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Children’s education resources available to West Texas parents

Taking charge of one’s own children’s education can be a daunting task, but these resources can help.
Credit: AP images

SAN ANGELO, Texas — With schools across the countries closing their doors because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many parents are having to provide both entertainment and education to their children who are at home. The idea of coming up with your own schedules and lesson plans can be overwhelming. Here are some resources for little to no cost to help.

Local resources 

  • The San Angelo Symphony Orchestra’s Music in Literature program will be taking the show online with a free Zoom presentation at noon Friday, April 3. The program works to expose kindergarten through fifth grade students to music through literature. For more information on this event, go to sanangelosymphony.org.
  • The Abilene Zoo is doing Facebook live “Zoo EDventure” classes. The zoo’s education team will have a class on vertebrates at 10:10 a.m. Wednesday, April 8. The zoo’s Facebook page also has post of crafts and supplemental information for classes. More information can be found on the Abilene Zoo’s Facebook page.
  • Old Town Books has taken children’s story time online. Story time is available through Facebook live at 10:30 a.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays. The live stream also features crafts with the story.
  • San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts now has a virtual “Toddler Tour.” You can see the museum through the eyes of a small child. The museum also has a downloadable art kit for children. The staff also continues its joint online learning initiative with online art activities for a various age range.
  • The Abilene Public Library hosts Facebook Live story time events at 10:45 a.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. More information is available on the Abilene Public Library Facebook page.

Things you may already have access to: 

  • If you already have a Disney+ subscription, besides having the beloved favorites, also provides several National Geographic documentaries and Disney Nature features for some educational streaming.
  • Along the same lines, if you already have an Amazon Prime account, you automatically get Prime Video, which has many PBS series included in Prime for no extra cost, such as “Mister Roger’s Neighborhood” and “Reading Rainbow.”

Free online resources: 

  • Audible is forgoing subscription fees while children are out of school. Audiobook titles appropriate for different ages and in six different languages are free to stream online. Visit stories.audible.com for more information.
  • For children ages two to eight, ABCmouse.com Early Learning Academy has a free 30-day-trial that may be just help bridge the gap until schools reopen their doors. For more information, visit abcmouse.com.
  • Nat Geo Kids has a lot of different resources for kids, even an explainer about coronavirus for kids. The website features science experiments, homework help resources, history lessons, e-books as well as fun videos. For more information, visit kids.nationalgeographic.com
  • The San Diego’s Zoo has videos, activities and games focusing on animal and environmental conservation education. There are cameras live streaming from 11 different enclosures in the zoo, so even though the kids can’t visit a zoo right now due to stay-at-home orders, they can still visit the animals virtually. The website for that is kids.sandiegozoo.org.
  • Yellowstone National Park has several virtual tours to choose from on their website, if children would like to take a virtual field trip. The videos show the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, a mud volcano, Mammoth Hot Springs and Norris Geyser Basin.
  • Amazon Free Time app offers a free month trial to their subscription service. The app gives children access to games, many child appropriate videos available on Prime Video and thousands of children’s e-books, many of which there are Accelerated Reading Tests for, if your children take AR tests.
  • Mattel, the toy company, has rolled out Mattel Play Room. This website is an online platform with printable coloring pages, online games, crafting projects, videos and tips for parents and caregivers. More information can be found at mattel.com/en-us/playroom.

Teachers are still going to be an invaluable resource during this time. Any questions about a child’s education should go straight to the child’s teacher. Schools may have further resources to help guide children’s education until everyone can go back traditional learning environments.

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