The 2020-2021 school year will be like none we have ever seen. This is because many schools are approaching the school year with an entirely or partially virtual teaching model. Despite this being a great option to keep everyone healthy amidst COVID-19, it leaves many teachers at a loss for how to best approach teaching their students online. Below are some of the best resources for teachers to use during this time:
Digital Literacy Resources
Digital literacy is an important skill that is now at the forefront of education. Common Sense Media is a site with free digital literacy resources you can use for free.
Accessing Books Online
There are many places online where you can access free books and book-related resources if you know where to look. LibriVox is one example; here, you can access free audio files of books in the public domain, so there is no risk of copyright infringement. If you’re looking for content that will resonate with your students, look no further than LivBits. She is an 11-year-old who is passionate about reading and creates fun, interactive videos about books. She even created a list of children’s author resources, such as read-aloud sessions, YouTube channels, and social media handles, that you can share with your students!
Lesson Resources for Teachers
Many sites provide pre-made, easily editable lesson plans for use in the online classroom environment. Newsela is a digital content platform that provides news articles on various topics and supplies accompanying lesson plans. A broader collection of lesson plans and educational resources is available at Stop Learning Loss, a collaborative database of materials available to parents and teachers for free. If you want to take your class on a virtual field trip, look no further than Virtual School Activities, a website that has gathered the best virtual field trip resources.
Although this time of uncertainty has created some unease in the teaching profession, there are many banding together to help support one another by providing free content, lesson plans, resources, and more to teachers, students, and parents during this crisis. With the right tools and support, teachers will succeed in educating students despite the many hurdles we are faced with.