If you have found yourself self isolating with the family at home for the foreseeable future and are worried about how you are going to plan your days and keep the youngsters occupied then this is the guide for you. From great interactive learning, to keeping the kids fit (or perhaps to tire them out!) this guide has you covered.
Getting Started
If you are at a loss when it comes to ensuring your kids are getting the education and exercise they need during times of social distancing, here are a few sites that will kick start “at home learning”, making it a little more stress free for you and a lot of fun for your children, whatever age they are!
Supercharged School is a treasure chest of learning, from Chapter Book Challenges and Solar Astronomy to learning a new language. It covers, Reading, Writing, Math & Science, Health, Language, Art, Music and Fun & Games.
Khan Academy offers a personalised learning resource for all ages and covers pretty much every subject for Early learners all the way through to applying for College! It also has free tools for parents and teachers to utilise to best understand how their children are learning and how to help them.
Super Simple – A place to learn and play. If you have young kids this is perfect for finding great ways to entertain and encourage learning via flashcards, songs, coloring pages, worksheets, indoor activities and other resources for children, teachers, and parents.
Get Moving
Sworkit Kids Workout – This handy website creates workouts for your children to follow along with, easy and straight forward and you can choose the length of the workout. Choose from Strength, Agility, Flexibility & Balance, Warm-Up, Cooldown or Stand Up and Move. If youre feeling creative you can customise your own routine, choosing from the range of exercises.
Go Noodle – Inspires all kids to be active and mindful through a wide range of videos and activities that appeal to kids of different ages, interests, skills, and abilities.
Little Twisters Yoga – Offering free access to Yoga for kids from age 2 upwards. This is a fun and creative way of encouraging movement through creative stories featuring themed yoga poses.
Explore
Google’s Arts & Culture – Just because we’re indoors, doesn’t mean we still can’t explore the world! Enjoy Museums like Uffizi Galleries (Florence), Musee d’Orsay (France), Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam), Museo Frida Kahlo (Mexico), The British Museum (London) or iconic travel locations including the Taj Mahal, Palace of Versailles, Great Pyramid of Giza, Alcatraz Island and the Colosseum.
National Geographic Young Explorers – If you have curious little minds at home then they will love this. Great magazines for inquisitive little ones who want to read along while the story is told to them.
Access Mars – This is fantastic for all those budding astronauts and space explorers. Explore a 3D replica of the surface of Mars on the Curiosity Rover.
Climate Kids – A NASA initiative that covers topics including weather & climate, atmosphere, water, energy, plants & animals. Want to know how clouds form? What’s Coral Bleaching? Spark their curiosity for the world around them.
Smithsonian Ocean – Part of the Smithsonian Institution’s Ocean Initiative, this great website focusses on all things ocean based. Learn about Ocean life from Sharks to Plankton and Microbes, Ocean Ecosystems including Coral Reefs and Deep Sea and so much more.
Met kids – Aimed at kids from 7 – 12, this is a fantastic introduction into the art world through The Metropolitan Museum of Art, with interactive map, videos, creative projects and a time machine that you control to explore exhibitions!
Music
Prodigies is a great way to teach your kids about music, with over 450 video music lessons and songs to choose from, it’s a great resource for children even as young as 1! The site currently has a 21 Day Free Trial.
Music Theory – Looking to enhance your children’s music education? This site is packed with music exercises that will challenge your young ones and increase their abilities when it comes to the Basics, Rhythm and Meter, Scales & Key Signatures, Intervals, Chords, Ear Training and so much more. This is great for any age looking to improve their musical talents.
Fun Time
Seussville – Hours and hours of fun and learning with Dr. Seuss. Activities, Crafts, Recipes and helpful Guides for Parents, this will keep you and the family busy for quite some time!
Busy Toddler – As said on the website, “Making it to naps, one activity at a time”. A great range of fun activities you can do with the kids whilst you are at home. Learn how to make a science table, colour mixing, ABC activities and much more.
All Kids Network – A huge range of Free crafts for your kids. Get creative with the Alphabet, Numbers, Shapes and Animals. Colouring pages, Kids Sudoku and Optical Illusions.
Highlights Kids – Lots of fun and learning for kids from birth to age 12. Games, Puzzles, Jokes, Recipes and lots of creative activities.
Turtle Diary – From Preschool to 5th Grade (11 years old) this handy website is set up by age so you can easily access an extensive range of Games, Videos, Quizzes, Lessons, Arts & Crafts and more.
Funbrain – Games and books for all ages. Hours of fun every day.
Story Telling
Storyline Online – This is the perfect resource for book worms. Your favourite kids books read by famous people. Arnie the Doughnut read by Chris O’Dowd, Snapsy the Alligator read by David Harbour, The Empty Pot read by Rami Malek, Quackenstein Hatches A Family read by Kristen Bell, The Hula-Hoopin Queen read by Oprah Winfrey, Harry The Dirty Dog read by Betty White, and that’s just me picking some of MY favourites! I think you and the kids will love these, there are so many to choose from and will keep your little one’s occupied throughout the day.
Magic Tree House – Based on the books, kids can join in on Missions which include fun puzzles that takes you all over the world and through history, this will get those curious minds working.
Novel Effect – A fun and unique App that encourages your kids to read stories out loud while the app adds music, sound effects and character voices. In this interactive platform, kids get to influence the way the story unfolds by using their voices.
Languages
Conjuguemos – If you are looking to sharpen up your language skills, this is a great site to learn French, Italian, German, Portuguese, Spanish, Korean, and Latin.
Science
Nasa Kids Club – Lots of fun, games and missions! Kids will absolutely love this!
Ask Dr Universe – Do your children have lots of questions about the world? Get them to submit their questions to Dr Universe, from “Why do we have different fingerprints?” to “How do earthquakes happen?” Topics cover Brain & Body, Culture, Earth and Sky, Food & Health, History and Geography, Plants, Animals and Bugs, Technology, Engineering and Math.
Interested in Cells? Learn all about them at Cells Alive.
Weather Wiz Kids – Learn all about weather from climate to tornados, natural disasters, fun experiments, weather jokes and flash cards.
Steve Spangler Science – If you’ve got budding scientists running around the house at the moment, channel that energy into these science experiments that you can do at home. Try out Secret Message with Lemon Juice, The Coin Tower Trick, or make a homemade projector.
Playmada Games – Aimed at High School Chemistry Students this website teaches fundamental science concepts using game play with science content.
Maths
Math Playground – Give your brain a workout with Number Puzzles, Brain Workouts, Math Puzzles, Logic Puzzles and lots more! Aimed at kids aged 6 – 12.
Numberphile – Looking to make maths more interesting? Numberphile has a great range of videos that explain complex topics whilst keeping the student engaged. Want to learn about Fibonacci numbers? Or what about Strings and Loops within Pi, it’s all here at the click of a mouse pad!
Teaching kids how Maths works in the real world, using real life lessons. For example, you can watch as Tim Gunn and Diane von Furstenberg explain the role of maths in fashion design, I’m sure this will pique many young people’s interest!
