Hello from the virtual world, my friends! So many of our business owners, teachers, and artists are offering ways to connect from screen to screen. From remote lessons to virtual tours to entertainment sure to bring a smile to your faces, here are just a few of the resources available for Philadelphia area families.
Remember, we are all in this together.
Virtual Extracurriculars
Camp Stomping Ground
Hometown Stomping Ground offers virtual options, written materials, and recorded videos to keep kids active, connected, and having fun while at home. Virtual options have included Baking, Dungeons and Dragons, Thrifty Fashion Show, Just Dance!, and more. Written materials include game write ups and other activities to do from home. Recorded videos include guitar practices, soccer skills, and more. All resources are free and available at hometownstompingground.org.
The Elmwood Park Zoo
The Elmwood Park Zoo is hosting Zoo School Live! every Monday-Friday at 11 a.m. on Facebook Live, posting videos on their Youtube channel, and providing at-home activities at elmwoodparkzoo.org.
Rock To The Future
Join Rock to the Future for live virtual learning starting 4/6/20, free for students in grades 4-12. Write songs and make beats with Soundtrap, free digital music software, with help from a music instructor. Plus, check their list of free online resources for music learning at home at https://rocktothefuture.org/online-learning.
Outschool
Outschool.com offers live online classes for kids (ages 3-18), conducted over video chat. Their marketplace of qualified teachers can help students continue learning at home by providing a safe, vetted, and fun classroom experience. Classes topics include academic and extracurricular, starting as as low as $5/class. They’ve also launched outschool.org where they made $500K of classes available for free to support students in public school affected by closures in the wake of COVID-19.
School of Rock Philadelphia
School of Rock has gone remote with online lessons for guitar, bass, drums, keyboards and vocals all on a safe/password secured platform for all ages and levels of experience. Schedule your online trial lesson at https://locations.schoolofrock.com/philadelphia by using the “Schedule Your School Tour” form.
Wolf Performing Arts Center
Wolf Performing Arts Center is offering virtual private lessons for your performer! Hone your skills in singing or acting with one-on-one coaching with a theatre professional. Together, they will identify goals and work together to create theatre and music and enjoy the arts right from your own home. They’ve also launched “Wolf Bytes!” on Facebook and Instagram with short videos created by theatre professionals exploring different areas of theatre. www.wolfperformingartscenter.org
Merge Dance Studio
Merge Dance Studio in Manayunk is offering FREE dance and fitness classes on their Facebook page, www.facebook.com/MergeDanceStudio, during the shutdown. Visit their page to watch classes that have already been posted and to be notified about upcoming classes.
Portside Arts Center
Portside Arts Center is offering weekly Saturday virtual art classes for teens, with offerings to keep everyone occupied and artsy while practicing social distancing. Classes are $10. https://www.portsideartscenter.org/virtual-art-classes.html
Crayola Experience
Crayola Experience is providing free fun and educational activities on their “At Home with Crayola Experience” online hub. Parents can download free step-by-step crafting instructions, coloring pages, games, apps, and color experiments using household items at www.CrayolaExperience.com/Creativity-at-Home. Activities also are posted daily on Facebook at www.facebook.com/crayolaexperience.
Mural Arts Philadelphia
Mural Arts Philadelphia has been hard at work bringing beauty and igniting change in this challenging time. The nation’s leading public art program has developed initiatives to spread positive public health messaging while employing artists, provide at-home art instruction for students, fly above the murals with tour guides, and engage in community conversations. More at muralarts.org.
Adventure Aquarium
Adventure Aquarium is offering a variety of daily, family-friendly videos and kid’s worksheets. A favorite is Cliff’s Picks, a penguin book club that happens every Monday at 12N. Other videos give viewers a peek behind the scenes, animal Q&As, and a Friday lunchtime feeding. Find them on Facebook or adventureaquarium.com.
Kitchen Wizards
Kitchen Wizards is keeping in touch with the community by posting a recipe each day on social media – check their Facebook and Instagram.
STEAM
Snapology
Snapology has taken their popular Snapology STEAM Classes online. They have adapted their curriculum so that your child can make their screen time count with engaging and entertaining STEAM enrichment. See the online classes here: https://bit.ly/SnapologyPhillyOnline
BSD Education
BSD Education is offering Virtual Code Clubs for grades 3-8. Students who participate will develop a portfolio of work, build websites and games, gain applicable coding skills, and will have access to the BSD online learning platform forever. Learn more at https://bsd.education/virtual-code-club-pa/.
GiftEd Philly Tutoring
GiftEd Philly Tutoring is taking a relational approach to their online tutoring program. Their tutors specialize in student-centered, individually tailored learning plans for any academic subject. For program and rates, visit https://giftedphilly.com.
Spells Writing Lab
Spells Writing Lab is offering free, live creative writing workshops designed to entertain and educate children ages 7–12 every Tuesday and Thursday at 11 a.m. on Facebook. Videos for past workshops can also be viewed online.
After School at Home with ASAP
ASAP remains committed to bringing Philadelphia youth enrichment experiences to keep those brains moving, creative juices flowing & friendships growing (virtually of course) by sharing FREE after school activities that can be done at home, every day at 3 p.m. on their social media platforms (@phillyasap on FB, Twitter & Instagram). All activities, worksheets and resources can be accessed at https://bit.ly/asap_afterschoolathome
Varsity Tutors
The largest live learning platform in the U.S. recently added numerous free resources to help students and parents cope with school closures due to COVID-19. More than 100 free live K-12 classes are available all day long to help parents fill their children’s day with enriched learning. Some popular classes are “Intro to Spanish for Kids”, “Coolest Women in History”, “Java Programming Basics”, and “The Story of Your Favorite Fairy Tales”. https://www.varsitytutors.com/virtual-school-day.
Virtual Summer Camps are free half-day summer camps with enrichment-based classes in subjects like foreign languages, chess, theater, coding, Minecraft, how to be a detective, photography and more. https://www.varsitytutors.com/virtual-summer-camps
Entertainment
Ants on a Log Music
Join Ants on a Log for online concerts every Tuesday and Thursday at 4 p.m. on FB Live. Silly songs, tongue twisters, Ants on a Log sing-a-longs, requests, and shenanigans! Streaming live at www.Facebook.com/AntsonaLogMusic
Pay what you can.
WHYY Podcasts
The Radio Adventures of Eleanor Amplified follows Eleanor, a famous radio host and journalist who will stop at nothing to uncover the truth. This season, Eleanor and her friends overcome many dangerous adventures to uncover the secrets of the Omicron Gammas who are plotting on world domination. Eleanor Amplified is an action/adventure podcast from WHYY that targets pre-teens (ages 8-12). Episodes of The Radio Adventures of Eleanor Amplified are free to listen and released weekly here.
Resources for Parents
Khan Academy
Khan Academy, an educational nonprofit with free, interactive learning materials for students and free tools for teachers and parents, released new resources including detailed daily schedules for students ages 4 to 18 that parents, teachers and district administrators can use to keep students learning at home.
HeyKiddo
HeyKiddo™ texts conversation starters and coaching tips to help build the habit of meaningful conversation with your child. Parents also receive activities that cultivate social, emotional and leadership skills. Child psychologists create social-emotional learning lesson plans to help with homeschooling and releasing fun activities for your kiddos to occupy some time. HeyKiddo™ is completely free during this current global crisis.
Therapy Concierge
Join Therapy Concierge for a free virtual COVID-19 parent support group every Thursday from 7-8 p.m. during the month of May. Check their website for additional information and the zoom link: www.therapyconciergellc.com
Huntingdon Learning Center
Huntingdon Learning Center offers the free Webinar: Remote Learning: How to Keep Your Child Engaged Webinar: Tips to Maximize Learning at Home
