing video in the classroom. Teachers can sign up here.

 

For educators facing school closures due to COVID-19, the sudden shift to distance learning can be difficult, so Boclips is also offering a free resource kit called “Remote Learning with Video” to provide tools, ideas, and inspiration for incorporating video into virtual learning.…Read More

Educational materials for middle and high school from PBS

On the heels of Earth Day, WGBH Education launched a collection of digital resources featuring content from the new film H2O: The Molecule That Made Us, the landmark three-part series that tells the human story through our relationship to water.

With kids now learning from home, these resources are aimed at providing both parents and teachers alike with the resources they need to continue schooling remotely. The resources are available on PBS LearningMedia and include educational materials for middle and high school teachers and students.

The first four video-based resources that launched today focus on the following water-related phenomena:…Read More

Free Remote Learning Resources for STEM Teachers and Students

To keep students engaged in STEM learning during school closures, Vernier Software & Technology is offering a robust collection of free remote learning solutions for teachers and students. The resources, which support students at both the K–12 and college levels, cover a wide range of scientific disciplines including biology, chemistry, physics, and physical science.

“This is an unprecedented—and extremely difficult—time for teachers and students alike with extended school closures caused by COVID-19,” said John Wheeler, CEO of Vernier Software & Technology. “Our robust collection of free resources will help keep students engaged in STEM learning during this time, while supporting educators as they facilitate remote teaching. With these solutions, teachers can help students continue to form a deep understanding of key scientific concepts while outside the classroom and laboratory.”

The free resources from Vernier include the following:…Read More

3 ways to stay connected when going remote

You’ve just made a heroic effort to rapidly transition your teaching to online delivery in response to school closures. It’s important now to take a moment to consider how your students are adapting, and the equity and access issues resulting from this change in delivery.

For students learning remotely at home, these challenges may include limited access to computers, high-speed internet, campus support services, and a lack of social connection with peers and instructors.

Related content: 10 resources to help everyone navigate online learning…Read More

Leading eLearning: A Future Ready Library opportunity

One of my colleagues is known for regularly reminding us that a crisis is a terrible opportunity to waste. The COVID-19 crisis has forced districts to redefine the manner in which they are delivering education.

In the best-case scenario, district leaders had a week to develop and roll out an eLearning strategy to students. Most teachers had a weekend to prep, and sent their students home without a defined plan or resources to help parents who became teachers overnight.

Related content: 10 reasons school librarians are more important than ever…Read More

Free access to Mackin’s Distance learning solution

Mackin, one of the world’s largest providers of print books, ebooks, audiobooks, and video is offering access to its ebook library and distance learning content for free.

If your school or district has closed due to COVID-19 or is shifting to temporary online or distance learning, MackinVIA has an effective solution. They have compiled free content, helpful videos, links, downloadable resources and more to help you with this distance learning transition.

Elementary School
4,500+ Multi-User eBooks…Read More

Free math learning resources

ORIGO Education is offering a collection of free math learning resources to support teachers, parents, and caregivers as they strive to keep students engaged and continually learning. ORIGO at Home features free weekly, digital plans for home use. These weekly plans contain activities for each day, along with digitally accessible or downloadable resources, designed for delivery by a parent, caregiver or remote teacher.

Teachers or caregivers simply choose a grade level and start at Week 1. The lesson plan format provides everything needed for instruction and is written so it can be implemented outside of the classroom. Students can engage in the work on a device or resources can be downloaded for printing. In addition, most of the student resources are available in Spanish.

https://www.origoeducation.com/athome/…Read More

Free Remote Learning Resources

The coronavirus outbreak is especially difficult for parents with young children that may be balancing working from home and homeschooling at the same time. As schools look for ways to extend online learning due to school closures nationwide, Capstone is committed to bringing educators and parents the best learning resources and kid-friendly activities from home.

Along with offering free access to our digital learning products PebbleGo and Capstone Interactive eBooks, we have curated a collection of free printables and educational activities for kids’ exploratory learning while practicing social distancing. From fun activities with kids’ favorite book characters to inspiring STEAM activities to get them excited about science and easy crafting ideas they can make at home, we hope our resources will not only help keep kids busy in a constructive way, but also support their ongoing learning.

Capstone Learning Resources…Read More

7 ways tech plays a pivotal role in accessibility

Every two or three years, state and federal laws regarding accessibility in education change. However, the goal is always the same: making sure that every student, at every level (classroom, building, district), has access to the resources they need to meet their learning goals.

During the edWebinar “Accessibility for All: Creating an Equitable Learning Ecosystem,” the presenters discussed the lessons they’ve learned, especially regarding technology as an instrument for accessibility.

7 key roles tech plays in accessibility…Read More