With several European countries already in lockdown, and with the prospect of school closures just around the corner here in the UK we have put together a list of useful resources to keep your kids up to speed and avoid boredom.
There is a great deal of uncertainty at the moment here in the UK about school closures.
We have put together a list of resources that will, hopefully, allow parents to plan ahead and be more confident that they cannot just keep kids of all ages entertained but also their minds active and engaged. Please explore the list and if you have any you think we have missed do let us know. We hope it can be used to reduce stress and anxiety around the broader real-world impact of school closures.
This article is designed to outline external education resources. For general advice of Coronavirus and the school closures, you can find more information on the Governments COVID-19 portal.
STEM Learning – Resources for children of all ages
Born to Engineer favourites, STEM Learning, have a range of fantastic resources (from activity packs to videos and lesson plans) for children from Primary to Secondary school age.
STEM Learning is unique in that all there resources are marked as quality assured which allows you to be confident that you are teaching your kids the right stuff. STEM Learning is completely free to access but you do need to sign up for an account.
Resources from Engineering organisations and societies.
- The Royal Academy of Engineering has a selected of teaching and learning resources which have been created by teachers and engineers that aim to engage school students with science, technology and mathematics by placing these subjects in engineering contexts.
- The IET has a set of free teaching resources aimed at secondary teachers of Science, Maths, Design & Technology and Computing which can be adapted for us at home
- The James Dyson foundation produces a series of physical teaching packs around its products. While you might be able to get hold of the pack itself the PDFs are free to download from the website and can be used alongside Dyson products you might already have in the home.
- Tomorrows Engineers have put together a series of excellent activity packs which are signed posted from ‘easy as pie’ to ‘practice makes perfect’ allowing you to tailor them to your child’s ability level. Topics range from Heat Exchange to Bath Fizzies
- UK supercar Bloodhound has a series of free resources which include videos and fast fact sheets.
Online Resources for Infant and Primary School Children
- Prodigy is an online learning platform that aims to boost in-game math skills. They offer Depth of Knowledge levels one to three. While they are aimed at a US audience (with resources for 1st to 8th-grade children in the US) there is significant overlap with the UK circulumn.
- Khan Academy already has cult status online. Excellent online courses for a broad range of subjects. They have produced resources specifically for school closures as well as producing a daily schedule for students ages 4-18. Find more resources here.
- Cool Maths Games does what they say on the tin. Cool maths games for a range of ages.
- The CK12 Foundation offers a range of STEM and Social Science courses for older children (Grade 6 and up in US terms)
- NeoK12 – while looking very dated – has a broad selection of educational videos which are ideal for spicing up subjects
- Storyline has a range of stories to help young children read (similar to BBC Bedtime Stories)
- Squiggle Park aims to help children read with resources for ages 3-to-15+.
- NewsELA is designed as a distance learning platform but has a number of free courses for older children. It is aimed at a US audience.
- Mystery Doug is a series of 5 minutes videos perfect for break time for younger children. Doug answers just about every question you or your children can think of.
- National Geographic has a number of interactive quizzes and resources to download.
- History for Kids has a number of downloadable PDFs for younger children
- Typing Club can get your kids touch typing up to speed.
- Mad libs are funny stories created on the spot. Pick a story from any category and fill in a word for each prompt
- English Worksheets Land has loads of Worksheets from Nursery up to GCSE level. Aimed at a US audience but plenty of cross over.
- E-Learning for Kids has a large number of child-friendly games and projects.
- Highlights Kids has everything from joke videos to Did You Know Facts and Recipes. Great for breaks.
- Fun Brain has videos, games and books for children of all ages.
- The Smithsonian has a number of online exhibits and educational resources.
- Brain Pop has classroom resources that can be easily adapted for home teaching
- Scholastic has a number of day-by-day projects to keep kids reading, thinking, and learning.
- Udemy has a selection of free Maths courses and free coding courses. For those with younger kids the coding guides have everything to get your kids interested.
Online Resources for Secondary School Children
- NewsELA is designed as a distance learning platform but has a number of free courses for older children. It is aimed at a US audience.
- Khan Academy already has cult status online. Excellent online courses for a broad range of subjects. They have produced resources specifically for school closures as well as producing a daily schedule for students ages 4-18. Find more resources here.
- The Smithsonian has a number of online exhibits and educational resources.
- PBS Learning Media (think US BBC) has a number of fantastic videos on more complex topics.
- Our own Born to Engineer videos are a great way to learn more about engineering careers.
- English Worksheets Land has loads of Worksheets from Nursery up to GCSE level. Aimed at a US audience but plenty crosses over.
- Curiosity Stream is a paid service ($20 a year) and gives you access to a large number of documentaries.
- Tynker is a good introduction for younger Secondary Students to learn the basics of coding.
- Outschool has a range of video classes on a broad range of topics. Sadly many are paid and aimed at US audience.
- Beast Academy for Students 8-13 has a number of activities. It is a paid service but the code FlattenTheCurve during checkout for $15 off a new Monthly or Yearly subscription
- Creativebug offers online video arts and crafts workshops and techniques. Learn how to paint, knit, crochet, sew, screenprint, and more
- Udemy has a selection of free Maths courses and free coding courses. These cover everything from Flash Speed Squaring to GCSE revision for Maths and guides to get your kids interested in coding for parents.
Best Educational Youtube Channels
When all else fails Youtube provides an unlimited selectional of really high-quality educational channels for a range of agers. We recommend —
Youtube for Younger Children
- Crash Course Kids
- Science Channel
- SciShow Kids
- National Geographic Kids
- Free School
- Kids Learning Tube
- Science Max
- SoulPancake
Youtube for Older Children
- Kurzgesagt
- Crash Course (Older Kids)
- SciShow
- Geography Focus
- TheBrainScoop
- Geeek Gurl Diaries
- Mike Likes Science
We hope this list of resources helps you. If you have any suggestions or feedback we would love to hear from you at [email protected]
