Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

Free distance learning online toolkit

To guide educators through this new journey of remote teaching, mindSpark Learning, a national nonprofit that provides one-of-a-kind learning experiences to educators across the globe, launched a free Distance Learning Online Toolkit. Educators can access:

  1. Free online professional development courses covering AI and social emotional learning (with more to be released in the coming weeks)
  2. Live and on demand spotlight courses focused on online teaching and remote leadership
  3. Coffee chats to connect educators to a community they can lean on, in addition to  mindSpark Learning for resources and support
  4. Distance learning FAQs for commonly-asked questions on how to implement remote teaching methods quickly

mindSpark Learning’s free Distance Learning Online Toolkit can be found at www.mymindsparklearning.org/online-toolkit.

…Read More

Southern Poverty Law Center COVID-19 resources

Southern Poverty Law Center has compiled resources for educators continuing to support students and families through the COVID-19 pandemic.

SPLC developed these resources to support student well-being and learning during school closures, and they will keep this page updated as they publish new pieces.

A Trauma-Informed Approach to Teaching Through Coronavirus
Experts from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network share their recommendations for educators supporting students during the COVID-19 crisis.…Read More

Supporting students through Coronavirus

We’re grateful to the educators continuing to support students and families through the COVID-19 pandemic.

We’ve developed these resources to support student well-being and learning during school closures, and we will keep this page updated as we publish new pieces. See all

A Trauma-Informed Approach to Teaching Through Coronavirus

Experts from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network share their recommendations for educators supporting students during the COVID-19 crisis.…Read More

Resource for English language learners

Ellevation is excited to launch Ellevation Distance Learning, a new, free resource designed for educators of English language learners to support the challenges presented by school closures during the COVID-19 crisis.

What is Ellevation Distance Learning? 

Ellevation Distance Learning is a resource that includes research-based activities specifically adapted to support teachers of English learners in distance learning environments, as well as curated ideas from a community of EL educators around the world. Our instructional activities promote professional development for teachers making the transition to distance learning environments, and our community supports educators with inspiring, useful information and media.  These resources are completely free of charge and accessible to anyone.  Ellevation Distance Learning is accessible at this link: https://distance.ellevationeducation.com/home…Read More

Online professional learning facilitated by Dell

Dell Technologies is providing support to those affected by school closures and the move to distance learning by facilitating online professional learning on Teaching and Learning Remotely, facilitated by Dell’s K-12 and Higher Education Strategy Teams.

These webinar sessions are designed to address top of mind issues that teachers, professors, education leaders, and IT professionals are facing. The webinar sessions are organized around the following themes:

  • Learning Remotely
  • Leading Remotely
  • Family and Community
  • CIO Chats

Please visit Teaching and Learning Remotely for more information and to register to attend.…Read More

Open-ended learning and sharing opportunities

As the coronavirus continues to impact school districts, Education Elements is providing K-12 leaders with open-ended learning and sharing opportunities. This free, real-time support includes webinars, facilitated open dialogues, and 1:1 office hours to meet the diverse and unique needs of each community. Likely topics include leadership, equity, trauma, and virtual learning during school closures.

Education Elements are in the process of curating resources, as well as organizing more open-ended learning and sharing opportunities. This real-time support includes free webinars, facilitated drop-in chats, and 1:1 office hours for K-12 leaders like yourself should you need it. They have organized these into those focused on leadership, teachers, operations, and virtual learning.

To learn more, visit https://www.edelements.com/covid19-school-districts.…Read More

Google introduces Teach from Home

To support the hundreds of millions of students and educators currently facing school closures, we’re introducing Teach from Home—a hub providing information, tips, training and tools to help remote teaching and learning.

Recent weeks have been especially challenging for teachers, students, and families as schools close and normal routines are disrupted. This transition is all the more daunting for educators who aren’t yet comfortable using technology, let alone our tools, so we want to make it easier to get started. To help with that, we’ve developed Teach from Home, a temporary hub of information and tools to help teachers during this crisis. You’ll find resources to enable remote instruction, student engagement, collaboration with peers, and more.

For more advanced resources, explore the COVID-19 support page for training materials, blog posts, videos, and other resources to help engage students through distance learning.…Read More

Microsoft extends access to Minecraft: Education Edition and resources to support remote learning

As COVID-19 concerns prompt school closures around the world, many educators are turning to remote learning to keep students engaged.  To help teachers and students stay connected to the classroom, Minecraft: Education Edition is now available through June 2020 for all educators and learners who have a valid Office 365 Education account. Please fill out this form to verify your account and request access to Minecraft.

We have also compiled a special Minecraft remote learning toolkit, which includes more than 50 lessons, STEM curriculum and project-based learning activities so educators can use Minecraft: Education Edition with their students whether they are in school, at home or in another remote learning environment.

Features like classroom multiplayer allow students to collaborate on projects in their Minecraft worlds, building, planning, learning and even chatting as they work together. (Download this how-to guide for using Multiplayer Mode.) When they are ready to document their work and submit their projects, students can use tools like the Camera and Book & Quill to take screenshots, write about their work and export their in-game portfolios as PDF.…Read More

Free, Emergency Virtual-Learning Resources for Every School

As schools across the United States implement and prepare for school closures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in their communities, Britannica is ensuring free, emergency support and virtual-learning classroom resources to every school.

Over the past two months, Britannica has been working with its partner schools across the world, as 107 countries have implemented nationwide closures, impacting over 861.7 million children and youth. (UNESCO)

While your school or district reviews preparedness plans, Britannica invites you to take advantage of Britannica LaunchPacks Social Studies and LaunchPacks Science. These free resources are being leveraged by schools across the globe who are grappling with shutdowns and working to minimize the impact on students, families, and staff.…Read More