No Teaching Experience But Now Homeschooling? These Resources Will Get You Started

In the past few days, my admiration for teachers has grown even bigger. Taking on the lesson planning, daily structure, conflict resolution, and management of constant wiggles is tough, especially when parents are also supposed to be working from home. 

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There are so many great, free resources available. We’ve pulled together a few things our schools have recommended and ones our editors have been using. More to come in the days ahead, but we hope this list is a great starting point as each one of us figures out what works best for our families.

Free Comprehensive Curriculums

It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the choice of resources available. Scholastic and PBS Learning Media offer easy-to-navigate and follow lessons by grade level—from pre-K to high school. 

• Scholastic Learn at Home
• PBS Learning Media

Free Supplemental Resources

For our littles, an activity can occupy their hands and minds, plus make learning fun. The following activities, printable worksheets, and educational videos with accompanying activities can add variety and hands-on learning to your day. 

• Hands-On Activities for Preschoolers
• Free Worksheets By Grade—Pre-K to High School
• Mystery Science Mini-Lessons and Full-Lessons K—5th Grade (but my 4-year-old is loving them too)

Source: @apriljoy_ful via #sharetheeverymom

Scheduled Livestream Learning 

• Facebook LIVE Miss Megan’s Kindergarten at 10am ET: Megan, a former kindergarten teacher and current preschool assistant presents a “Morning Meeting” to get your kid’s day started. She recommends the camp for kids ages 3-7. Her own young daughters are in attendance, which helps it feels like there are other kids in class and reinforces we’re all in this together.
• YouTube Lunchtime Doodles with Mo Willems 1pm ET: Author Mo Willems of Pigeon, Knuffle Bunny, and Elephant and Piggy hosts a lunchtime Doodle session and studio tour weekdays at 1pm ET.
• Facebook LIVE Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden Home Safaris at 3pm ET: Fiona, the famous preemie hippo, started the Zoo’s Home Safari series off strong. We joined over 100 thousand fellow fans as the zookeepers shared facts about hippos while introducing viewers to Fiona and her mom Bibi. Set a reminder to join each day at 3pmET.

Get the Wiggles Out

• Go Noodle: Quick 2-5-minute videos work well for a quick brain and body break. With tons of videos, Go Noodle can offer something new every day.
• Cosmic Yoga (Designed for kids 3+): Cosmic Yoga has become a great way to start the day and end the day in our house. The longer episodes based on some favorite kids’ movies have been the biggest hits, like the Trolls, Frozen, or Star Wars episodes.
• Just Dance: Who doesn’t love a good dance party? Just Dance (like the video game) has high-energy short dance videos for your kids to follow along.

Read More: COVID-19 School Closures Are Here—This Is What Real Moms Are Doing to Occupy Their Kids