FREE RESOURCES TO HELP EDUCATORS, PARENTS, & CAREGIVERS WITH AT HOME READING AND LEARNING
READ ENC is grateful to many community partners, educators, and a variety of organizations who provided suggestions for the learning resources included below, focused not only on literacy/reading, but other content areas. Some resources are listed in multiple places, but all are included below so they are accessible via this READ ENC webpage. All are free or have free access options. Preview resources to determine those appropriate for your child or student(s).
ABC's of Active Reading
Birth - Any age for shared reading
A simple model to help parents/caregivers know better how to read with their children and talk with them in the process, building language, vocabulary, and comprehension skills.
ABCya
PK - Grade 6
Provides more than 400 fun and educational games/activities designed by parents and educators.
Amazing Free Online Learning Resources
All Ages
from WeAreTeachers.com
Audible
All Ages
by exploring a wide selection of historical games and activities. Free streaming available for some of Audible’s audiobooks from their collection organized by age and theme.
BBC History for Kids
Elementary and Older
Offers learning the opportunity to enter ancient worlds, meet famous people, and discover fascinating facts by exploring a wide selection of historical games and activities.
Bedtime Math
Ages 3-9
Mobile apps meant to make math a fun part of kids’ everyday lives, as beloved as the bedtime story.
Big List of Children's Authors Doing Online Read Aloud and Activities
All Ages
from We Are Teachers.com
Book Flix
PK - Grade 3
Scholastic’s online literacy resource that pairs classic video storybooks from Weston Woods with related nonfiction from Children’s Press and other trusted Scholastic imprints. This engaging resource for children in grades pre-K through 3 helps early readers develop and practice essential reading skills and introduces them to a world of knowledge and exploration. Many titles available in both English and Spanish. Sign up for a free trial!
Circle Round
Ages 4 - 10
Created and produced via WBUR by parents of young children, Circle Round is a collection of 10-20 minute podcasts that adapts carefully-selected folktales from around the world into sound- and music-rich radio plays.
Code
K - 12
Provides free K-12 computer science lessons and games to help students learn how to code at an earlier age. Searchable by a number of features, the site is supported by tech company donors, including Amazon, Facebook, Google, Microsoft and many more.
¡Colorín Colorado!
K - 12
A bilingual site for educators and families of English language learners.
Cool Math 4 Kids
All Ages
Math games, lessons, quizzes, manipulatives, brain teasers, and more.
Dav Pilkey at Home
K - 4
Dav Pilkey, author of the well-loved Captain Underpants series, debuts a weekly online episode featuring drawing, activities, exciting videos, and so much more.
Day By Day Ohio
Birth - Kindergarten
A perpetual calendar of day-by-day activities that support early literacy, including songs, activities, book suggestions and videos produced as a service of the State Library of Ohio.
Encantos One Big World Campaign
Preschool - Early Elementary
Bilingual preschool publisher Encantos is supporting UNICEF by launching its One Big World Campaign #onebigworld, as well as a social media campaign @gotinytravelers meant to share global photos of what children and their families love about the world. Also includes a Learning Hub with downloadable world geography and culture lessons for young learners.
Exploratorium
All Ages
San Francisco museum’s ongoing online learning exploration of science, art, and human perception.
Farmville Public Library
All Ages
Has a variety of digital books/resources available with a FPL library card.
*Scroll down for content
Goodnight with Dolly
Birth - Early Elementary
The Book Lady, Dolly Parton, reads bedtime stories to kids through online videos. Books are selected from her Imagination Library program.Videos will be posted once a week for ten weeks at 7 p.m. starting April 2, 2020 and can be viewed at the Imagination Library Website (scroll down to view archived weekly videos) or LIVE via Imagination Library’s Facebook page.
Google Arts & Culture
All Ages
Google has teamed with over 500 museums and galleries around the world to offer virtual tours and online exhibits.
Harper Collins Children's Books
All Ages
This site is home to the likes of Shel Silverstein, C.S. Lewis. Maurice Sendak, Beverly Cleary, Neil Gaiman, The Berenstain Bears, Fancy Nancy, the Divergent series, the Selection series, the Red Queen series, and more. Includes book trailers, author interviews, and read alouds of original content.
HMH Books for Young Readers Resource Library and E-Newsletter
All Ages
Free activities, and videos by authors and illustrators – that are emailed weekly (via the #Home with HMH e-newsletter) to support families and educators. In addition to the e-newsletter, the HMH Books Young Readers Resource Library contains free content and downloads. Sign up for #Home with HMH
E-Newsletter here.
Home Reading Helper
PK - 3
A reading resource for helping parents and their children at home. Created and shared by Read Charlotte, free videos, activities, games, and other resources are offered in a format that is geared for a parent audience.
Indoor and Outdoor Home Activities
All Ages
Suggested by Shelburne Farms, a sustainable farm in Shelburne, VT.
International Children's Digital Library
All Ages
Offers a collection of books for the world’s children meant to represent outstanding historical and contemporary books from around the globe. Ultimately, the International Digital Children’s Foundation (IDCF) aspires to have all cultures and languages represented so that every child can know and appreciate the riches of children’s literature from the world community.
Just Books
All Ages
963 different children’s picture books read aloud by a narrator. Searchable by multiple factors, including length, author, narrator, category, and languages.
Kellogg Garden
Preschool - Elementary Kids
A collection of children’s literature focused videos, podcasts, crafts, trailers, and activities. Downloadable “10 Garden Activities to Do With Kids”, a free guide including step-by-step activities that will inspire budding little gardeners to explore the joy of growing something themselves.
Kelly Yang
Upper Elementary - Young Adult
Author Kelly Yang hosts free writing classes for teens every Mon., Wed., and Fri. on her instagram page. Past classes are archived on her website.
KidLitTV
All Ages
A collection of children’s literature focused videos, podcasts, crafts, trailers, and activities.
Khan Academy Kids
Ages 2 - 7
Inspire a lifetime of learning and discovery via Khan Academy’s program available free through the App Store, Google Play, or Amazon app store.
Magination Press
PK - Teens
A collection of free family resources developed by authors and psychologists associated with the American Psychological Association. Author readings, writing prompts, and additional activities are focused on mindfulness and managing stress and anxiety.
Math Learning Center
PK - Grade 5
A variety of math apps about topics such as fractions, money, time, number lines, patterns, geometry, and more.
National Geographic Education Resource Library
PK - Grade 12
Offers an array of resources and lesson plans searchable by grade level, content type, and subjects.
National Geographic Family at Home
PK - Grade 12
A new platform for children, parents, and educators to access free content including games, videos, and activities. Through the site, readers can explore remotely with National Geographic Explorers, read content from the publisher’s Weird but True and Zeus the Mighty series, and conduct experiments from home.
National Geographic for Kids
Ages 7 - 13
Provides child-friendly resources about places, people, and animals around the world courtesy of the National Geographic Society.
Newsela
All Ages
Offers a variety of news content through a partnership with over 100 trusted names in publishing to that excites and motivates students to learn more. More than 10 new texts published every day. Newsela articles are available at 5 reading levels, ranging from grades 2-12. Offered free throughout the duration of the 2019-2020 academic year.
Nomad Press Learning Center
Young learners with interest in the scientific & engineering design process
Old Farmer's Almanac for Kids
Ages 8 and up
Stories and engaging activities to explore on a variety of topics including fun facts, fascinating stories, and more.
PBS Kids
Preschool - Grade 2
Educational Games and Videos offered by the Public Broadcasting Service.
PBS LearningMedia
Preschool - Grade 12
PBS LearningMedia producers and educators have come together to curate a special collection of resources organized by grade and subject area. Find videos, lesson plans, and activities that support learning at home. Spanish-language content available.
Peachtree Remote Learning Resources
Every Age Range and Level
Free downloadable materials for students, educators, and families including teacher’s guides, discussion guides, and activities including a wide variety of author and illustrator videos.
Penguin Kids Virtual Story Time
Ages vary with virtual story times
A #ReadTogetherBeTogether Virtual Storytime featuring authors and celebrities airing at 3PM EDT/12PM PDT Daily. Visit the Penguin Kids FB page for the Virtual Storytime lineup, including where to watch.
Pernille Ripp's Picture Book Read Alouds
All Read Aloud Ages
Literacy blogger, Pernille Ripp’s list of videos/podcasts featuring book creators reading their own children’s books.
Poems Kids Like
K - Grade 6
Offers a selection of poems that kids love. Compiled by the Academy of American Poets, many of these poems are especially suitable for younger children and students of elementary age.
Read & Learn with Simon Kids
Kids of All Ages
Simon & Schuster Children’s publisher’s learning hub includes digital and downloadable resources for family and kids, as well as Facebook and YouTube videos featuring S&S authors. Website offers an easy-to-navigate overview of everything featured, including leveled book lists, reading group/curriculum guides, graphic novel and YA collection guides, and more.
Scholastic Learn at Home
PK - Grade 9
This site features day-by day projects to keep kids reading, thinking, and growing. Books are incorporated in projects and are narrated (or can be read) in English. Many are also available in Spanish.
Scholastic News
Grade 1 - Grade 6
Combines non-fiction texts and digital resources that ignite student engagement, learning, and interest across a variety of content areas.
Shel Silverstein Resources
All Ages
A collection of Shel Silverstein poetry activities, read aloud videos, and more from Harper Collins.
Sheppard Memorial Library
All Ages
A variety of digital books/resources available with an SML library card and calendar information about accessing virtual storytimes throughout the week.
Smithsonian Fun Stuff for Kids
All Ages
Smithsonian resources including free videos, articles, games, activities, and live video streams focused on reading, science, and social studies content.
Storyline Online
K - Grade 5
Offers videos of celebrity actors reading children’s books accompanied by creative produced illustrations. All videos are linked with an activity that K-5 students can do at home.
Storytime from Space
Elementary - Middle School Ages
Features videos of astronauts reading children’s books while in space on the International Space Station. This project is sponsored by the Global Space Education Foundation.
Unite For Literacy
PK - Grade 5
Offers more than 400 original digital picture books in a variety of subject areas. Audio narrations by native speakers are available in more than 40 languages, one fourth of them written in Spanish.
Virtual Field Trips
PK - Grade 12
Links to more than 30 virtual field trips including zoos, national parks, planets, live cams, farms, and more.
Wonderopolis
All Ages
A website offered by the National Centers for Families Learning where natural curiosity and imagination lead to exploration and discovery for learners of all ages. Each day, an intriguing question—the Wonder of the Day®—is posed and explored in a variety of ways.
Workman Publishers
PK - Grade 12
A gathered array of free resources from all of its subsidiary publishers including educator guides, reading group guides, and sample pages from many of their offerings for educators and K-12 students.
*Thanks to READ Charlotte.org and Dr. Elizabeth Swaggerty, East Carolina University College of Education colleague, for special assistance in identifying some of these resources.
Updated 5/6/2020