As Coronavirus (COVID-19) restricts life around the globe, businesses are closing and people across all professions and industries are working from home where they can. This includes schools, which are closed for the majority of pupils. Despite this, teachers are key workers and are still providing lessons and work to pupils remotely.
As a parent or carer of a school-aged child, this leaves you with a challenge that supersedes the regular ‘can you help me with my homework’ requests. That’s right, you may now need to step up to homeschool your children. Feeling daunted by this? Rest assured, you’re not the only one who will be! Whether you are juggling working from home yourself with homeschooling, you’ve got multiple children to care for, or you are struggling with your own mental wellbeing, the phrase ‘we’re all in this together’ has never been more true. With this in mind, we have searched the internet and spoken to teachers and ex-teachers, and have put together the following list of homeschooling resources to help you. They range from science, to sports, to art, to history. Who knows, you may learn something too!
Top ten resources for homeschooled children:
- BBC Bitesize
- Futurelearn
- Joe Wicks PE lessons
- Seneca (secondary specific)
- Computer science help - Blockly and Scratch
- Ted Ed
- DuoLingo
- Cbeebies Radio (primary specific)
- National Geographic Kids
- Humanities help
BBC Bitesize: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize
Traditionally used for revision for exams, beginning Monday 20 April, BBC Bitesize will publish daily online lessons for all ages. They will also have a new dedicated TV channel full of learning content, podcasts on BBC Sounds and loads of educational video on iPlayer.
Future Learn: https://www.futurelearn.com
This website has free access to hundreds of resources, from maths and science to fashion design. You only need to pay to upgrade if you need a certificate in your name (own account from age 14+ but younger learners can use a parent account).
Joe Wicks: https://www.youtube.com/user/thebodycoach1
Made famous for his lean in 15 series, Joe started Body Coach TV on YouTube with a goal of offering free workouts to everyone. He has now become the nation’s PE teacher by broadcasting a PE lesson every weekday at 9am. Videos will last approximately half an hour, and are the perfect way to start the day. Parents, you can even get involved too!
Seneca: https://www.senecalearning.com
This is a fantastic resource for anyone who is revising at GCSE or A level. There is lots of free revision content (and there is paid access available to higher level material). You can choose your age group, subject and exam board, and get cracking with tailored online courses.
Computer science
Maybe your child already has a passion for all things computer science, or maybe they want to try something new whilst learning from home. Here are two top free resources to do just this:
Blockly: https://blockly.games
This allows your child to learn computer programming skills in a fun and engaging way.
Scratch: https://scratch.mit.edu/explore/projects/games/
With Scratch, you can program your own interactive stories, games, and animations — and share your creations with others in the online community.
Ted Ed: https://ed.ted.com
Perfect for visual and auditory learners, this website is packed full of a wide variety of engaging educational videos.
Duolingo: https://www.duolingo.com
Using the website or downloading the Duolingo app, you can learn a variety of languages for free. From Spanish, to Welsh, to Hebrew, your child may return to school as a multi-talented linguist!
Cbeebies Radio: https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/radio
Suitable for younger children, Cbeebies radio has a wealth of listening activities on offer. From nursery rhyme singalongs to learning about becoming a video games designer, there is something for every child.
National Geographic Kids: https://www.natgeokids.com/uk/
This website is packed full of activities and quizzes for younger kids.
Humanities help:
To support children with learning humanities from home, two great resources are:
Big History Project: https://www.bighistoryproject.com/home
Aimed primarily at secondary age pupils, this website will take you through 14 billion years of history in a self-guided, six-hour version of Big History. Every chapter is full of great activities to keep children entertained whilst testing their learning.
Geography Games: https://world-geography-games.com/world.html
Suitable for all ages, go online and test your knowledge of world countries, capitals and flags!
We hope this has helped to inspire you. If you’re feeling left out and fancy testing your brain over the coming weeks, there are some fantastic free taster courses available via the open university - Openlearn: https://www.open.edu/openlearn/
Thank you to one of our fantastic education consultants and ex-teachers, Paul Elliot, for sharing this list of resources with us. If you have any questions or need any more information, please feel free to email us on education@randstad.co.uk.
You can also find more working from home help and advice here.