Now, with schools shut down at least until summer, many educational technology companies are offering their software free for a limited time. Even though we’ve been teaching our children at home before it became the norm, that’s no reason not to take advantage of these offers. Educational technology can be a benefit to homeschoolers in many ways. We can connect to the larger world, locally and globally. The use of technology is crucial for many careers in the 21st century. Educational software may support parents in areas that are not their strongest suit, be it math, English or social studies. If you’ve hesitated to use software because it wasn’t in your budget, or you didn’t want to spend your limited curriculum dollars on material you aren’t sure is a benefit, here is your chance to try out hundreds of apps and educational games, for free.
Free educational software
- 7 Generation Games: As of March 16 until U.S. schools reopen, 7 Generation Games is making all of their games and apps available for free for everyone. Their software teaches math and social studies, for grades three through eight.
https://www.7generationgames.com/free-2020/ - Learning in a Time of Coronavirus: List of EdTech companies offering educational resources for free.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1jH4y-YZsh7iNv9UQca4FSQEM2-k3oHCyFDr3QDSyTgs/edit?usp=sharing - Free Tech for Learning: List of free products offered by companies and organizations to support learning during extended school closures.
https://www.learningkeepsgoing.org/free-tech-for-learning - Tech for Learners: Products and services offered by EdTech companies to help you meet your learning and teaching needs for schools, districts, states, universities, the workforce, families, and learners.
https://www.techforlearners.org/find.html - COVID-19 Support: This page gives a glimpse of how these companies are helping teachers and learners to overcome the challenges posed by the pandemic.
https://www.jobors.com/covid-19 - Ed Games Expo “Goes Virtual”: Learning games and technologies at no cost through the end of the school year for use in distance learning settings with internet access.
https://ies.ed.gov/blogs/research/post/the-ed-games-expo-goes-virtual-to-support-distance-learning-82-us-department-of-education-and-government-supported-learning-games-and-technologies-are-now-available-at-no-cost-until-the-end-of-the-school-year - Homeschool-Curriculum.org: Free Online Educational Resources You Can Start Using Now
https://homeschool-curriculum.org/free_online_educational_resources Yes, that’s us! We’ve been learning at home before it was cool! - Learneverywhere.org: Learn math and history while playing.
https://learneverywhere.org/learn-math-and-history-while-playing/
Diversity in Tech, for Homeschoolers
- National Indian Education Association recommends: Virtual Resources for Parents, Families, and Communities that provide accurate, authentic education on indigenous history and culture
https://www.niea.org/new-blog-2/virtual-resources - Bilingual games, in Spanish and English – 7 Generation Games is currently offering all of their bilingual games for free, while US schools are closed. Their site also includes resources for the teacher/ parent in Spanish and English.
Hands-on activities
- 275+ Enrichment Activities: Check out this complete list of activities your children can do at home while homeschooling or while in quarantine.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1KCFnWreu4v7VoO3NbgP-Qcq2LyE1FvliYSoiTLRY7Qg/htmlview?usp=sharing
2 Comments. Leave new
There are a lot of online programs, ranging from public schools to charter schools to private academies. Generally speaking, the more involved the school in teaching and monitoring your child, the greater the cost. For example, Laurel Springs costs $13,000 a year, which is pricey for me. However, you can select the one or two courses your child needs for independent study for $700 and teach the rest yourself. I did that for her two children. They took science and math with LSS and I selected books for them to read for English and history, so it was a fraction of the cost. https://laurelsprings.com/academics/single-course-offerings/ Maybe other home schoolers want to recommend programs their children attended?
my granddaughter wants to be home schooled . we tried FLVS but it didn’t work for her. it was to much free time so we wasted a whole year on this and it was not a good ending. Is there a home school program that she can do where they send the work to her. she is a 9th grader.